Who this is for
You might have founded the business, bought it, or taken it over from family. You may own all of it, share it with partners, or have recently sold. Either way, you've spent years building something real: a capable team, a good reputation, clients who trust the business rather than just you.
These days, the managers you hired handle what used to land on your desk. Decisions get made in meetings you're not in. Your diary has space in it for the first time in years. You might be thinking about selling, stepping back or bringing in a managing director, or simply wondering what your role is now. If that sounds familiar, this is for you.
If that sounds familiar, this is for you.
When founders tend to get in touch
(01)
A buyer has approached you, and you can't tell whether your hesitation is about the price or about letting go.
(02)
Your accountant has started talking about exit planning, and you realise you've thought about the numbers but not about yourself.
(03)
A family member or senior manager is ready to take over, and handing it on is harder than you expected.
(04)
You've brought in a managing director, and you're struggling to find where you fit in the business you built.
(05)
Your team, your family and your advisers all have a view on what you should do, and none of them is entirely neutral.
Founder coaching gives you regular, private time to think about your own position rather than the business's. Together we look at what's really behind the question: what the business has meant to you, what you still want from it, and what you'd want your life to look like if your role changed or ended. I won't value your business, plan your exit or tell you whether to sell. That's for your advisers, and this work sits alongside theirs.
It isn't business coaching aimed at growth, and it isn't therapy. Because the approach looks at the person as well as the role, we may explore what has driven you this far, always in service of the decision in front of you.
The aim is to give you space to think through what you want to keep, change or let go of, without anyone else having a stake in the answer.
What coaching involves
Why it's harder when you've built it
When you've built a business, it's rarely just a job. It has shaped your days, your reputation and often your family's life, and over time it becomes hard to tell where the business ends and you begin. That's why stepping back or selling feels so different from an ordinary career move. There's no role description to hand over and no obvious next step up. And almost everyone you might talk it through with, from your team and partners to your family, your advisers and any buyer, has a stake in what you decide. This is somewhere to think it through with someone who doesn't.
My business stopped needing me too
After years of building HRA Global alongside a brilliant team, I found myself wondering what my role was becoming as the business grew less dependent on me.
Working through that question with a coach changed how I thought about my future, and eventually led me to retrain.
01
Free discovery session
We start with a 30-minute conversation, at no charge and with no obligation. You tell me what's on your mind, ask me anything about how I work, and we both see whether coaching makes sense. If it isn't right for you, we'll both know fairly quickly, and I won't chase you afterwards.
02
Six sessions over three months
We meet for six 60-minute sessions, every two weeks, over about three months. Sessions are usually online, but we can meet in person in Devon if you prefer. Between sessions there's a little light reflection, enough to keep the thinking going without adding to your workload.
03
A clear view of what comes next
Towards the end, we review where you've got to. You leave with a considered answer to what stays and what changes, and you decide whether to finish there, arrange occasional check-ins or continue with a further series.
How it works
Some common Q's
