James Akin-Smith | The CEO Coach Ltd - Poole

FADI JAWISH

One of the most essential qualities for a coach is to avoid being assumptive and to approach every interaction with genuine consideration. Unfortunately, this principle was not upheld during my recent conversation with James, leaving me considerably disappointed by his approach and attitude.

This morning at 8:30 am, I reached out to James under the impression that my Operations Manager had arranged a call for me with him to discuss strategies for scaling our business, as well as to seek personal coaching and development. However, instead of engaging with me constructively, James immediately adopted a confrontational tone, asserting that this was merely a sales call and that he had no interest in my services.

As the CEO of a successful local recruitment agency, my intention in contacting James was to explore the possibility of utilising his expertise, rather than to sell him anything. The manner in which he handled the call and his apparent lack of seriousness towards it were deeply disappointing. Consequently, I am no longer inclined to pursue a professional relationship with someone who fails to treat every interaction with the seriousness and respect it deserves, particularly when resorting to confrontation from the outset.

steve hudson

James has been a big support during very challenging times. This not only included the pandemic issues, but also relocating and restructuring our business and changing all our systems. He provides a great sounding board and offers excellent advice and perspective, which has helped me make better decisions, especially during stressful times. He is also very patient and quick to respond in a crisis! I would recommend James as a coach to any CEO or Business Owner.

Ben Rolfe

From the first day of meeting James I knew we were going to make a real impact on the business together. As a company we saw growth of over 46% in the first 3 months of working with James which is just simply outstanding.

Sadly as a company we have taken a new direction with a merge and no longer work with James directly but he is still always on hand to deliver support and answer any messages!

Phil Whitehurst

I have been working with James for a number of years, and his insights into business and his position as independent "confidante" to a CEO has been really helpful to assist in our business growth, and also to sound out ideas and concepts before sharing with the wider team. His work as coach and mentor has been instrumental. I would recommend any business leader has a coach, and that James is one of the best around.

Jez shakerley

James Akin-Smith has been instrumental in opening my mind to becoming a better owner/ leader of my business. My time spent with James has given me proactive guidance and support to set both personal goals and business goals that are delivering real growth and positive impact with my customers . James's skill and direction in mentoring and coaching me to be a more focused leader and business owner has allowed me to grow as an individual and support my leadership team to have real impact on growth of the business over the last 3 years in an extremely tough time with Covid. Our business is growing from strength to strength now with real direction thanks to James's ongoing support.

Paula Hebberd

James has been an excellent mentor and coach by providing us with knowledge, guidance and tools to grow our law firm and support our team. James is incredibly patient and always available to speak to if we require guidance. We see James as a third director to our business and his coaching has meant the firm has now doubled in size. Thank you James !

Ian Oldrey

James has been my Business Coach for several years now, helping me steer through all the challenges of creating new products and bringing them to market. Working alongside James has given me the confidence in the decisions I have made, avoided some costly pitfalls and identified the best ways to develop myself and my business. I would highly recommend James for CEO's looking for a coach.

Vicky McNicholas

I have worked with James for the last year - and what a year it has been. We have seen unprecedented demand, a lack of raw materials, breakdowns in our supply chain and the most ambitious NPD programme the business has ever seen. James has helped guide us through the turmoil providing proactive advice and a great sounding board to bounce ideas around. He has been able to highlight weaknesses in our business and work with us to provide solutions and importantly the confidence to implement those solutions. He has been particularly helpful in identifying recruitments needs and supporting our recruitment process.
If you are looking for practical help and advice and are prepared to be held to account then I would highly recommend the services of James. Whether for a 'reason', a 'season' or 'life'.