Strategic Leadership for Social Change
Are you the leader of a charity or non-profit
with an important mission?
Would you like to build a more
resilient, relevant, impactful organisation?
Are you facing any of these questions or challenges...
Crisis & Recovery
How do I respond to this crisis and give the team confidence and clarity when the way forward is unclear?
What decisions do I need to make now and what to put on hold? What's the role of the Board in this? How do I balance the immediate crisis management with longer term thinking? How do I best keep us all healthy and productive?
Strategy & Scale
How do we develop / refresh the strategy most effectively, at the right pace, with great input and buy-in from the team & Board?
How do I best manage the overall process to leverage the skills & talents of the team, handle any negativity or naysayers and get to consensus and clarity? How do we structure the Away Day?
Board & Governance
How do I enhance the Board's commitment and input within the limited time that we have together? How can I work better with my Chair? How do we move discussions 'up' a level and where the Board share their expertise through relevant ideas and input? How do I ensure that the Board provide a great return on time invested?
Purpose & Partners
What are the core activities that we should replicate, should we work with partners? What model or approach should we use to scale?
How do we keep our vision inspiring and relevant to our team, donors & supporters?
How do we keep our brand & comms fresh and focused?
Ideas & Innovation
How can I stimulate creativity and gather ideas from my team & Board - on an ongoing basis?
How do I develop my thoughts and ideas in a safe confidential space? Can I find a confidante, a sounding board to stress test my theories, chew over challenges, who will encourage, question, share ideas or advice?
Culture & Cohesion
What steps should I take to encourage greater team engagement? How do we walk the talk and share our values with authenticity?
How do we refresh our ways of working and re-energise for the challenges ahead?
How do we enter into this partnership with 'eyes open' and make it a success? What can we expect working so closely with another organisation?
I'm Jane, a facilitator & co-creator
and I'd like to help
Recent Projects
Results & testimonials
Strategy & Scale
Provided end to end facilitation of a number of strategy development processes for growing non-profits, customising each approach to the need and ambition of the organisation. Supporting CEOs to step back and see the big issues, developing a comprehensive roadmap and people plan to engage the team & Board at each stage of the process and build capacity for future planning. Facilitated meetings & workshops at the heart of the process.
"The shift in the quality of our strategic thinking has been palpable and much easier and enjoyable than I'd expected."
Strategy & Scale
“Jane has helped us completely transform our not-for-profit business. She has given us guidance, support, and wisdom over the last year and has helped us evolve our business, develop the strategic plan, restructure our organisation, and understand our team dynamics. We now have a much larger team, a sustainable financial plan, and goals for the future.
Jane as a person is a joy to work with. She has taken the time to know and understand us as people and as a team, and this has meant her advice is tailored to our needs. Can’t wait to keep working with Jane and see what the future holds.”
Board Development
"This is brilliant. Thank you so much - (your report) marries helpfully with what I took away from the day, but the 'next steps' are much clearer for me - a very helpful map.
J and K both messaged me to say it was the most positive (Board) meeting they've ever attended, much higher level discussion; the tenor was changed by your presence.
I also thought your introduction to the day (about) focussing on the strategic elements - was so clear, and your support in the wrap-up section was fantastic to help clarify exactly what was required in terms of next steps and ongoing process.
Thanks again for all your support. It has made a critical difference to us - and me!"
Board Development
Assisted a fast-growing charity to replace the existing Chair and recruit a person better placed to lead the Board through the next phase of organisation development.
Clarified the aspirations of the Board and CEO regarding their role and the transition to a Governance as Leadership approach thereby requiring a strong strategic thinker.
Assisted with crafting communications, developed a skills audit, defined a specific Terms of Reference, coached on dealing with Board members who aspired to the position,
"The transition was very smooth and recruitment process was thoughtful, comprehensive and focussed. He's the perfect Chair for us at this stage, thank you so much"
CEO Mentoring
"Jane has quite simply made me a better CEO - and probably a better human being! She has been the perfect blend of supportive and challenging. I was new into this role, and definitely had moments where I experienced a lot of self-doubt. But Jane’s guidance enabled me to grow in my role and feel more confident in my own abilities. Her knowledge of the sector is incredible, but I never feel like she’s giving us ’text-book’ advice - everything is tailored to meet our specific needs. I don’t know where we would be without her."
CEO Mentoring
Worked with a new-in-post CEO to design a trust-building process in an organisation that had been through a period of tumultuous change. This ignited a phase of open dialogue and feedback that developed into a much stronger sense of respect and accountability with team members starting to take responsibility as agents of positive change.
"Although painful at the start, we moved through that faster than I expected! This has been hugely important for us. It's now a more positive and proactive place of work; we can get on with the job!"
Future Focused
I'm also the Founder of the Future Purpose Project, a resource hub providing information and resources about external and emerging trends that support non-profit strategy development. More here.
Bio
Longer blurb, in case you are interested
The CEOs I work with are smart. They’re highly engaged, aspirational and driven to grow their organisations to deliver sustainable social impact.
They see that the world is changing fast and that the organisation needs to be strategically astute to adapt and thrive in this evolving next normal.
They see that the process of updating their organisational strategy provides a wonderful opportunity to bring even greater cohesion, clarity and confidence across the organisation.
And - they are acutely aware that their own time and talent are already 'extremely well utilised'…
So it makes sense to engage professional support from a consultant who’ll work alongside them to help evolve the organisation’s future direction.
Someone who will act as a strategy development mentor and advisor, providing tools, frameworks, facilitation, who will guide and coordinate the process.
Who will develop a strategic framework that considers the future context and direction (not just what’s live now) and examine extremal influences (as well as internal strengths.) That will include a sound economic model (not just a shopping list of ambitions) and set a clear direction whilst giving scope for new initiatives and approaches to emerge.
And - who will engage the Board, SLT, team and key stakeholders, by quickly grasping the key dynamics, helping everyone add value and play to their strengths.
That’s what I do. It's SO much fun.
I’ve worked in the non-profit sector for over two decades and have been CEO of three charities.
I started out as an aid worker in some amazing and crazy places, where I realised that sometimes my peers and I could be talented and high-performing and sometimes - could be as mad as a box of frogs... I became fascinated by leadership psychology and qualified as a Transformative Coach.
This focus on 'what makes us tick' informs all of my work because people and culture will always 'eat strategy for breakfast' (as Peter Drucker never actually said!)
I’m also routinely asked to provide strategic leadership mentoring to CEOs. To my mind, strategic thinking and effective leadership are co-dependent and clarity in these informs a skilful approach to good governance, developing team and culture, demonstrating impact, digital transformation and other key considerations necessary for social impact. Plus - creatively evolving how we think and lead is challenging and enjoyable in equal measure.
If you are interested in taking a truly strategic approach to creating your organisation’s future, please do get in touch here