Nigel Taberner
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Change
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Company Culture
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Critical Decision Making
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Emotional Intelligence
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Growth
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Hostage Negotiation
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Influence and Persuasion
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Interpersonal Skills
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Leadership
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Performance
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Resilience
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Teamwork
Former UK Hostage Negotiator & Expert Speaker
Nigel Taberner is a former UK hostage negotiator and a preeminent authority on high-stakes communication, influence, and negotiation. With a distinguished career spanning over 30 years of operational experience within the Greater Manchester Police and Counter-Terrorism Policing North West, Nigel operated at the very sharp end of law enforcement. During the height of his service, he served as a Detective Inspector responsible for complex counter-terrorism policing operations, managing teams in some of the most sensitive and high-pressure environments imaginable.
For a decade of his career, Nigel specialized as a hostage negotiator, a role where the stakes are quite literally life or death. During this time, he successfully resolved over 130 high-risk incidents, including volatile armed sieges, domestic and international kidnaps, and critical suicide interventions. Remarkably, despite the extreme volatility of these situations, not a single life was lost in the incidents Nigel attended, a testament to the power of elite communication and psychological strategy.
Today, Nigel has successfully translated these secretive and rarely seen skills into a powerful framework for the corporate world. As a highly sought-after speaker, he “lifts the lid” on the world of negotiation to help business leaders and organizations improve their performance, well-being, and outcomes. He demonstrates how the same principles used to build trust with a gunman can be used to transform team dynamics, make leadership more inclusive, and drive higher performance in any business setting.
Nigel Taberner’s Key Speaking Themes & Topics
Negotiating When You Have Nothing to Give Away: Nigel’s signature talk explores how to influence others and achieve successful outcomes even when you have zero leverage or bargaining power.
Listening Like a Life Depends on It: Moving beyond basic communication, this session teaches “elite-level listening” as a tool to build deep trust, uncover hidden information, and gain a competitive edge.
Emotional Intelligence (EQ) Under Pressure: Learn how negotiators read emotions and manage their own internal states to restore rational thinking during the most fraught business conflicts.
Influence and Persuasion: Master the psychological techniques used to build rapid rapport and persuade difficult people to move toward a positive resolution.
Critical Decision Making & Resilience: Gain insights into how to assess fast-moving situations calmly, make strategic decisions, and bounce back from setbacks.
Professional Services
Nigel is known for his energy and authenticity, delivering sessions that are as entertaining as they are educational.
- Conference & Keynote Speeches: Gripping, storytelling-driven sessions that guarantee full audience engagement. Nigel’s “jaw-dropping” stories ensure there are no phones or laptops in sight.
- Interactive Communications Masterclasses: Highly popular half-day sessions for leadership academies and executive coaching groups. These sessions allow teams to practice negotiation theories in a safe, interactive environment.
- Global Training Pedigree: Nigel is an experienced trainer who has delivered negotiation instruction to the FBI, UK Special Forces, and international police forces in Finland and Australia.
Client Testimonials
“Amazing storytelling, actionable takeaways and really captured the audience. We’ve had audience members still talking about it months later”
Firmwide Managing Partner – Linklaters
“Captivating, inspiring and so impressive. Anyone who is in leadership or manage a sales team need you to take their development to the next level… Thank you so much.”
Hair & Beauty Suppliers Association
Incredible session Nigel Taberner! Privileged to have heard it. There was so much positive reflection from the team this morning on our stand up on how we can take some learnings and apply. Thank you!
Citation Group
Previously a hostage negotiator, Nigel had everyone on the edge of their seats with thought provoking and intense stories. Nigel focuses on the importance of truly listening during 1-2-1 communication and does it through exciting true-life stories. Absolutely fantastic!
SpecSavers
Nigel Taberner spoke on persuasion, influence, negotiation and it was outstanding. No fluff, no theory, just sharp tools, real-life experience, and exactly the kind of thinking I want in my leadership toolkit.
Castle Employment Group
“Fantastic speaker and liked how there were so many good take aways that I could implement into the workplace straight away. The session was truly captivating, and it will stick with me for a long time.”
Gattaca
Thanks so much for the excellent session you ran for my coaching group yesterday. Blew their socks off! Lots of laughter and learning, so great stuff. Keep on doing the good work!
Chair, VistageUK
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