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.
OBI James is the trading name of Obi James Consultancy Limited.
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Obi James is a Finnish-Nigerian award-winning Leadership & Inclusion Expert with extensive experience of successfully developing inclusive cultures across private and public sector organisations including Morgan Stanley, Deloitte, Bloomberg, NHS, National Grid, Bank of America and Northern Trust.
She is a globally sought-after facilitator and speaker on leadership, gender equity, anti-racism, allyship and inclusion at international corporate events such as the Global Finance
Transformation Summit, Women in Banking; Finance (WIBF) Strategy Day, Bloomberg’s Multicultural and Senior Women’s Forums. As a Trustee of Royal African Society (RAS), she actively facilitates its mission of amplifying African voices and interests globally.
Obi’s #1 Amazon best-seller book, Let Go Leadership – how inclusive leaders share power to drive high performance was recently shortlisted as a finalist for the Leadership category of the 2023 Business Book Awards.
Chris has over 20 years experience of organisational change working across a whole range of industries. Everything from finance, to non-profit; from manufacturing, to government; and from technology to pharmaceuticals.
He’s a certified executive leadership and team coach with CPCC and ORSCC accreditations. As a Faculty Member for CRR Global, he delivers training courses for systems coaches and organisational leaders all over the world.
Camille has 20-years of international leadership experience in the private, non-profit, and public sectors. She is a positive disruptor and skilled facilitator that masterfully hold’s space for leaders and teams to do their work.
Camille’s areas of expertise and focus are; Leadership development, culture change, employee engagement, transpersonal development, toxic leadership teams and conflict, cultural competency, coaching supervision and coaching culture creation.
Certified with the International Coach Federation (ICF), she has CPCC and ORSCC accreditations. She brings a multi-disciplined focus to her work and draws from a variety of evidence-based approaches -including the burgeoning field of Relationship Intelligence™.
Kwasi is an Organisations and Relationship Systems Coach (ORSC), an Erickson Solution Focused Coach (ESFC), certified with the International Coach Federation (ICF) and an Enterprise Agile Coach with over 10 years of taking large and small organisations through Agile transformations.
Kwasi helps leaders and teams to leverage the power of co-creation and to show up authentically so that collectively, they can build human-centered organisations. With his Inner MBA programme nearly completed, he draws a lot of inspiration and learning from Compassionate Leadership, Justice, Mindfulness, Meditation, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
Niina is an Organisations and Relationship Systems Coach (ORSC). She has over 15 years experience of managing people and teams, and is passionate about developing wellbeing and relationships, both in the workplace and beyond.
Niina is interested in all aspects of Mental Health and alongside coaching, is training to become a registered Hypno-Psychotherapist.
She lives in SE London with her husband and daughter, Mia.
Pradeep has nearly 20 years of experience in Leadership Development across the public and private sector. His background is in science and the arts, and he specialises in bringing the best of the arts and third-sector organisational practices to the private sector and vice versa.
He’s a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management, and certified in the use of various development tools. He is also the Chair of the Board of Trustees for the St Paul’s Arts Trust, an Arts charity that runs the Space, a theatre in East London.
Beth helps movements and organisations connect better with the right audiences to kick off conversations, mobilise support and effect change. She has worked with charity sectors’ biggest brands such as Comic Relief, WWF and Cancer Research UK; with catalytic and specialist organisations; and coalitions collaborating to achieve broader, deeper change.
She has facilitated team development to drive alignment and ambition for not-for-profit organisations including Action for Children and ActionAid.
Fahmida Khanum is a seasoned organisational process consultant and psychotherapist dedicated to guiding individuals and teams through their identity struggles and facilitating relationship growth. With a profound understanding of the complexities inherent in human relationships and the internal challenges individuals face, Fahmida fosters transformative journeys for leaders and organisations. At the core of Fahmida’s approach is the establishment of a strong therapeutic alliance built on trust, empathy, and non-judgment.
By creating a safe and supportive environment, Fahmida empowers her clients to explore their emotions, thoughts, and behaviours openly and authentically. Through this collaborative process, she works alongside her clients to identify and navigate obstacles, develop effective coping strategies, and cultivate resilience.
With extensive experience in counseling and psychotherapy, Fahmida has successfully guided clients from diverse backgrounds through a range of emotional conflicts, including issues related to roles, relationships and change.
Her commitment to client-centered care and evidence-based practices ensures that each individual and team receives personalised support tailored to their unique needs and goals.
Naomi Beer brings over 25 years of leadership experience in the public sector, primarily within the National Health Service, coupled with a rich background in coaching spanning 6 years. As a seasoned coach, mentor, and facilitator, she has supported clients across service and leadership roles, drawing on a diverse toolkit of organisational development methods and tools tailored to each client’s needs. She is a firm believer in the power of active listening, curiosity-driven exploration, and constructive challenge. These foundational principles guide her approach to coaching, enabling clients to navigate challenges, embrace change, and unlock their full potential.
Naomi is also one of the leaders of a team called Thinking Space, focusing on the intersection of leadership and organisational dynamics. Specialising in psychodynamic principles, the team helps organisations understand themselves better, optimise their functioning, and navigate complexities effectively. They create space for strategic thinking, fostering proactive responses rather than reactive ones.
Naomi champions diversity and inclusivity, recognising the strength in every voice within an organisation. She firmly believes that every organisation holds the key to its own success, provided that individuals understand their value, tasks, and roles, supported by effective communication channels.
Valentina is the powerhouse of our team. With over 11 years of experience in administrative roles, she ensures we stay organised, efficient, and responsive. Fluent in Italian, English, and Spanish, Valentina excels at managing schedules, overseeing our global client engagement, and coordinating team initiatives, all while streamlining our processes to exceed client expectations.
Outside of work, Valentina enjoys music, travel, and the sea, along with her passion for self-development.
Anne-Rose has over 15 years of experience as a Transformation Change consultant, offering invaluable expertise to leadership and organisational development. Her dynamic approach and unwavering commitment to empowering individuals have played a pivotal role in the success of various client programmes.
Proficient in strategic planning, project management, and client acquisition, she guarantees the smooth execution and efficacy of initiatives.
Outside of her professional commitments, Anne-Rose indulges her adventurous spirit through travel, exploring new destinations and enriching experiences. She is the Founder of The African Parent, a platform that supports, empowers and celebrates African families on their unique parenting journey. She is also a trustee for the Down Syndrome Foundation.
Julia is an experienced coach, facilitator and action researcher. She has qualifications in advanced coaching with the Relational Dynamics programme, action learning set facilitation, quality improvement coaching and team coaching.
Julia’s background is within policy and research in charities and the public sector. She has extensive experience facilitating reflective learning, away days, strategy processes and project development work.
Estea Rademeyer has 15 years’ experience of organisational change and talent management across a range of industries, from mining, finance, manufacturing, retail, government and technology. She has delivered large organisational redesign and change projects as well as on the development and facilitation of leadership interventions and training.
She recently got her MBA, is a registered Industrial Psychologist and a trained coach. Estea works in the UK and in Sub-Sahara Africa.