One of the UK’s longest established coaching providers, Performance Consultants, has relaunched itself with a new management team and a renewed focus on executive coaching, coach education and leadership programmes. Performance Consultants, whose clients include British Airways, Ernst & Young, John Lewis Partnership, Lloyds TSB, Rolls Royce and Procter & Gamble, has taken an office in the City of London, introduced a new corporate identity, and a new website, and made key changes to its management team. As part of its new focus, the firm will provide coaching for individuals, teams and groups; coach education programmes for new and experienced coaches, including its university-accredited qualification programmes in Coaching & Organisational Development; consultancy and bespoke development programmes on issues such as leadership, teamwork, coaching and emotional intelligence. David Whitaker has become Chairman of the firm; Jez Cartwright has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer; Neil Twogood has become Chief Operating Officer; Alan Ward has become Director of Coach Education and Sue Slocombe has become a Director. David Whitaker co-founded Performance Consultants in 1989 with David Hemery (Olympic 400m hurdles champion in 1968) and John Whitmore (author of five books including the definitive Coaching for Performance). “This is a new beginning for Performance Consultants,” said Jez Cartwright. “The values and ethos of the firm won’t change but our focus will be more specifically on our core areas of operation. We have a proven track record of repeated success in the coaching market and our new management team has the capability to develop the business and take the firm to the next level.” David Whitaker is a former hockey international who made over 100 appearances for England and Great Britain. He coached Great Britain’s Olympic gold medal-winning men’s hockey squad in 1988 and was the National Coaching Foundation’s Coach of the Year in 1985 and 1988. He has over 20 years’ coaching experience and is author of three books including The Spirit of Teams. Jez Cartwright is a former sports coach and psychologist who has coached Great Britain’s rowing and diving teams, the England cricket team and professional football teams including Middlesbrough, Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday. His one-to-one coaching business Akindred Executive Coaching has merged with Performance Consultants. He holds a masters degree in the Science of Sports Coaching from the University of Sheffield and is the author of The Handbook for Exceptional People, which helps individuals to better themselves by dealing with the reality of their lives and unlocking their true potential. In 2003, Performance Consultants created the UK’s first university-accredited qualification programmes in Coaching & Organisational Development and the firm is now established as a leading provider of coach education. Its postgraduate certificate, postgraduate diploma and MSc are modular, part-time programmes which are assessed, quality assured and awarded by the University of Portsmouth and accredited by the European Mentoring & Coaching Council.
