Chronic illness is already shaping your workforce.

Managing it well is now a core leadership capability.

You are going through an extremely challenging experience and meeting it with grit, tenacity and vulnerability.

Wherever you are now is not the end of your story.

OUR FOUNDER

Michelle Irving is a global authority on chronic illness, work, and leadership.

Her work is applied across organisations, supporting leaders, teams, and employees to navigate chronic illness at work.

Michelle is the founder of Chronic Illness At Work, which partners with organisations to address chronic illness as a core workforce reality. She also founded Career & Chronic, supporting professional women navigating chronic illness over the arc of their career.

Over the past two decades, Michelle has developed a body of original work exploring how chronic illness shapes capacity, ambition, professional identity, and leadership over time.

Her frameworks are used across individual, organisational, and leadership contexts to support clearer decision-making and more sustainable ways of working.

Michelle's work is informed by both lived experience of chronic illness and formal training across somatic approaches, cancer survivorship, and women’s leadership.

She is recognised for bringing clarity, rigour, and depth to conversations often oversimplified or avoided in professional settings.

Michelle’s work is referenced across media, leadership forums, and organisational contexts, shaping how chronic illness is understood within contemporary conversations about work, leadership, and long-term sustainability.

MICHELLE IRVING
FOUNDER, CHRONIC ILLNESS AT WORK

Michelle in Conversation

Michelle Irving is a sought-after speaker and commentator on chronic illness, women’s health, work, leadership, and entrepreneurship, known for bringing clarity to conversations about capacity, ambition, and long-term sustainability.

Future Women Leadership Summit 2025

Michelle shares real-world strategies for people leaders managing team members with chronic illness and for employees navigating work while living with it.

HOW CHRONIC ILLNESS AT WORK WAS FOUNDED:

This work is grounded in Michelle’s own experience of navigating chronic illness alongside her career.

The Diagnosis That Changed Everything

When I was diagnosed with a life-threatening autoimmune condition at 35, in the midst of my dream career, I had no idea how to approach it at work. I didn’t want anyone to know—it felt like my problem to solve, even though I was told the condition was incurable and required lifelong treatment. I carried a sense of shame, feeling torn between my ambition and the impact of treatment on my health.

Navigating Career and Chronic Illness

Over the years, as my career advanced, I experienced two periods where I had to take significant time off. Returning to work, I started slowly—sometimes working as little as five hours a week. Eventually, I regained my capacity and continued to perform, but the anxiety and feeling I needed to prove I was doing everything to be well, haunted me.

Hiding to Leading with Confidence

As my confidence grew, I became more transparent about my condition. I found myself leading not only my work but also guiding managers on how best to support me. This approach eased the journey for everyone involved. My openness led to others confidentially reaching out to me for advice—how to talk to their managers, manage their workload, and, most importantly, avoid feeling ostracised for their health challenges. No one wants to be seen as the ‘sick person’ at work.

The Desire for Authentic Connection

The truth is, many of us are managing our conditions in silence, wanting authentic connections and recognition for the incredible work we are doing despite our health experience. Chronic illness isn’t just about managing the condition; it’s about managing the stress of doing it all alone, while trying to maintain a career.

Building a New Approach to Work and Chronic Illness

Over 18 years, I figured out what I needed—how to communicate it, manage fluctuations in my energy, and get my work done in ways that respected both my productivity and my body. After years of working with executives and professionals navigating these challenges, I knew it was time to create something bigger. That’s why I developed Chronic Illness At Work—a comprehensive programme that equips both employees and people leaders with the tools, understanding, and shared language to make navigating chronic illness in the workplace easier.

Chronic Illness is At Work—Let’s Make It Better for Everyone

BOOK MICHELLE AS YOUR KEYNOTE SPEAKER

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