in ways that unleash their full potential is what we are best at.
It is what we are know for. It is what we are passionate about.
Our Promise
Our Expertise and Others’ Expertise
We focus on what we do best and partner with others who are experts at the rest. This includes our clients and their people who are usually the real experts in their world of work.
Structure and Flexibility
We support stability and change with fundamentally sound consulting principles and a comprehensive, structured, and systemic approach. We apply these principles & approach creatively and flexibly in order to meet the unique needs
of our clients.
A Great Experience and Solid Results
We create great experiences through our unique and engaging processes and the work we do produces concrete, measurable results.
Our Partners
LESLIE DEPOL – Partner, San Francisco, CA, USA
Leslie DePol helps people get clear about where they want to go and how to get there. She understands that when people, processes, and systems operate more effectively, collaborative partnerships are strengthened and reinforced - a key to achieving and sustaining successful outcomes.
Consulting Background
Leslie has extensive experience supporting complex projects and change initiatives. Her work has focused on aligning vision, mission, brand, strategy and policies. Her best route to improving organizational effectiveness is a three step process: 1) engaging employees in defining their commitment and supporting role, 2) integrating diverse perspectives and interests, and 3) facilitating a client’s capacity to design and implement the necessary systems to move in their desired direction.
Leslie has special expertise in the design and facilitation of stakeholder input processes. The key to her success in these difficult settings is in creating authentic opportunities for elected and appointed leaders, staff, the general public, special interest lobbyists, and diverse stakeholder groups to better understand their interdependent and sometimes competing needs and interests. With Leslie’s support, groups are better able to address past, present, and future challenges and opportunities. They agree where their interests intersect, and decide together how to create their desired futures.
Why This Work?
Says Leslie, “I’m a person that family, friends, clients, and colleagues turn to when they need and want help getting ‘un-stuck.’ I see, reflect back, and build on people’s strengths, unique gifts, skills, and talents. I listen deeply and hold the critical space of ‘positive intent,’ and have learned this makes many more things possible.”
“I’m a believer in social constructionist theory that builds on the observable fact that whatever we focus our energy and attention on, we will generate more of. Why not choose to create more positive experiences for ourselves and others? Why not generate more solutions rather than problems? My life work is all about empowering myself and others to see and make that critical choice.”
SUSAN DUPRE – Partner, Auburn, CA, USA
Susan Dupre is an organization consultant specializing in the development of strategies, plans and designs through the engagement of whole systems and their key stakeholders. She adheres to a solid but fluid set of “large group system change” principles and uses these to create innovative methodologies that make it possible for diverse groups to work together to determine what they want to do collectively and individually and how they’re going to do it.
Consulting Background
Susan’s primary talent is in guiding clients through all aspects of cultural and systems transformation including strategic visioning, work redesign, organization development, technology implementations and continuous improvement. The hallmark of her approach is in engaging large numbers of stakeholders – the source of most innovation – in creating the organizations they want to work in, progress on issues they care about, or planning the future of a community they desire.
Susan has extensive experience of doing this work in the USA, Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East and has a passion for working in different cultural contexts, where her work comes alive in new and mysterious ways.
Susan has coauthored articles in several of the seminal publications on whole systems change, including: The Change Handbook: The Definitive Resource on Today’s Best Methods for Engaging Whole Systems, The Handbook of Large Group Methods: Creating Systemic Change in Organizations and Communities, and The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, Special Issue: Large Group Interventions.
Why This Work?
“In my early 20’s I was a VISTA volunteer doing community organizing work which ignited a passion in me about giving people both a voice and ways to contribute their wisdom to the community where they lived. This passion transformed into a profession where essentially I get to do the same thing: help create an environment full of energy, safety, creativity and hope, where the best in people and systems can emerge and move forward in new and more productive ways.”
Robert “Jake” Jacobs – Partner, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Consulting Background
Jake helps executives engage people in developing and implementing strategy, building senior team effectiveness, creating organization design, and managing large-scale, complex change. He helped pioneer the field of large group interventions, and has regularly worked with groups of 500-1,000 or more to gain alignment and traction in translating strategy into action and values into daily guides to decision making.
Why This Work?
Says Jake, “My first consulting engagement was where I worked tending bar in college. Though we had a lot of fun getting the job done, everyone knew there were better, smarter ways to work. I thought, ‘Why not figure out together what they were and take action?’ So I interviewed everyone including the owner, we decided what to change and what to keep the same, and my consulting career was born.”
“That got me started and I’ve never considered doing anything else. Helping people find better ways of working together is what gets me out of bed in the morning.” Since then Jake has worked with some of the largest corporations in the world including American Express, Corning, Ford, The Home Depot, and Shell. He has also consulted to the City of New York and the United Kingdom’s million member National Health Service.
Writer: Jake's first book, Real Time Strategic Change: How to Involve an Entire Organization in Fast and Far-Reaching Change taught readers the principles and practices of Large Group Engagement, and was named to the Executive Book of the Month Club. He later co-authored The Change Handbook: Group Methods for Shaping the Future which draws lessons from real-life, high-leverage change efforts. Jake has recently co-authored You Don’t Have To Do It Alone: How to Involve Others to Get Things Done which teaches the secrets of group productivity to private and public sector readers. This book was described by The New York Times as “the complete blueprint on involvement” and “the best of the current crop of books on this topic.”
Besides books, Jake has also written extensively about power, group dynamics, and accelerated change for magazines such as Executive Excellence, Strategic HR Review, Consulting to Management and Strategy & Leadership. His views on these subjects have also appeared in Nation's Business, Financial Executive, and the Wall Street Journal.
Speaker: In addition to his consulting, Jake has presented at conferences hosted by the American Society of Training and Development, the Association of Quality and Participation, and the World Future Society.
Teacher: Jake has also served on the faculties of St. Thomas University, Roffey Park Management Institute in England, and Shell of Canada's Management Institute
Life: When he ’s not working, Jake spends time with his family, heads to the dog park and beach with his faithful friend Theo, works out, reads, cheers on his favorites teams as the sports calendar changes, and supports local arts organizations by both consulting to them and enjoying their performances.
Greg Gollaher – Partner, Sacramento, CA, USA
Greg Gollaher has the unique ability to enhance the experience of groups in an invaluable way. Described as part artist and part business consultant, he uses a combination of words and illustrations to capture (in real time) the ideas, challenges and conclusions presented in meetings, seminars and workshops.
Consulting Background
A leader in the emerging field of graphic facilitation, Mr. Gollaher has extensively utilized graphic facilitation to increase meeting and training effectiveness, and as a means to communicate vision, complex ideas and intricate processes.
Armed with an MBA and experience in planning, governance, business analysis, project management and training, Greg knows how to get to the heart of the issue and how to bring timely closure to key points in an engaging and entertaining manner. As a result, satisfied customers will have a concise, meaningful and artistic summary in which to refresh memories and rekindle the spirit of an exceptional experience.
Why This Work?
“I feel it is my personal mission to bring out the genius of others. Graphic facilitation tends to stimulate participation and creativity. Thus, participants have an additional non-verbal means of articulating and communicating their ideas. I love working with groups, helping them navigate complex problems and innovative solutions.”
IAN PATERSON – Partner, Cape Town, SA
Ian Paterson is one of South Africa’s leading strategic change specialists. He is the founder of the SMC.group a leading provider of strategy consulting, facilitation and Real Time research solutions to the public and private sectors.
Consulting Background
Ian specialises in working with leadership teams to develop innovative processes of strategic engagement designed to accelerate and sustain future success. These processes range from engagement around strategy crafting, large scale strategic alignment to the development of strategic change as a deep seated organisational capability. Insight Customer Solutions provides an integrated approach to the crafting, execution and long term innovation of Customer experiences incorporating brand – experience alignment and Real Time Research. Ian has lead many of the most comprehensive organisational transformation processes in both the South African public and private sectors.
In 2002, Ian was recognised by Fedhasa, the South Africa hospitality industry association as ‘Consultant / Service Provider of the year’ for ‘outstanding services to the hospitality industry’.
Why This Work?
Says Ian, ‘I’ve always been fascinated about why some organisations are able to harness the collective wisdom and energy of their people, be sustained leaders in their marketplaces and others just seem to survive almost in spite of themselves. I’ve always been a practical ‘hands on’ consultant – I love getting to know what’s really happening in an organisation and its environment - then working with them to design the kind of processes that harnesses their latent strengths and bring out the best in their people. The energy, passion and success that result is the adrenaline.
