Inside the world your leaders are navigating now
Before coaching, I spent over a decade in high-pressure, performance-driven environments where leadership capability directly impacts revenue, retention, and delivery. I saw what it costs when support doesn’t keep pace with expectations.
Climb Up exists because I saw that pattern too many times to ignore.
11
Years in Data & AI talent leadership
50+
Countries. Perspectives shaped by more than one room.
7
Years on the Board of Advisors for RPI University
3
Professional coaching accreditations and a member of ICF
The pattern I couldn’t stop seeing
Capable, driven professionals were promoted because they delivered results. Then, almost immediately, the rules changed. The skills that made them exceptional stopped being the primary currency. The job became about judgment, direction, and enabling others - and almost nobody told them that clearly, or gave them the tools to navigate it.
What looked like underperformance was frequently something else entirely: a capability gap that nobody had named, in a role transition that nobody had prepared them for.
I watched this happen in AI and data businesses where the pace of change compressed everything. Where decisions carried more weight. Where leadership quality showed up directly in retention, execution, and team performance. And where the cost of getting it wrong was visible and immediate.
Perspective Shaped by Experience
I grew up in the North-West of England, in an area with limited expectations and underfunded schools. I learned early what it feels like to be underestimated - and that experience shaped everything about how I eventually approached leadership, and what I now help others navigate.
I wasn't meant to end up in a senior role in New York's AI & data talent markets. But northern grit, a university degree, and a stubborn refusal to accept the ceiling I was handed got me there. I built teams, advised leaders, and eventually found myself in one of the most technically complex and commercially demanding talent environments in the world.
What I saw consistently was this: organizations are exceptional at identifying high performers - but far less prepared for what happens after the promotion.
Why I formalized the work
I’d been doing elements of this work informally for years — advising leaders, spotting patterns, and helping people think more clearly about what their role actually demanded. At the same time, I was building and leading my own teams — growing offices, training managers, and navigating the realities of leadership inside fast-paced environments.
When I formalized it as Climb Up Coaching, it wasn’t a pivot. It was the logical next step of everything I’d built.
The difference between Climb Up and most leadership development is that I’m not working from theory. I understand the environments your leaders are operating in because I spent nearly two decades inside them - building teams, leading at scale, and operating under pressure.
I know what the pressure feels like. I know which gaps show up first. And I know which interventions actually change leadership behavior — and which ones don’t.
That’s the foundation everything we do is built on.
"Leadership capability is not a soft investment. It directly shapes performance, retention, and execution - and in AI-driven environments, the gap between what organizations demand and what they develop is becoming impossible to ignore."
What sets my coaching apart
I ‘ve seen (and made) the mistakes
Hiring, firing, scaling, opening offices, losing teams, getting it wrong and having to rebuild.
I know what it actually feels like to lead under pressure.
I see what’s really driving the issue
What looks like performance problems is often leadership misalignment underneath.
That’s where we focus - because that’s what actually moves things.
This is about how you operate, not just how you think
No generic advice or pep talks. We focus on how you make decisions, lead under pressure, and show up day-to-day so you can lead without burning out.
I don’t let things stay comfortable
I work with leaders who are operating in high-stakes environments. That means I’ll challenge you where it matters, not just support you. The work is honest, direct, and focused on what actually needs to change.
I build capability, not dependence
The goal of every coaching engagement is that the leader - or the leadership tier - becomes more capable of navigating their environment without needing me in the room. I'm building judgment, not providing answers.
I measure outcomes, not satisfaction
The question at the end of every engagement isn't "did people enjoy it?" It's "did leadership behavior change, and did that change show up in team performance?" Those are different questions and they demand different approaches.
Three things I saw repeatedly that I can’t unsee.
Promotion without preparation
The most consistent failure mode in leadership development is not bad leadership — it's absent leadership development. High performers are elevated because they delivered results, then expected to lead through complexity without a reset in what the role now demands of them.
The capability gap that nobody names
What organizations experience as disengagement, underperformance, or attrition is frequently a capability gap in disguise. The leader doesn't need more motivation — they need a different set of tools for a fundamentally different job. That gap has a name. It has a solution. And it's almost always addressable.
AI is accelerating the pressure on leaders
In AI-driven organizations, the demands placed on leaders are intensifying faster than the support structures designed to help them. Roles are evolving, timelines are compressing, and the human skills — judgment, communication, trust — are becoming more critical, not less. Most development programs haven't caught up.
Most companies don’t realize this is happening until it shows up in missed targets, slow execution, or attrition. By that point, it’s already been building for months
Beyond the work…
Where it all started
Born and raised in the North-West of England where it’s mostly raining, but always beautiful. I’m fueled by northern grit, strong tea and a deep love for rolling hills and dry humor. I’ve spent the last 10+ years living in New York City.
What lights me up
I've been to over 50 countries and counting - usually choosing destinations based on the quality of the coffee or the opportunity to get properly absorbed in local history. Travel shaped my perspective on leadership more than most books have.
What backs me up
Before becoming a certified coach, I earned my undergrad in History and built a career spanning over a decade in business development and sales training in Data & AI. Along the way, I’ve had the privilege of speaking at multiple conferences on the evolving Data & AI job market and recently wrapped up seven rewarding years serving on the Board of Advisors for a New York-based university, helping students launch their careers.
My Coaching Accreditations….
