In a world where professional conversations often feel overly polished or performative, we felt something was missing: a space for honest, grounded dialogue about what really shapes our industry — the messy, meaningful and sometimes uncomfortable realities of building brands, businesses and people, says Tracy Jones, Founder and MD of Dialogue.
That's why we launched Get Real with Dialogue, a short-form, insight-rich content series designed to unpack the issues that matter in communications, leadership and agency culture today. It's not a platform for puff pieces or panel platitudes. It's a conversation space built around candour, curiosity and capability, with the people who are actively reshaping the future of work from the inside out.
As leaders, we spend a lot of time talking about transformation, culture and purpose, but not nearly enough time asking the difficult questions, or making space for real perspectives. Get Real is our way of saying: let's stop performing thought leadership and start practicing it.
A Capability-First Culture
The theme of our very first episode, Skills > CVs, was inspired by a growing shift we're seeing in both our own hiring practices and those of our clients: a move away from pedigree and toward potential.
In conversation with award-winning journalist and communications strategist Ondela Mlandu, we unpacked what it means to build a capability-first culture, one where traits like curiosity, coachability and courage count just as much (if not more) than traditional credentials.
We reflected on how the communications industry is changing: fewer straight-line career paths, more cross-disciplinary talent and a rising premium on lived experience. In place of the perfect CV, employers are looking for people who ask smart questions, challenge the brief and think across platforms.
I've always believed that some of the best communicators don’t come from conventional routes, they come from lived experience, resilience and reinvention. That's why we have to start hiring differently, managing differently and celebrating different kinds of wins.
From Internal Conversations to Industry Impact
Get Real with Dialogue was born from internal conversations we were already having, the kind that spark change inside our agency walls. But we realised there was value in bringing those conversations into the open. If we were wrestling with how to grow our teams, navigate new client expectations and evolve the role of PR in a digital-first world, others probably were too.
We wanted to capture that energy and real talk with real people facing real industry dynamics — in a format that's human, accessible and evergreen.
Each episode features a Dialogue team member having a real conversation with a guest expert who brings insight and personality in equal measure. It's not a masterclass. It's a coffee break conversation that sticks with you.
Looking Ahead
Future episodes will explore everything from crisis communication in a cancel culture climate, to the real ROI of purpose-led branding, to what happens when agencies get DEI wrong. Our goal is not to have all the answers, it's to ask better questions and open up conversations that challenge how we think, lead and grow.
This isn't a one-way broadcast. We want our community to shape it with us. Tell us what's keeping you up at night. Tell us what you wish more leaders were willing to say out loud. That's how we'll all get better.
This is only the beginning and we’re just getting real.
For more information, visit www.dialogue.co.za. You can also follow Dialogue on Facebook, LinkedIn, X, or on Instagram.
*Image courtesy of Facebook