Commitment follows trust; trust follows empathy
Daniel Murray blends the worlds of organisational strategy, behavioural economics, and strategic empathy with simplicity and practicality to help even the most analytical thinkers engage in the world of empathic leadership.
Current Work:
With a degree in Mathematics, an MBA and a long career in strategy and management consulting within Australia's largest Financial Services organisations, Daniel now helps businesses and leaders to drive performance through people, culture and empathy.
His company, Empathic Consulting, was born out of Daniel's desire to embed empathic leadership tools in business. He has seen time and time again that businesses that largely ignore the unique emotional needs of people suffer disloyal customers, higher staff turnover and lower overall performance.
Through his presentations, workshops, and consulting services, Daniel empowers leaders to leverage empathy as a capability to cultivate productive teamwork and experience tangible corporate success.
Daniel is renowned for his ability to entertain audiences with engaging stories, practical tools, and relevance that bring to life the often-hidden side of human behaviour.
Talking Points
The Empathy Gap
In times of change, we must build connection and confidence. In a world dominated by AI, social & technological disruption, we need to close the empathy gap. Actions shape culture for better or worse. This is where creating clarity, taking accountability and equipping teams with the skills to practice empathy in the workplace makes a huge difference.The Empathy Gap
To bring the best out in teams, we need to build trust, understanding and curiosity. These need to be hallmarks of our culture.
To succeed, we need the tough skills of empathy.
KEY OUTCOMES
- The importance of trust, understanding & curiosity
- Unlocking the psychology of uncertainty
- Powerful stories that challenge the way we see ourselves & the world
- Actionable steps to practice empathy in daily work
Minimum Viable Human
As AI takes on more of the work leaders once relied on people for, the organisations that thrive won't be the ones that adopt the most tools. They'll be the ones that know which human capabilities can't be automated. Daniel Murray explores what happens when knowledge becomes abundant, and answers become instant, and argues that judgement, accountability and trust become more valuable, not less. Drawing on a background in mathematics and corporate strategy, he gives leaders a practical framework for identifying and strengthening the skills that will define performance and culture in an AI-enabled workplace. It's a keynote built for leaders who want their teams using AI well, not just using it.Minimum Viable Human
Key Takeaways:
- A clear framework for identifying which human capabilities cannot be outsourced to AI
- Practical tools for exercising oversight, judgement and accountability when deploying AI in a team or business
- A method for spotting risk earlier, before it becomes a governance or trust problem
- Guidance for building a culture that stays adaptive and ethical as automation increases
- A sharper answer to what makes a person, or a team, valuable in an AI-enabled organisation.
Trust Starts With You: The actions that shape culture, confidence and influence
In the modern world, performance is rarely blocked by a lack of effort, care or commitment. More often, busyness, pressure, competing priorities and invisible trust gaps that form when leaders are stretched block it. In this practical and thought-provoking keynote, Daniel introduces The CRUST of Trust: a simple framework for understanding what builds trust, what breaks it, and why trust is now one of the most important performance drivers in every workplace.Trust Starts With You: The actions that shape culture, confidence and influence
Designed for leaders navigating complexity, change and rising expectations, this session explores the everyday behaviours that either strengthen or weaken trust across teams, stakeholders and organisations. From the damage of busy work to the radical shift in the way we need to lead diverse teams, Daniel offers practical ways to manage the friction that unlocks the power of teams through leadership to thrive in an uncertain future.
Audiences will leave with a clear understanding of the blockers of performance, the builders and breakers of trust and practical ways to create more confident, connected and resilient teams.
Key Outcomes:
- How AI is refreshing the role of trust as a critical driver of performance, influence and culture
- Recognise the everyday behaviours that build trust, weaken trust or quietly create friction across teams
- Learn the CRUST of Trust framework and how it strengthens confidence, connection and collaboration
- Identify practical actions leaders can take to create more resilient, trusted and high-performing teams
Hard Feedback & Performance Management With Empathy
Feedback and performance management are essential leadership skills for those looking to challenge the status quo, break through barriers and step confidently into leadership. This session is designed for those trying to navigate the complexity of people. It equips participants with the tools, insights and strategies to lead with confidence, drive high performance and create a lasting impact.Hard Feedback & Performance Management With Empathy
Through engaging examples, practical frameworks and simple stories, Daniel explores how to support motivation, deliver impactful feedback and elevate team performance by building trust, clarity and consistency. Audiences leave empowered, prepared and confident to navigate performance conversations with ease and position themselves for leadership success.
Key takeaways:
- The Critical Role of Feedback in Leadership – Understand why effective feedback is essential for driving engagement and performance.
- Empathy-Driven Techniques for Difficult Conversations – Challenging discussions don’t need to be harsh. Learn how to approach them with clarity, confidence, and care.
- A Proven Formula for Giving Great Feedback – Apply a simple, structured approach to feedback that motivates performance, empowers teams, and fosters growth.
- Strategies for Elevating Performance Standards – Develop techniques for setting clear expectations, monitoring progress, and building a high-performing culture.
This practical and interactive session provides the skills and confidence needed to navigate performance management with impact—ensuring you lead with clarity, consistency, and influence.
Empathy, Ethics & the world of AI
Why we need to be more human in a world of artificial intelligence.Empathy, Ethics & the world of AI
Are your people concerned about the rise of AI and what it means for their jobs?
Are they struggling to see how they will fit into the future of work?
Is it time to reframe their importance and reignite the fire of human intelligence?
With the world of artificial intelligence and technology changing our lives so quickly, it is easy to be left paralysed, overwhelmed and struggling to understand our workplaces of the future. But we must not let the uncertainty of the future hold us back from the important role we will have in shaping it. This session is focused on repositioning the role our people need to take in developing the future of decision-making, workplaces and culture.
The future will be shaped by people. By the level of curiosity, empathy and ethical decision-making we make. This session will compel audiences to rethink what AI means for the future and put the spotlight directly on the critical role they play today and in the future.
MC & Host
Often referred to as "Mr Empathy," Daniel has an exceptional ability to read the room, adapt seamlessly, and keep events running smoothly—even in the face of complexity. With years of experience presenting to demanding senior executives, navigating Boardroom conflicts, and ‘herding cats’ through major change, Daniel brings polish, poise, and a personal touch to every event.MC & Host
A seasoned professional in project management, corporate events and organisational strategy, Daniel is always planned and prepared, ensuring every session runs on time, on topic and on point. His blend of empathy, humour, and humility creates a welcoming atmosphere where the audience leaves as the hero. Whether it’s high-stakes conversations, high-energy panels, or unexpected twists, there’s no situation he can’t manage. When connection, energy and engagement must come together, Daniel ensures your event doesn't just have a pulse, but is a beating heart that everyone feels.
Video
Daniel Murray | Professional Speaker & MC "Mr Empathy" | Saxton Speakers
Australia's leading expert on embedding empathy into culture to drive performance!Daniel Murray | HR L&D Tech Fest 2019 | Saxton Speakers
Daniel Murray | Saxton Speakers
I thought empathy was something you either had or didn’t — until I heard Daniel speak. With simple, accessible frameworks, he completely reframed empathy as a practical, essential leadership ... keep reading Pathways
He engaged people in the room who I didn't think would ever respond, let alone take-away actions. Post this session, I observed genuine behaviour changes. This was one of the best things I could have done for the team.
As a master storyteller, he led us as willing volunteers, on a journey of change. Through powerful analogies and images finely balanced by science and supporting frameworks (to build Empathy) Daniel speaks and people not only listen but are compelled to do better.
I can honestly say it was one of the best sessions I have been part of. His content was unique and his style was very interactive. I highly recommend using Daniel if you are looking to build empathy & understanding to drive performance.
I was fortunate to meet and experience Daniel’s presentation on empathetic leadership at a large conference held for the Fijian accounting community recently. His presentation was so engaging and honest, and so well tailored for the audience. He has such an authentic storytelling style, with the ability to have you immediately think of the potential to use empathy in your own life and organisation. I would highly recommend Daniel!
I had the privilege of listening to Dan talk about leadership and empathy. The session was full of moments that made you think, practical ways to apply empathy in leadership situations and to approach everyday situations a little differently. Dan made us think more about our perception of people and our preconditioned responses to certain situations and how these play out at work. There were so many valuable learnings for me and things I will now do differently from my short time listening to Dan. I really enjoyed the style of the content of what we went through!
Engineers Australia engaged with Daniel for content to deliver to our Engineering community. In particular on the topic of 'Leading with Empathy'. The presentation style was fantastic, engaging and impactful, applying personal stories and examples one would experience in the workplace which made it relatable. Daniel has such a calm nature which was lovely to work with leading up to the event, feedback following the presentation included comments such as - "Wow! That was incredible. I wish I had heard Daniel 35 years ago" / "This was one of the best sessions ever attended". I would highly recommend Daniel for any future events and certainly look forward to working with you in the future!! Keep up the great work and knowledge sharing you are doing Daniel!
Daniel provided a fantastic presentation to Fiji accountants and government leaders on empathic leadership. A really critical topic for developing countries who are seeking to drive innovation and transformational change - this has to be led by people and the right character, humility and leadership is essential. Highly recommend Daniel - a great style and creates a safe environment for self reflection.
Thought inspiring, provoking and interesting. Took you through the emotional journey of using empathy in your business.
