Cara Cunniff
Cara Cunniff’s journey has always revolved around connection—through food, culture, and the shared human experience.
She has lived in cities like Paris, where she indulged her love of cooking with some short course training at Le Cordon Bleu, as well as in Germany, Belgium, and the USA, where she experienced the beauty of diverse traditions and cuisines.
Having lived in the diplomatic sphere, she’s seen how meals are often more than sustenance—they become opportunities to build relationships, share stories, and forge lasting bonds across cultures and nations. These connections shape perspectives, foster mutual understanding, and, at times, influence decisions that ripple through national interests.
Professionally, Cara brings this same ethos of connection to her work in emotional culture and workplace transformation. As a former British Army officer, she had the privilege of working in the inaugural Psychological Operations (PsyOps) unit for the British Army—a role centred on influencing behaviour through ‘hearts and minds’.
This experience gave her a deep insight into the complexities of human behaviour, the impact of strategic communication, and the power of narratives to inspire action and connection. Today, she applies these lessons when working with organisations to co-create strong workplace emotional cultures.
She works with organisations, teams and leaders to kickstart or accelerate strong workplace experiences and emotional cultures which boost performance, strengthen connections and engagement & create thriving workplaces.
A little more about Cara:
– She’s moved house 32 times across 4 countries, living in many unique cultures
– She escaped from Alcatraz—swimming across shark-infested waters
– She has raced ultra-marathons across the Sahara desert and is an Ironman
– She has 1 husband, 3 teenagers, 1 dog (and lost her tortoise)
– She’s optimistic & always seeks opportunities & solutions.
Cara’s 3 mindset messages:
- Curiosity: The courage to ask, the openness to listen, and the compassion to understand
- Emotions drive everything we do
- Growth happens in the quiet moments.
Food
Cara suggested to have ingredients of chicken, cheese, tomatoes, root veg. She loves Mediterranean and Ottolenghi and in general she just loves food!
After reading this, my mind straight away raced to form this picture of a perfect meal for Cara, full of flavour, hearty and delicious. It would be all in one pan dish, and I found just the perfect recipe for that.
As you know, I do not create my own recipes, but I often add my own touches if I feel like it needs something different or additional.
I cooked Chicken breasts with mozzarella and tomatoes, served alongside crispy bread, pasta and refershing salad with balsamic vinegar pearls.
You can find similar recipe here.
If you would like to contact Cara, you can do so via Linkedin.
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