Speaking
Richard speaks regularly to executive teams and groups of leaders, and keynotes at both corporate events and public conferences.
Featured Keynotes
Abstract. Research has shown that the number one issue holding tech sector managers back is knowing how to cope with the infinite demands on their time and attention. This results in overwhelmed and overloaded leaders and teams: plenty of busywork but not enough progress on the real strategic projects that will truly move the business forward.
This inspiring session pulls from my 20 years of experience working with senior leaders in the tech sector as well as extensive primary research with tech leaders on this exact topic. You will understand the real reasons why you're trapped in operations, and walk away with an inspiring new perspective and practical leadership tools to get out of the weeds and focus on what really matters.
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We've been featured on some of the world's top podcasts
Hover to see the episode title - click to listen
We've been featured on some of the world's top podcasts

- Problem Solvers - Entrepreneur
- Extract Yourself From the Weeds and Lead More Strategically

- Awesome at Your Job Podcast (Pete Mockaitis)
- How to Build Exceptional Influence in a Noisy Digital Age

- Leaders of Transformation Podcast
- Multiplying Your Impact As A Leader

- Corporate Thought Podcast - Marc Marling
- "I Have a Saying"

- The Effective Founder Podcast
- How to Build Commitment in Your Remote Team

- The B2B Revenue Podcast
- How to Take Your Team/company to the Next Level

- A Geek Leader
- Strategic Leadership

- Total Picture Podcast
- How To Free Yourself Up from Low-Value Tasks and Be More Strategic

- Grow CFO Show
- The CFO/CEO Relationship

- The Commercial Landscaper Podcast
- Extracting Yourself From Operations To Lead More Strategically

- Human Capital Innovations Podcast
- Marrying the Disciplines of Strategy and Leadership in the Service of Our Clients

- On The Brink, with Andi Simon
- How to Amplify Your Story to Achieve Great Results

- The Fast Leader Show, with Jim Rembach
- 4 Shifts You Need to Make In Order to Break Through the Ceiling of Complexity

- InnovaBuzz, with Dr Jürgen Strauss
- How to Accelerate and Multiply Your Impact

- The Remote CEO Show, with Deniero Bartolini
- Strategic Leadership

- The Roots of Leadership Podcast
- Think like a CEO

- Rockstar CMO
- The CEO/CMO Relationship

- Good Morning, HR
- Strategy, Leadership, Purpose

- I Am CEO Podcast
- CEO Coaches Leaders to Create a Strategy with Purpose

- Unlabeled Leadership By Gary DePaul, Anchor.fm
- Shift from Incremental to Exponential

- The Leadership Hacker Podcast, Spotify
- The Productivity Paradigm

- The Institute of Directors
- Keeping Employees Motivated as the Effects of Covid Wear on

- Exhausted to Extraordinary
- How to Free Yourself Up for Strategic Activity

- Integrate & Ignite
- The Learning Mindset

- Startup Republic
- Extracting Yourself from Operations to Lead More Strategically

- Rockstar CMO
- How Rockstar CMOs make time for strategy

- Good Morning, HR
- HR Resolutions: Making Time For Strategy

- Breakfast Leadership Show
- Interview with Richard Medcalf

- Out of the Comfort Zone
- Making Time for Strategy with Richard Medcalf

- I Am CEO with Gresh Harkless
- Author and Coach Helps His Clients Achieve Strategic Results

- The Remote CEO Show with Deniero B
- Making Time for Strategy with Richard Medcalf

- Conscious Millionaire Podcast Network
- Richard Medcalf: Making Time for Strategy

- On The Brink, with Andi Simon
- Why Is Strategy So Challenging When Running Your Business? Shouldn't It Be The Best Part?

- The Evolving Leader
- Making TIME for Strategy with Richard Medcalf

- Let's Grow Leaders
- Making TIME for Strategy with Richard Medcalf

- Productivityist
- Richard Medcalf talks about XQuadrant
Audiences love what Richard has to say...
Well structured
Really well structured with very practical examples.
Fantastic & amazing
Thanks again Richard for a fantastic session which has received amazing feedback.
Best presentation
Richard delivered simply the best presentation of the day.
Insightful
Very insightful - on both a personal and team level.
Openness and honesty
Clear and structured, Richard brings an openness and honesty which really engaged me and helped me to apply the key messages.
Really good material
Really good material. You helped me nail down some really practical next steps!
Spark self-reflection
I love Richard's ability to find the right angle of attack to spark self-reflection on my role as manager. He made me sit up and take action!
Helpful & informative
Thanks for a fascinating session that was very helpful and informative.
Thought-provoking
Very thought-provoking, memorable and engaging.
Time well spent
The best hour I've spent this entire year!
Eye-opening
Thanks for the presentation. It was an eye-opener for me. I've identified 3 actions that need my immediate attention.
Richard's Bio

Richard Medcalf
Founder
Richard Medcalf describes himself as "what you get if you were to put a McKinsey consultant, a slightly unorthodox pastor and an entrepreneur into a blender".
Richard is the founder of Xquadrant and a trusted advisor to exceptional CEOs and entrepreneurs, and their leadership teams.
Richard has advised business owners and C-level execs for over 25 years. After a Masters Degree at Oxford University, where he came top in his year, Richard joined a premier strategy consultancy where he rose to become the youngest-ever Partner. He then spent 11 years at tech giant Cisco, firstly elevating Cisco’s relevance in the C-suite of its Fortune 100 customers before being selected for an elite team set up by Cisco’s CEO to catalyse strategic partnerships & new business models.
Richard founded Xquadrant in 2017, with the mission of helping elite leaders reinvent their 'success formula' and multiply their impact on their purpose, their people and their profit.
His personal 1:1 clients include CEOs of billion dollar companies, a Chairman nominated by EY as Entrepreneur of the Year, an Olympic medallist, and the founders of tech 'unicorns'. Richard also runs the high-end CEO community, Rivendell. His book, Making Time For Strategy, was published in February 2023.
Richard is bi-national English/French, lives near Paris, and is happily married and the proud father of two. He's also a licensed lay minister in the Anglican Church, and has an insatiable love for spicy food and the electric guitar.
Featured Clients



















