Yang Yi (Jade)

My clients are leaders standing at pivotal moments, like sailors navigating the point where familiar waters end, and the map stops matching the terrain. They’re ambitious and thoughtful, often stretched thin, but deeply committed. And they’re ready: ready to rethink the path ahead, realign what matters, and lead their teams through meaningful change.

The CEO of a multinational medical translation company once told me, “AI is eating our industry.” And he was right. Prices were dropping, speed expectations were rising and the entire market felt like a shrinking island with too many people trying to stand on it. Their first instinct was to cut margins to survive. But they quickly realised that was like trying to stay afloat by holding their breath. It wasn’t sustainable. They needed to protect the core business AND build an AI enabled future at the same time.

I was hired as their change and leadership consultant. I ran quarterly strategy meetings with the executive team to surface the real value drivers and map out the change journey. We discovered invisible issues including misaligned priorities, unclear handoffs and a leadership rhythm that couldn’t keep up with the market.

To address this, I designed and delivered a leadership development journey focused on future-ready capabilities and collaborative decision-making. I also coached key leaders to help them turn the tension between the ‘old business’ and the ‘new business’ into productive energy rather than internal conflict.

Along the way, we rebuilt leadership practices, repaired communication bottlenecks and realigned the strategy to what customers actually needed, not what the company had historically provided.

Eighteen months later, the transformation was unmistakable. They were no longer just a translation company trying to outrun AI. They had become an AI-powered knowledge-management business, with new revenue streams growing faster than they expected, and a leadership team confident in navigating the next wave of change.

My work has been shaped by my early training as a psychologist delivering interventions to inmates to transform their lives after prison, by years of cross-cultural practice in Australia and China helping leaders navigate change, and by the integration of evidence-based tools from organisational psychology, change management and leadership development with Eastern practical wisdom on timing, leverage and winning without force. These experiences taught me to look beneath the surface, at the assumptions, patterns and invisible forces that shape behaviour and create the condition for desirable outcomes. They continue to guide how I support leaders as they move through pivotal transitions with clarity, confidence and humanity.

I work in the areas of organisational psychology, change management and leadership development. I no longer diagnose or treat psychological illnesses or antisocial behaviours.

Master’s Degree in Psychology with Honors
University of Auckland

Bachelor’s Degree with a double major in Psychology and Media Studies University of Auckland

Registered psychologist with AHPRA

Certified Growth Edge Interview Coach

Certified TLC Leadership Coach