Most leadership programmes focus on what you do.

This one focuses on how you lead.

In an increasingly AI-driven world, emotional skills are fast becoming your most valuable leadership asset. Because emotion isn't a distraction from performance – it's the mechanism that drives it.

Neuroscience shows that emotions drive attention, decision-making, and behaviour. When you understand that, you have a better chance of handling the dynamics that unravel a lot of leaders.

This practical one-day course gives you a suite of customisable tools to build teams that are motivated, capable, and connected. And they work in any context (you just need humans).

💡 What makes this different?

This isn’t about being a “nice” leader (although honestly, being nicer is often a side-effect) — it’s about understanding how people work.

When you can read and shape the emotional patterns in your team, you can influence behaviour and performance in ways most leaders overlook.

Grounded in behavioural science, this course bridges theory and practice. You’ll learn to use emotions as data (not drama 🎭) and leave with simple conversation and facilitation tools you can apply immediately to strengthen trust, communication, and team performance.

🧠 Why this matters

When people feel uncertain, undervalued, or disconnected, their brains prioritise survival and self-protection over collaboration and creativity.

Understanding people's emotional drivers will help you reduce friction, build trust, and sustain motivation — especially when the going gets tough.

If you can name the emotions that might be driving your team’s reactions, you can lead through pressure and ambiguity with far more confidence. Leaders who can read and respond to emotional signals:

✅ make better decisions
✅ communicate more clearly, and
✅ create psychologically healthy places to work.

That’s not soft leadership — it’s adaptive leadership.

What you'll learn

By the end of the day, you’ll have some flexible tools to:

🎯 Lead yourself – build your emotional literacy and recognise your own drivers so you can be the leader your team needs, and adapt to change more effectively
🎯 Lead others – create genuine connections that foster trust and motivation (without the cringe)
🎯 Lead teams – identify and establish the emotions your team needs to thrive, and design the culture that supports that
🎯 Navigate challenging dynamics – handle the moments you used to avoid, using straightforward frameworks to prepare and guide you
🎯 Reflect and sustain – use simple but powerful tools and rituals to keep your leadership grounded and growing

And you'll `not only be certified – you’ll be ready to apply what you’ve learned the very next day.

What you get (over $700 in value 🤯)

📜 Certification as an ECD Emotional Leadership Development Practitioner – a globally recognised certification to enhance your professional credentials

🃏 Your own Emotional Culture Deck (NZ~$175/US$99 if purchased online) – the core resource you need in your hands for leading change conversations

⚙️ ECD Leadership Toolkit (NZ~$235/US$134 to purchase digital downloads online) – a riders&elephants exclusive, this includes a total of 8 guides, handbooks and canvases, including two workshop plans

🌍 90 day access to the online ECD Community – an exclusive space for certified practitioners where you can connect, learn, and grow with the best! Gain access to a rich library of downloadable resources and online meet ups (NZ~$175/US$99 for a quarterly subscription but your first 90 days are included)

💬 A 1:1 coaching session with Certified Consultant Kathryn Ruge – personalised support to embed your learning (scheduled in early 2026)

👥 A 60-minute bonus workshop – reconnect with your cohort, refresh and deepen your learning (scheduled 8 weeks after the course)

🌱 50% off future ECD purchases – save with an exclusive lifetime discount to help you build and expand your toolkit at a fraction of the cost

🥗 A fully catered experience – enjoy a barista coffee, fingerfood lunch, and all day snacks

🐦🪱 Early Bird – $797+GST (save $100 until 11.59pm Friday 31 October)
🐦 Standard Bird – $897+GST (available until 11.59pm Thursday 20 November or when tickets sell out – whichever comes first)

When you click on the Get tickets button, you have the option of paying immediately or via invoice. Please note that whether you pay via the Humanitix platform or invoice, the Humanitix booking fees (which directly support educational and healthcare charities) are added to your ticket cost, along with GST.

I keep my group sizes small (max 10) to ensure you receive a premium learning experience 🏅.

🧠 People don't want to be managed, they want to be led with emotional intelligence. This is the first time the Leadership Development Practitioner specialisation has been offered as a public, in person course in Ōtautahi/Christchurch – reserve your place now and be one of the first to take this key step in your leadership journey.

Kathryn Ruge

Your facilitator

Kia ora, I’m Kathryn Ruge, an experienced communications and change strategist with a deep desire to see people thrive at work.

After 16 years at one of the world’s most trusted and innovative airlines, I spent a decade helping leaders and organisations build trust through strategic communications: strengthening relationships, managing reputational issues, and leading change.

Now I specialise in developing trustworthy, emotionally skilled leaders and teams so you can communicate, innovate, and adapt to whatever is in front of you – and have a better time at work while you're doing it.

Five years ago I was one of the first Certified Emotional Culture Deck Consultants in the world. To inform my work I'm currently a part-time Masters psychology + neuroscience student at King's College London.

With a mission to reduce workplace harm caused by psychosocial factors, I'm also one of a few people in New Zealand trained to use the Fearless Scan as a measure of psychological safety within teams, and equipped to facilitate conversations that enable better performance, stronger collaboration, and healthier team environments.

When you come to my courses you get firsthand access to a wealth of knowledge and experience (essentially an all-day AMA!).

What others say about my facilitation and work with The Emotional Culture Deck...

"A great, relaxed day of learning about a clever system and tool ... so relevant for creating awareness and trust, and providing a safe and easy opening to important conversations, whether 1:1 or in a group. Highly recommended."

"The course was very helpful for learning more about the different ways to use the cards. Kathryn is energetic and passionate about the ECD and what it enables, and I loved how much human connection was baked in throughout."

"A highly worthwhile exercise delivered by a very skilled facilitator in Kathryn Ruge."

Contact the host of Emotional Culture Deck - Leadership Development Practitioner Certification