WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
Since its formation in 2012, Aspire MCL has worked with a wide range of clients to enhance their leadership, team and organisational health.
Read on to learn what our clients have to say about their experiences of working with us. If you would like to learn more about what we can do for your business, get in touch with us today to schedule a free consultation.
Organisations Aspire has worked with include:
“...quickly grasped the strategic issues and gave us insightful and practical ideas with which to move forward. As a direct result of this programme we are now much better placed to achieve our planned growth and have become aware of major new opportunities and risks...friendly but clear and professional style got to the heart of complex issues and helped me formulate effective courses of action which will positively impact our bottom line. I highly recommend Aspire MCL."
Simon Gill, MD, Sitek Engineering
"I was forced to re-start my exit strategy. Now I have a 9-year exit strategy and am using Ian's comprehensive leadership coaching plan to help me achieve it. Using Ian's leadership program has made a vast difference to my performance and to my outcomes. He is helping me to remain focused on my daily, weekly and monthly actions, and remain online with my business plan. Ian goes the extra mile to understand what can be improved and then offers practical solutions. He is a man I can trust."
I highly recommend Ian to anyone who is in business."
Stav Melides, CEO, Melides Ltd
“ [used] experience coupled with a great mix of online assessments, coaching and workshops, to provide fresh insights on current business issues and opportunities. A strategic thinker, he offered great advice on effective courses of action that will make a very positive difference. Ian's gravitas, coupled with an engaging delivery style, helped us to get to the core of complex issues quickly and to identify and address underlying factors. I very highly recommend his services to any business."
Glynn White, Engineering Manager, Sitek Engineering Ltd.
"contributed an invaluable perspective...which helped drive the progression of the Company...adept at challenging preconceived ideas in a professional and constructive manner in order to improve business output."
Daniel Wood, Project and Policy Officer, Association of Police and Crime Commissioners
“...very thorough and well able to analyse any given situation and suggest improvements or changes in strategy...mentoring provided me with fresh ideas and impetus to plan for the remainder of my career at a senior level on the commercial side of construction.
I would thoroughly recommend Ian for the undoubted skills that he has and services to business that he can provide."
Ian Beadles, Commercial Manager, Willmott Dixon Construction
“...coaching led me to address issues at their root cause, but through his approachable manner he elicited a robust Action Plan that engendered both short and long-term performance enhancing changes."
John Eatherton, RAF Officer and Fighter Pilot
“...a gifted trainer and evaluator with a powerful gravitas and a strategic perspective that enables him to link together complex themes into a coherent whole."
Huw Davis, Consultant, JCSys Ltd
“...provided coaching and mentoring services to help me identify the qualities and key roles of leadership...helped me identify my strengths and weaknesses in relation to those qualities and roles and, more importantly for me, helped me see clearly how relevant they are to my current position.
I highly recommend his services."
Rodger Moomba, Dentist, Oasis Dental Centre
“Ian has provided me with clear structure and exceptional guidance in relation to the development of my CV and competence based job applications. He listens, gives excellent advice and is able to show how to evidence, deliver and quantify key skills. He is also an excellent coach. Ian is thorough, extremely helpful and always willing to help. I am always learning something new from Ian."
Andrew Przedborski, Manager and Solicitor, HMCTS
"Ian has proven to be very adaptable and has guided me through areas including Coaching, Senior/Executive Leadership, and Success in Interviews, drawing upon his experiences which add valuable colour to the discussions. I leave each session with clear actions aligned to my strategic goals, and would not hesitate in recommending Ian for senior leadership development."
Richard Johnson, Associate Director (FP&A), MSD Ltd.
"Ian engages....with a clear and supportive manner, backed by an authoritative knowledge of his subject. He is great to work with and most importantly of all, is a man of integrity."
Paul Morris, Director, Shieldwall Ltd.
"...[Ian] was often required to deal with several major issues at the same time and he was easily able to prioritise the various issues, evaluate the problems and make sound decisions which benefitted not only the Air Show but the individuals concerned as well...Ian is an excellent communicator who is able to use his proficiency at presenting to good effect. Lucid and able to argue his point convincingly, he also has the ability to understand an opposing point of view and to use his well developed interpersonal skills to persuade others..."
Katerina Pickup, RAF Waddington Air Show Office Manager
“I worked with Ian on a complex process mapping project for a multi-billion pound NHS activity. Ian keeps going when the going gets tough and is always ready for a new challenge. He brings a disciplined approach and structure to client projects."
Ian Crawford, MD Abound Consulting Ltd.
“Ian’s comprehensive plan for management development is fantastic. It helped me to re-evaluate our business and improve management operations, in particular our recruitment process. Thorough and efficient but above all offering practical solutions. I can trust Ian – highly recommended!!!"
Jo Burns, MD, MyCloud-Accounts
“Ian’s comprehensive plan for management development is fantastic. It helped me to re-evaluate our business and improve management operations, in particular our recruitment process. Thorough and efficient but above all offering practical solutions. I can trust Ian – highly recommended!!!"
Jo Burns, MD, MyCloud-Accounts
“Through coaching and mentoring with Ian Kirkby at Aspire MCL, I now feel I have clear goals to work towards for business growth...we discussed marketing strategies and business development in some detail as well as finances and planning. Overall, my time with Ian has been very rewarding and I have every intention of using Aspire again for further coaching and mentoring during my business development programme.
I would definitely recommend Aspire MCL to all my associates who are looking to grow their businesses."
Phil Farey, Owner, Flyford Connect - IT Support and Services
"Ian is a strong leader and a also very solid programme professional - I was impressed at the outset from his ability to lead and deliver a very cohesive presentation of a complex idea and then go on to build the delivery plan. He is very easy to deal with and really understands how to identify and grow relationships that deliver results."
Ronnie Adams, Commercial Director, East Midlands Police Forces
“It has been a pleasure to have several staff members in management work with Ian Kirkby from Aspire Management Consultancy Limited! Our staff felt comfortable, at ease and relaxed with Ian when discussing training, next steps and successful management of a team. Would highly recommend for anyone needing that final push for running a successful team/business and to get the best out of your team!"
Phoebe Robbins, Office Manager, ELMS Legal Ltd.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Ian in High Performing Teams Programs that we ran within our finance leadership. He has been an outstanding coach and has guided us smoothly while we thrived as a team. His insightful approach to each team member during our program has been remarkable. I look forward to work with Ian in other programs.”
Ebru Can Temucin, Executive Director (Finance), MSD (Pharmaceuticals)
“Ian worked with me for 3 months to develop a new structure to support the engagement of Police and Crime Commissioners at a national level. I was extremely impressed by his ability to quickly grasp complex policy issues and translate the vision into a strong set of products. In working with the rest of the team, Ian demonstrated his excellent relationship management skills to provide leadership, making sure the task was completed on time and to a very high standard."
Tania Eagle, CEO, The Association of Police and Crime Commissioners
“Ian supports me as career coach at a time of significant change in my organisation, and proved a really useful sounding board as I looked to navigate this change.
Either side of this, Ian worked hard with me on understanding leadership concepts such as organisational health, ensuring strategic thinking etc
He provided me with tangible examples, experience and tools for working in uncertain environments and where relationship dynamics can be far from straightforward.
The most impactful thing of all that Ian did for me was
to learn to be more rational about “the worst thing that can happen”. Sometimes just a calm voice can help clear the mind.
Would recommend to anyone looking for a coach to enhance their leadership skills and potential."
Simon Caton, Partner at AlixPartners, and non executive board appointee
“Really detailed and well delivered coaching sessions on strategic management techniques delivered by Ian over the last couple of months, thoroughly enjoyed our sessions together and would recommend his services."
Matt Burton, Strategic Procurement Business Partner, UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA)
“I have very much enjoyed working with Ian over the last 18 months or so and have gained vast amounts in what it means to be a leader and how to develop leaders. I've also appreciated being able to use Ian as a sounding board for any current personal and work-related challenges, benefitting hugely from Ian's experience and knowledge.
I look forward to hopefully working with Ian again in the future."
Michael Leonard, Director at Alix Partners
“I highly recommend Ian as a top leadership coach. Over the past 12 months, he has been a key figure in my professional growth, offering insightful guidance and personalized strategies. His expertise in leadership principles, coupled with a supportive coaching style, has helped me navigate challenges effectively.
Ian excels in identifying strengths and providing constructive feedback. Using both standardized methods and his own spin on it allowed him to challenge me in a very productive manner."
Stefnir Stefnisson, Director at AlixPartners
