Catch Alla on Do Radio: It's Not About Trees with John Lunn, 15-21 September 2025
Alla is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur with expertise in ICT and business architecture. With a history of high-impact roles in Fortune 500 companies and startups, she co-founded Xtatio and later BeeQueen Leaders, an organization promoting diversity and environmental responsibility. Currently, as the Head of Partnerships at Women in Artificial Intelligence NGO, she advocates for an equitable AI sector. Her work includes mentoring C-suite executives in INSEAD’s executive programs, focusing on digital strategies and AI applications. In 2025 she launched AI4ALL, a foundation committed to making AI more inclusive, ethical, and impactful. Alla‘s commitment to sustainability, diversity, and leadership showcases her vision for a harmonized future in AI and beyond.
Show notes
In this episode of It’s Not About Trees, John Lunn talks to Alla Idrisova — managing partner of the B Queen Foundation, co-founder of AI For All, and a driving force behind inclusive leadership initiatives.
From her early career in corporate innovation to championing women-led grassroots movements, Alla’s journey has been about breaking down silos and reimagining how systems work. She shares how growing up between cultures shaped her worldview, and why she believes that technology, when led by diverse voices, can be a force for human and planetary good.
Alla discusses the headwinds facing diversity, equity, and inclusion today, with some organisations stepping back from commitments made only a few years ago. She is frank about the challenges of sustaining volunteer-led initiatives and the “Queen Bee” phenomenon that can appear in competitive spaces. Yet, she also highlights powerful examples of collaboration — from AI literacy programmes to corporate–grassroots partnerships — that show what’s possible when leadership is circular and inclusive.
Her vision of the “new dawn” is one where leadership isn’t about position but about purpose — where every voice matters, and technology is shaped to serve humanity rather than the other way around.
Highlights include:
- Moving from corporate innovation to purpose-driven ventures.
- The global climate for DEI and why it’s under pressure.
- Founding AI For All to make artificial intelligence education accessible.
- Tackling the Queen Bee phenomenon and creating support networks for women leaders.
- Using circular leadership models to bridge corporate and community priorities.
- Why the future of leadership is inclusive, value-driven, and systemic.
Lightning Round:
- Book: Dark Cloud – Guillaume Pitron
- Song: Mad World – from Donnie Darko
Quote: “The future is you.” – Axel Arigato
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