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READ TO LEAD® is the perfect answer for the time-poor endlessly curious amongst us. Take a room full of senior female leaders who all crave more connection and meaningful conversation, add Sarah and READ TO LEAD® and watch the ideas flow. We left feeling our brains had been exercised in a good way whilst at the same time we were wide awake with the potential of the commitments we’d made to ourselves and each other. READ TO LEAD® is training for the new era – the Age of Intelligence and we’re hooked. Can’t wait for our next session!
Liz BarnsdaleManaging Director, Accenture Song
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Sarah is an exceptional leadership and learning professional who brings, energy, tenacity, insight and genuine care to every interaction both individually and through Read to Lead. Her ability to engage people, provoke thinking and create meaningful development experiences and connections make her one of the best in the industry. A trusted partner and a pleasure to work with.
Hannah CarterHead of Learning & Development, BaxterStorey
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I’ve worked with Sarah through Read to Lead and have valued her thoughtful and reflective approach to leadership development.
Read to Lead creates engaging spaces for leaders to step back, think differently and reflect on how they lead, both individually and collectively. Using books and shared reading as a medium for learning and discussion is a genuinely effective way to open up conversations about leadership, culture, relationships and organisational purpose in a more thoughtful and accessible way.
Sarah herself brings warmth, insight and a willingness to challenge constructively, helping teams explore leadership behaviours with honesty and depth.
What stands out most is Sarah’s authenticity and her ability to facilitate open conversations with courage, while keeping a strong focus on leadership growth and organisational impact.
I would recommend Sarah and Read to Lead to organisations looking to invest in reflective leadership development and culture.
Nando CaicedoDirector of Strategy, Culture and Transformation, Dementia UK
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READ TO LEAD is a fantastic peer learning opportunity. The sessions are meticulously curated to meet the specific needs of our organisation, which adds an extra layer of relevance and value. The active participation in discussions by all involved is what makes this program stand out. It’s not just about absorbing knowledge but engaging in meaningful conversations with all participants, which has been incredibly enriching.
The learning experiences from these sessions are not just theoretical; they are practical and can be applied directly to our daily jobs. Colleagues have found the insights gained to be highly beneficial in their everyday tasks, which speaks volumes about the program’s impact.
Pawel JuraszekHead of Finance Systems Governance, Philip Morris International
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We have been working with Sarah on a Read to Lead program based around diverse thinking, influencing and gravitas. It has been a really interesting process that has helped the whole tam to talk more openly about these subjects. The format is great for the whole team as it is facilitated effectively in a very non-confrontational manner. We were able to explore the topics, share ideas and challenges, with the safe environment in place to work through them together. I think it has helped to cement an already strong team dynamic, identify areas where people need further guidance and support as well as for us all to learn something different. Thanks Sarah.
Caroline DebenhamInternational Partner – Head of Sales Enablement, EMEA, Cushman & Wakefield
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I had the pleasure of working with Sarah with a “Read to Lead” senior leadership pilot that helped us bring colleagues together from across the organisation to explore themes from a set of carefully agreed chosen books and apply the concepts and thoughts from those books to our real-world challenges.
What made this experience stand out was how intentionally Sarah designed it. By combining multidisciplinary perspectives from attendees supported with DISC profiling, she helped us better understand how we each see the world, within our own context, where our perspectives differ, and how those differences can be a real strength in our work. That deeper awareness made the conversations far richer, more honest, and ultimately more useful in how we then apply that learning in a practical way back in the workplace.
Sarah has an amazing ability to created the right conditions (space and time) for insights to surface in a way that can be hard to achieve in the pace of day-to-day work. She has a real skill for drawing people in, balancing reflection with practical application, and keeping a clear focus on how ideas translate into action with great challenge and gentle nudging of those attending.
The result was a genuinely impactful learning experience that not only sparked new thinking, but helped us apply it in meaningful ways to the challenges we face, every bit of feedback we captured has been super positive about the experience, and many have reported the impact has been significant on how they now lead.
I’d highly recommend Sarah and her work to anyone looking to create thoughtful, insight-led learning experiences that bring people together (which is becomign harder and harder in our hyrid world). to broaden perspectives, and drive real business impact.
If you get the chance to work with her, I’d strongly encourage you to take it, you wont be disappointed!
Malcolm TaylorHead of People Development & Engagement, UK Health Security Agency
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READ TO LEAD has been a really insightful and engaging experience for myself and our team. It has given us an opportunity to pause and reflect, think differently and have the kind of conversations we rarely make time for - about who we are as individuals, how we lead others, and how we want to shape the business together. Across seven sessions so far, we’ve explored everything from mental strength and confidence to communication and focus, with books like “13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do”, “Presence”, “Crucial Conversation” and “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck” sparking lively debate, valuable conversations and new approaches. One of the biggest insights for me came from 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do. It made me realise how much energy I was wasting worrying about things outside my control. Since then, I’ve tried to put that energy where it matters - into the people, decisions and actions that actually make a difference. It’s helped me stay calmer and lead with more clarity and purpose. What I’ve valued most is how practical it all feels. It’s not theory, it’s about applying what we learn straight away. We’ve built confidence, trust and stronger relationships, and that’s showing up in how we work together and deliver results.
Jen HudsonEuropean Marketing Director, Prestige Consumer Healthcare
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Read to Lead is an organisation combining two of my passions – reading and connection. What Sarah and the team have created truly transforms leaders, providing them with the freedom to develop in a structured, engaging journey. Furthermore, these experiences are driving true performance improvement within not just the individuals partaking, but also the organisations those individuals represent.
Ed MonkCEO, The Learning and Performance Institute
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Sarah worked with me to truly understand the problem we were looking to solve and the outcomes we needed to achieve through the Read to Lead initiative. She made thoughtful suggestions and demonstrated flexibility, openness and pragmatism in all our interactions. My favourite aspect of working with Sarah is her ability to keep it human and keep it fun, blending this beautifully with professionalism and drive. Read to Lead brought a breath of fresh air to our group thinking and I would thoroughly recommend her amd her product to any organization looking to develop team skills amd relationships.
Katie RapsonHead of Finance Capability, Philip Morris International
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I recently worked with Sarah to facilitate a DISC profiling and a development programme for my team, and I cannot recommend her highly enough.
Sarah brought real expertise and a thoughtful approach to the sessions, creating a safe space where genuine reflection and open conversation could take place. Her profile analysis and facilitation helped surface insights about our group dynamics and ways of working which genuinely surprised me. That kind of honest, revelatory work takes real skill to guide well.
What stood out most was Sarah’s professionalism and foresight from the very start. Before we began, she was clear that surfacing issues without proper follow-up would be a risk — and having now been through the process, I completely understand what she meant. Rather than leaving difficult realisations hanging in the air, she gave us the tools and language to understand each other better and make more considered decisions as a group. The real value isn’t just in what the sessions surface, but in the follow-through, and Sarah is delivering exactly that.
I came away with significantly greater self-awareness as a leader, and my team is growing in confidence and cohesion as a result. If you’re looking for someone to facilitate meaningful, lasting change in how your team works together, Sarah is exceptional.
Claudia Cimino MCIPRHead of Internal Communications, UK Health Security Agency
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I’ve had the privilege of being part of the READ TO LEAD® programme facilitated by Sarah, and it’s been one of the most valuable development experiences I’ve had recently. Sarah creates the kind of space where people can properly explore ideas. Not just what we think, but how it lands, what it challenges, and what it changes in us as leaders. What stands out most is how she facilitates conversation. Thoughtful, present, and grounded in trust. She makes it feel safe to think out loud, even when it’s not fully formed or perfectly articulated. That’s something I’ve personally had to lean into, and it’s where some of my most meaningful learning has happened. She also brings real accountability. Turning insight into action, and creating the discipline to reflect on what’s actually changed as a result. Sarah brings a brilliant balance of challenge and care, and I can't recommend Read to Lead high enough! Thank you Sarah
Sean MarcsLearning & Development Manager, BaxterStorey
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READ TO LEAD is perfect for anyone curious and eager to learn. The sessions are both informative and fun, offering great book summaries that spark meaningful conversations—and leave you with ideas you can act on to create real impact
Rowena MaxwellManaging Director, Accenture
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Working with Sarah has been a hugely enjoyable, valuable and impactful experience.
The Read to Lead programme has provided our leaders with opportunities for peer connection, exploration of key themes and surfacing systemic and cultural challenges. A space to reflect, connect and invest in their leadership capabilities.
Sarah is professional, warm, take a flexible and committed approach to her work and is responsive.
The Read to Lead concept is powerful and unique. I would highly recommend working with Sarah for delivery of development interventions that will drive real value and change.
Anna OgilbyPeople Development Lead, UK Health Security Agency
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READ TO LEAD® is a brilliant programme. Easily fitting into the everyday, it drives teams to develop their skills while talking and engaging with each other in ways that they rarely do during their day jobs. Learning, connecting and helping each other grow real-world skills that I saw put into action almost over night. It’s the absolute antithesis to the tired old training format.
Rob MorrisHead of Fleet & Re-Marketing, Volvo Car UK
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Sarah brings a wealth of business knowledge that she leverages to facilitate deep discussions in a very human setup powered by READ TO LEAD®. We have had the pleasure of taking services of Read to Lead at many moments in the last few quarters and have come away with deepened bonds, much reflection, and action for business results. We highly recommend R2L to anyone looking for a human-led initiative in the ubiquitous digital world.
Gurpreet KalraHead of Learning & Talent Development, Tata Consultancy Services
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Participating in Read to Lead has been a fantastic opportunity to work closely with my peers and strengthen my network across my organisation. The programme has created an informal but invaluable support system, which has already led to collaborative discussions, shared problem-solving, and a wider peer community I can reach out to, even if it’s just for a virtual coffee.
Pamela CornwellDeputy Director QRA (interim), UK Health Security Agency
