UCL School of Management

26 August 2026

Team dynamics and Harry Potter's Sorting Hat

A copy of the collective edge with the sorting hat on top

Associate Professor Colin Fisher joined Ross Neal on his Human Alchemy podcast, discussing team performance and dynamics, including psychometrics, diversity, structure versus coaching, the role of conformity and polarisation.

Harry Potter’s Sorting Hat also made it onto the podcast when Colin spoke about alignment to the views of a group rather than one’s own thoughts. Could the Sorting Hat be the real villain? Listen to Colin’s take on this and group dynamics in episode 11 of Human Alchemy.

Colin followed up his appearance on the popular podcast with the launch of his book, The Collective Edge, in paperback with a new subtitle, How to Build and Lead Successful Groups.

Read Colin’s Substack

Last updated Tuesday, 1 September 2026