Most of How I Work

Most of the leaders I work with don’t come looking for a programme.

They come because something that matters is unresolved — and the quality of thinking around it needs to be equal to the consequence.

Sometimes it is a decision that carries real weight. Sometimes a transition with no obvious map. Sometimes simply the need for a space where the real conversation can happen — without pressure to rush to solutions.

That is where I sit.

The role I play

I work alongside Chairs, NEDs, CEOs and senior executives as a trusted thinking partner — often when the stakes are high and the path forward is not immediately clear.

My role is not to provide answers. It is to ensure the thinking behind decisions is as strong, accurate and durable as it needs to be.

That might mean creating space to think beyond immediate pressure. It might mean surfacing the question behind the question. Or offering challenge without agenda, precisely where it is needed.

And it rests on the one thing almost no one else around a senior leader can offer: independence. Your chair, your board, even a coach — everyone holds a stake in your outcome. I don’t.

This is not advisory in the traditional sense.

It is quieter than that — and often more valuable because of it.

How the work takes shape

The work follows the decision, not a fixed structure. It tends to show up through one of two doors.

The Thinking Partnership — for the individual leader

A confidential thought partnership for CEOs and board directors: a place to test decisions, voice doubts and find clarity before the stakes make it impossible.

It takes three forms:

– The Decision Room — a defined partnership shaped around one consequential challenge: a restructure, a succession, an exit, a strategic inflection.

– The Standing Partnership — an ongoing retainer; a consistent, trusted space to think as complexity evolves.

– The Thinking Day — a one-off half-day to work a single decision through, end to end.

I hold a maximum of four partnerships at any one time. Client names stay private — that is rather the point — with references available by personal arrangement. Investment is shared in conversation, once we both know the work is right.

The Strategic Starter — for boards and organisations

Where the decision belongs to a board, an investor group or a leadership team, work usually begins with a short, defined engagement designed to create clarity where the cost of getting it wrong is high.

The Strategic Starter usually involves:

– three to four working conversations over a 4–6 week period – a clear framing of the real decision – surfacing assumptions, tensions and material trade-offs – challenge without agenda, where it matters most – decision-level clarity suitable for board or investor conversations

The scope is fixed and time-bounded.

At the conclusion, one of three things usually happens:

– the work has done what it needed to, and we stop – there is a clear case for ongoing advisory work – it becomes apparent that a different form of support is needed

All three are valid outcomes. Most engagements conclude at this point. Further work is neither assumed nor expected.

Investment: from £15,000 for CEO- or founder-led engagements and £18,000 for board- or investor-led engagements *

Where further work is valuable, it is determined only after the Strategic Starter concludes and is shaped by the specific decision context.

How I approach the work

I do not bring a methodology.

The work is shaped by the context you are operating in, the decisions you are holding, and the responsibility you carry.

It is thoughtful, not formulaic. Grounded in reality, not theory. And always oriented toward what genuinely matters in that moment.

An example in practice

In a recent conversation, a CEO was navigating a decision that, on paper, appeared straightforward.

The data pointed in one direction. The board had a clear view. The timeline added pressure to move quickly.

And yet something did not sit comfortably.

What we explored together was not the decision itself — it was the assumptions underneath it.

Where those assumptions had come from. What had not been said in the room. And what the longer-term consequences might be if the decision were taken at face value.

Nothing dramatic changed in the data.

The thinking, though, became clearer. More grounded. More complete.

The decision that followed was different — and, more importantly, it was owned with clarity.

That is often the work.

A note on fit

I work with a small number of leaders and boards each year.

The work is relational, considered, and requires space to do well — the scarcity is simply a by-product of doing it properly.

The strongest relationships tend to be those where there is openness to challenge, trust can be built over time, and the focus is on reaching the right answer — not merely the quickest one.

If you are considering a conversation

You do not need a fully formed brief.

Often the most useful starting point is simply:

“This is what I am navigating — and I would value a space to think it through.”

If that resonates, you are very welcome to book a confidential conversation. There is no agenda, nothing to prepare, and nothing will be sold. If the work makes sense, you will know within the hour.

→ Book a confidential Conversation

*(all prices are exclusive of VAT)