Change Alchemy

About Patrick

As an Independent Business Partner I bring an outside view to help you define and solve your challenges.

After a career delivering Business Change and supporting senior leaders at Deloitte and HSBC I am turning my skills towards helping owners in smaller businesses.

I am a catalyst, a connector, a change specialist and a coach. I use my skills to not just help owners find what they want, but to actually help them get it.

The harder the challenge the better.

We will build a trusting relationship in which you can be as open and honest as you feel comfortable. I will be your thinking partner, your positive challenge and your executive coach all rolled into one. Think of me as your Personal Board.

About you

As a successful business owner, you will have battled your fair share of challenges. Wouldn’t it be easier with somebody independent on your side?

Although successful in business you likely have many challenges on your plate. Maybe you are looking to change your company size or direction, could be the structure isn’t fit for where you want the company to go, or you may be starting to look at your succession planning and begin taking the weight off your shoulders.

Owning a business can be a lonely place. Everyone is looking to you but who can you turn to? Who is in your corner when times are hard? Who can you trust to be on your side? The independence of people around you is compromised in some way:

• Your Board? Do they want what is right for your company? Themselves? You? Is what you want in their best interest?

• Your Family? They want you to be happy, how much challenge can they bring?

• Your friends? Great if you want 23 different opinions on what you should do and how to do it.

As an Independent Business Partner I bring an outside view to help you define and solve your challenges.

I love how in each case the actual outcome is not directly what they expected. This was often the case at Deloitte where clients appreciated my help in finding the real problem. This is the power of coaching.

Andy owns multiple successful businesses.

One particularly large Marine Engineering business is taking all his time. He is 60 and asked me for help to free him up in order that he can retire.

I’m 6 months in and all is going well.

Through coaching, Andy has realised he doesn’t want to retire but he would rather take more of an ambassadorial role in his main business and slowly close or sell his other ones.

We are now working on a succession plan with Andy’s No.2, Steve, in the Engineering company. Through this, Steve has brought me in as his coach and to help him build out his strategy.


Mike is a co-founder of a successful Investment Management firm with £500m under management.

He asked me to come and help ‘shake up’ his leadership team ahead of a new fundraising round targeting another £500m.

I am 3 months in and have got to the real reason I am there.

Mike is an absolutely lovely person. His team are taking advantage and not pulling their weight. Mike doesn’t want to do another fund-raising round where he does all of the work but he does not have the authority or appetite to challenge the team dynamic.

I am now working with him on bringing in a CEO who will be better placed to break some eggs and allow Mike to step up into a Chairman’s role.

Mike is widely known and highly respected in the industry and wants to work on new business at an alliance level.

The new CEO may come from within, in which case I am going to stick around at a temporary part-time COO and help him as a coach and mentor.


Tricky one.

Colin, A Senior Partner in an Accounting firm (Not Deloitte strangely) has asked me to come and sort out his Senior Manager layer.

Colin is concerned they are not stepping up to the challenge. I have worked with them on Values and motivations and after running an offsite found that while there are areas they could do better their biggest challenge is … Colin.

They are afraid of him, they are unclear what is expected of them and feel Colin is inconsistent and they used words I won’t share here.

I have taken this to Colin as tactfully as I can, he has disagreed with me and is now unlikely to speak to me again.

Hey ho! Truth hurts sometimes. {Not true, he just got back in touch and wants to know more}


Change Advisory

How I can help you?

Not all companies need a full time Change resource. By it’s very nature, Change is a temporary need.

However, all companies go through Change all of the time. I help companies set up, deliver and embed Change.

Where possible, I work with internal teams to ensure they ae set up for successful Change delivery.

Example ways to engage me are:

Create Change

Where do you start?

You need to make changes but you don’t have the resource, funding or time?

I will help you determine what Change you need and help you set up the tools you need to succeed.

Remediate Change

Your Change programme is RED. Your team are demoralised. Your delivery is not going to happen.

What went wrong? How can you fix it?

I will help you go back to basics to see what is achievable and set you back on the road to delivery.

Teach Change

Just how do you do this Change thing?

I will deliver a bespoke Change training package based on yours and your team’s needs.

Change MOT

Your Change is going ‘ok’. Could it be better? Are you missing opportunities?

I will give your Change a thorough check to make sure you and your team are doing the best they possibly can while alos identifying improvement opportunities.

Independent Business Partner

In my career I have supported CEO's & COO's with high pressure, multi geography roles. my goal was to always give them my views and challenge, free from the compromise of me wanting anything other then to help them succeed.

Now, as an Independent Business Partner I work with business leaders effectively as their Personal Board.

I will build a trusting relationship with you and together we will tackle:

Lonely?
You have all of the responsibility but nobody to confide in.

You will be able to confide in me about your deepest business concerns. I will work with you to find the right solutions.

Compromised?
Your Board, however trustworthy, have their own motives and goals.

I will give you honest and independent support and challenge on your business free from any personal motives.

An imposter?
You are doing your best but feel exposed.

You probably aren’t. I will work with you on your confidence to enable you to fully understand and embrace your strengths.

Unaware?
You don’t feel you have your finger on the pulse of your business.

I will bring an independent third eye view of your business.

Personal Board

What is your problem?

As your coach I help you explore your situation to determine what you want.

We then explore opportunities to enable you to get what you want.

We define and set actions for you to take to achieve this.

I’m just a happy interested bystander

Coaching is better experienced than described.

Nothing found.

"Patrick has been so instrumental in my professional journey. He helped me look at my potential with clear vision and coached me in how to be more effective in the workplace. He led through example in being open, honest, vulnerable and values led. It was through my conversations with Patrick that I had time to reflect and develop deeper self awareness and got personal clarity on how far I wanted to scale the corporate (or not for profit) ladder. As a result I feel more empowered and satisfied with my role and contribution. I really can't recommend Patrick highly enough."

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