Helen’s non-work interests centre on family, friends and sport. Her competitive streak has enabled her to compete at county level in badminton, squash and equestrianism.

Chris Nel
Director, Quest Leadership Ltd.

Described by Tom Peters as a ‘Positive Deviant’, Chris is the classic agent provocateur. This coupled to his outstanding ability to build relationships, maintain a strategic perspective and a strong bias for action mean that Chris is seen, by his clients, as a key external influence on their future business success.

Chris was born in the UK and grew up in South Africa. Surfing, beach life, rugby and athletics dominated the early years. Chris has always been heavily involved in competitive sport. Whilst at University studying Sport Science. Chris represented Great Britain at Triathlon. In 1985 he entered The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. After that, serving as an Officer with 29 Commando Regiment he saw active service in several regions of the world.

After leaving the Army, Chris worked with Safeway, and then Norwich Union where he led the largest of four regional operations at a time of massive cultural and technological change. This gave him valuable experience in to the? challenges of successfully leading change in a complex and highly political corporate environment. Chris’s ‘positive deviancy’ led him in to business consulting, first with Tom Peters Company and most recently as co-founder of Quest Leadership.

Chris’s current clients include: The Ministry of Defense, Applera, CPP, Analog Devices Inc, Cybex, David Brown, EPS, The Institute of Directors, The Active Change Foundation, Leica Geosystems, Texas Instruments, Western Union, John Wiley and Sons.

Chris is one of only four European based Kouzes & Posner, Leadership Challenge/Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) Master Facilitators. He is also an accredited GELI practitioner and coach and an active Member of the Institute of Directors.

In his spare time, Chris works hard on keeping fit and diving whilst at the same time trying to be a good husband and father.

David Pilbeam
Coach / Facilitator

David is a coach and facilitator who helps individuals and teams to deliver concrete results. A specialist in enabling individual and organisational change, he asks tough questions that allow people to evaluate options with regard to the challenges they face in their work and build the confidence to deliver on agreed commitments.

David began his working life teaching Physical Education, spending three years in Malawi, and two in Portugal, working in International Schools. He then moved into the hospitality business in Hong Kong, where the challenge of working in a new industry in another radically different culture, taught him a lot about himself and the demands of leadership in a results driven environment.

Back in the UK, David became Operations Director for a health and leisure club start-up. Over the course of five years the business was created, developed and sold with 6 operating Clubs and over 300 staff. David then joined Tom Peters Company where he helped individuals and teams deliver change and overcome personal and organisational challenges.

Over the last seven years he has worked on projects for both large and small organisations, including: Texas Instruments, Rolls-Royce, Applera, Orange, M&S, Cybex International, Nautilus, CPP, Libra Bank and Aerofill Dawson. This work has covered UK, mainland Europe and USA.

David has a Masters Degree in Coaching and Mentoring Practice, is an accredited Master Facilitator of The Leadership Challenge Workshop and is a Full Member of the Association for Coaching.

Ruth Smith
Consultant / Facilitator

Ruth is an organisation development consultant she works with individuals, teams and organisations in transition. She helps people to create sustainable change through engaging people as active participants in that change. Ruth would describe herself as 'hands on' and pragmatic; she believes in working collaboratively with clients to improve business performance.

Having cut her teeth in the retail and hospitality industry, where teams and organisations live and die by the quality of service they provide, she understands the importance of maintaining a strong commercial focus through developing and engaging members of the organisation. Ruth believes that, in the right environment, people can achieve extraordinary results; and having completed an MSc in Organisation Consulting, she is well equipped to offer a realistic, practical approach, which is underpinned with credible and robust academic thinking.

Organisational Development: Working with the client to bring the organisation strategy to life, create and facilitate programmes to support organisational change.

Leadership Development: Designing and facilitating leadership programmes to improve personal effectiveness as a leader of individuals and of teams; creating management skills courses, including custom workshops to meet business needs.

Team Development: Working with teams to become high performing, helping to achieve their business goals and realise their potential.

Executive Coach: Working with individuals; creating a relationship whereby they can develop in relation to their personal goals

Licensed SHL testing and interpretation
Licensed BTD Facilitator (Situational Leadership, Situational Self Leadership, High Performing Teams, Gung Ho!)

Hilary Whitby
Coach / Facilitator

Profile to follow...