How We Work

You might want our consultancy service for a variety of reasons, but whatever the topic we endeavour to bring you certain qualities…

If your board of trustees is planning some development, they might appreciate some constructive feedback from an external perspective. Often there is no better way to support both the CEO and the Chairperson.
[... read more/hide]

Many boards and chief executives find that their biggest needs are in subtle areas such as motivation, culture and relationships. This is where we can add extra value: not just in ticking the boxes of compliance with standards, but in a customized and flexible approach in our consulting, coaching, mentoring and training. In short, we bring a bespoke service to developing governance.

Perhaps you are facing extraordinary pressures – not just in time and money, but in relationships, stakeholder demands and the sheer complexity of the job. Most top leaders face this at some time, and many have discovered the value of some external and confidential support for a short period.

Most importantly, perhaps you are hungry to learn the skills and qualities of effective non-profit CEOs and board members. Textbooks are not enough, because authentic leadership is a mix of three things: leadership principles, your personal style and your unique organisational circumstances.

Experience

There’s nothing quite as good as exposure to leadership in the real world.

We bring decades of experience from non-profit organisations in many different cultures and contexts. We aim to support you in solving your own problems and developing your own leadership. We are not walking encyclopaedias, but we do bring some understanding and practical know-how.

Attention

You need to know that we will listen, understand and take you seriously.

We carefully study and support you in understanding your own governance dynamics. In mentoring leaders, we help them as unique individuals to find their own authentic leadership style. Every leader is different. We observe, analyse and advise, always making your success our top priority.

Objectivity

An external perspective can be like an out-of-body experience.

It is easy to become buried in the demands of daily work; we can help you see above it. Sometimes your board of trustees and senior team need an external perspective which can address matters on your behalf while considering the interests of the whole organisation.

Performance

We will deliver our service to you, and help you to deliver yours to the whole organisation.

In times of financial constraint and increasing public scrutiny, there is an added pressure to demonstrate results. Financial audits are vital, but in addition we need ways to measure results on the ground – and internal organisational health too. You need some practical and professional metrics.

Trust

A consultancy is based on confidence. We will try to be worthy of yours.

We seek the highest possible values of integrity, reliability, professionalism and clarity of purpose in our own work. These are vital in leadership development and we encourage the same values in others too. We need mutual confidence in our relationship and we will strive to make it a reality.

Finding the right tools

The commercial sector has developed many valuable tools, but they aren’t all a good fit for the non-profit context. We select business methods and adapt them to the Third Sector where there are different stakeholders, incentives, structures and accountabilities, to name just a few aspects. Our aim is to equip you with relevant tools for leadership in your own field.