Welcome

Hello, I'm Rachael, it's nice to meet you! 

I love coaching because collaborating with others and watching them develop energises me. I have a reputation for working sensitively and respectfully with others, most under great pressure, so I’m well prepared to help you realise your potential regardless of your situation. I don’t shock easily. As a coach I have partnered with people within, and outside of, Australia.
I’m also a mum with two children, a full-time employee and I founded this business because I am fascinated with leadership and am a learning addict (such a nerd 😉). When looking at down-time I swim at the beach, laugh with my kids and seek opportunities to collaborate with other wonderfully intelligent individuals to learn more. 

Read more: Qualifications | Values | Employment Experience | Personal Journey

SWINBURNE UNIVERSITY
Certificate IV in Training and Assessment (current)
CHARLES STURT UNIVERSITY
Master of Business Leadership (MBL)
Bachelor of Social Science (Soc. Wel.)
INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE
Certified Social & Emotional Intelligence Coach & SEI Profiler (including 360 Degree)
Certified Leader as Coach: Coaching Skills for Executives, Managers & Leaders
INSTITUTE OF EXECUTIVE & COACHING LEADERSHIP
Certified Organisational Coaching Levels 1 and 2
INTERNATIONAL COACHING FEDERATION
Associate Credentialed Coach (ACC)
AFFILIATION(S) and MEMBERSHIP(S)
Member of the International Coaching Federation (ICF)
Affiliated with the Institute for Social and Emotional Intelligence
Professional Member of the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) NSW
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Trust, integrity and resilience reflect the core beliefs that underpin the foundations of our work with you. These values demonstrate our commitment to do our best when working with you. The importance of maintaining alignment between personal and professional values not only significantly reduces the likelihood of stress and burnout it is paramount to increasing happiness, stability and well being. It goes without saying that values are instilled within us from a very young age and whilst they do grow in understanding, they rarely (if ever) change. This is why you can't fake your values. Doing this invalidates us and undermines our attempts to build relationships.Trust is the key factor when working with people. It grows from actions such as reliability, consistency and honesty. It requires a sense of safety and vulnerability where one can speak without fear of reprisal, introduce ideas, challenge negative beliefs and hold open discussions. Building and sustaining trust results in improved productivity and motivation, increased social networks and a desire to learn. Integrity is highly regarded. To develop and sustain successful business relationships we strive to demonstrate integrity across everything we do. Examples of integrity include:

• Withstanding scrutiny under the pressure of investigations and inquiries. 
• Remaining resolute, incorruptible and not yielding to peer pressure. 
• Consistently following through. 
• Being fair with a strong sense of social justice.
• Changing a decision when evidence emerges it is not right. 

Integrity grows with new experiences. Part of professional development is supporting others through mistakes. Rather than passing judgement after a mistake, we seek to understand the actions that follow. It’s the way we incorporate the learnings from mistakes and how we change and improve our behaviours after the experience that is important. Resilience is crucial to career success and personal satisfaction. It feeds our well-being, coping abilities and significantly reduces our stress levels. The best way to develop and sustain resilience is through strong ‘intra’ and ‘inter’ personal relationships. Most people maintain healthy resilience levels by regularly taking time out for reflection, learning and growth to develop new skills. Resilience is generally measured in three ways by organisations. 1. The length of time it takes to recover from a challenging situation.2. How easily one adjusts and adapts to change.3. How high or low the levels of resistance to adversity are. A study conducted by Bond and Shapiro found “75% of people’s resilience reserves are depleted by difficult [workplace] relationships or office politics.” Variables including exposure to extended trauma, prolonged negativity and judgement occurring prior to resilience depletion are often overlooked during these measurements. The resulting emotional pain uses up our resilience levels and can make it difficult for individuals to meet the expectations in the above listed measures. This is the reason we focus on the people side of leadership.

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I founded Leadership and People in 2020 whilst working full-time as a public servant.
Prior to this I worked in human services for NSW Ageing, Disability and HomeCare, London Borough of Lewisham Council, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Council, Look Ahead, Origin Housing and Notting Hill Genesis (previously Notting Hill Housing Group).
Hospitality included The Dorchester (yes, the 5-star hotel in Mayfair, London), G8 Summit (London) and Cirque du Solei (Dralion).
The corporate sector included Macquarie Bank.
This information is accurate as at 27/10/2022. Up to date information can be located on my LinkedIn page. 

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I’ve always had an innate ability to understand complex issues, and seek out and bring to the fore the strengths in others.
In 1999 I worked in the NSW Public Sector in child protection which was both challenging and rewarding. My biggest challenge at the time was developing my career within a crisis driven environment where high staff turnover and fear of authority dominated the culture. I figured out two things. The first, I loved working with people and, the second, many managers were unaware of the (sometimes long lasting) consequences of their actions. Frustrated, I left Australia for the UK in 2005 where I embarked on a huge learning curve. I had opportunities managing different business models, contracts and and teams, still working with vulnerable people. I had some amazing role models who were skilled at managing people and I wanted to learn. I reached middle management level and my passion for leadership was in full swing.
In 2011, amidst the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), I returned to Australia where I expected to continue my career where I had left off. By 2016, I had two small children and my workload had been reduced in both complexity and volume. I enrolled in a Master of Business Leadership where I studied subjects including leadership and power, toxic leadership, leadership and teams, leadership theory and leadership and difference.
I completed this and went on to complete several coaching courses.
In 2020 I decided to start this business as I realised how much I enjoy supporting managers and leaders to be the best versions of themselves.

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