CONSULTING SERVICES

Many growing small-medium sized business may have a need to bring in specialist skills and expertise or additional capacity at key points in their development journey to support or enhance the existing team.

Having led businesses through periods of growth and change I can provide a range of consulting services, all provided on a fixed fee basis, to deliver optimum value to your business. Areas I cover include:

Strategy development and review
As a small business growing quickly, the focus is often on serving increasing client demand, meaning longer term strategic purpose and direction may be sidelined. Having supported businesses and charities in considering their vision and long term strategy, I can provide a range of support to business leaders planning for the organisation’s future.

This might range from a full business review and case for change development, a critique of drafted strategic plans, facilitation of internal discussions and development of strategy documents, attendance and contribution to strategy workshops or simply acting as a sounding board to explore different options and decisions.

Operating model development and organisational design
Following a refresh or update in organisational strategy, successful implementation and improved performance is reliant on the appropriate operating model and organisational design. With hands on experience of developing delivering operating models and having completed the prestigious Roffey Park Leading Organisational Design course I am well-placed to support you in developing or adapting your operating model to effectively deliver your business strategy.

Consulting support might range from an initial assessment and diagnostics, developing a case for change, stakeholder engagement, building the new operating model, workforce planning, system and process review or practical implementation support.

Operational effectiveness and business operations support
As a leader of a growing business, your focus is on investment in revenue and value generating resources and activities. When the business reaches a critical size, it is important to review internal operational processes, systems and support that ensures that your best people remain as client-focused as possible, continuing to generate value and future business, doing what they love, and not becoming embroiled in the internal day to day operations.

With personal experience of developing operational teams, processes and systems to ensure effective and efficient business performance I am well placed to help you navigate the practicalities of these stages of the growth journey.

Consulting team and capability development
In a professional services firm, the quality of the relationships with your clients is the value that you bring; your consulting team are your front line. With 14 years experience as a consultant, and in establishing, developing and growing consulting teams, I can support you in the journey from technical experts to consultants and partners to your clients.

This might involve an initial assessment of the strength of consulting in the business, support to develop consulting competency frameworks, toolkits to provide guidance around project management, coaching and mentoring and, in partnership with other experts, development of consulting development programmes.

If any of these areas resonate with you, please contact me to discuss your needs.

  • CLIENT FEEDBACK

    I had the privilege of working with Rachel as my professional coach for a full year during one of the most significant transitions of my career. I was moving from a senior academic and scientific role into a senior managerial position within the pharmaceutical sector, and Rachel's guidance was nothing short of transformative.

    From the very beginning, Rachel helped me navigate the many professional challenges that came with this change. She provided invaluable support in helping me set clear, achievable goals and develop concrete action plans to reach them. Her coaching was always tailored to my specific needs, helping me not only achieve my career objectives but also grow as a leader.

    One of Rachel's standout qualities is her ability to develop structure within teams. Under her coaching, I was able to transform my team into a more organised, efficient, and - most importantly - happier group of professionals. Her insights into team dynamics and leadership strategies had an immediate, positive impact on our performance and morale.

    Balancing a demanding professional role with being a mom was another area where Rachel provided much-needed support. She helped me find practical solutions to maintain a healthy work-life balance, ensuring that I didn’t have to compromise on either front.

    One of the highlights of our coaching journey was when I successfully transitioned into a promotion, a milestone I couldn’t have achieved without Rachel’s continued guidance and encouragement. Her unwavering belief in my abilities and her expert coaching made all the difference. I highly recommend Rachel to anyone seeking a coach who not only helps you meet your goals but and develop as a professional.

    Director of Data Science and Analytics

  • CLIENT FEEDBACK

    I began coaching with Rachel shortly after returning to work from my second maternity leave. I was lacking confidence and resilience, and feeling unsure about how to balance family life with my demanding role in consultancy.

    Rachel thoroughly explained the coaching process and helped me identify topics to explore. She guided me through our focused sessions, integrating useful exercises and suggestions along the way. Rachel was a fantastic coach – she was empathetic and encouraging, and always achieved a balance between support and constructive challenge during our conversations.

    The coaching was so valuable as I integrated back into my role. It helped me to recognise my strengths and experience, provided me with the tools to achieve a successful work-life balance, and helped to reframe my perspective on what I could bring to my team as a working mum. I would highly recommend Rachel as a coach.

    Principal / Senior Manager, Pharmaceutical Industry

  • CLIENT FEEDBACK

    I had a series of coaching sessions with Rachel having started in a new company and following a period of serious illness. During these sessions I became more confident and self-aware of my professional skills and knowledge, and I took the courage to experiment with new ways of building client relationships.

    In particular, I was able to “re-set” a key client relationship that was not going well and managed to re-instate the client’s confidence in us, meaning we won 3 out of 4 large programmes of work. I am also now using coaching techniques with my line reports and project teams very successfully.

    As a coach I most value Rachel’s ability of listening and taking swift action to provide support. I find extremely instrumental Rachel’s organisational skills, which facilitates our coaching session and tracking of objectives. I am grateful for her encouragement in making me think about what I need and want to achieve. It was extremely useful in a time of difficulties, when I returned to work after months of illness, and all seemed so overwhelming.

    Principal Consultant, Pharmaceutical Industry

How to work with me

Initial Call

Arrange a mutually convenient time to have an exploratory call to discuss your requirements, budget and timescales.

Proposal of Work

Based on your need, I will develop a proposal summarising a suggested solution and approach, together with a fixed fee budget, timeframe
and invoice schedule.

Agree & Proceed

Once you are happy with the proposal we will sign a contract / statement of work and the project can begin.