Chad and Nikki Strickland: Live Meaningful Lives Through Meaningful Work

by Jeff Bond

At the core of my work is helping global business, communications, and people leaders create meaningful engagement with their teams and customers. Together with my wonderful colleagues at Chat With Leaders Media and People First Elevation Team, we deliver all-hands meeting support, content, podcasts, creative, cross-cultural training, speaker coaching, and strategic advisory solutions. We are committed to unlocking the power of inclusive storytelling, shared experiences, leadership development, and mixed media to help our clients authentically connect with their most important stakeholders.

Our core values—Partnership, Inclusion, and Empowerment—guide everything we do. By fostering strong partnerships, embracing diverse perspectives, and equipping leaders with the tools to succeed, we aim to transform the way people engage while achieving meaningful work.

Outside of work, I cherish time with my wife and three children, balancing my roles as a husband and father with my professional life in Atlanta, GA. Let's connect and explore how we can create impactful media solutions for your business.

Chad is the culture, and people strategist who drives business results with the power of belief, purpose, and communication. Chad began his 20-year career as a labor and employment attorney, then transitioned to a senior business executive, where he learned how the power of people can impact an organization.

In co-founding NICH in 2016, Chad sought to develop a resource that he wished he had as a senior executive at a large enterprise. During his nearly 15-year tenure with one of the most successful specialty retailers in the country, Aaron’s Inc., Chad was responsible for the most valued aspect of the business: attracting, hiring, training, and engaging the 20,000+ (mostly millennial) associates. Building this process from scratch gave Chad invaluable experience and lessons on what’s effective for today’s millennial workforce.

Nikki is the millennial marketing, creative director, and internal brand strategist who provides clients with counsel and a personal confidant to successfully lead their brands around the world. Nikki has developed a wide skill set thanks to a diverse background spanning a Major League Baseball team, a large enterprise, a digital advertising agency, and a technology start-up. She has developed a range of specialties from graphic design to copywriting to web coding. With a passion for purpose and a great eye for design, Nikki helps organizations tap into their younger generations by meeting them where they are.

In co-founding NICH, Nikki sought to build a team of creatives, communicators, and designers that understand the power of effective and authentic communication. Nikki creates strategies and executes proven tactics to build strong foundations of communication and engagement across companies both locally and abroad.

Nikki and Chad live in Historic Inman Park Atlanta and have an office in the Old Fourth Ward. When not in the office, you can find them with their two dogs, training or drinking wine at VinoTeca. Both are elite endurance athletes that travel the world competing in crazy events and run teams of like-minded individuals.

Discussion Topics

Can you walk us through your journey to starting NICH Culture – an agency that’s uniquely focused on workplace culture and purpose?
What kind of problems have you seen leaders of growing companies facing with respect to unhealthy cultures? How do you guide them into a better narrative around purpose, mission, and stronger core values?
Can you share an example of the impact you’ve had with helping your clients understand, define, articulate, and promote an exceptional work culture through your work at NICH?
What do you see happening in the labor market right now?
What roles are leadership and culture playing for those organizations that are thriving?

Follow/Learn More

Our Community Partners

B Local GA: A collection of for-profit companies each dedicated to creating a future where businesses operate as a positive influence on society.
InspirEDU: A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that seeks to support education equity with its commitment to youth and their families, through training, device distribution, and technology career development.
AppBarry: An Atlanta-based software engineering team specializing in building custom web and mobile applications, cloud migrations, and software integrations.
Classic City Consulting: An Atlanta-based WordPress design + development, content writing, and SEO consulting firm.
Stratfield Consulting: Helping organizations successfully adapt to a rapidly changing landscape with an approach that integrates proven consulting, staffing, and recruiting services.