Hello, I'm Helen.
I’m your culture-change partner.
Working hand-in-hand, we'll align your workplace culture to your business strategy, and unlock and accelerate success.
What people say
“Helen is a strategic thought leader who has been fundamental in repositioning Zoopla’s EVP and employee experience, including our approach to D,E & I. She is deeply thoughtful and empathetic in her approach, always conscious of the audience and the communication to that audience. She is well-read on her areas of expertise and stays on top of ever-evolving trends in the market – as such, she operates as a trusted advisor to me as Chief People Officer and also to our Chief Executive Officer. We would not have achieved half of what we have implemented in the past three years across the employee experience without Helen’s trusted partnership.”
Catrin Anderson
Chief People Officer, Zoopla
“Helen is hugely talented and a joy to work with. Her work is considered, authentic and impactful. She challenges thinking, knows how to engage and connect with people and has been a huge asset and support in how to communicate complex problems, information or issues. She is the first person I call if I want to deliver great work that speaks to colleagues on a human level and achieves our business objectives.
Helen would be an asset to any organisation as a listening ear, a critical friend, a communications expert, a development consultant and an engager of people. She’s simply brilliant.”
Beth-Marie Norbury
Group Culture & Leadership Change Director,
Babcock International Group PLC
“Helen is a rare and exceptional talent in the employee experience, culture and innovation space – but as important, she appreciates the realities and practical considerations of her clients’ circumstances. She has a unique ability to translate observations & interactions into ‘gems’ of insights, which she can then effortlessly transfer into real actions. My Exco colleagues and leadership team valued working with her – we involved her in strategic discussions to benefit from her thinking and bias for action.”
Laura Hagan
Chief HR Officer,
Tate & Lyle PLC
“Helen is one of the most talented individuals I have ever worked with. Helen has a breadth which is rare to find, but is clearly shown in her career. She can turn her hand to anything – her intelligence, sophisticated communication skills, eye for design, and ability to be strategic but also execute all manner of projects means she successfully operates at all levels, and delivers consistently outstanding work. Helen’s broad experience, creative flair, passion for people and for doing the right thing, mean that she understands culture change instinctively. Importantly though, it also means she knows how to make things happen and transform in big organisations.”
Tammy Potter
People Director,
Elvie
“Helen’s authentic and genuine style puts others at ease; when faced with a challenging situation, people look to her for a positive fresh perspective and effective solutions. I’ve been lucky to work closely with Helen, she’s been one of my biggest supporters and a fantastic coach and mentor, always pushing me beyond my comfort zone, challenging me to think bigger and giving me the confidence I need to take important steps in my career. Her unwavering support has helped me get to where I am now and will shape my future decisions for years to come. I’ve loved every minute working alongside Helen and I genuinely cannot recommend partnering with her enough.”
Abi Lawrence
Employee Engagement Executive, Zoopla
Six reasons why you should work with me
1. Benefit from 20 years of comms and culture work
I’ve been elbows-deep in the work of communicating ideas and shaping cultures for (almost) two decades. My first job out of university was working for Sir James Dyson, and I’ve supported and advised executives every year since. I get founder-led culture and large, matrixed, international teams, because I’ve been there, led that.
2. Advice you (or I) can implement
I never learned off-the-shelf agency models, I’ve only ever been fully ‘in it’, and I still like to work that way. I can flex from advisor to implementer, depending on what you need. No 350-page PowerPoint decks; my tailored advice works because I understand the pressures you’re dealing with. Or, you can give me a brief and I’ll get it done.
3. I’ll extend your team (not replace them)
Although I’m not a conventional HR person, I always admire and appreciate People Teams. I work as an extension of your team, like an added ingredient. The team always get the credit for anything we produce together, so the work feels owned by them and has a life that extends far beyond the duration of my engagement.
4. People and culture Swiss army knife* breadth
My background in public relations, internal communications, marketing, brand and people teams means I’m confident taking on any workplace culture puzzle. I love a varied challenge; from HR approaches to internal comms strategies, to employer brands, and everything in between.
*A client’s words, not my own.
5. Professional, certified and accredited coach
I’ve achieved the rigorous Associate Certified Coach credential with the International Coaching Federation. I coach Executives and up-and-coming leaders alike. And I bring my coaching skills – listening, intuition, facilitation, challenge and humour – into my consulting work where it helps too. Find out more
6. In it for the long haul
My client relationships often last six months or more, and I never take on more than three at a time. Think of me as the Culture Director you should have had from the beginning, but didn’t. (And since I only work on what’s most important, I’m less expensive than that Director, too).
I believe…
I bring these beliefs into every project, for every client.
Everyone deserves dignified, meaningful and fulfilling work
Companies, employees, and society are always the better off for it. We need organisations to be a force for good; in the world and for their employees. I’m optimistic; change is happening now, and the future of work is bright.
Communication is everything
Cultures and communities are built through communication. Verbal, visual, written, non-verbal… what and how you communicate as an organisation and as leaders can enhance the culture and reputation you’re trying to build (or, undermine it).
Deeds are worth more than words
Delivering the message well is critical, but that’s just the start. Your culture needs to see you act, not just talk. One of my clients very kindly gave me a suffragette tea towel for Christmas and it hangs on my wall next to my monitor to remind me.
The best teams are diverse teams
And there are not nearly enough of them. I’m not a diversity, equity and inclusion specialist, but I educate myself, work with specialists when needed, and aim to be an ally in all the work I do. To help disadvantaged women get dignified work, I am a CV coach for the Young Women’s Trust.
Work is a piece of the pie, not one end of a see-saw
If you’re in the C-suite (or near it), chances are ‘work’ is a pretty large chunk of your ‘life’ pie chart. But for many employees, the ratio between their ‘work’ chunk and their family / leisure / learning / caring / side-hustle chunks is shifting. Organisations need to respond.
You can’t design a culture. But you can nudge it
Your culture exists whether you like it or not. But you can pull certain levers, make certain interventions, that will nudge it in a particular direction, and that’s the key to progress and transformation.
Culture change needs to be owned by the culture
I work as an extension of the team, co-creating everything through participative experiences with employees. The work is owned by the team, fit for purpose, and endures far beyond the duration of my engagement. No hundred-page PDFs that leave more questions than answers; just ideas, experiments and progress.
How I can help
I help Chief Executives and Chief People Officers align their company’s culture with their business strategy in ways that accelerate success.
My multi-disciplinary background means I’m most effective working at the intersection between the People team, the Brand team, and Internal Communications. I speak all their languages (and can be the interpreter, if needed).
Unlike an agency, I work in and with your team, doing the strategy and the implementation. So you’re not left with a shiny piece of work you’re not quite sure what to do with.
And when your team is overstretched or thin on the ground, I’ll pull in my trusted associates for larger projects and to deliver employer brands and creative assets.
How I do it
Think of me as your part-time, fixed-term, Associate Culture Director. I’ll meet with you, your people team and your executive team, then:
- Assess the current culture and take a baseline measure
- Envision the ideal culture
- Map the shifts we need to make
- Identify priority projects / sprints
- Design experiments, implement, measure, then scale them
- Internal communications strategy and messaging throughout
How long it takes
Pinch-point where you need some creative clarity? I’ll scope the project with you and give you a fee and duration. I have a network of associates I bring in for bigger projects or specific needs.
Organisation ‘Values’ / Behaviours / Agreements
I’ll take you through the whole journey: discovery, co-creation, stakeholder management, articulation, creative expression and embedding.
Employee experience ‘moments that matter’
Designing and shaping key moments: from candidate experience, engaging inductions, recognition schemes and beyond.
Critical communications
Crisis internal comms, ghost writing, co-writing, presentation preparation and rehearsal for those big moments.
Creative campaigns and assets
Culture book? Flexible working policy that’s not a “policy”? Video demystifying performance management? Photoshoot? I work with skilled designers, photographers and motion designers to deliver creative projects end to end.
Employee value propositions
Getting under the skin of what makes your organisation unique and attractive (to the kinds of people who’ll thrive there). Articulating it in a proposition, supported with proof points, expressed visually and verbally
I also have clients for whom I work on a retained basis; you book some of my time on a regular basis and put that towards your most important priorities of the day, as well as mentoring and communications coaching.
Executive mentoring and communications coaching
Using my deep-seated empathy for employees, I bring a reality check, challenge and solutions to executives seeking to forge a stronger bond with their teams. It’s applied coaching: we’ll develop strategies and communications together, and I’ll support you to implement them.
Two years in the making
I’ve earned the International Coaching Federation’s Associate Certified Coach credential – a rigorous process that certifies my coach education, capability, ethics and knowledge.
