Dr Fiona Crichton

Dr Fiona Crichton is one of New Zealand's leading authorities on workplace wellbeing — a health psychology specialist, published behavioural scientist and VP of Behavioural Science at Groov, the workplace wellbeing platform co-

founded by Sir John Kirwan.

Who is Dr Fiona Crichton?

Dr Fiona Crichton is a New Zealand health psychology specialist and behavioural scientist with more than a decade of experience designing programmes to improve health behaviour and mental wellbeing in workplaces and communities. She is VP of Behavioural Science at Groov, Sir John Kirwan's workplace wellbeing start-up. Her experimental research into the nocebo and placebo effect has been published widely in high-impact peer-reviewed medical and academic journals and is the basis for the book Wind Turbine Syndrome: A Communicated Disease, co-authored with Professor Simon Chapman. With a prior career in law as a litigation lawyer and legal writer, Fiona brings an unusual interdisciplinary lens to her work on psychological wellbeing, adaptive behaviour change and high-performance workplace culture.

Career Highlights

• VP of Behavioural Science and Clinical Lead at Groov (Sir John Kirwan's workplace wellbeing platform)

• PhD-level researcher published in numerous high-impact peer-reviewed journals

• Co-author of Wind Turbine Syndrome: A Communicated Disease (Sydney University Press)

• Internationally recognised research on the nocebo and placebo effect

• Designed and led workplace wellbeing programmes for major NZ and Australian organisations

• Sought-after keynote speaker for HR, leadership, conference and AGM audiences

• Frequent media commentator on mental health and behavioural science

Key Speaking Themes

• Workplace wellbeing as a performance strategy ("Performance Care")

• Burnout, psychosocial risk and what leaders can actually do

• Behavioural science, expectations and habit change

• Building thriving, high-performing teams

• Menopause, mental health and supporting under-served groups in the workplace

What Your Audience Will Gain

Fiona is evidence-based, practical and refreshingly direct. Audiences leave with a clearer understanding of the science behind wellbeing and performance, plus concrete tools and frameworks they can apply on Monday morning to build mentally healthier and higher-performing teams.

Ideal For

• HR, leadership and workplace wellbeing conferences

• Health and safety, risk and compliance forums

• Executive offsites and senior leadership programmes

• Industry conferences and AGMs

• Women's networks and menopause-in-the-workplace events

Frequently Asked Questions about Dr Fiona Crichton

What does Dr Fiona Crichton speak about? Workplace wellbeing, burnout, behavioural science, psychosocial risk, mental health and high-performance team culture.

Where is Dr Fiona Crichton based? Fiona is based in Auckland and travels regularly to Australia and elsewhere for engagements.

What is Dr Fiona Crichton best known for? Her work at Groov as Clinical Lead and VP of Behavioural Science, her published research on the nocebo effect, and her co-authored book Wind Turbine Syndrome.

Can Fiona present alongside Sir John Kirwan? Yes. Dr Fiona and Sir John regularly present together on workplace wellbeing and "Performance Care".

Can Fiona deliver workshops as well as keynotes? Yes. Fiona offers keynotes, workshops, executive briefings and full workplace wellbeing programmes through Groov.

Is Dr Fiona Crichton available for international events? Yes. Fiona presents across NZ, Australia and internationally and is available for offshore engagements.