Pernille Norregaard
Anthropologist | Communicator | Change Leader
Pernille is an accomplished change and communications leader who has worked at the intersection of behavioural science and communications throughout her career. She uses deep insights into human behaviour and culture to tell stories that engage and make people take action.
A trained anthropologist, she builds a deep understanding of the organisations, people and cultures she works with. She designs change programmes that tap into existing culture and behaviour, creating lasting and profound change in organisations.
From a young age, Pernille’s primary drive has been to understand her fellow humans and help others understand them too. She believes that when you understand you have an obligation to use and share your knowledge.
With a natural flair for storytelling, Pernille has a long track record of helping purpose-driven organisations build strong relationships with the people and communities they serve and create radical change for the benefit of people and planet.
She’s driven by a desire to be of service and a passion to create a fair and just world for all. To her, this means ridding the world of poverty and inequality, and giving everyone access to education.
As a Fellow of the RSA and through her volunteering and charitable work, she has worked to co-create this better world since she was just 9 years old and ran her first campaign to raise funds for starving children in Ethiopia.
Since then, Pernille has volunteered in East Africa working on sanitation and agricultural projects; led a global intercultural exchange programme for teenagers; helped academics share their expertise on microloans, social enterprises, and public health; taught and supported persecuted journalists in West Africa; and campaigned for equal rights for women.
She believes that the education sector holds the key to solving many of the world’s most wicked problems. Universities, in particular, are in a prime position to develop solutions based on knowledge and evidence while they educate and develop the next generation.
She’s passionate about working with talented and bright people to create a world where everyone can wake up feeling safe and have equitable access to education and opportunity.
Biography
A trained anthropologist and journalist, Pernille is an exceptionally skilled and experienced communications and change leader.
She has worked in public relations and communications for close to 25 years, merging behavioural science and storytelling to build a successful career. She specialises in understanding culture and behaviour deeply before designing solutions and interventions to communication and engagement challenges.
Pernille has worked in senior communications roles across the private and public sectors and currently leads the communications, media relations and public affairs function at De Montfort University.
She has previously worked for Disney, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the House of Commons, the London School of Economics, Regent’s University London, and the Danish School of Media and Journalism. She also founded and led a communications and PR agency in Copenhagen for over a decade.
Pernille’s an experienced C-level advisor to company boards as well as parliamentary committees. She has served on numerous boards and is currently a trustee at Professors Without Borders. She has a proven track record of taking a data-driven, people-centric approach and using behavioural insights to build effective research, communication, and engagement functions as well as leading high-performing teams.
She’s passionate about her work in higher education as it allows her to leverage learning and knowledge as key tools for change. Dedicated to knowledge exchange, she regularly shares her knowledge and experiences at conferences, and she has taught media and communications at university level.
For more details, please see Pernille’s LinkedIn profile.
Hire Pernille to speak at your event
Pernille speaks on a range of topics and is always up for a conversation about what you need.
Below are a few audience favourites but feel free to make a special request to make the talk perfect for your audience.
Behavioural science in communications
In a world of constant noise and distraction, knowing your audience so you can design communications tailored to them is a crucial skill for any comms professional. In this talk, Pernille shows you how to use behavioural science to get a deep understanding of your audience, and then design communications and engagement activities that actually get results - for you and for your audience. She uses examples from both the private and public sectors.
Communication change projects
What worked last week, might not work next week. In a rapidly changing world, being able to continuously improve your communications and adapt them to your audience’s behaviour is essential. In this talk, Pernille shares her insights and tools for designing and delivering major change projects in communications. Whether you’re looking to develop a new platform or channel for your audience, or simply reinvigorate tired feeling comms, you’ll benefit from this talk.
Effective communication in higher education
University audiences are complex, diverse, and notoriously difficult to engage. In this talk, Pernille dives into the challenges and barriers to effective communication and engagement within a university. She also gives you a range of tools to overcome the challenges and break down the barriers. The talk can be tailored to focus on your main challenge - or cover challenges across a number of audiences like students, staff, academics, or stakeholders.
