A practical summary of who you're looking to help, what to listen out for and some simple ways people can start the right conversation.
I wanted to pull together some of the things that stood out, particularly around the people you want to help, the situations that might prompt somebody to speak to you and how people like me can spot useful introductions.
You can help a wide range of people, but a few groups came through particularly strongly in our conversation.
Someone who has built a business around their own skills and is now taking on staff. They know their trade, but managing people is new territory. They may not realise how much their role is about to change.
Businesses with a handful of employees, perhaps growing towards 25 or 30 people. The owner is spending too much time handling disagreements, unclear expectations or repeated people problems. They want to concentrate on running the business again.
Someone who was good at their job and has been promoted to lead colleagues, possibly people they worked alongside yesterday. They need help with giving feedback, setting expectations and handling difficult conversations without losing the trust of the team.
Teams where people misunderstand each other, work to different priorities or don't appreciate what motivates their colleagues. Veterinary practices, care settings and opticians are examples from your work, although the underlying issues can arise in any industry.
This feels like the clearest introduction for you. Someone starts a business because they're good at what they do. They employ people so they can grow. Then they discover that leading a team requires a completely different set of skills.
Your focus on businesses with roughly 0 to 30 employees makes this a particularly useful group to listen out for. They don't necessarily need a formal management course. They need someone who can work through the real situations they're facing. Your Leadership in Practice approach is particularly relevant here because it combines practical learning, coaching and support around the problems happening in their business right now.
These could become useful professional relationships around your clients, rather than simply sources of leads.
They often see small businesses as they grow and begin employing people. They may hear an owner worrying about staffing costs, management difficulties or the time being taken away from the business.
They may be called when a small business has an employee issue. Some situations need more than policies or employment advice. They need the owner or team leader to develop better everyday management skills.
They work with owners who want to grow but find themselves held back by the demands of managing staff. They could recognise when practical leadership support would complement their own advice.
These bring together owners from different industries. You already have experience of introductions developing through networking, including a recommendation that came from a conversation with a website professional.
I think the easiest way to introduce you is to listen for everyday frustrations rather than ask whether someone needs leadership development. These are the sorts of questions that could open up a useful conversation without making it feel like a sales pitch.
Something that came through strongly in our conversation was how much of your work depends on your own experience and judgement. You're not trying to build a large training company. You enjoy working directly with people, understanding what's happening and helping them find a practical way forward.
Your background in teaching computing, your analytical approach and your experience of leading people in different settings give you an interesting perspective. You're comfortable looking at how a situation works, where communication is breaking down and what needs to change. That feels particularly useful for smaller businesses where the problem isn't always obvious at first.
I also think there's something worth sharing about the difference between teaching leadership and helping somebody practise it. Your Leadership in Practice programme and your use of Motivational Maps give you plenty of real subjects to talk about. The strongest content may simply be you explaining the everyday problems you see and how people can approach them differently.
Fiona, I really enjoyed our conversation. I think the useful thing for me, and for anyone who wants to introduce you, is to remember that we don't need to find somebody asking for leadership training. We need to notice the owner who's finding people management difficult, the new team leader who's been left to work things out alone, or the team that's struggling to understand each other. Those are the conversations where your name could naturally come up. I also took on board that you're comfortable with your current workload, so this is about recognising good connections and making thoughtful introductions when the timing is right, rather than simply finding more people for you to take on. Thanks again for your time.
