Welcome to Lead with Thanks, the bite-sized interview series where Thankbox Co-Founder Tsvetelina Hinova chats to leaders who put gratitude at the heart of how they lead.
They share stories of their most memorable moments of appreciation, as well as highly practical tools and methods that have worked well throughout their careers.
Ready to lead with thanks? Let's get going!
S2 Ep5: Convincing your CFO & the “People Balance Sheet” with Sarah McVanel
In this episode, Thankbox Co-Founder Tsvetelina Hinova sits down with Sarah McVanel, a global recognition expert, professional speaker, and founder of Greatness Magnified with over 25 years of experience in HR. Together they explore why appreciation isn’t a “nice to have” at work, but a fundamental human need with serious business consequences. Sarah makes a compelling case for recognition as a serious leadership practice. She shares why most organisations undervalue the thing they’ve a...
2 Jun 2026
S2 Ep4: Process Creates Culture: Starting Appreciation Early with Vicki Yang
In this episode, Thankbox Co-Founder Tsvetelina Hinova sits down with Vicki Yang, a fractional Head of HR with over 20 years of experience spanning startups, nonprofits, and major tech companies including Google and Looker, to explore one of the most underrated levers in building a thriving company: appreciation. Vicki makes a compelling case for why appreciation needs to be woven into every process, from hiring to offboarding. She shares why most organisations wait too long to start, what it...
5 May 2026
S2 Ep3: Stop treating employees as “clustomers” with Toby Kheng
In this episode, Thankbox Co-Founder Tsvetelina Hinova sits down with Toby Kheng, Co-Founder of Freeformers, to unpack one deceptively simple idea: why saying “thank you” at work is so rare, and why that’s a problem. Drawing on his experience redesigning employee experiences, Toby explains how many organisations treat appreciation as a checkbox exercise e.g. generic perks, vouchers, or gamified rewards, rather than something deeply human and personal. Together, they explore what happens...
21 Apr 2026
S2 Ep2: Appreciating Appreciation – discussing The STAY Report with Perry Timms
In this special episode, Host Tsvetelina Hinova is joined by globally recognised HR thinker Perry Timms to unpack their newly launched co-authored STAY Report - and why it’s set to change how we think, talk about, and apply appreciation at work. Together, they explore a simple but overlooked truth: You don’t have a choice about appreciation, you’re sending signals either way. We cover: Why organisations are never neutral - your culture is shaped by the signals you send every day The hidd...
26 Mar 2026
S2 Ep1: "Stop Choosing Between People and Performance" with David Liddle
In this episode, Tsvetelina Hinova sits down with David Liddle - a leading voice in people, culture, and leadership transformation. With over 25 years of experience, David shares why appreciation is not a “soft” concept, but a critical driver of performance, connection, and meaningful work. They explore why many organisations still struggle to take appreciation seriously -often relying on legacy systems built around control, hierarchy, and metrics - and what needs to shift for businesses to t...
1 Dec 2025
Episode 5: Marketing, momentum, and meaningful recognition with Vikki Gledhill
In this episode of Lead With Thanks, Thankbox Co-Founder Tsvetelina Hinova sits down with Vikki Gledhill, a seasoned Reward leader with over 20 years’ experience shaping how organisations recognise, support, and celebrate their people. Now Head of Reward & Pensions at Yorkshire Water Vikki brings a career’s worth of wisdom from major organisations, including Cox Automotive, Manchester Airport Group, Northern Foods and 2 Sisters Food Group. And yes - she’s as passionate about appreci...
9 Nov 2025
Episode 4: Appreciation stories and cultural considerations, with Debra Corey
What fun! In this lively conversation, Tsvetelina Hinova speaks with Debra Corey, six-time author and Chief Pay It Forward Officer at Step it UP HR, about the significance of appreciation in the workplace. Debra shares her extensive experience in HR and the various phases of her career, and they discuss how understanding individual preferences and cultural considerations can enhance recognition programs. To bring the theory to life, Debra shares fantastic stories from differen...
28 Oct 2025
Episode 3: The human touch and data of appreciation with Matt Phelan
Matthew Phelan is a co-founder of The Happiness Index, a two-time author on workplace happiness ('Freedom to be happy' and 'The Happiness Index') and podcast host, Matt champions positive organisational cultures. A sought-after keynote speaker, including TEDx, Matt travels globally, sharing data-driven insights on how culture fuels business success. In this conversation, Tsvetelina and Matt explore the significance of appreciation in the workplace. Matt shares his journey to co-founding...
12 Oct 2025
Episode 2: Surprise recognition & converting appreciation cynics with Dawn Smedley
In this episode, Tsvetelina had the absolute pleasure of chatting to Dawn Smedley from WorkBuzz and host of The Culture Whisperer Podcast. A former “Appreciatologist” Dawn has spent 16 years in culture and employee engagement, championing the small things that make the biggest difference. Dawn is passionate about helping organisations move beyond surveys to truly listen, understand, and act on what matters most to their people. Some of the highlights of the conversation with...
29 Sept 2025
Episode 1: Minorstones & small but mighty moments of appreciation with Amanda Arrowsmith
WOW, Lead with Thanks is off with a bang! Our first guest is the brilliant Amanda Arrowsmith, CPO at Royal British Legion, formerly at the CIPD, and she brings honesty, energy and passion by the bucket load! Amanda has spent over 25 years in senior HR and transformation roles, putting people at the heart of transformation. She’s also the founder of Sisterhood of Women, which supports women to grow and lead with confidence. Amanda shares: A story of the quiet thank-you that matters the m...
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