I had the privilege of working with Obi James and her team during a pivotal culture-change programme at Gas Construction, where she facilitated a 100-person away day and sparked meaningful conversations that had a remarkable impact. Later, I invited her to speak for Prism, a network for diverse project management leaders, and the feedback was outstanding – participants felt more confident, determined, and better equipped to advance their careers. Obi and her team have a unique ability to leverage collective wisdom to break down silos and drive positive change. I highly recommend them for inspiring leadership and lasting transformation.

Obi led a dynamic conversation with our team as part of our International Women’s Day (IWD) celebrations. She engaged everyone in discussing the challenges women face in the workplace and the steps needed to address them. Most importantly, she skillfully facilitated a meaningful dialogue with the men on the importance of allyship in advancing gender equality.

Her calm, consultative, and persuasive approach, which doesn’t talk at the organisation but makes a genuine effort to involve everyone in the conversation and get them onboard with creating and implementing solutions, is highly recommendable.

Obi’s workshop on Self-Leadership and Career Progression was absolutely wonderful. It provides practical perspectives to my own professional development (what I want, why I want it, how I can get there). Her activities are meaningful and fun, aiding me to gain a deeper (self) reflection into my professional vision. I felt empowered, connected and hopeful.

Obi ran her 2-day ‘Leader As Coach’ programme in-house for a group of senior leaders in our company. It was exceptional, fostering open communication, feedback, and a sense of camaraderie within the team. I learned extensively about motivations, coaching structures, and effective probing questions, which I will apply in my daily leadership.

Obi was recommended to the World Cities Culture Forum by one of our city leaders and what a find! She facilitated a leadership and inclusion session with senior leaders at our annual Summit bringing together 40 cities across six continents. The feedback from participants spoke for itself: overwhelmingly positive and candidly grateful. Obi’s care and open approach to working with a range of issues, cultures and points so view is inspirational. Her generosity and positivity are contagious.

I read Let Go Leadership just before starting my first managing director role, and I couldn’t think of a more useful book to prepare me for building trust with and empowering my leadership team. I’d recommend this to any new senior leader.