Available to book
Tessa West
Tessa West helps organizations transform workplace conflict into productivity through evidence-based communication strategies. A New York University psychology professor and bestselling author of Jerks at Work, West delivers research-backed frameworks for feedback delivery, cross-cultural collaboration, and difficult conversations. Her TED talk ranks among the year's top ten globally.
Tessa West is a social psychologist who studies why workplace conversations go wrong and what science says about fixing them. Her research turns uncomfortable interactions into manageable, even productive, moments.
West is a professor of psychology at New York University, author of the bestselling book Jerks at Work, and a TED speaker whose talk ranked among the ten most popular of its year. She has spent two decades building an evidence base for better workplace communication.
Her research offers practical tools for situations most people dread: delivering feedback that actually changes behavior, navigating conflict across cultural differences, and managing difficult colleagues without escalating tension. West translates peer-reviewed findings into strategies that work on Monday morning, helping teams reduce the chronic stress that builds when hard conversations get avoided. Organizations that apply her methods report stronger collaboration and fewer unresolved conflicts dragging on productivity.
Audiences leave West's sessions with specific, research-backed techniques for giving honest feedback that inspires rather than deflates, frameworks for unlocking the potential of culturally diverse teams, and a clearer understanding of the physiological stress responses that derail difficult conversations. Her approach is grounded in data, not platitudes.
Book Tessa West to give your team the science behind communication that actually works under pressure.
West's two decades researching workplace communication at NYU translates into practical frameworks for the feedback conversations and cross-cultural dynamics that typically stall team performance. Her methods address the chronic conflict avoidance that drags on productivity, giving leaders evidence-based tools for difficult interactions that need resolution now.
Featured Projects
often considered together
Elizabeth Dunn
Happiness
Employee Engagement
Sustainability
frequently asked questions
Something we've not covered here?
Tessa West draws on two decades of peer-reviewed research to translate findings on workplace communication into session-ready frameworks, walking audiences through the physiological stress responses that derail difficult conversations and the evidence-based techniques that address them.
Tessa West speaks on workplace conflict, difficult feedback, cross-cultural communication, and the psychology of high-stakes conversations. She is a professor of psychology at New York University, author of the bestselling Jerks at Work, and a TED speaker whose talk ranked among the ten most popular of its year.
No, PepTalk doesn't charge a booking fee. You pay the speaker's fee plus any travel and expenses, which PepTalk confirms upfront in your quote. The shortlist, contracting and event-day logistics are included. For repeat or multi-event bookings, PepTalk can agree preferential rates with your procurement team.
PepTalk sends a shortlist of matched speakers within 24 hours, each with a profile, a fee and a recommendation on the strongest fit. The more you share about your date, audience, format, objectives and budget, the closer the match. Once you choose, PepTalk handles the contract, travel and logistics through to event day.
The typical fee range on a PepTalk speaker profile is a guide to what that speaker usually costs for an in-person event in their home market, shown in their local currency. The final fee depends on format, location, date and session length. Virtual and shorter sessions usually cost less, and international travel and peak dates cost more. PepTalk confirms the exact fee in your currency once it has your brief.
No. PepTalk represents 15,000+ speakers, hosts, comedians and entertainers, some booked directly and others through their agents and agencies worldwide. The process is the same for all of them: PepTalk checks availability, negotiates the fee and manages the contract and logistics.
Book a speaker three to six months before your event. Allow 12 months for large conferences, peak-season dates or a specific in-demand name. PepTalk also fills last-minute and replacement bookings, often within days, so get in touch as soon as you have a date, even at short notice.
