I was seeking someone brilliant to coach me during a transition between jobs; I wanted someone who had experience of leadership themselves, understood big institutions, and who would meet me where I am. Neil was that person. It was a focused set of conversations over three months as I reflected and let go of one role and prepared myself to begin in a new one. Neil’s energy is very calm and acute; I felt in extremely competent but flexible hands; we laughed and he challenged me. I trusted him completely, enjoyed his curious mind, and felt I found a shelter where we could look out at the weather together. The impacts of his coaching have been both subtle and fundamental.

Lucy Davies, Executive Director, Young Vic

I worked with Neil over 5 months while on Zinc's Venture Builder programme, and all I can say is that he is an exceptional coach. From the outset, Neil wowed me with his professionalism and thoughtful approach. He created an environment of trust, with the right level of scaffolding and structure that I needed. Neil was adept at facilitating conversations around my thinking, in a way that allowed me to confront and address the underlying anxieties, biases and blind spots I had and make real progress. I cannot recommend him highly enough.

Sai Ulluri, Co-Founder, Product & Tech, Think Divergent

Neil is a great coach. He listens, carefully questions and provides structure for exploring professional and personal challenges. His experience and depth of knowledge about the cultural sector is a great asset, enabling him to connect with me as a culture professional and to understand my unique situation.

Daniel Brine, Artistic Director and Chief Executive, Norfolk & Norwich Festival

I was referred to Neil at a time of indecision and uncertainty in my career and confusion as to best options going forwards. I found Neil to be invaluable. He is excellent at marshalling your thoughts by restating your feelings in a clearer and more succinct language, really finding the core of the issues. Neil is also particularly good at providing useful techniques and actions for both smaller challenges and your main concerns. I felt I was taken on a journey and at the end I was clear in my mind as to how to move forwards. Therefore my time with Neil was a total success and I was very pleased with the outcome. I would thoroughly recommend Neil.

Jonathan Firth, Managing Director, Michael Page

Neil Mackinnon is all about asking the right questions. An approach I find quite valuable as it's not always through people telling us what to do that we find growth, but rather discovering for ourselves what it is that can help us make progress. A testament to Neil's brilliance lies in just that, asking the right questions, which is often the most difficult and yet insightful aspect of personal growth.

I can't recommend Neil enough. Through our work together I was able to question myself and really dig deep into the things I needed to work on. Needless to say, in the months I had coaching from Neil, I made incredible progress on a personal and work-related levels.

Alejandro Arango Echeverri, Aerospace Engineering, Proptech, Innovation

After moving to a different country, going through the pandemic and starting a family, there was a lot I had to reconcile to find a direction in my working life. In the first session, Neil helped me develop my own framework to start thinking about the choices I had and the future more generally. Crucially, it helped me stop being distracted about old ideas about myself and my career. His deep presence and reflection makes him a coach that doesn't force a script to the session, rather he skillfully creates the conditions for genuine experimentation and deep thinking. In only a few sessions I had much more certainty about what next steps I needed to take and had left behind a lot of the questions that didn't help me engage with the opportunities I had before me. Neil is calm, precise and thoughtful in his work giving support and candid clarity to one's development process.

André Piza, Research Project Manager, The Alan Turing Institute (Living with Machines)

Calm, considered, observant, unflappable and with enough energy and twinkle to balance, Neil is an experienced coach and instinctive guide with whom you can feel comfortable answering even the most challenging of questions.
I came to Neil on a recommendation at a crossroads in my career. I was faced with huge life challenges both personally and professionally and I left the last of six sessions in a markedly better place than I began them. Over that period I gained greater clarity of thought, more motivation and a better grasp of how to achieve a work life balance. I think coaching is something everyone should undertake in their careers and Neil would be the very person to begin that journey with.

Isla Carter, Associate, Kommol

In just an hour, coach Neil Mackinnon’s calm, authoritative stewardship of a brilliant conversation has provided fresh insights into my work as an arts leader. Highly recommended!

David Micklem, Writer and Arts Consultant

Until recently, I had been working on a project for several years that I found deeply unenjoyable, partly because it wasn't my area of expertise/interest. After just one session, Neil helped me realise that a) I could step away from it and b) develop an action plan that benefited both myself and my client. He also helped give me the courage (and accountability) to implement this immediately. Through subsequent sessions, Neil has coached me to focus on the projects that bring me joy and helped me to realise my worth as a freelancer (and increase my day rate)! Neil is a calm, insightful, amazing human being and I am so lucky to have met, and worked with, him. Highly recommend!

Lee Farrer, Marketing Strategy and Planning Consultant

My time with Neil was incredibly valuable, and both shone light on new ways of approaching my role and it's challenges, while validating many of my existing thoughts and ideas. I really appreciated the opportunity to consider my working practices in such fine detail and look forward to putting the areas we discussed into practice. Whether offering insightful questions or simply listening, Neil's approach fostered a supportive environment where real progress could be made. My sessions coincided with moving into a new role at work but I would recommend Neil's coaching to anyone.

Sam Ricketts, Account Director, DICE

I had two short sessions with Neil, hoping to make a big career decision, and I was amazed at what we achieved in this time. Neil was brilliant at helping me to get to the heart of the matter, challenging the assumptions I had made that were preventing me from moving forward and pushing me just hard enough to make the decisions that I needed to negotiate. This was done in a friendly and supportive way that left me with a clear plan of action and a huge sense of relief that I knew what to do next. I have already recommended Neil's coaching to others and will continue to do so. I will definitely come back to Neil, if and when I need more coaching.

Rebecca Farkas, Artist and Arts Marketer

I was recommended to meet Neil by a trusted colleague because I had an aspect of my business persona that I wanted to change. When Neil and I met (virtually) he took time and care to explain the coaching process leaving me feeling assured and in safe hands. We took time to explore gently, but in depth, the improvements I wanted to make. This aspect of my coaching is now complete as I feel I’ve recached my goal. Neil is thoughtful, measured, and thoroughly professional and I can happily recommend him to my professional network.

Adam Clenell, HR Manager UK & Ireland, Carrier HVAC

Working with Neil has been nothing short of transformative. Over the course of our sessions, he has really helped me build a deeper understanding of myself, my values, and the kind of leader I aspire to be. I leave our work together feeling both stretched and inspired with a renewed sense of clarity and purpose.

Neil’s support has been invaluable, and I would highly recommend him to anyone seeking to explore big questions, think strategically, and navigate through all of life's complexities.

David Reece, Director, Consulting (Deputy CEO), Baker Richards

I came to Neil with a list of behaviours I wanted to work on that I felt were getting in the way of me running my startup to its full potential. Neil helped me recognise the common denominator of this list and challenged and supported me working through it.

The hour-long sessions with Neil were immensely valuable because it was structured enough to give me deep thinking time but open enough that I could direct the session with Neil's help to stay focussed. Neil creates an incredibly safe environment to share and is an astute listener. From the first session to the sixth, the personal growth I've experienced is huge which is why I recommend working with Neil.

Eve Williams, Founder, Ede

I had some extremely helpful sessions with Neil before Christmas whilst I was trying to work out some challenges and some Covid-related burnout I guess.  Neil has a great style and approach and just having these one to one moments were incredibly helpful, affirming and supportive.  We used some processes I’ve not used before and ones I implemented straight away. Thanks Neil for your guidance and support and was exactly what I needed at the right time.

I heartily recommend Neil.

Dan Bates, CEO, Sheffield Theatres

I recently engaged Neil Mackinnon as a coach and I cannot recommend him more highly. Neil has the ability to look at the macro and micro, the person and the professional, the need and the change. If you are looking for a thoughtful, approachable and transformative coach - Neil is your person.

Sunita Pandya, Chief Operating Officer, National Academy of Social Prescribing

The sessions with Neil allowed me to analyse the challenges of my role from different angles. The sessions were very well-structured, and I had clear action points at the end of each session. Neil’s coaching approach enabled me to improve my decision-making process, and it helped me develop a holistic leadership style.

Enrico Onali, Professor of Finance, Head of Finance and Accounting Department, University of Exeter

I got so much out of my coaching sessions with Neil at a supremely busy and stressful time at work; finding new perspectives and getting above the challenge of the day to day so as to create space to be the leader I want to be. Thinking about work and life not as separate entities, but together, as they are intrinsically linked through me and my values (not obvious before, obvious after!). What I got was a reduced sense of anxiety (priceless!), a sense of how I can prioritise (life and work) and, perhaps most importantly, starting to articulate the wider value proposition I'm bringing to organisations (beyond being a good fundraiser) and how this will shape my future career and life.

Neil has a thorough and perceptive understanding of the leadership challenges within the arts and cultural sector. Neil has a tool kit of helpful theories and books that help you feel more connected to others' shared experiences and less isolated as a leader. I felt comfortable to talk openly about my personal and professional challenges and experiences. I recommend him highly as a coach to Leaders and aspiring leaders.

Joanna Newell, Associate Development Director, Roundhouse Trust

Having never experienced coaching in my career thus far, I was interested to see how I would fare in a coaching session with Neil, whom I have worked with in various capacities over the years.

In just a short session I found I was thinking more objectively about my goals and aspirations and was able to make serious inroads toward obtaining a new focus and drive.

If you're looking for support in gaining a new outlook and energy, I can definitely recommend getting in touch with Neil.

Rhodri Jones, Senior Producer, Southbank Centre

Neil really helped me gain a deeper understanding of some of the personal barriers I'm grappling with in regards to managing my business. We were able to develop various actions to help tackle these barriers. If you're looking for someone to help increase your skills and confidence by addressing specific personal challenges, Neil can definitely support with that.

Antoinette Ale, Marketing & Social Impact

Neil is a great coach. I didn’t know what the value of coaching would be for me personally but after a short while, it was clear to me what the benefits would be. I felt it to be a very open and confidential space where I could share anything. Neil really worked well to challenge me on things and that has helped me to rethink the way that I will approach things going forward. Neil is very thoughtful and approachable and I would not hesitate to recommend Neil as a coach.

Stuart Thomson (Assoc. CIPD), HR Partner, University of Exeter

Earlier this year I started coaching sessions over Zoom with Neil MacKinnon, and three months on I’m both grateful for and amazed by the difference it has made to my outlook on pretty much everything.

With appropriate suggestions and orientations for contemplation, emotion, reading and writing, Neil has enabled some really important work, deep down. It’s not so much that I’ve done or achieved amazing things during this time (though as it happens it’s been a great ride, these last few months), but that I’ve been able to be authentically present in my work and life.

The journey’s ongoing, but so far I've learned to take a level perspective of my own knots, and also to recognise my fluencies; I notice so much more how value is manifest in my outlook, desires, interactions and activity. If you're feeling like you have more to offer, genuinely, consider coaching with Neil.

Jon Hargreaves, Conductor and Artistic Director

After a brief discussion outlining expectations and process, Neil agreed to coach me at the beginning of 2021. I was very impressed with how Neil helped me navigate scenarios and find some tangible actions in achieving my end goal. Thoroughly professional, Neil had an innate ability to listen and really zero in on points of interest, resulting in subsequent takeaway action points.

Peter Budd, Senior HR Professional

I have had 8 coaching sessions with Neil in which we explored a range of topics, he has been a great listener, challenger and 'partner' in exploring my professional self and how I would like to develop in my career. He has provided me with a great set of tools and resources to improve my decision making, and above all he has been an absolute pleasure to work with!

Iris, Consultant

I found Neil a very active listener, really able to distill fluffy ideas to issues that could be tackled both in the sessions in my own time. It was my first experience of coaching and I was slightly skeptical going into it, but in only two sessions I found value and insight that I will continue to unpack in the coming months. To anyone considering some coaching I'd highly recommend having a session with Neil, especially if you work in the creative sector.

Hugo

Neil really helped me think about my career options differently in the short time we spent talking. It was refreshing to experience his coaching style and how it affected the way I considered both my options and my strengths.

James, Event Manager

Neil has brought a level of focus and traction to my work that I have simply never known before.

I have had coaches in the past with mixed results. But starting out for the first time in entrepreneurship, the stakes were higher than ever this time; I really needed someone who could bring out the best in me amid challenges I’d never faced before. 

I cannot praise Neil highly enough for delivering on that hope.

Neil is professional, consistent, generous, empathetic, responsive, adaptable, reliable, and direct – and at exactly the right times. 

One of the things that I think differentiates Neil is his awareness of the boundary between coaching and advising, and how to navigate the tension that sometimes arises between the two. I could not be happier with the work we’ve done together.

Alex Revill, Founder / Author, ProblemKit

Neil's coaching sessions were an invaluable part of my venture building journey. He created a space for open and honest reflection, helping me to objectively state my career aspirations and find the best strategies to achieve them. His non-judgmental approach and deep listening skills made me feel comfortable and respected, while also ensuring a safe and confidential environment. Neil was particularly adept at distilling my scattered thoughts and reflecting them back in a clear and unbiased way. I would absolutely recommend him to anyone seeking coaching, especially if you're looking for someone who is not just competent but also kind and thoughtful.

James O’Brien, Product, ex-Spotify/Apple/GoPro/Dolby Labs

Neil is a born coach, if ever there was one. He is naturally gifted at creating a calm, thoughtful and safe space within which to delve into meaningful topics. He's highly trained and knows the pertinent questions to ask to move you closer to your desired outcome. I particularly appreciated the way Neil structured our one-hour session - he set clear parameters which ensured we stayed focused and yet the session still felt expansive and fluid, with time to discuss everything. Too often one ends up either rambling or feeling like there's no time to go deep - Neil held the space with aplomb, and I left feeling both fully understood AND kept on track. I hope to work with Neil again soon and wholeheartedly recommend him to others looking for clarity, motivation and support.

Fabienne Sinclair Morris, Marketing & Communications Consultant

Neil's personality and skillset really do lend themselves perfectly to his role as a coach – considered, intuitive, patient, attentive – and I hugely benefitted from these sessions. Neil provides a calm yet structured environment, so I felt really encouraged and secure in sharing my challenges. He is also extremely observant – don't be surprised if you have a few moments of enlightenment!

Daniel Webb, Founder, Everyday Plastic CIC

Neil is one of the most considered, composed and reassuring people I've ever had the chance to work with. He is also a genuinely lovely guy and someone I'd always jump at the chance of working with. Neil's approach provides you with the space to work through a topic and in just an hour I felt like I benefited considerably from Neil's guidance and support. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Neil as a Leadership Coach.

Matt Holt, Chief Business Development Officer, Frieze

I worked with Neil over the course of several months, as I was going through a period of restructure at my current employer. I had a series of significant decisions to make and needed to assess my career options after 18 years with the company. Neil was incredibly supportive and provided me with several tools to help me work through my decisions. Neil was a brilliant listener and played back my thoughts in a calm and considered manner which helped me reflect on the way I was feeling. Neil was with me every step of the way through the redundancy process, it would have been much more difficult without him. I look forward to working with him again in the future as I embark on a new professional chapter.

James Woodall, General Manager Commercial Sales, John Lewis Partnership

Life often throws conflicting demands, opportunities and challenges at you. And usually that's accompanied by a noisy chorus of opinions, expectations, prejudices, and doubts - which can make it harder still to decide how to act. Neil has been brilliant at helping me to cut through all this and get back to my own intuitions, values and principles. That in turn helped me to make positive decisions about which paths to take and where to direct my energies - for which I'm very grateful.

Rupert Thomson, General Manager - Asia, Reed Words

I have just completed a round of coaching (6 sessions) with Neil after reaching a significant turning point in my career.  Our conversations offered a safe space for me to explore my thinking about my career so far, as well as moving forward.  Neil’s gently structured approach to our sessions enabled me to interrogate the questions I had, concerning hitting a sort of ‘mid-career’ anxiety about my creative practice, without fear or judgement. 

The opportunity to be heard and understood by someone who was familiar with the challenges of working within the creative industries, as Neil is, was invaluable.  This experience, together with his open, generous style, meant that even in just an hour our rich conversations were able to unlock my thinking about myself and my work.

Robin Belfield, Theatre Director, Writer, Educator

Neil is a great listener who steers conversation and probes for you to come up with solutions to your own problems. Highly recommend his coaching and look forward to working with him again.

Adewole Ademolake, Founder & Property Developer

I was really lucky to have a coaching session with Neil Mackinnon just as I was leaving one job to take on a new position. I came to the session with a few questions I wanted to untangle and Neil’s calm and thoughtful approach helped me break the questions down into more manageable and action focused chunks which really helped with clarity and focus to step into my new role. I would really recommend Neil’s coaching style, we worked through ideas together and I was given clear objectives and advice to follow up with after the session.

Tamsin Ace, Head of Cultural Programming, London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London

Through sharing, deep listening and processing, Neil's coaching acted as a mirror, allowing me to see myself and my environment through a whole new lense. Neil is attentive, generous and intuitive and he very much adapted to my thought process. This not only made me more aware of how I work, but also created time for me to come up with solutions which really make sense and serve as solid foundations. Sessions with Neil provided me with more understanding of my journey, extra focus and determination as well as tailor-made practical tools for taking more meaningful actions. Working with Neil was truly empowering and I would absolutely recommend Neil to anyone wanting to gain more alignment in their lives and substantively boost their careers.

Marc Stevenson, Dancer, Musician and Teacher

I had coaching with Neil because there were a number of ideas for my future swirling around in my head that I needed help clarifying and ordering. In particular, I wanted to shift the focus of my role in the arts, while also ensuring I maintained the stability of my income until I had bought a house and my child had started school.

Neil helped me understand that if I took small and targeted steps to explore my career interests on a regular basis, this would add up to a significant amount of experience, that would both help me make an informed decision about what I wanted to do next, while also putting me in a strong position to apply for different types of roles.

Neil created a safe space that made me feel able to share everything that was concerning me, while also challenging me to dig into what I wanted most, and prioritise plans to get there. Neil was empathetic and sensitive to my personal situation, and had an intelligent understanding of how the competing elements of parenting, money and career aspirations fit together in a modern life. Neil offered thoughtful suggestions at appropriate moments, and I came away feeling like I was part of a team, working towards clear outcomes.

Neil has a powerful aility to create an environemnt where you can share your concerns and ideas, no matter how half formed, and feel supported and safe. Neil knows when to push you further, and challenge you to commit to important steps to further your goals.

Anonymous