#275 (Shelley Karpathakis) – A Culture of Defiance: Building Values-Driven Organisations

In this episode, Shelley Flett sits down with Shelly Karpathakis - an equity, inclusion, wellbeing and culture leader with a background in counselling and advocacy, to explore what it really means to lead with defiance in today’s complex, values-driven world.

Drawing on her work with diverse communities through the Australian LGBTIQA+ Multicultural Council, Shelly brings a deeply human lens to leadership, challenging the subtle yet powerful social conditioning that shapes how we show up at work and in life. Together, they unpack the gap between what organisations say they value and how those values are actually lived, diving into honest conversations about power, trust, inclusion and the courage it takes to question “the way things have always been done.”

With warmth and insight, this conversation reveals how curiosity, connection and the ability to disagree well can transform not just workplace culture, but the way we relate to each other as humans - reminding us that meaningful change happens not in grand gestures, but in small, intentional steps taken together.

Connect with Shelly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelley-karpathakis-771a5b189/

Connect with Shelley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelleyflett/⁠⁠

Work with Shelley: ⁠⁠https://shelleyflett.com ⁠

Shelley books: https://www.shelleyflett.com/shop