I'm Alicia McKay, your intellectual hype-girl
Writer, speaker, and strategist. Author of three books on strategy, change and public leadership.
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Who the hell am I?
I'm Alicia McKay: your intellectual hype-girl. I'm a writer, speaker, and strategist based in Aotearoa New Zealand. I've spent the last 15 years hanging out with executives and politicians, advising them on strategy, change and leadership.
I've trained thousands of leaders in decision-making, spoken on stages around the world, written three books - From Strategy to Action, You Don't Need An MBA, and Local Legends - and worked with government agencies like Crown Law and global brands like L'Oreal and Woolworths.
In 2025, LGIU in the UK named me one of their Top 25 Thinkers and the ICMA conference put me on stage in front of over 6,000 senior executives in the US.
At first, I was bemused when important people would listen to me. I've since come to realise it's exactly what I thought would hold me back - a finely-honed bullshit radar, warped sense of humour, and practical outlook - that they appreciate. Funny that.
"At 36, Alicia McKay is an internationally successful consultant, author and speaker.
What I'm up to
I've been running a full-noise consulting and training practice for over a decade. Over 120 organisations. Thousands of leaders. Workshops up the wazoo.
Now, I'm throwing my energy into writing. Every week, I tackle something that's chewing up my mental energy - society, culture, work, technology, insertrandomthinghere - and push it through my systems-thinking strategist brain to make it make sense.
Subscribe to my newsletter, book me to speak, or check out Not An MBA.
Writing
A weekly newsletter for critical thinkers. No buzzwords. No bullshit.
Speaking
Keynotes, workshops, and conference sessions.
Not An MBA
Over 500 senior professionals transformed with Not An MBA.
Why I write
I've been reading and writing my way to sense since I was a kid. When I'm facing a tricky problem or the noise in my head is too loud, I pick up a book, go down a rabbit hole, and put it on the page. A few years ago, I realised this wasn't just a weird quirk, but one of the most valuable things I had to offer.
It's pretty dire out there: social's gone to slop, the news is falling to bits, and people apparently don't read anymore (though I'm suspicious.) My work brings together my professional experience, bogan voice, and manic nerdery to put a complex world into plain English.
Books
From Strategy to Action: A guide to getting shit done in the public sector
From Strategy to Action is a book for public sector managers tired of spinning their wheels and prepared to tackle the challenging complexity of public service.
You Don't Need An MBA: Leadership lessons that cut through the crap
Learn five strategic leadership skills: flexibility, decisions, systems, performance and influence. No buzzwords, no bullshit.
Local Legends: How to make a difference in local government
Local Legends is the essential guide to local government leadership for Councillors and Council managers.
Media kit
For journalists, event organisers and nosy parkers.