The Workplace Doc™ is In.
When your best people are burning out, checking out, or quietly walking out the door — and leadership is finally ready to do something about it — they call Michelle Courtney Berry. Two-time TEDx & 2x SXSW speaker. Bestselling author. Doctoral researcher. 5,000+ keynotes across four continents.
The Workplace Doc™ is In.
Diagnosing what's costing your organization — and prescribing what actually works.
Michelle Courtney Berry helps businesses and organizations identify and fix the hidden cultural and interpersonal dynamics driving disengagement, burnout, and turnover. Known as the Workplace Doc,™ she diagnoses what’s actually impacting performance, profits, retention, and trust - and delivers clear, actionable strategies leaders can implement immediately.
A two-time TEDx speaker, encore SXSW speaker, and bestselling author of Keeping Calm in Chaos, Michelle has delivered over 5,000 keynotes globally and opened for and shared stages with leaders such as Maya Angelou, The Dalai Lama, and Howard Zinn.
Her research reveals a critical insight: what leaders often label as disengagement is actually data. What appears to be a people problem is often a leadership conditions problem - and one that can be solved.
Michelle has delivered this work for clients including: Virgin Pulse Thrive Summit, the U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mindvalley, SHRM, LegalZoom, and executive teams across industries. Clients describe her as the speaker who held a room in rapt attention, made them look up from their phones and stay riveted, and delivered exactly the reminder their teams needed.
Her work is deeply informed by expertise in leadership, communication, wellness, and trauma-informed practice.
Michelle speaks on: The Hidden Cost of Toxic Work • Leadership Re-Imagined: From Control to Culture• Women, Voice, and Leadership • Radical Courage at Work™ • Storytelling for Healing
Ideal for: HR Leaders & Wellness Conferences • Women's Leadership Summits • Healthcare Organizations • Executive Retreats • Employee Resource Groups • Culture Change Initiatives
video testimonials for mcb
Why Coaches and Leaders Trust Michelle
Since 1990, Michelle Courtney Berry has dedicated her broad career in communications, marketing, brand management, human resources, campaign design, the arts, and wellness to enhancing lives. Her holistic wellness approach, shaped by her battles with stress and burnout, connects with executives looking for genuine solutions. As a sought-after speaker and coach and as a “Top 20 Most Empowering Woman” (in the company of amazing women like Michelle Obama and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, among others) in the United States, according to Womenpreneur, Michelle helps leaders create ethical, open workplaces focusing on mental health, self-care, and mindful productivity, making her a trusted ally and collaborator with leaders around the world. She’s opened for international icons like The Dalai Lama and Maya Angelou and received praise in “O” for top fundraising for kids in the U.S. military (one of Oprah’s Favorite charities). Her academic credentials include ongoing doctoral studies in executive leadership at LSUS, a master's degree in organizational/risk communication from Cornell University, and two bachelor's degrees (English, Literature, and Rhetoric and Political Science) from Binghamton University, where she was a Presidential Scholar and Commencement Speaker. An internationally certified NLP Master Coach for Life and Business Success, Reiki Master Teacher, meditation teacher, and trauma reduction expert, Michelle has captivated audiences worldwide with over 5,000 talks delivered including two TEDx and two SXSW experiences. Michelle blends evidence-based doctoral scholarship, storytelling, and wellness to guide individuals and organizations toward ethical, transparent businesses and workplaces that prioritize care for self, one another, the community, and by extension, the world.
Global Speaker • Executive Coach • Wellness Strategist • Best-Selling Author & Storyteller
Hi, Lovely One - I help high-performing 40+ women, HR leaders, and visionary entrepreneurs speak with confidence, grow in divine purpose, and radically protect their health as they build a legacy of impact.
But I didn’t always live this way.
After decades leading internal and outbound communications strategy at the highest levels — including roles as a CMO, brand and hospitality manager for major brands, a spokesperson and media relations director for a global Ivy-League business school, a mid-sized city, and national women’s organizations — I hit a wall. I burned out.
What followed was a personal reckoning — and a professional transformation. Even with all my training in wellness and stress reduction, I still struggled during the pandemic. I became deeply depressed trying to “save” a toxic workplace. I also returned to emotional eating patterns that led to illness and significant weight gain. Despite everything I knew, I was overwhelmed — and humbled.
So, I did what I ask my clients to do: I asked for help. I meditated, prayed, and listened to my gut. I hired a support team of ten to help me heal. Coaches need coaches — and receiving support (emotionally, physically, and spiritually) was part of my transformation. I finished a book that quadrupled my speaking fee. I also went back to study for my doctorate in executive leadership, so I could help leaders heal sick workplaces.
I’ve since won major fitness awards, reached new business milestones, helped my clients close multi-million-dollar deals, appeared in numerous national news stories and podcasts and released over 70 pounds, reversed major health risks, and reconnected with the practices I teach. This journey isn’t just personal — it’s proof that healing (with help) is always possible. And I’m 110% committed to helping others thrive from the inside out.
Now, I blend my background as a healing arts professional, former college professor in marketing, internationally certified life and business coach, former Alternative Active Mayor of my City, and an award-winning storyteller, former poet laureate, and former broadcast journalist covering The White House and Capitol Hill with my expertise as a workplace stress reduction expert and doctoral scholar in executive leadership. I’ve worked across every facet of the communications industry — from advertising to PR to radio and print to television and digital to owning a full-service speaking, training, and marketing firm.
As an award-winning serial entrepreneur, business columnist, and NPR-affiliated Board of Trustee member, and volunteer and member of numerous boards and trainer to many Boards, I’ve opened for Maya Angelou, Mos Def and Amiri Baraka, Howard Zinn, and The Dalai Lama, appeared on Good Morning America, in a national weight loss commercial, and graced the stage twice for TEDx and also two times for SXSW. Since 1990, I’ve spoken over 5,000 times and reached hundreds of thousands of wonderful leaders like you throughout the U.S., Africa, Mexico, and Canada.
Trust me, I know tons about recovering from loss, trauma, grief, and pivoting. Today, I use all of that lived experience to teach other high-performing, entrepreneurial coaches like me how to lead with purpose, speak with confidence, and show up authentically from a place of truth and deep purpose in every facet of their lives. This work was born from my own experiences healing from toxicity and burnout. I’ve been exhausted, overcommitted, and uncertain about what was next. What brought me back wasn’t more pushing — it was clarity, community, and courage. That’s what I now offer in my programs and keynotes: a space to grow without grinding, and to build your coaching legacy with peace, power, and purpose.