4c. Accountability Without Anxiety: How to Have the Conversations Every Leader Avoids
Tracks
Stream 3
| Saturday, May 23, 2026 |
| 14:05 - 14:50 |
| Cockle Bay 2 |
Details
Accountability can make even experienced leaders uneasy. Yet avoiding difficult conversations can undermine trust, team performance, and patient outcomes.
Accountability Without Anxiety: How to Have the Conversations Every Leader Avoids gives healthcare leaders the confidence and tools to navigate challenging discussions with clarity, fairness, and empathy.
This session explores why many leaders hesitate to hold others accountable and how fear of conflict, emotional discomfort, and uncertainty about “what to say” can reinforce avoidance. Using real-world examples from day-to-day clinic life - from underperformance to behavioural issues - the session provides a practical, six-step guide to having courageous conversations that maintain respect while achieving results.
Participants will learn how to prepare effectively, manage emotional dynamics, and structure conversations that are firm, fair, and forward-focused. The emphasis is on creating an environment where expectations are clear, feedback is constructive, and accountability supports performance, wellbeing and growth.
This session will empower leaders to replace anxiety with confidence - transforming difficult conversations into opportunities for alignment, learning, and leadership growth.
Accountability Without Anxiety: How to Have the Conversations Every Leader Avoids gives healthcare leaders the confidence and tools to navigate challenging discussions with clarity, fairness, and empathy.
This session explores why many leaders hesitate to hold others accountable and how fear of conflict, emotional discomfort, and uncertainty about “what to say” can reinforce avoidance. Using real-world examples from day-to-day clinic life - from underperformance to behavioural issues - the session provides a practical, six-step guide to having courageous conversations that maintain respect while achieving results.
Participants will learn how to prepare effectively, manage emotional dynamics, and structure conversations that are firm, fair, and forward-focused. The emphasis is on creating an environment where expectations are clear, feedback is constructive, and accountability supports performance, wellbeing and growth.
This session will empower leaders to replace anxiety with confidence - transforming difficult conversations into opportunities for alignment, learning, and leadership growth.
Speaker
Dr Eydis Konradsdottir
GP
Lindfield Family Medicine
Chairperson
14:05 - 14:50
Dr Eydis Konradsdottir is a General Practitioner and co-owner of Lindfield Family Medicine in Sydney, a practice that has proudly served the Lindfield community for over 40 years. Eydis enjoys all aspects of general practice, with particular interests in paediatrics, adolescent and women's health.
Before medicine, Eydis represented Iceland as a two-time Olympian in swimming which was an experience that instilled in her the discipline, perspective and insight she now brings to both her clinical work and her approach to practice leadership.
Eydis is committed to striking the right balance between clinical excellence, professional development and personal wellbeing for her practice family. She believes that when practitioners feel supported, motivated, and given the space to grow, better patient outcomes follow naturally. As a current member of the RACGP Future Leaders Program, this commitment to leadership and innovation within General Practice continues to grow.
Miss Natalie Williams
Senior Workplace Advisor
HR In Health
Accountability Without Anxiety: How to Have the Conversations Every Leader Avoids
14:05 - 14:50
Natalie Williams is a pragmatic, relationship-focused HR professional with over 15 years’ experience supporting fast-paced organisations. She is a Senior Workplace Advisor with HR in Health, partnering with leaders and teams across the employee lifecycle to deliver practical, fit-for-purpose solutions that strengthen culture, performance and compliance—particularly within healthcare and professional services.
Having led teams herself, Natalie understands the pressure leaders face and the impact of getting communication right. She is passionate about helping leaders build confidence to have the conversations that matter, especially in challenging moments. She guides managers to address performance, behaviour, and wellbeing concerns early and constructively, creating clarity and accountability without increasing anxiety or conflict.
