OUR PEOPLE

Pam Bateson

Pam is an expert coach and mentor in business, training others to Masters level qualifications and supervising coaches. She has worked within the NHS , retail, hotels, construction, media, agencies, education and public sector. She specialises in Coaching, Mentoring, Employee Engagement, Change Management, Learning and Development and Organisational Design. She has worked with all levels in  organisations from graduates to the CEO/VC. She has designed change programmes that connect projects, outcomes, training and coaching. The performance outcomes have been outstanding.  She is the founder of Zinnia Consulting and co founder of Thrive Partners.

The coaching with Pam has been the most effective form of professional development I have had for a very long time.

Wendy Robertson

Wendy has over 17 years commercial experience as CFO and COO in both WPP and Omnicom Group creative agencies and 10 years coaching experience.  As a senior leader she has embraced coaching methodologies and actively got them into the fabric of the business.  This has enabled positive changing behaviours across the business leading to a more collaborative, transparent and people centric approach.  It has also been integral to overall business planning, change management, employee engagement, commercial negotiations and learning and development.

Coaching sessions with Wendy have been invaluable in changing my perceptions and behaviour to a toxic relationship with another senior leader, it no longer engulfs my every hour. You’re a rockstar coach.

Ilona Latta

Ilona has worked in insight development for advertising and marketing clients since 1997. She has always been committed to mentoring, training and coaching within these roles leading to, among other things, her promotion to the board at JWT, and to Planning Partner at McCann London. She moved into coaching proper in 2015 and has worked with a range of people from graduates to heads of departments. Her industry experience includes FMCG, financial services, beauty, charity and government work.

The insight Ilona helped me to reach into my job, and how to be better at it, has made an enormous difference.

Helen Bulbeck

Helen works in a variety of contexts, including the third sector, education and business. Elemental to Helen’s profile is high performance coaching. When we are no longer to able to change a situation we are challenged to change ourselves. Helen’s coaching relationship with her clients enables people to face these challenges, so that they learn how to develop resilience and utilise resources to their full potential. Helen's key strength is in her ability to get things done. She is clear sighted and finds a way to deliver, keeping project teams focused and on track. She is sharp, curious and creative, and always has the motivation to learn. The skills she developed whilst studying for her PhD means that she is tenacious in spirit, but with a listening ear.

I feel as though a door is opening, there is some light... I cannot express my gratitude to you enough for your help and guidance today. I have been desperate to have this kind of outlet. I know where I am going.

Dan Smith

When coaching I delight in seeing my clients succeed beyond their expectations.  I have been coaching for 6 years with specialist areas including career change, building relationships, adapting to changes in life, single parenting, planning for the future, moving to another country, and working with technicians.  I have coached clients in 4 continents.  My coaching style is based on giving my clients a safe place to explore their topics to raise awareness and affect change.  Apart from coaching I consult in project and change management where I have led projects in Europe and Asia, as well as in the UK.

Dan easily creates an environment of trust and comfort, is very present, and makes sure that from all perspectives the subject has been covered.

Mac MacDonald

My operational experience helps me to approach every coaching relationship with a focus on achieving practical, pragmatic outcomes. After all the point of coaching is progress, be that your mindset, your skillset or just having the opportunity to talk through your ideas before you commit to them. For the last 15 years I have worked with people at all levels of the organisation helping them to identify what is holding them back and, if necessary, support them with my experience of a range of management methodologies and their application. I’ve always had a passion to help people and to see them experience new things and grow as a person. I love seeing people ‘get it’, being able to think and act differently, see and experience new things. My coaching style has been described as thoughtful with the knack of asking the "killer question'', being able to step back and help people get clarity on what they need to do.

As a result of the coaching I’ve been able to relax into my new role, am more self-aware, can challenge others effectively…[and] understand the importance of challenging myself and that in order to achieve my goals I need to be prepared to push myself and step outside of my comfort zone. Team Manager, Insurance

Jackie Pearce

Several years ago when someone told me I had an 'interesting CV', I took it negatively and was concerned that my varied career was a problem. Not so. It has given me a broad understanding of most aspects of business and this has always helped my clients. I have worked in many compliance industries, have a NEBOSH certificate and was responsible for implementing ISO9001 several years ago. At my core I am a trainer, coach and facilitator with strong public speaking skills as that is my hobby. I have experience in manufacturing, engineering, railways and recruitment at all levels for a variety of organisations, large and small, public and private. You name it, I've probably done it. My icebreaker conversation starts with " I did a stand up comedy course last year" and that certainly sets people laughing and helps me to establish rapport quickly. I am happy to admit, I obtain outstanding results when working with clients. I have just been elected President of a Toastmasters International club and have almost finished a non fiction book for women on dealing with difficult personal issues.

Jackie has a great listening ability and a very positive and objective manner and sessions were designed to suit my personal development needs.

Martin Sikula

"Martin Sikula is dedicated to developing people’s potential - his credo is: "Everyone has the right to be their personal best.” For the past 2 years, he has been working with people to improve their performance and confidence at career, in business, in sport, in life, and relationships. He coaches people on resourcefulness so they feel a renewed sense of energy, determination, creativity, passion and a love for life. He works with clients to create ideas and strategies to break old habits and achieve higher standards across their career and personal life. He also works in hospitality with clients including the Gaucho group, one of Jamie Oliver's restaurants, and previously for DHL. Through this journey, he was leader for medium size teams of (30-40 people), responsible for day to day operations of restaurant and depot, financial control P&L and Training and Development."

I achieved things which I genuinely felt impossible. Martin was superb in his approach to facilitating creative solutions I feel significantly enabled my new self confidence.Richard Souray

Arjen Westerdijk

Arjen Westerdijk is a highly experienced businessman, operator, trainer and coach. After 15 years as a general manager, leader and business owner within well-known Hotel Brands and his own businesses, he has been working as a coach, consultant and trainer for clients in the Hospitality, Retail, Visitor Attraction and Food Production industries for the last 10 years. With this in mind Arjen is able to use his 25 years of commercial and customer service expertise to deliver a practical approach to coaching, mentoring and training. Arjen has designed bespoke material to improve work flow, launch new products and brands, deliver customer service and brand standards and he delivers ‘of the peg’ programs for several consultancies covering topics such as change leadership, management development, brilliant customer service. He works closely together with business owners, managers and the teams alike to deliver coaching, mentoring and training that focusses on skill, knowledge and techniques that are immediately transferable to the workplace.

Thank you very much for forcing me to think my challenge through and helping me to come to the right solution. It’s great to know that I can always pick up the phone whenever I need a ‘sounding board.' Simon Smith, Director, Chichester Biltong Company

Aisling Westerdijk

Aisling Westerdijk is a passionate and inspirational Executive Coach & Personal Brand Strategist for leaders who aspire to their next level of corporate leadership. She leverages her 18 years' experience working at a senior level to challenge and support leaders to be the absolute best they can be and ensure that this is visible to their key stakeholders. Having worked most closely within the Finance, Telecommunications and IT Engineering Industry, Aisling has a particular affinity for helping senior technical specialists become line managers, moving away from a ""techie"" or specialist label and comfort zone. Too often these brilliant individuals—who have progressed due to a particular skill set—find they are no longer able to move their careers forward without a clear sense of how they need to be perceived and the requisite leadership skills to get results with and through others. Once they have clarity on their unique promise of value, these promotions are often accelerated and lasting.

Aisling really listens, is totally objective, and sets things in context. She offers practical and realistic guidance and creates insights through questioning. She has helped me navigate through difficult waters

Jacques du Preez

An entrepreneurial Chartered Accountant with 25+ yrs. experience covering developed and emerging markets. Hands on experience of building businesses, business transformation, venture capital & private equity, international businesses and trade sales. Involved with and managed the acquisition and divestment of several businesses in the UK, USA & Europe. Function expertise includes: COO, CFO, Digitisation, Transformation & Change, Governance, Management Consultancy & Advisory. Founded and exited two businesses; ABS a BPO and Financial advisory business and LCE Risk a capital markets data and analytics business which exited to FTSE (part of the London Stock Exchange Group). Qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Deloitte and earned an MBA from London Business School.

Jacques and his team provided a great coaching service that supported my business objectives in a clear and integrated way.

Diana Olafsdottir

Sometimes we just need someone to partner with us – that person who holds us accountable, celebrates achievements with us and helps nudge us forward. We don’t know what we don’t know, so a second pair of eyes can help us cover more ground. I like being that person and that’s why I became a coach."" Diana is a coach with a background in HR and healthcare. As a qualified acupuncturist she has an in-depth understanding of how work challenges can impact on health and wellbeing. Workloads, project planning, personal development or relationships with colleagues, we all face decisions and challenges in the every day - Diana uses her background in HR, office management and as executive assistant, as well as an armoury of tools to support managers as they navigate through their week.

Being coached by Diana was extremely valuable, helping me to navigate a new role and many of the challenges that came with it. I thought she demonstrated great ability and development in coaching, showing understanding, patience and gravitas.

Kimberley Rayman

Kimberley has been consulting and coaching for over 15 years. She has worked as a management consultant at Accenture across a range of industries and has extensive experience of leading teams to deliver IT and change programs. Kimberley now coaches and mentors individuals at all levels of the organisation to help them achieve their personal and professional goals. Kimberley's combination of practical know-how and excellent coaching skills mean she delivers real benefits to clients.

I was struck by how effortlessly Kimberley supported me in finding my own answers. She is insightful and clear, a very warm and caring coach.

Jackie Colman

I Have been educating and mentoring in business for over 20 years. The last three years I have been focusing on business Coaching within groups and individual one to one coaching. I work within the retail, education, public sector and private sector. I work with all levels within companies, directors, managers and team leaders. Specialising in leadership skills, turning challenges into opportunities, team development and working on the untapped potential, helping to gain life style balance, gaining clarity and helping to overcome personal challenges that come into everyday life. I am a forward thinking coach focusing on results and self-empowerment, I work with amazing people to help them think outside the box.

Jackie has amazing business knowledge and lots of interesting ideas that I have been able to utilize, she has the ability to instill self confidence to see a way forward.

Emma Fairclough

Emma Fairclough has been coaching and mentoring for over a decade and has experience across many sectors including Marketing, Property, Telecomms, Recruitment, TV and Film. She specialises in Learning and Development, Coaching, Mentoring and Business Development. Acting as a trusted advisor and communications specialist, Emma works with individuals and teams of all levels and combines her professional experience with coaching, training, mindfulness and mentoring to help move them forward with their performance, confidence, business relationships and team building. Her style is unique and her effective blend of talent, knowledge, experience, passion and professionalism transcends through to everyone she works with.

With the utmost of confidence I highly recommend Emma to anyone looking for a professional coach that will unquestionably help raise their performance to new incredible heights. I truly believe the results were life-changing and for that I am incredibly grateful.

Sarah Thompson

Sarah’s breadth of experience and her warm and intuitive personality are a weighty combination in helping your business to succeed. Her aim is to support you to develop practical skills, which focus on business results and objectives, creating a stimulating workplace and minimising the stress of change. In order to encourage you to learn and enjoy the learning Sarah fully utilises the wide range of qualifications and skills she has acquired over the years and skillfully blends all of these different and diverse perspectives to draw out the very best in people. Her background is rooted in developing exemplary leaders and motivating individuals to challenge their own learning boundaries.

Sarah is an excellent coach - she works with each individual to maximise and develop their potential and effectiveness. Her unique style gets the very best from everyone.

Kris Verlé

"My job as a coach is to help professionals like you focus on their future and on individual change. My job is to help you discover your own path according to your own definition of success. As a coach I also provide practical support and advice on tackling difficult issues at work and at home. I work with clients from a wide variety of backgrounds and levels on issues ranging from from day-to-day management and planning, to some of the big picture matters such as life purpose, work/life balance, and becoming a better leader. I have a pragmatic approach to coaching which doesn't involve unicorns or rainbows. Instead, I quickly build a sense of who you are and how you operate at your best. I then adapt my method and style according to what gets you the results you’re looking for in that particular session. Before I became a professional coach, I worked as a public policy advisor in UK politics for many years. I’ve advised many high profile private and public sector organisations on their communication and influencing strategies, particularly in health, financial services and in the energy sector. What I look for in my clients is resourcefulness, a touch of lightness and a sense of humour. If you also happen to be totally committed to becoming the best possible version of yourself at work and at home, then we’re likely to be a great match."

At the end of each and every session I felt confident and empowered that I have what it takes to succeed and achieve my goals and I can't thank him enough for giving me this boost!

Rebecca Young

As a trained psychologist Rebecca has over 15 years experience of working with individuals with cognitive, behavioural and emotional change. Rebecca excels at creating the conditions for you to take a step back in order to move forward in a different direction or at a different level. Rebecca works by listening beyond your words, finding meaning, helping you pinpoint exactly what you want your change to look like. Working from a strengths based approach, she holds an assumption that your goals are achievable but depend upon how much you want it and how much of yourself you are willing to give it. More recently Rebecca has coached high achieving fast-tracked teachers across a broad range of professional issues including, promotion, career change, management issues, work life balance.

Rebecca strengths as a coach are shown in her patience, timing and listening. Rebecca has a highly developed sense of intuition and the ability to listen on a profound level. I would recommend her as a coach without reservation.

Maria Chase

Maria is an innovative and inspiring coach with 18 years’ experience working with Directors, managers and staff to unleash their full potential and maximise their personal and professional performance. Passionate and fascinated by the power of the human brain her unique approach synthesises Neuroscience, Emotional Intelligence and Transactional analysis, to enhance self –awareness and enrich clients’ cognitive performance. Specialising in creating opportunities to discover fresh perspectives, exciting insights and cutting edge solutions to today’s challenges, Maria’s experience spans both the public and private sector with national and international clients. She also designs and delivers cutting edge training on the Neuroscience of Enhanced Performance and achieving outstanding outcomes.

Maria is one of the most talented coaches I have met. Her personal approach may be soft and empathetic but don’t be fooled by that as the braveness of her coaching style will really stretch you and help you have insights you never thought you could achieve… Gordon Dootson, Partner Deloitte LLP

David Thomas

American Express UK & European Management Team, Vice President & General Manager UK, Ireland and Nordic Markets, Managing Director of First Card, Sweden. MD UK of Cims (subsidiary of Cendant Corporation) Senior Management Team member First Rate Exchange Services UK Management Team (Business Development Director) Business Owner two companies - Business Consulting (clients MBNA, Halifax, First Rate Exchange Services, MasterCard, News Corporation, Lord March (of Goodwood Estate). In my 38 years business experience from a Senior VP with large US Corporations to running my own company, I have always enjoyed working with aspiring professionals to help them achieve their business goals, challenges and career development ambitions, which is why I became a qualified professional coach. My mission is to use a business-like coaching approach, to help my coaching clients solve their varied and multiple challenges and achieve their objectives. Interests - rowing (qualified British Rowing Coach), competing, rugby union and general outdoor person, walking the fells in the Lake District (where I live).

I would strongly recommend him in any coaching and development capacity as I think people would really benefit from his experience, enthusiasm and genuine interest to improve them. Leo Markides, Currencies Direct.

Ellen Price

I am a business development specialist, with over 15 years’ sales and proposals leadership experience, within global professional services firms and boutique consultancies. I run my own sales consulting and coaching firm, working with professional services organisations and entrepreneurial businesses.   Prior to this, I was the Head of Business Development and Marketing for a fast growing management consultancy. I supported annual revenue growth of over 40% and significant diversification of the client portfolio. As the former Head of Financial Services proposals at PwC, amongst other sales leadership roles spanning multiple industries, I have supported total bid revenue in the multi-millions and led pitch teams of varying degrees of complexity and sales experience.  Through my my professional coach training, I realised my calling is for the professional development of others. My passion lies in getting the best out of people. I believe that if people are happier and more motivated personally, then professional performance follows.

Ellen was invaluable in building confidence and cohesion in our bid team. She applied proven coaching techniques to work on individual’s as well as the team’s contribution. Ellen brings a huge amount of passion and drive to her work. This refreshed and re-energised us and gave us the (successful) outcome we were looking for. The support Ellen offered was delivered in a calm and reflective way, which made it both enjoyable and without putting anyone in a position where they may have felt awkward. We enjoyed the sessions with Ellen and our sales and communication capabilities were greatly enhanced as a result. Partner, Professional Services organization

Yvonne Lumley

Yvonne is a Management Consultant and Executive Coach specialising in organisational change and leadership performance. She has a record of creating strategic solutions that improve operational effectiveness and business performance. She works across a wide range of sectors ranging from central government through to the nuclear power industry. Her career began in Information Technology before she moved into management consultancy. She has worked for a number of blue chip institutions including NCR, IBM and Astra Zeneca and held a senior leadership role for one of the UK’s largest HR consultancy firms. Since 2005, Yvonne has run her own consultancy practice. In addition she has international experience and worked extensively across Europe, the USA and South Africa. Yvonne also holds a non-executive director position in the professional services sector. Yvonne’s specific expertise lies in the facilitation of board/top team development initiatives and individual performance coaching. Her aim is to deliver focussed support that creates an immediate impact on organisational and individual performance. Her experience as a business leader means that she is in demand as an executive coach and known for her pragmatism and common sense.

Global head procurement, Yvonne is an excellent executive coach. She has a very personable style that is coupled with insightful comments and direction that really cut to the chase. I would have no hesitation in working with Yvonne again or recommending her to anyone who needs coaching in their current position or who is looking to take the next step in an organisation.

Zoe Creighton

Zoe's business experience ensures her approach to coaching is realistic and action oriented. She coaches individuals to overcome challenging hurdles, develop new skills, or find their ‘mojo’. She builds confidence using insightful questions, listening beyond and behind responses to accelerate progress. Clients describe her as calm, intelligent, empowering, creative and an excellent listener. Zoe has developed coaching and leadership programmes for organisations as diverse as a major charity, a design agency and an international technology services provider. Prior to coaching her experience spans 20+ years in Unilever, Kimberly-Clark and Diageo, working with multi-national and multi-functional teams across Europe. She has also lived and worked in Amsterdam and is governor of a school.

Zoe asks the right questions and makes you confront the right issues. She seemed to get to the heart of the matter quickly….. I had no idea how helpful coaching with Zoe would be.