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How I can help you

I will support you, and by extension your organisation, to achieve your objectives by equipping you with the skills you need to communicate and influence effectively and appropriately – with confidence, with clarity and with courage.

Communication is a skill we exercise all the time, but the workplace brings additional rigours, stresses and focus, and we all cope with these challenges in our own way. Understanding this means that I treat everyone I support with compassion, tolerance and patience. Everyone has the right to be supported and developed, and I truly believe that each of us has the ability to exceed our own expectations of our communication skills.

The support I offer ranges across confidential 1:1 coaching tailored to your specific needs, through the design and delivery of a wide range of skills-development courses to groups both large and small, to facilitation, public-speaking, and development interventions at large conferences and seminars. And my performance background has equipped me with the skills to design and deliver a range of performance-based development (and assessment) interventions such as Forum Theatre, Roleplay and Realplay.

Who do I work with?

I work with anyone facing a challenge or obstacle in their spoken communication: perhaps a conversation they need to have with a person they find challenging in some way; an upcoming presentation that fills them with dread; or a pitch that really matters. Even if you’re fortunate enough not to be faced with these kinds of challenging tasks and you simply want to develop and add to your existing skillset of speaking assertively, constructively and influentially – there is plenty of valuable work we can do together.

During the past 24 years, I’ve had the privilege of working with more than 200 client organisations – and many thousands of individuals - from all areas of industry, government and the third sector, many of whom I have been working with for a number of years.

I’m used to working with people at all levels: from very junior staff, through all levels of management and leadership, to Board members. Even the most experienced and skilled communicators I work with consistently report that the work I do with them provides valuable tools and skills to take away, as well as providing opportunities to reflect upon and develop current habitual approaches.

You can reach out to me directly for support, or I may be contacted by your organisation’s L&D, OD or HR colleagues - however we’re brought together, my mission is to help you find ease with your spoken communication in any situation you find challenging.

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The work I do

This next section will give you a taste of the key communication challenges I’m most frequently asked to offer support with, which are:

  • 1:1 Coaching

  • Increasing Your Assertiveness

  • Enhancing Your Personal Impact

  • Dealing with Challenging Stakeholders

  • Confident Presentation Skills

  • Conducting Courageous Performance-Related Conversations

  • Adding Resilience to Your Presentation Skills

  • Roleplay for Assessment

  • Forum Theatre

I create courses and interventions to meet specific needs. If you would benefit from my support in a different area than those detailed below, or you require something more bespoke, do get in touch to start a conversation about how I can support you (with no expectation on my part or obligation on yours).

 

 
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Worried about an upcoming conversation, presentation,
or pitch?

Sometimes we know what our objective is but we’re not certain about finding the right words and delivery to give us the best chance of achieving our desired outcome.

These confidential 1:1 sessions with me provide Participants with the invaluable opportunity to try out their content and approach aloud, receive feedback and then try again. I help Participants hone their material and style to ensure that, when the real conversation, presentation or pitch takes place, they are confident that what they’re delivering is the best it can be. 

The Clinic can be delivered with each Participant attending entirely independently of one another, or it can be delivered for a particular team or function - still with the absolute assurance of confidentiality, of course; as in this case study.

Case Study

In this instance, my client managed a team designing digital products and providing telephone support to product users. The team was skilled and high-performing, but my client was aware of some internal conflict. He wanted to help team members learn to manage this constructively, and in a confidential 1:1 setting, rather than in a plenary course where they might find it difficult to be honest and open about the conflict they were experiencing with colleagues.

I invited the Participants to bring to the Clinic any issue or challenge they were currently facing, and to which they wished to find a positive outcome. With no further prompting from me, they all brought examples of intra-team conflict. The whole team appreciated and benefited enormously from the confidential setting and they all worked hard with me to explore and practise constructive solutions to their individual situations.

“It was really helpful to look at alternative methods to communicate with a tricky boss / situation. David was very knowledgeable and had handouts, resources and suggestion to help improve and advise. It was great to have such a tailored conversation.”

“That's the second time I have attended a conversation clinic this year and David is so calm and knowledgeable and really helps you figure out things yourself rather than just telling you what to do!”

 

 
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The essentials of assertive behaviour

For many of us, being assertive at work can raise complex questions: are we ‘allowed’ to be assertive; what does assertiveness even mean; what would our own assertive behaviour look and sound like; how do I know I’m not being aggressive; and how can I respond when someone else is being over-assertive with me?

This interactive course equips Participants with simple, effective and immediately-applicable tools and techniques enabling them to confidently communicate assertively and appropriately across a range of situations – from 1:1 interactions to larger meetings. Topics covered include:

  • Recognising and applying assertive language and behaviour.

  • Managing the other person’s expectations.

  • Saying “no” in a way the other person can understand and respect.

  • Creating assertive statements that clearly articulate your rights, needs and expectations without blaming the other person.

  • Speaking the other person’s ‘language’ in order to assert yourself and influence them more effectively.

  • Skills practise.

“Applying the theory in the practical sessions made me much more self-aware about the way I actually speak to people vs how I think I do.”

“I found it very useful to identify key things about myself… and also to have ways I can communicate to work towards the outcomes I would like.”

 

 
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Managing your non-verbal communication to create the impression that you want

When we wish to create a particular impact on others, we understandably tend to focus our attention on the words we speak – often neglecting, or perhaps even ignoring completely, our non-verbal communication (our body language).

But our non-verbal communication can have a significant impact on our audience: either by supporting our spoken message or by inadvertently undermining it.

In addition to its impact on others, our own body language can have a powerful effect on us: contributing to us feeling confident, powerful and assertive - or exactly the opposite.

This interactive and engaging course equips Participants, at all levels, with simple, effective and instantly applicable tools and techniques with which to shape and enhance their personal impact, manage their status and boost their confidence in challenging situations.

Participants can feel confident that by simply remembering to apply these tools and techniques, all their attention can then be devoted to shaping and articulating their spoken message - maximising their opportunity to create the positive personal impact that they want while at the same time influencing others appropriately. Topics covered include:

  • Managing the first impression you create.

  • Looking confident and powerful, even when you don’t feel it.

  • Understanding the silent status signals you transmit.

  • Creating a voice you can have confidence in.

  • Building rapport with others to achieve the impact you want.

  • Skills practise. 

Case Study

I originally created this course as a module in a management and leadership development programme for an organisation with a long-established and powerful hierarchy, and where the prevailing communication preferences among the aspiring leadership population were reflective, reactive and unassertive. Participants (and their managers) quickly reported back that the course had provided them with the tools they needed to create more of the positive, often higher status, impact that was required.

When the course has been delivered to high-level Participants in other organisations where high status and over-assertiveness are sometimes overplayed, Participants report that the course provides them with an opportunity to reflect upon and then recalibrate the ways in which they manage their impact - enabling them to flex their behaviour to be more appropriate for their particular audiences and thereby to influence more effectively.

“I have a much greater understanding of my own behaviour - particularly comparatively, with different people and groups - and I can adjust accordingly now where appropriate or applicable!”

“It pushed me to think and be out of my comfort zone and made me aware of the impact I have on myself rather than simply focusing on others. I have a lot more agency and impact than I initially realised.”

 

 
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Dealing with challenging stakeholders whilst avoiding conflict

This course provides Participants with simple, effective and immediately applicable tools and techniques to deal with challenging stakeholders and customers; avoiding conflict and also managing the impact on themselves of difficult interactions.

Originally designed for a telephone support team, this course is equally effective for any stakeholder or customer-facing situation. Topics covered include:

  • Identifying what customers – and you - want from the interaction.

  • Understanding how conflict happens – and why.

  • Managing your responses, not your emotional reactions.

  • Setting the Rules of Engagement with a customer.

  • Understanding a customer’s concerns – and resolving them.

  • Recognising the role our values and the customer’s values play in a difficult interaction.

  • Using empathy to build rapport with a customer.

  • Skills practise.

Case Study

In this example, my client managed a small, skilled, but relatively inexperienced team delivering telephone technical support for an online platform providing a wide range of digital products. The customers of these digital products are typically time-poor, extremely busy, often haven’t read the support materials and have unrealistic expectations of the products, meaning that when they speak to the support assistants they are frequently stressed, impatient or unhappy.

Through consultation with my client, we identified specific outcomes from the training:

  • Increasing the confidence of the support assistants.

  • Creating a more structured approach to handling calls - without becoming robotic.

  • Speaking with authority.

  • Turning challenging situations around.

  • Remaining calm under pressure.

  • Ending calls professionally and remaining positive for the next call.

“This course was extremely useful and should be compulsory for Customer Service teams. David was an excellent trainer.”

“David was a very attentive course leader; extremely well-prepared and informed of the difficulties particular to our team, but also flexible enough in responding to our team's own requirements and queries on the day.”

 

 
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Presenting so that your audience listens

In February 2019, a Jobsite poll revealed that, at 67%, public speaking topped the list of the twelve most common fears experienced by employees in Great Britain. As a result, 56% of those who experience this anxiety have avoided applying for certain jobs and 40% have found career progression difficult.

This interactive course addresses the daunting challenges that this increasingly necessary workplace skill poses for so many of us. By providing Participants with simple and immediately applicable strategies for dealing with these common challenges it both enhances experienced Participants’ existing presenting and public-speaking skills, and introduces new and less experienced presenters to a wealth of techniques and strategies for overcoming their fears and presenting so that their audience listens. Topics covered include:

  • Engaging with your audience.

  • Looking confident, even when you don’t feel it.

  • Managing your presenter nerves.

  • Ensuring your voice is ready to deliver.

  • Ensuring your content is relevant to, and resonates with, your audience.

  • Skills practise.

“The best thing about the course was the practical presentation element and feedback - but all fantastic. Very informative and useful for practice.”

“I found the parts where we were given the opportunity to present the most helpful. Though daunting, it enabled me to reflect and take on feedback. Also made me aware that I think negatively when things have gone well.”

 

 
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Saying what needs to be said in performance-related conversations

Having performance-related conversations with team-members, peers or line managers can be challenging and may require more courage from us than we feel we currently have – so the temptation to avoid having them can be strong.

This course equips Participants with a practical and effective framework enabling them to think about, prepare for, and then manage performance-related conversations which require courage from them. It is suitable both as an introduction to Participants conducting these conversations for the first time and also as a refresher for those who conduct them already.

Following familiarisation with the Courageous Conversations framework, a number of the Participants’ real-life example conversations are used as case studies and interactively practised with me.

“Helped me realise how I can come across. Sometimes I think I'm being clear and direct but I'm not. I can use the techniques in all my 1:1 meetings to develop my management style.”

“David is very knowledgeable and has a warm manner that doesn’t allow you to feel intimidated. Everyone’s conversation was given equal time and thought. I feel much better equipped to have the conversation now.”

 

 
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For creatives who have to present to non-creatives - or anyone presenting to a critical audience

Originally designed for highly-skilled creative teams, this interactive course enhances Participants’ existing presenting skills by providing them with simple and immediately applicable strategies for dealing with the challenges and problems they face when presenting their creative work to seemingly critical – and often non-creative – audiences. Topics covered include:

  • Speaking the other person’s ‘language’ to assert yourself and influence them more effectively.

  • Recognising and applying assertive language and behaviour.

  • Understanding and overcoming objections.

  • Building resilience - managing the negative feelings that can arise as a result of challenging feedback.

  • Creating (and breaking) rapport with others.

  • Skills practise.

Case Study

In this instance, my client led a team of design creatives who regularly had to present their work to audiences of decision-makers and other project stakeholders. The designers often demonstrated a lack of confidence and assertiveness in making their presentations, compounded by their audience’s compulsion to deliver feedback, even when they lacked expertise in the area they were feeding back on. The designers experienced this feedback very negatively, resulting in defensiveness, aggression towards the criticism and, often, a drop in morale.

The desired outcomes for the Participants were increased confidence in presenting more assertively, introducing storytelling into their presentations, reading their audience better, greater resilience and managing the flow and nature of the feedback.

“The feedback to me from the designers has been very, very positive. Many of them said they not only felt empowered, but you helped them regain a sense of ownership of their discipline, something that's difficult in a subject where everyone's an expert... you really connected with their issues and concerns and helped them to tackle their 'presentation demons' in such a positive, constructive and interesting way. I know I personally took loads from the session and feel hugely better equipped than I did before.”

Sophie Stericker - Creative Director, Hachette Children’s Group

 

 
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Most of us who have been through an Assessment Centre for promotion or recruitment will have experienced the ‘dreaded roleplay’

Including a roleplay exercise in an assessment process enables Assessors to observe how Candidates will behave in a situation for which they cannot prepare beyond the brief provided: a live interaction with someone they haven’t previously met and who brings their own (possibly conflicting) agenda to the situation. Any artificiality experienced by Candidates disappears within the first few moments as their attention becomes entirely focused on interacting with me - and there is nowhere for them to ‘hide’.

It works like this: the Candidate is presented with a written brief. This often asks them to imagine themselves in the role or position they are applying for, provides some information about their objectives for this meeting and the person they are about to meet. I assume the role of this other person - perhaps a team member, customer, etc.

The Candidate is then required to conduct this meeting with me and bring our exchange to a satisfactory conclusion, ideally for both parties, and within a set timeframe - all the while being observed and assessed.

My objective is to enable the Candidate to demonstrate that they possess appropriate competencies, skills, or behaviours which can be observed and scored by the Assessors. I appropriately challenge or give way to the Candidate; reveal useful information as ‘reward’ for dealing with me well; and keep the exchange flowing if the Candidate stalls or heads down a ‘blind alley’.

My years of performance experience mean that I am able to be entirely credible in both my role and in my responses to the Candidate - and also that I provide absolute consistency from one Candidate to the next, no matter what their differing approaches to the meeting may be. My experience of having delivered many thousands of roleplays over the years also means that I am also able to closely observe the behaviour of the Candidate during our interaction and then provide detailed and invaluable feedback to the Assessors afterwards.

Examples of the considerable array of roles I have been asked to portray over the years range from a prospective partner in a Big Four professional services firm, through hospital consultant, all levels of staff and management in both public and private sectors, to an armed robber and local authority street sweeper.

I have a trusted and experienced team of associates who I can bring on board to deliver roleplay scenarios when more than one business actor is required. And, of course, I always ensure that my associates are as well-informed and briefed as I am.

Case Study

Sometimes I am simply required to deliver a pre-scripted roleplay scenario, but I also often work with clients from the outset, contributing to the creation of the complete roleplay package, as in this example:

My client was the HR Manager for a non-departmental government body regulating a public-facing industry. As part of an assessment centre to recruit operatives to engage with both the individuals subject to regulation, as well as the public and other stakeholders, I was commissioned to write and deliver a scripted roleplay to test Candidates’ influencing and negotiating skills.

In consultation with the team leaders and head of department, I created a scenario in which the Candidate would meet a senior and highly resistant stakeholder to seek their collaboration in a joint operation. The scenario was designed so that the Candidate could only achieve their objective through empathising with and understanding my concerns, finding realistic compromises on their objectives and collaborating with mine.

The team leaders and head of department were initially wary as to the value of a roleplay exercise, as they were used to recruiting (not always successfully) on the basis of an interview, presentation and inbox activity only. They were initially unprepared that some Candidates who scored highly on other parts of the assessment process might perform poorly in the roleplay scenario; but they very quickly realised that the roleplay genuinely tested Candidates’ skills and abilities in a key area required by the role. They were ultimately delighted that, as a result of the inclusion of a roleplay activity, they were able to recruit Candidates who would deliver with “superb quality” on the essential interpersonal demands of the role.

"David helped us with a last minute need we had for an Assessment Centre actor. Thank you heaps for your support David, you've been a consummate professional. You absolutely helped us deliver at the right level and helped us test the candidates in a fair and objective way."

Rebecca Stevens - Psychologist/Consulting Partner, Strengths Partnership

"David assisted us with a role-play for three days. He interpreted the brief brilliantly, ad-libbing exactly as we would wish and his feedback on our job applicants was very thoughtful and useful. Several of the applicants commented on how good he was. Above all, David was lovely company and very patient throughout - and I would certainly recommend him for this type of work."

Roz Hooper - Senior Legal Officer, Royal College of Nursing

 

 
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Forum Theatre is a powerful, accessible and engaging way of giving participants the opportunity - in a totally safe environment - to explore how they can ‘change their world’

Two or more Actor-Facilitators act out a short scene at the core of which is a common issue or problem experienced by the Participants, who form the audience. This scene is designed to have a realistic, but less than positive - and avoidable - outcome.

The scene is acted out in full – and a brief discussion of what just happened is facilitated by the Actors. The ‘Protagonist’ in the scene is identified; this is usually the character that the Participants can most relevantly relate to in this particular situation.

The scene is repeated, but this time the Participants are encouraged to stop the action at any point where they would like the Protagonist to do or say something differently. The Protagonist incorporates these directions into their behaviour and the other characters in the scene react appropriately. In this way the Participants direct the scene to a more positive outcome.

Powerful learning occurs as Participants are required to consider the way they would behave in that situation - and then articulate that clearly to the Protagonist. They are able to see the impact of their suggested directions in a completely no-risk situation, enabling them to be more risk tolerant and to challenge their own habitual approaches. If Participants don’t immediately achieve the positive outcomes they are aiming for, they can re-direct the action as often and as in as much detail as they wish.

Participants are encouraged to discuss the variety of approaches amongst themselves and to direct the Actor-Facilitators to try out as many approaches as they wish them to, in order to discover and agree, as a group, which approaches are the most effective.

There is also the opportunity to check in with other characters in the scene whether the Protagonist’s new approaches and behaviours are having the impact that the Participants are aiming for. This immediate feedback enables the Participants to decide exactly how to redirect the Protagonist to achieve the desired outcome.

If appropriate, individual Participants can be invited to physically replace the Protagonist in the scene in order to practise their directions themselves.

The interactive and immersive nature of Forum Theatre makes the learning for Participants both powerful and pragmatic. The scene feels ‘real’ to them, leading them to invest fully in achieving the best outcome for their Protagonist. The coupling of the Participants’ emotional responses to the Protagonist’s poor behaviour with the intellectual challenge of reshaping the Protagonist’s behaviour to make it better, means that the experience of being involved in Forum Theatre often lives with Participants long after the event, giving them pragmatic and tested reference points to the most effective approaches to take when they find themselves in similar situations. 

I was trained in Forum Theatre by Adrian Jackson of Cardboard Citizens Theatre Company – the UK’s foremost exponent of this technique and I can call upon a trusted and experienced team of associates to bring on board to deliver a Forum Theatre piece with me. And, of course, I always ensure that my associates are thoroughly briefed and rehearsed.

Case Study

I usually work with clients from the outset to provide a complete Forum Theatre solution - although sometimes I’m asked to deliver a pre-scripted Forum Theatre scenario.

In this example, I was asked by my client, the Group Training and Development Manager, to contribute to the workshops she was planning on ‘How to Deliver Effective Performance Reviews’. She was familiar with Forum Theatre and we discussed how it could provide a vivid and interactive demonstration that a large group of Participants could engage with and learn from, as it was impossible to work with Participants one-to-one. In consultation with my client and an HR Business Partner, I drafted a 5-6 minute scene of a manager delivering a performance review to a direct report. But the manager did this poorly and ineffectively - meaning that the appraisee was left feeling demotivated, confused and disengaged by the experience. There was a wealth of behaviours and approaches in the scene that Participants could identify and then ‘fix’, in order to get a better outcome for the appraisee. I regularly update the script to incorporate and reflect changes in the process and organisational culture, and this piece of Forum Theatre has formed a regular and highly effective component of the organisation’s annual performance review training since 2010.

"David worked with our organisation to support an appraisal training session for our staff, designing and presenting a forum theatre piece which truly brought the subject to life. It thoroughly engaged staff on how behaviour breeds behaviour and everyone really enjoyed the exercise, feeling that it related to real life situations in the workplace."

Di Standley - Chief Executive, Royal Life Saving Society UK

 

 
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2 hours (or more) + You & Me

Communication challenges can arise unexpectedly: a short notice invitation to present; speaking to that tricky client or colleague as soon as possible to manage their expectations; or sitting down with a direct report to nip a performance management issue in the bud.

Whatever challenge you’re faced with, as little as 2 hours of sharp and focused coaching can be transformative. For these brief intensive sessions we will meet virtually via a video call, and I will try and accommodate you at short notice if your need is urgent.

If you’d like a longer session or a series of sessions of 1:1 coaching on any communication challenges, we can discuss a bespoke programme of sessions to suit your needs.

Having recently reached out to David to ask his guidance on some specific management development objectives, I was really impressed with his assessment, tailored input and delivery of what was a very rewarding 1:1 development session. I highly recommend David; he has a very professional approach and clearly has a wealth of knowledge and experience in his field - I wouldn’t hesitate in employing him again.”

Sean Murphy - Strategic Client Director, Experian

“David has proven to be a talented professional when it comes to bringing his drama background into the business world. He actively helped me to put together a great business performance at a recent conference which has generated immediate results.”

Ricardo Pimenta - Global Brand Vice President, Unilever


Book your 2-hour Communication Strategy Session

I offer a limited number of 1:1 communication strategy sessions each month. These coaching sessions take place online via a Zoom videocall and are intended to help with work-related spoken communication challenges. This is how they work:

  • Email me to find a time that works for us both - and let me know what you’d like help with.

  • Pay for the session to secure your booking.

  • I’ll send you a Zoom link.

  • After you book I will send you a brief questionnaire so I understand the communication challenge you'd like to work on. Depending on what you tell me I may send you some further questions so that we can make the most of your call.

  • Your video call will be dedicated to this specific communication challenge and we'll find actionable ways to help you move it forward.

  • Spoken communication is a physical and energetic, not academic, activity. Together we will devise a new approach to your challenge and you will have the chance to road test it by trying it, out loud - and receiving my feedback. If it doesn't quite fit, we'll shape it until it does.

  • This will be a 2-hour videocall - and believe me, we can pack a lot into this time.

  • After the call I will send you a summary of our conversation, including the action points we have discussed.

  • Two weeks later, I will check in with you to see how you've progressed, celebrate your successes and help you with any questions or concerns.


What clients say

I cannot rate David highly enough. I have been lucky enough to attend three of David’s courses, one of which he tailor made for my team and I and it was exceptional. David listened to what we needed, our issues and where we needed to be and created a course which we continually refer back to and has helped shape the way we work. David is incredibly engaging, energetic and reassuring.
— Lucie Stericker - Creative Director, Orion Publishing Group
David has worked with the RLSS UK and IQL UK on a number of occasions, supporting our work with bespoke training solutions for our internal team and for our customers. On each occasion we have found David a pleasure to work with and would thoroughly recommend David. He provides unique and engaging solutions to training scenarios and works alongside an organisation to ensure that your needs are met. His attention to detail is immaculate and always delivers, taking initial ideas and turning them into projects that go above and beyond your expectations.
— Martin Symcox – Director of Water Safety Management, IQL UK
I cannot thank David enough for his calm and professional help. His techniques and coping mechanisms in dealing with stressful situations and confidence issues have helped me come on leaps and bounds in my working life. His gentle approach and way of helping you really understand why you’re feeling a certain way or struggling with a situation really help with self-understanding and I really can’t thank David enough!
— Rebecca Livingstone - Design Coordinator, Hachette Children’s Group
David is at all times professional, helpful, offers lots of suggestions and revises content and style of delivery as and when required. He is flexible and works with the group to make it a fun experience for all delegates. David really gets to know the organisation and understands what we are trying to achieve, making the process really easy and enjoyable. He delivers the message clearly to the delegates whilst being fun and bringing a lot of energy to the sessions. As a facilitator he helps me to bring the group along with the message and we work together as a team to ask the group questions and to reflect on the scenario, really bringing the managers with him on the learning points. I have always found David really supportive of what we are trying to achieve whilst also maintaining a definite level of professionalism and experience from other places/organisations that benefit what we are trying to do. He is also very honest if he thinks something won’t work - but will always tell me why (which is good!).
— Victoria Fletcher - Group Training & Development Manager, Hachette UK Ltd
I have worked with David on a number of occasions in a Learning and Development capacity. David has provided superb quality results for recruitment of new staff through assessment centres, as well as development centres for current staff and forum theatre for a number of training interventions. David is highly creative and provides a quality service from start to finish, whilst being consistently personable and a pleasure to work with.
— Jane Taylor - Learning & Development Manager, non-departmental public body
I really like David – he offers a great deal of learning credibility.
— Carole Gibbs - HR Director, Jacobs Douwe Egberts UK & Ireland
David recently provided an excellent coaching session for my design team. His thoughtfulness and sensitivity to the needs of the team meant his carefully written and delivered session hit the spot absolutely brilliantly. I am very grateful to David and would recommend him without hesitation. I very much hope to work with him again soon.
— Sophie Stericker – Creative Director, Hachette Children’s Group
I have had the privilege of working with David on various different elements over a number of years. David is an expert at asking the right questions to understand the stakeholders/audience which allows him to apply a professional solution. Exerting a calm, extremely knowledgeable and confident delivery style David really can improve individuals and groups. A special thanks for improving my own delivery style through some expert mentoring.
— Lee Heard - Director of People, Membership and Partnerships, Royal Life Saving Society UK
David and I have worked together for more than a decade now and I could not speak more highly of him as a professional colleague and partner. His great ability as an actor and forum theatre facilitator are matched by his insight into business and people and an enviable work ethic, though above all I would recommend David for providing all this with a gentle and genuine sense of humour.
— Dr Lindsay Parkin - Organisational Psychologist
David’s high quality performance was absolutely instrumental in delivering a major creative project for a key financial client. David has a unique zen-like calmness coupled with a creative flair which are invaluable. It’s no wonder he has the wealth of experience he has. I would highly recommend David and will certainly work with him again myself.
— Sartaj Garewal MCIArb, FRSA - Director, Dynamic Presenting Ltd
I have worked with David on several freelance projects. He is exceptionally creative and provides innovative theatre based solutions which can address a variety of workplace issues.
— Di Steer MSc FCIPD - Owner and Senior Consultant at Benchmark HR Consulting
I have worked with David on various projects and always found him very competent in his ability as a facilitator as well as an actor. He has a pragmatic and business focus and is particularly effective at creating behavioural change through real play.
— Kerry Gardiner - Learning and Development Consultant, Ascertain Ltd
I caught up with the team at the end of the day – they were hugely enthusiastic and really thought that they had gained lots of skills that they could use on a daily basis. Thanks so much.
— Victoria Goodall - Group Marketing Director, Hodder Education

Working with me

Although everyone’s communication challenges and objectives are individual and nuanced, there are a number of core principles that I will bring to my work with you:

Recent clients include 

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