About

Choosing a leadership development partner is a big decision. I want to help you get it right.

Hi, I’m Justine

Let’s face it. You have lots of options when it comes to choosing a leadership development provider. This makes selecting the right one critical.

An ideal fit is out there for every organisation, and I see it as my job to help you work out as quickly and effectively as possible, whether that is with me.

So, here goes.

I am not the right partner for you if you are looking for leadership development that is:

  • I bring robust, psychology-backed thinking to the table but never try to be the smartest person in the room. While I’m creative, I’m unabashedly practical and believe that the worth of any idea, model, or approach is measured by how much it’s used.

  • I have yet to witness an organisation achieve systemic change through selective development. Instead, I believe leadership development needs to be ‘all-in’ rather than a special experience for a special few. Otherwise, what are leadership standards for, if not expecting or enabling everyone to uphold them?

  • Yes, leadership is both a privilege and responsibility, but this doesn’t mean leaders have to take themselves too seriously while doing it or that they can’t have fun while getting better at it. I believe achieving this without resorting to ‘edutainment’ is also possible.

  • Bells and whistles don’t change behaviour. From my experience, shiny solutions often overlook the drivers that can make a real difference – focus, repetition, reinforcement, and sticking with an approach long enough to embed it. I believe in grounded, down-to-earth experiences delivered with fresh energy, leaving the fads and fancy stuff to others.

My bio

Curious enough to continue reading?

Then here’s a little more about me…

I’ve been fascinated by why and how people change their behaviour for as long as I can remember. This curiosity led me to become a psychologist and pursue two master’s degrees.

The first, in Organisational Psychology, equipped me with a deep understanding of human behaviour in the workplace and how to view this through a systemic lens. The second, in Applied Positive Psychology, provided me with the strengths-based tools to foster personal and professional growth.

I commenced my career with a strong foundation in leadership assessment and consulting before moving in-house to support some of Australia’s largest organisations, designing and implementing solutions to develop their culture, talent, and leaders.  

I was then drawn to the management consulting industry, where for the next decade, I led award-winning projects and teams working on strategic people initiatives.

Building on over 20 years of experience in leadership development working with diverse organisations across the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors, I founded La Roche Leadership in 2020.

Today, my practice exists to help organisations close the knowing-doing gap by ensuring their leaders know what to do and are able and enabled to do it.

Where you’ll find me

I’m based in Melbourne, Australia, where I live with my husband, two boys, and our cavoodle. When I’m not developing leaders you’ll find me checking out Melbourne’s amazing galleries, museums, theatres, restaurants, and sporting events, or when needing a break, chilling out on the Surf Coast.

I also regulary travel to deliver leadership development solutions in person as needed.