Kate Jones, Founder, Neon
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Episode Type | Expert Insight Interview |
| Guest | Kate Jones, Founder, Neon |
| Guest Website | Deeply Neon |
| Listen | View on Sales POP! Podcast Page |
Key Takeaways
- Kate Jones, Founder of Neon, says the world of work is broken because burnout, exhaustion, and disengagement run at ridiculously high levels across every industry.
- Kate Jones calls the dominant operating model the hamster wheel paradigm: high pace, tons of activity, and no time to think, connect, or do the right work.
- Deeply human leadership, the Neon model, keeps humanity at its core while staying fully committed to results through clarity of purpose, connection, consciousness, creativity, and care.
- Kate Jones treats self-care as a prerequisite for leading well, because in her experience people who feel well perform well.
Episode Overview
Why is the world of work broken, and how can deeply human leadership fix it? Kate Jones, Founder of Neon, points to ridiculously high levels of burnout, exhaustion, and disengagement across every industry, driven by what she calls the hamster wheel paradigm. Her answer is a leadership model with humanity at its core and an equal commitment to results, built on five capabilities: clarity of purpose, connection, consciousness, creativity, and care.Key Insights
1. What is the hamster wheel paradigm, and why does it hurt performance?
Kate Jones defines the hamster wheel paradigm as the general model for running organizations today: everybody runs at high pace, doing tons of stuff, but not necessarily the right stuff, with no time to think or connect. Jones argues it fails on two fronts at once: it damages well-being and it damages performance, because busyness for its own sake crowds out meaningful work.2. What is deeply human leadership?
Deeply human leadership, according to Kate Jones, keeps humanity at its core while staying as committed to results and outcomes as the machine archetype it replaces. Jones contrasts it with machine-style leaders who deliver results while leaving casualties in their wake and often end up worn out themselves. Her Neon methodology rests on five capabilities: clarity of purpose, connection, consciousness, creativity, and care.3. Why does Kate Jones say all work is social work?
Kate Jones, a former social worker who also worked in the probation service, says all work is social work because relationship is the vehicle, in sales and in leadership alike. People want to talk to a human, not a machine, and Jones notes how fed up people have become with services that route them to a robot. Neon treats connection as a core leadership capability.4. Why do leaders need emotional intelligence, not just IQ?
Kate Jones argues that many leaders have IQ, but the number with any kind of emotional intelligence is astonishingly low, and a leader unaware of their impact has slim odds of bringing out the best in people. Jones calls this capability consciousness: awareness and self-awareness. As a coach at Neon, she holds up a mirror, describing the real impact a client’s words and body language have on her.5. Why is self-care a prerequisite for leading well?
Kate Jones treats self-care as a prerequisite for leading well because a constantly exhausted, frustrated, or angry leader has slim chances of leading anyone well. Jones cites a statistic she calls mind-blowing: managers and leaders have a greater impact on the people they lead than spouses or doctors do. Healthy habits give a leader a baseline of well-being, because people who feel well perform well.Quotes
“The hamster wheel paradigm is no good from the point of view of well-being, and it’s no good from the point of view of performance.” — Kate Jones, Founder, Neon
“I talk about all work being social work.” — Kate Jones, Founder, Neon
“I think that leadership is always really about bringing something new into being.” — Kate Jones, Founder, Neon
“I see self care as being a prerequisite for being able to lead well.” — Kate Jones, Founder, Neon
Deeply Human Leadership: Key Statistics from Neon
| Statistic | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 30 years | Kate Jones’s experience in organizational leadership, culture, and change | Host introduction, Sales POP! interview, 2026 |
| 2013 | Year Kate Jones founded Neon | Host introduction, Sales POP! interview, 2026 |
| 5 core capabilities | Clarity of purpose, connection, consciousness, creativity, and care make up the Deeply Human leadership model | Host introduction, confirmed by Kate Jones, Sales POP! interview, 2026 |
| 9 out of 10 | When asked “How are you?”, nine times out of ten people answer “busy,” in Jones’s experience | Kate Jones, Sales POP! interview, 2026 |
| About 12 years | The original four Cs came into being about twelve years ago; care was the final addition | Kate Jones, Sales POP! interview, 2026 |
| Greater than spouses or doctors | Managers and leaders have a greater impact on the people they lead than spouses or doctors do | Statistic cited by Kate Jones, Sales POP! interview, 2026 (study not named) |
| 10 years | Time Kate Jones spent at a big consulting firm with no purpose guiding the work beyond making money | Kate Jones, Sales POP! interview, 2026 |
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the five capabilities of deeply human leadership?
Kate Jones’s Deeply Human leadership model rests on five core capabilities: clarity of purpose, connection, consciousness, creativity, and care. Neon applies this methodology through leadership strategy, executive team development, and one-to-one coaching. Care was the most recent addition to the original four Cs.
What is the machine archetype of leadership?
The machine archetype, as Kate Jones describes it, is a leader committed to results who leaves casualties in their wake and often ends up worn out. It runs on constant doing at constant pace, which gets things done but rarely releases new ideas or innovation.
How does creativity fit into leadership?
Kate Jones says leadership is always about bringing something new into being. For Neon, creativity means creating an environment where people believe they can achieve what they are tasked with, which matters most in purpose-led organizations such as the NHS, charities, and public services.
When is Kate Jones’s Deeply Human book coming out?
Kate Jones hopes to publish her book, working title Deeply Human: Why the World of Work Is Broken and How Leaders Can Fix It, next year (as of this 2026 interview). She describes it as a labor of love over the last year.
Related Resources
- Book a conversation with Kate Jones and the Neon team
- Sales POP! Podcast: salespop.net/media/podcast/
- Coevera: coevera.com
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