Nicole Jones is the Founder and CEO of Embodi, a strategy and operations consultancy that blends systems thinking, creative practice, and human-centered leadership to help organizations navigate growth, transformation, and impact. Guided by the belief that sustainable change requires both structure and soul, her work bridges the strategy of a suit with the spirit of a creative.

In addition to leading Embodi, Nicole serves as Richmond's Ninth District Councilmember, where she works at the intersection of policy, access, justice, and community engagement. Her approach to leadership is rooted in service, listening, and a deep commitment to ensuring that those most affected by decisions have a voice in shaping them.

Throughout her career, Nicole has built a reputation as a connector, convener, and systems thinker. Whether working with nonprofits, artists, educators, entrepreneurs, public officials, or neighborhood leaders, she is known for asking powerful questions, identifying unseen opportunities, and bringing the right people into the room to create meaningful change.

Her work is informed by a lifelong exploration of embodiment, creativity, and community. She believes that leadership begins with self-awareness, that innovation emerges through authentic relationship, and that the most transformative work happens when we move beyond ego and into service of something larger than ourselves.

On this episode of Creating Evolving Organizations, Nicole joins us for a conversation on voice, suppression, embodiment, politics, creativity, and the evolving nature of leadership. Together, we explore what it means to lead from presence rather than default mode, how systems both shape and reveal us, and why the future of organizations may depend less on control and more on our capacity to co-create.