I’m a Coach and a Facilitator who works together with individuals, teams and organisations facing a variety of work related challenges. I am driven by finding fresh perspectives, new ideas and bespoke solutions to improve the dynamics of creative businesses and their people. Working with me is not about going over old ground, but inspiring you to find the enthusiasm and dedication to make a difference.
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News:

Nov 11: I have started working directly with the Leadership Team at PMT and it was an enjoyable session; I'm impressed by their self-awareness and appetite for learning. It worked well and I look forward to seeing them again soon.

I assisted my colleague Dr Lionel Stapley, from OPUS, conduct an in-depth Culture Audit at Notting Hill Housing, one of the most inventive housing associations in the UK. We managed to sample 15% of the staff population to inform a 3 year piece of work to change and develop the working culture.

I have started working with my first supervisee and I continue to coach my clients at ASOS and Top Shop.

Oct 11: I worked with the Womenswear Design Team at ASOS and facilitated their annual Vision and Creative Inspiration day. We had a great venue, the team were so diverse and positive it made a fantastic day. They worked so hard and achieved so much. It was a pleasure to work with them.

I've started the Leadership Development Programme at Purcell Miller Tritton by conducting a culture audit. I've spent time in their London and Oxford offices and spoken to all the leaders across the UK and Hong Kong. Their input at this early stage is critical for the future success of the programme and in achieving a long-lasting culture change.

I have facilitated a challenging but incredibly productive & rewarding two day Myers Briggs Team Development + Idea Generation workshop for my old colleague Andy Mackenzie, Creative Director, at Twofour. The team has a unique mix of intelligence and creativity that made them fantastic to work with. I'll now be on the look out for some brilliant shows that were borne out of our session.

Sep 11: A slightly quieter month as I was on holiday. I started a 5 session Leadership Development Programme for Target Live, a media and communications company. I have worked closely with the MD and the participants to design a bespoke programme to match their needs.

I am now working with the coaching training company, Management Futures, as a faculty member. This means that I will now be working as an assessor for potential coaches studying towards the ILM Certificate in Coaching.

Also, in preparation for a Creative Thinking event at the TV Production Company Twofour, I sat in and observed one of their Development meetings to inform the design of the event. It's really interesting and valuable to watch people at work. Now I've got some great ideas myself on what to deliver.

Aug 11: I have been delivering a impactful 2 day Management Course called Enhance & Inspire for the media communications agency Manning Gotttlieb, with my colleague Theresa Colligan through Blue Pheonix. What a motivated and fun group of people. We ended the two days with an Apprentice style challenge with they worked very hard towards and was a brilliant way for them to demonstrate their leadership skills.

I delivered a one day Introduction to Management for SONY Music, again through Blue Pheonix. A fun crew with lots to say!

This, of course, alongside coaching clients, pitching to potential clients Hobbs & Target Live.

July 11: This month I have picked up a number of very interesting coaching clients who I am really enjoying working with: An Art Director at a large fashion label, a Creative Director at a TV Production Company, a HR Manager and a Fashion Designer for a womenswear label. All are bringing creative challenges to the coaching room.

I have also won a large commission to work with an exciting architecture practice, Purcell, Miller Tritton. I'll be working with them over the next few months to develop leadership capability across the whole organisation; starting with The Board. They recognise how important this is to give their business a competitive edge in challenging economic times,

Jun 11: I have started two really interesting pieces of work this month:

Coaching a CEO of a successful TV Production company. I'm working with him to ensure that they maximise on a period of growth with lots of exciting commissions. He wants to ensure that he builds on the companies strong reputation, maintain a creative company culture and recruits the right people to future proof the organisation.

My proposal to deliver Mentoring Training to high potential women in theatre was successful. Jude Kelly of the Southbank Centre has commissioned this work as part of the Wow - Women of the World - a celebration of women's potential. They said "your proposal really aligned with what we're trying to achieve." I'm excited by this work as it combines many of my interests: womens issues, leadership development, mentoring, self-managed learning in a group context and the cultural economy.

May 11: This month I have worked with a very interesting woman, makeup consultant Natalie James. I have been giving her some new business advice and I think she has a very interesting proposition for business. "At its simplest level, The Makeup Debate offers practical tips on makeup for work, helping confident businesswomen get the most out of their makeup bag. But it goes deeper than that. It starts to open up a conversation around how women are perceived in the workplace and the challenges they face as female employees. It's a make-up tutorial with an intelligent edge"

I have been assessing coaches as part of their Coach Training and I am soon to begin work supervising trainee coaches as they embark on the Certificate in Coaching (Institute of Leadership & Management) with Management Futures.

I also delivered a fun and energetic team development day for Cavendish Health Centre. Not the normal client I would work with, but I was struck by the progressive and people centred way this practices operates and aspires to develop itself. We had a very productive day in Brighton where the whole team participated in setting the vision for the practice and agreed new ways of working together.

Apr 11: I facilitated an Away Day for the Creative & Cultural Economy Unit at The British Council designed to support them to plan for the year ahead and articulate their aims successfully to key stakeholders.

My work continues with Channel 4 News and I have a new coaching client: a fashion designer.

Mar 11: This month I have finally got around to supporting and mentoring The School of Communication Arts. It is a great education and business model. It was good fun meeting the students, critiquing their work and doing some quick coaching sessions to help them overcome their creative block.

Feb 11: Interesting work opportunities this month with Channel 4, Whistles, ASOS, The Guardian and The Comedy Channel.

I also spoke about Coaching and it's Potential at a Craftnet Residential. CraftNet members lead the craft sector in their regions and have an influence at a national level. They play a leadership role not only in their own organisations, but also through their relationships with other professional bodies and in their contribution to the formation of regional and national strategies. An Interesting group and a fun session to deliver with my oartner for the event Helen Carnac who is a maker, curator and academic.

Other work I was involved in this month: The Art of Persuasion at TopShop, Channel 4 News and coaching a couple of new clients.

More evidence of the change project at Channel 4 News, less positive example and article in The Telegraph, but evidence that change is happening... but not quickly enough - always the challenge with culture change programmes. It always takes a long time.

The book I'm finding interesting and useful reading this month is Seth Godin The Dip.

Jan 11: This year there seems to be an increasing demand for delivering Management Skills through a Team Coaching approach. This approach ensures that the learning is relevant, it sticks and there is a real change in behaviour. Alongside these tangible outcomes the participants also develop a real sense of team and continue to meet each other, support each other and creatively solve business challenges. I am in discussions with two clients this month who believe their employees are ready for this style of learning that really encourages them to take responsibility for the learning process - the way it should be.

Dec 10: I have returned to evaluate the senior management team sessions I delivered to Channel 4 News. They are working hard to change their culture so that they can deliver news in a creative way with a fresh feel. Some of the changes are being reported in the press.

We celebrated, with a Christmas Meal at Bocca di Lupo, our first year of Tribe: a business support group for independent women workers. Inspired by Ken Robinson's book The Element' it has been very successful and we now look forward to our second year with more activities and events.

I have also began telecoaching. Coaching clients over the telephone. It is a quick and easy method of coaching to deal with immediate and pressing issues - I still believe it's not a substitute for face-to-face coaching but it can complement it well.

Nov 10: I'm now spending my time reconnecting with clients and meeting with new ones such as Arcadia.

Oct 10: Four and a half months after my daughter was born I'm back. I had a gentle but fun intro back into work by facilitating a Creative Thinking Techniques session for the Learning & Development in Broadcasting Conference. I've also picked up with my coaching clients.

I'm now working again and looking for new coaching clients... do give me a call.

June 10: This month I am slowing down, well actually coming to a stop.... as I'm having a baby.

May 10: This month as my work with Channel 4 News comes to a close I have met with John Hardie CEO of ITN to update him about on the project and as part of the evaluation process.

I delivered an Influencing & Persuading session for Top Shop, ran the 4th Tribe Meeting (a collective for independent women workers) and had a number of coaching sessions.

April 10: My work with Channel 4 News continues and even though the election looms the group is working hard and is very committed. It's proving to be a very rewarding & successful piece of work. I'll put a detailed case study together soon. But if you are interested in finding out more about Team Coaching and what it can do, please contact me. It is a very profound and powerful team develoment tool that delivers lasting results.

I enjoyed working with Sony Music this month through a partner organisation Blue Phoenix. I delivered a Presentation Skills course that they seemed to find very useful and I enjoyed too; they were a great group to work with.

March 10: Alongside delivering some more Creative Thinking Techniques workshops at ASOS.com I also facilitated a Pitching & Presenting workshop. One of the participants recently emailed me with the following feedback:

I just wanted to let you know that the presentation course has had a really positive effect for me at work. I have recently presented in a sign off, a rather intimidating environment, to heads of department and directors and my monthly departmental presentations have been going a lot better. A big part of this was accepting that, as you said, I may never feel comfortable or rid myself of the shakes and blushes but that I can get on and do it anyway. The most surprising thing that has happened without me realising it is that I have stopped agonising about presenting for days and weeks before. It sounds silly to say but the amount of angst I was having previously when I knew I had to present caused me real stress for weeks. Taking control of the situation and making strides to change this through the methods in your course has really helped me to keep a lid on that anxiety and appreciate that actually presenting can be your chance to shine and be in the spotlight.

It's great to hear that not only are the courses I design & facilitate enjoyable but they have a real lasting impact on the individual and the business.

I've started a couple of new coaching relationships; a designer at a fashion label and a Cultural Leadership Programme Peach Placement. A scheme designed to develop leaders for the Creative & Cultural industries. Both will be interesting clients to work with.

Finally, I lectured this month at London South Bank University on their MPA in Public Administration. It's great to work with the students and give them an opportunity to practice their consultancy skills in a challenging environment.

February 10: I have begun coaching some of the Design Directors at Glue. A very timely exercise as they have just gone through a merger and with high anticipated growth for 2010

I have been doing some of 'the ususal'; facilitating The Art of Persuasion: Influencing Skills course at Top Shop.

January 10: A great start to the new year with lots of exciting projects to get stuck into for 2010.

Firstly, the Creative Renewal project has begun with Channel 4 News. Due to industry pressures Channel 4 News has challenged itself to appraise how it currently delivers news and what the future needs of it's audience is in order to identify how it needs to change. I will be working with the management team to bring them together and get them ready to deliver this change. This will involve: looking at the current culture, how they interact, function and communicate as a team; assessing the structure and how they make decisions; how they involve and empower the wider newsroom and determining the next steps to the project. By January 2011 we will see a change on screen and how C4 delivers news to it's audience.

Secondly, I have started a Tribe. A group for independent woman workers (sounds a bit socialist!) to share ideas, frustrations and learning about the freelance world. The name and idea was inspired by Sir Ken Robinson's book 'The Element'. It's a great book that discusses how finding your passion in life changes everything. He talks about the importance of having a Tribe; that is a group of people who you can 'talk shop' with, inspire, challenge, compete with and support. And that is the basis of our tribe. If you are interested in joining do contact me.

Other work this month: Facilitating a Team Development Day for the Designers at Top Shop using Myers Briggs and a Creative Thinking Techniques session for ASOS.com.

December 09: I started this month working with the Design Directors at Glue helping them to look to 2010 by taking some time out to re-set, re-fresh and re-focus.

I travelled to Edinburgh to work at BASF's annual conference (for the second time) delivering a couple of discursive sessions on worklife-balance and stress.

Lots of coaching work this month, from 121 work to Team work and Assessment of others aspiring to become accredited coaches.

Finally, I have been commissioned to work with ITN and Channel 4 News for a large part of 2010. Working with the News Team it is going to be an exciting piece of work. But more later....

November 09. Lots of varied work this month from 'guest lecturing' on the Management Consulting Unit at London South Bank University's MSc in HR to Presenting Skills and Creativity Workshops for ASOS.com.

I began an interesting piece of work with the Merchandising Team at Top Shop; helping them to understand their team dynamic and how they work together. In the New Year I will continue working with them to analyse and introduce new and efficient working practices.

I attended an invaluable day of development for myself and my coaching practice: Coaching for Careers. It is an area that is currently in demand by coaching clients and through the course I have developed a 7 point plan to support clients looking for a change in career. The 7 points include: assessing career option, identfying your own personal brand and interview techniques.

October 09. This month has been busy. I worked with Nokia Brand Engagement helping them to find new ways of working and I have been commissioned to do some work with the Design Directors at Glue.

I became a qualified Myers Briggs Step II practitioner, which means I can work with teams in more detail around personality profiles and what it means for them and with individuals who find it difficult to identify the MBTI Profile.

As ever, I've been assessing coaches who wish to obtain an accredited coaching qualification and running skills workshops with ASOS.com.

September 09. Finally the launch day for Platform is here. The launch party was good fun. The 'Formers' had produced some great work and it was brilliant to see them so excited about being in London and ready to go.

To support the launch I worked with some of the people at Wieden + Kennedy London and facilitated a mentoring workshop to prepare them to be brilliant mentors for the 'Formers.'

Also, I will be working with the Platform Formers on a monthly basis as their Team Coach, supporting their group dynamics and understanding the process of how they work together effectively to produce some amazing work... hopefully.

August 09. Again working with the fun and youthful crew at ASOS.com delivering workshops around Creative Thinking and Pitching Skills.

The artist/practitioners from Method are some of the most hardworking individuals I have worked with. Brilliantly intense and so committed to their work. It's been a joy to work with them and watch them develop.

July 09. Won a great contract, along with my colleague Mark McGuinness, to coach a group of artists on a pilot programme called Method funded by the Cultural leadership Programme to develop leadership with artists and practitioners.

I worked with the Top Shop Buyers and ran a Team Development Day using Myers Briggs Personality Profile. A really interesting, dedicated, fun and hard-working group of people. I look forward to working with them again.

I facilitated a number of scenario analysis sessions with Wieden + Kennedy London designed to get the Account Directors and others engaged with the new creative school, Platform, to understand its potential and how it could benefit them and their clients.

Finally, we ran the first Open Day for Platform. Hopeful participants travelled from all over the world for the opportunity to join Wieden + Kennedy's creative school. I helped put together the selection criteria and joined the assessors on the day. It strangely felt like being one of the judges on X-Factor; selecting using photos. But we've got a great group to work with. It's going to be an interestign experiment.

June 09. A busy month. I have facilitated 2 fun and interactive courses for ASOS.com: Creative Thinking and Pitching Skills.

The work for Platform for Widen + Kennedy is picking up. I'm involved in strategy meetings and getting back into some facilitation by designing and running a Scenario Analysis session for their Account Directors.

With my colleague Mark McGuinness we have won the contract to coach all the particpants on this years Method Programme. Method is one of two programmes supported by the Cultural Leadership Programme which focus support on the development of independent leaders in the cultural and creative industries in the UK. I'm really excited about working with these artists.

May 09. Finally Platform has an online presence. I will be working with Sam and Lucy at Widen + Kennedy to consult on this project and ensure that the best creative learning opportunities are exeprienced by all. It's got fantastic potential.

I stepped in for my colleague Alec McPhedran and ran a Leadership & Management for Creative Industries course at 01ZeroOne. It was great fun, a great group and a great test of a new approach I have been developing whereby particpants coach each other through their current leadership issues. This approach enables the participants do deal with real stuff, in the moment, develop and understanding, create their own model and practice their coaching skills too. It really worked.

April 09. I've picked up a couple of interesting clients this month and I am now coaching for Comic Relief.

March 09. I have been working with a training provider called You:Unltd to design a course following an interesting conversation we had before Christmas. We have designed a course based on the concept of Survivor Syndrome and recognising that, to some, the redundancies that are happening as a result of the economic climate is a trauma. The course is designed to support those who have not been made redundant to help them become refocused and motivated when faced with a new role and perhaps more work... see more information here.

I ran a Team Development day for the guys at onedotzero. I used the Myers Briggs Personality Profile and after some initial scepticism (as usual) they loved it. It was good fun.

Feb 09. I went to a great talk by Wim Crowell, a really important designer in Dutch graphic history. He designed font sets and brilliant posters for the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. I was impressed by his attitude to socially responsible design. See his ideas and work in this interview by Creative Review.

I attended an intense 3 day facilitation course called Beynd the Flipchart delivered by Margot Corbin & David Briggs. Great facilitators themselves, they managed to skillfully navigate a pathway between a skills course and a profound experiental learning event. The course enabled me to reflect on my own practice and think about a few different ways of doing things. I would recommend it to any facilitators out there looking to push the boundaries of their work.

Dec/Jan 09. I've finally launched my new website. I hope you like the look and feel of it. It's creation is thanks to the very talented Chris Angelkov of Fiction Department.

I've been working with and coaching some very talented people at ASOS.com. They are such a dynamic and energectic company it has been such fun working with them. I look forward to doing more with them in 2009.

Oct/Nov 08. I was involved in the new and exciting Cascade project for Onedotzero. Read more...
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