Testimonials
Don't just take our word for it – hear what others have to say about working with us.
The CEO of my organisation had attended an Action Learning Set previously and had said how beneficial it was for her. She recommended that I attend one.
I have to admit I was a little skeptical at first as to how much of a difference it would make. Having read the initial information prior to joining the group, I think I was prepared for a change in my approach with the people I line manage and the groups I facilitate especially with problem solving and resolution. I have noticed these things already.
What I wasn't prepared for (and I think was the far deeper impact) was the power of sharing as a group, recognising the commonalities in all of our struggles and the profound personal reflection the group has prompted in me: my process, the dynamics in my organisation and so much more. It has been so helpful - thank you.
It was really useful to look at the different personality types in our team. I think it will help us to understand ourselves and each other better - therefore we will be a stronger team
"Thank you Emily and a massive thank you to the working group for all your effort and commitment on this. It’s been great to see such energising cross-team collaboration on this important piece of work!" GST
"Emily facilitated the two days with great mix of care, collaboration and challenge. It was just what our Executive Team needed as we looked ahead to a period of change." GST SMT
"The day exceeded my expectations, facilitation was good and inclusive, allowing everyone to have a voice and be part of key discussions." GST SMT
"Emily — you're a fantastic facilitator, and this was a wonderful use of time for us to grow and develop as a team" GST SMT
"The day exceeded my expectations, facilitation was good and inclusive, allowing everyone to have a voice and be part of key discussions." GST SMT
- 100% of our coaching clients found the sessions to be either very useful or useful
- 86% say they entirely met their coaching goals, with the remaining saying that the goals evolved through the process
- 93% say the coaching has improved their effectiveness at work
- 78% say the coaching has helped determine their future direction
- 100% of our coaching clients felt heard and understood
- "It has strengthened my leadership- distributive leadership and collective care as we navigate complexities."
- "This is an empowering, transformative and peer-led approach to resolving complex issues in a safe and supportive environment. The process also embeds good practice around clarity, deep listening, challenge and collective care. This was a very rewarding piece of learning and our facilitator was fantastic! She brought out the best of the process and the participants."
- "I am so profoundly grateful to the ALS facilitator and my fellow participants for offering a space where I could connect and share with others from such diverse backgrounds and contexts. We found that we had so much in common and I have learnt so much from them and the issues we discussed."
- "Important safe space for reflection and thinking, invaluable for taking a breath from the hamster wheel. Taking a step back and thinking things through with trusted and supported peers was something I looked forward to. Would highly recommend!"
- "It has strengthened my leadership- distributive leadership and collective care as we navigate complexities."
- "This is an empowering, transformative and peer-led approach to resolving complex issues in a safe and supportive environment. The process also embeds good practice around clarity, deep listening, challenge and collective care. This was a very rewarding piece of learning and our facilitator was fantastic! She brought out the best of the process and the participants."
- "I am so profoundly grateful to the ALS facilitator and my fellow participants for offering a space where I could connect and share with others from such diverse backgrounds and contexts. We found that we had so much in common and I have learnt so much from them and the issues we discussed."
- "Important safe space for reflection and thinking, invaluable for taking a breath from the hamster wheel. Taking a step back and thinking things through with trusted and supported peers was something I looked forward to. Would highly recommend!"
"Our whole team came away with a much deeper level of trust and clear action to continue our passion for change”
"The tools we were provided with will be valuable for the rest of our careers."
"They [WRKWLL] really worked hard to understand our organisation and different points of view."
"It provided me with an incredible journey of self-reflection and improvement."
- I found my coaching sessions to be extremely beneficial in developing my ways of thinking and leading my team. I had my coaching sessions during a period of change in my team and my coach supported me to build my confidence in leading my team, whilst also ensuring I take the time for myself to support my own well-being.
- The coaching was thought provoking and useful, thank you
- Working with my WRKWLL coach was such a joy! She was encouraging, inspiring, practical and incredibly helpful. I felt like I made real progress towards my goals and made real, tangible changes. If everyone had someone like Allie in their lives, the world would be a better, more joyful and much more productive place!
- Excellent empathetic coaching, with the right amount of challenge, reflection and action. I think understanding and connecting with the person meant it was a more trusting and meaningful coaching sessions.
"Such high support, helpful challenge, generous sharing of knowledge. Incredible journey of self reflection and improvement." Coaching client
"Fantastic facilitation, creating a safe, supportive space to share ideas and experiences. They really work hard to understand our organisation and our different view points."
Team building participant
"Excellent, empathetic coaching with just the right amount of challenge, reflection and action."
Coaching client
"WRKWLL were very flexible and designed their approach through dialogue with clients, volunteers, staff and trustees."
Strategy review client
"We loved spending time laughing together."
Team building client
"They really supported what we need, enabling conversations and comments to be heard and including everyone in that conversation."
Strategy review client
"Such fantastic facilitation, bringing energy, enthusiasm and knowledge to a great day. They supported exactly what we needed. The whole team came away having a much deeper level of trust and clear actions to continue to drive our passion for change."
Strategy review client
Very good, thoughtful. Useful and Fun. Well-presented thank you
Jenny made the session really interactive and fun. The session was not boring at all, and really engaging.
Thank you for the session. It generated a lot of thought about what is it that I am looking to achieve and how to do it.
Abbott Diabetes Care, session on personal branding
Whilst delivering a new social impact pilot programme designed to support both parent returners back into employment and organisations to become more inclusive of returning parents, I wanted to ensure we were capturing unbiased information from the participants on how the programme was going, along with their suggested improvements. I enlisted the support of WRKWLL to do this.
Emily was so easy to work with right from the off – she proposed a number of different ways in which to achieve the best outcome and we settled on a series of focus groups followed up with an end of programme report. Emily is amazing with people and brings a wealth of skills and experience to get the best out of people. She built instant rapport with the 24 HR professionals from the programme enabling us to get some very useful insights from them. Emily is committed to delivering to a high standard, always checking in to ensure as a client I was happy with the output. I always felt I was in safe hands when working with Emily.
In fact, I was so impressed with her work, that I commissioned a further piece of work which sought to understand the male perspective on taking and returning from extended paternity leave. Emily’s team put together and ran a comprehensive survey and subsequent focus groups with a number of dads – again building rapport and trust to get them to share their very personal perspectives on the key challenges and barriers they faced as a male taking time out of and returning to the workplace to care for their children. WRKWLL produced an excellent report on this which CIPD published in December 2020.
Overall – super happy with the quality of work and the genuine client care displayed by the WRKWLL team!
Fiona Scott, Senior Social Impact Manager, CIPD
What was it the organisation was seeking to change?
Development of organisational strategy and Theory of Change.
What solution did WRKWLL bring?
A six-month package of support including stakeholder workshop, desk research, stakeholder surveys and a series of intensive workshops with smaller groups to refine and develop. We ended the process with a refined vision, mission and set of priorities along with landscape mapping and risk matrix.
Why did you choose WRKWLL? Or what was it about WRKWLL that you liked?
We liked that we had access to different consultants with different expertise / perspectives – combining strategy, facilitation and subject matter (global health) knowledge. We thought their pitch was the strongest and there was a chemistry fit.
Can you explain what WRKWLL did?
Gave us the momentum at the start of the process and were able to build consensus from the start of the process. This is no mean feat considering the strong personalities and viewpoints across a diverse range of stakeholders.
At the start of the process we didn’t actually know exactly what we needed. Through the right questions, offering counterbalancing viewpoints and an expert external eye we were able deliver a robust process that shows in our fantastic finished product.
Can you describe anything about their approach to working with you or their culture that is important for this case study?
Very open, naming elephants in the room, but doing everything with tact, poise and genuine passion for our cause.
What impact did working with WRKWLL have on you / your organisation?
As one of the people leading the project internally, I don’t think we would have got through the whole process without your input. The hardest part is getting started, and you helped set a collaborative tone.
We were able to take over beyond the six-month period to refine the priorities, develop indicators and produce the final strategy, budget and workplan. Us being able to steam ahead with the rest of the process is testament to the chain reaction you’ve created!
What changed as a result of working with WRKWLL?
We now have an agreed upon evolution of our organisational focus, clear ways to define our activities and a staff and stakeholder group who feel engaged and listened to. We’re well set up to meet the challenges of the next few years.
Strategy development client, 2021
WRKWLL truly delivers the right work training at the right time, pitched at the relevant level of need and complexity. Strong stuff.
What was the change you were seeking?
We wanted to kick start our strategic planning process and steer the board to strategic level thinking to start off our journey.
What solution did WRKWLL bring?
A clear analysis of the political, environmental, social and technological factors affecting our organisation to steer our strategic thinking. A sensitive approach to our strategy session to make sure all voices were heard. Final high-level themes with which to base our strategy on.
Why did you choose to work with us?
Because of the experience you have in this space.
What did we do?
Facilitate a PEST session and strategy away day which also included a vision, mission, values refresh.
What impact did our work have?
Shifted thinking from the operational to the strategic
What did you like about working with us?
Tailored approach, really got to what we trying to achieve and facilitator was great on the day – kept everyone on track and engaged in hybrid working difficult circumstances. Flexibility before the start of the sessions to get planning done was great too.
What changed as a result?
We now have a strategic plan we are proud of and a plan to engage the organisation to deliver this
A good balance between observing, challenging and leading discussions.
Lopa was excellent. It was a good blend of collegiate bonding and identifying gaps in board structure.
Very well run and felt I learnt a lot about myself and the team.
I was looking for a facilitator for our Board that would work well with an eclectic group who did not like being facilitated. This worked well as you listened to the feedback on the sort of event we wanted and on the day you shifted what we did to respond to the group and where it was going. You also carefully extracted some commitments as to future work we could do.
It helped a group that had not met in person due to the pandemic form and storm and norm in one swoop!
Everyone enjoyed working with you and the day we had.
Geeta Nanda OBE, CEO of Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing
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