Hi, I’m Richard Watts and I’m passionate about conversations. I love hearing ideas emerge and develop when a group of interesting and interested people are in the same place, and that’s one of the reasons for helping set up the People’s Salon.

For work I run an Organisation Development Consultancy called people make it work (peoplemakeitwork.com) where we help arts, cultural and commercial organizations develop their strategies, their leadership and their people and engage their customers and audiences.

Our clients include the Arts Council England, National Theatre of Wales, London School of Economics, The Barbican, Liverpool Philharmonic, Turner Contemporary, Google, The Audience Agency, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Clore Leadership Programme, DHL, SC Johnson, Deutsche Post, Gails Bakery and First Direct.

I also run a small charity called The Everyone Foundation dedicated to creating stronger links between people across society and the globe (everyonefoundation.org). We recently been working with charities including VSO, Oxfam, WI, One Campaign, WWF and Comic Relief. I sit on the boards of some cultural organizations and have chaired Spread the Word, London’s development agency for writers for the last five years. and am currently the founding chair of Peckham Platform, a contemporary art gallery in South London.

I love experiencing a broad range of arts and culture – and am equally delighted when it’s sublimely beautiful, boisterously entertaining or when it’s fundamentally challenging and shakes my world.

The People’s Salon creates a relaxed space to hear exciting and excited people share and develop their views, and I love the people I meet and the ideas that emerge. I’m really looking forward to seeing you at the next Salon, so get booking your place while there are still places to be booked….