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Tina Varughese

Cross-Cultural Communication and Diversity Expert

Tina Varughese
50 Shades of Beige
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Navigating Generational Differences in the Workplace
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Navigating Behavioural Differences in the Workplace
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Navigating Cultural Differences in the Workplace
The Human Side of Unconscious Bias
Give the (Re)Boot to Work-Life Balance
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Find the Fun in Your Workplace
Tina
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Varughese Thumb 4
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Varughese Thumb 2
Tina Varughese
50 Shades of Beige
Varughese Thumb 1
Navigating Generational Differences in the Workplace
Varughese Thumb 4
Navigating Behavioural Differences in the Workplace
Varughese Thumb 3
Navigating Cultural Differences in the Workplace
The Human Side of Unconscious Bias
Give the (Re)Boot to Work-Life Balance
Varughese Thumb 2
Find the Fun in Your Workplace

An Indo-Canadian daughter of first generation parents, Varughese says her cultural background allows her to find “the best of both worlds” and shed light, knowledge, and, most importantly, universal humour into the changing workplace. Her highly entertaining, interactive, and practical keynotes leave attendees inspired to think, behave, act, and communicate with intention.

For fifteen years Varughese worked with immigrants in her roles with the Province of Alberta’s immigration office. She also ran her own successful relocation and settlement firm. Varughese draws from her experiences as an entrepreneur, mother, daughter, wife, sister, and friend when delivering keynotes on diversity and inclusion — topics that resonate with her both professionally and personally.

Varughese has been named one of “Canada’s Top 10 Notable Speakers” by Ignite Magazine for her ability to break down barriers and create a comfortable, inclusive, and fun space for attendees. She was the face of diversity, literally, having been chosen to participate in Dove’s campaign for Real Beauty, representing beauty in diversity.

The past-president of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers (Calgary), Varughese is a contributing writer for the Human Resource Institute of Alberta’s Network magazine, Calgary Real Estate News, and Home to Home magazine. She was also profiled in Alberta’s Venture Magazine.

Speaking topics

Presentations listed below include in-person and virtual keynotes, as well as workshops, fireside chats, and other presentation formats.

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Client reviews

  • Tina’s keynote, 50 Shades of Beige: Communicate with the Cross-Cultural Advantage’ was the highest rated at this year’s HR and Leadership Conference. She brought tremendous energy to the conference and engaged the audience throughout the keynote.

  • I can’t say that I have ever enjoyed a speaker as much I enjoyed you. You are witty, charming, funny, and engaging. You have inspired me. Well done.

  • Tina is one of those rare finds – unique, refreshing, and has a positive high impact on those she works with. She knows just the right approach to fit the audience and is not afraid to push to get to the heart of the matter. She holds you accountable, makes you think at a deeper level and truly demonstrates how much she cares. We will rely on her again in the future, for sure.

  • It was a delight to see how engaged employees were and their genuine desire to better understand and embrace inclusivity. Tina even received unsolicited emails from staff thanking her for teaching something they hadn’t previously thought about or recognized, which clearly demonstrates the value-add she brought to the Syncrude organization.

  • We (Ottawa Police Members) thoroughly enjoyed your presentation. Your presentation / dialogue on inclusion was the best I have seen yet.

  • Anyone in the legal arena would benefit from this seminar. Tina created understanding in each topic through concrete examples. She was very engaging, energetic and has excellent presentation skills. Her seminar evaluations were through the roof – every participant gave her an ‘excellent’ instructor rating and could ‘confidently’ recommend her seminar. I look forward to using her practical strategies and effective communication methods with my clients.

  • Tina is an electrifying speaker. Her passion is infectious and highly relevant. In just one hour, attendees of various ages and stages of life gained a fresh perspective on the value of work life balance and how simple changes can have long term positive effects mentally, physically and emotionally. Her keynote is impactful, engaging and includes a refreshing dose of humour. She will deliver valuable information in an inspiring and entertaining manner.

  • Tina Varughese is one of the more dynamic and entertaining speakers on the circuit today. She gave a presentation on communication with the cross cultural advantage at our Feet First symposium. Our audience was a conglomeration of many different careers impacting swine production from 11 different countries. Tina had the attention of the whole group and everyone laughed and left with more knowledge on how to interact with people of many different cultures. This was a presentation packed with practical examples. She is very skilled at involving large audiences in the presentation. She delivers her message with confidence, humor, stories, and excellent visual impact with slides and videos to enhance her message. Her presentation concluded our symposium and left the audience on a very high note and extremely satisfied with our event.

  • Tina Varughese is a master at helping business people feel at ease and engaging in conversations about the cultural differences that we never talk about. In fact, she makes it fun. She’ll help improve employee retention, sales, service, marketing and corporate social media.

  • Your session was so impactful and you are such a lovely speaker. Working for healthcare has its challenges, and at the core of our values and vision right now is diversity and inclusion. Needless to say, your material resonated with us.

  • I LOVED your keynote and could have sat in that conference room all day listening to you. It really shows that you are in your element and love what you do. Thank you for speaking with such passion about a topic that a lot more people need to hear about these days. You were definitely one of the people that I automatically felt a draw to. You have a beautiful soul and possess the energy of a million-watt light bulb. Keep up the good work!

  • The standing ovation you received was heartfelt. All I can say is WOW! You made a difference in helping over 300 people feel better about work life balance while building leaders in our department. Your humor is fantastic, which engaged our staff from the moment you set foot on stage. They are talking about their level of stress and how they are going to bring it down and what they are going to do to make that happen. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, your positive spirit and your humor. I look forward to working with you in the future!

  • Your morning keynote ‘Communicate with the Cross-Cultural Advantage’ rated 4.8/5 as did the afternoon workshop, ‘Recruiting and Retaining Foreign Workers for Success and Sustainability’. This is excellent since the audience was quite a mix of people from the entire production chain. I had nothing but rave reviews and will be referring you to anyone looking for a speaker on cross-culture topics. It was informative AND fun… nice to have participants leave on a high note!

  • At our all-hands training session, Tina brought a challenging topic (unconscious bias) to life in an accessible, down-to-earth way that resonated for the audience of professionals (lawyers).  Blending the latest social science and data-driven insights with humour, honesty, and humility, Tina took us to a place of greater insight, understanding, and ultimately belonging, as individuals and a workplace community.

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