Case Studies

Commodities Trader

Our client was a very successful commodities trader who was exceptionally bright, had achieved huge successes for his employer, often positioning them at the forefront in an emerging market, or in the development of a new instrument. At almost forty and with a family, this very creative, very well rewarded individual found himself fundamentally bored.

In helping him structure his thoughts about what he really wanted to do next, we effectively gave him “permission” to stop what he was doing and engage with new experiences.

We assigned a professional Brooklands executive coach and used an appropriate psychometric instrument (not without being left in no doubt that our client considered these a waste of time – a point of view which he has since revised) and established a base line from which to work. Our early work put a framework around his ideas and developed a rigorous pattern of analysis that allowed him to differentiate the “Doable” from the “Conceptually fascinating”, as well as channel his drive into areas that matched his own agreed set of criteria.

He was tireless in following our leads and networking, finding previous business associates only too pleased to listen to a proposition that would give them a piece of his formidable talent, but would not see him full time on the payroll. In the first year he earned more than twice his yearly package in a 6 month contract and was invited to “advise” at government level on a number of international issues pertinent to his area of expertise. This pattern has repeated itself and his only comment to his coach each time he starts a new assignment is “If you see I am still here in a year’s time, please come and get me”.

Commercial Director

In his mid-thirties, this dynamic achiever had reached secondary Board level in a FTSE 50 FMCG leader without ever having a job interview, apart from his very first as a graduate trainee.

Destined for high office, the next stage of his career meant a move to South America for 3 to 5 years and then an anticipated return to a European country for a further 3 years, before getting onto the Main Board back in the UK. Quite a career path for a high flyer.

After fifteen years in the same company and the prospect of relocating his young family three times in just 8 years, he decided he would seek alternative opportunities.

Our coach was highly in tune with the dilemmas faced by this individual, having had a similar challenge himself in his own early career with an international drinks business. That combination of commercial reality and experience, combined with professional coaching capability, gives an extra edge to the executive coach relationship.

We worked with the client for the best part of a year to identify possible targets and align his ‘personal brand’ with market needs.

His career is now on a new trajectory and firmly rooted in the UK where he wants to be.

Finance Director

Our client was Group Finance Director with a large player in the service industry sector. Offered promotion to the role of MD of their newest business, he was uncertain that this was what he wanted or was qualified to do and feared that if it turned out to be the wrong move he would have burned his bridges. The organisation was very keen to retain him, as he had considerable knowledge of the business and was considered to be the CEO designate for the Group.

We needed to help him “see himself as others saw him”, so that he could understand why he was being offered the role and then to get to grips with its demands and how he might make it his own before accepting or rejecting the offer.

Through coaching and the use of psychometric tools, we helped him identify his unique skills, experience and style. He saw that he possessed the necessary attributes for the role and that the question was one of will rather than ability.

Almost 2 years later, he is that successful and dynamic MD, having made important acquisitions for the company and grown the footprint and reputation of the business.

Managing Director

The highly successful MD of a division of a global brand food stuffs company, our client was one of 2 contenders for the CEO role for the entire organisation. He came second for a variety of completely performance-unrelated reasons that included seniority, extent of international business exposure etc.. After a year it became obvious that he sat uncomfortably in the new structure and an agreement was reached for him to exit the company. He came to us with a very real dilemma: what should he do next?

Being relatively economically secure for the foreseeable future, he looked to us to help him explore options. He asked some big questions – “Did I arrive here by accident or design”, “Do I enjoy what I do?”,” Is it time to open a beach bar in Phuket?”, “What do the family think?”, and even, “Does it matter?”. He also looked in depth at his own success, evaluating his true strengths and weaknesses.

We helped him work through the answers to these questions, allowing him to construct a clear assessment of himself, his drivers, needs, possibilities, constraints and goals. We developed a plan of action to identify and secure his next career move, and helped him to showcase and promote his talent to the right people.

He is now the CEO of an organisation that is at a stage in its growth where his brand building abilities are recognised, respected and, incidentally, rewarded at more than twice the value of his previous remuneration package.