Eve Poole is an expert in leadership.

From her experience of working with thousands of leaders across the sectors and across the world, she knows that the work of a leader is not as easy as it’s made out to be. It is not the sort of thing you ‘become’ as the result of the right course or the right promotion.

This inspired her to develop the idea of Leadersmithing: a movement that teaches leaders the tricks of the trade, so they can become masters in the craft of leadership. She believes that leadership is all about the day-to-day craft of gaining real experience in the critical incidents of leading, so leaders develop the muscle-memory to do it well. She uses this approach to help existing and aspiring leaders achieve their goals.

Eve started her career at the Church Commissioners for England, after gaining a BA in Theology from Durham University. She returned to education to gain an MBA from the University of Edinburgh Business School where she won AMBA Student of the Year. She honed her business skills at top consulting firm Deloitte, specialising in change management in the financial services industry. In 2010, Eve combined her two career tracks by gaining a PhD in Capitalism and Theology from Cambridge University.

From 2002, she taught leadership for Ashridge Business School, and was the first female Chairman of Gordonstoun School in Moray from 2015-2021. She also served as Third Church Estates Commissioner for England from 2018-2021, and was Interim Chief Executive of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2022. She was awarded an OBE in the 2023 New Year Honours List for services to education and gender equality.

Her client list spans the sectors and includes: 10x, Ace Insurance, ACEVO, Amazon, Anthem Schools Trust, AstraZeneca, Atos KPMG, BAA, Barclays, BBC, BNP Paribas Fortis, The British Army, British Embassy Paris, Cadbury Schweppes, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Church of England, Clore Leadership Programme, Clore Social Leadership Programme, The Collections Trust, Computacenter, Credit Suisse, Credit Suisse First Boston, The Defence Logistics Organisation, Deutsche Bank, EBRD, Ecolab, Essex County Council, European Commission, EY, FCO, Five, Focus Trust, Frieze, GE, Greenbelt, Hammersmith & Fulham, Heineken, Hewlett Packard/Agilent Technologies, Highways Agency, IDeA, IHG, Inspiring Scotland, Jersey Leadership, Lufthansa, M&G, Marconi, Midlands Electricity, MOD, Myeloma UK, Network Rail, NSPCC, ODPM/DCLG, Orange, Rank, Rexam, RHM, Roche, RWE, Sadlers Wells, Scottish Council of Independent Schools, Seventh Day Adventists, Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship (Said Business School), St Paul Travelers, Street Soccer Scotland, Student Loans Company, Tesco, The Body Shop, The General Trustees (Church of Scotland), The John Smith Trust, The Kinharvie Institute, The National Gallery, The Natural History Museum, The Post Office, The Prince’s Trust, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, The Royal Shakespeare Company, Thomson, Time Warner, Traidcraft, TRC Media, Varta, WHSmith News, William Temple Foundation, World Duty Free.

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During my time in FCO Learning and Development I worked closely with Eve to develop and deliver core management development courses for our management grades. Eve was a delight to work with: she worked hard to understand our organisation's needs; was creative and thoughtful in developing ideas and approaches, and; provided us with clear evaluation plans. As a facilitator and coach, Eve showed herself able to quickly build rapport, in groups and with individuals, and was able to tailor her delivery to match the needs of those she was working with. Intelligent, perceptive and good fun, Eve was a delight to work with, moving easily across the intellectual, personal and practical aspects of what we were delivering

Andrew MillarForeign & Commonwealth Office
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I have had the pleasure of working with Eve Poole on numerous occasions over the past 4 years, as a professional coach and trainer within the area of professional and personal development. Her work is of the highest standard and combines seamlessly her extensive academic and practical knowledge, with a highly skilled, engaging and personable delivery. She is inspirational, accessible and intellectually rigorous. I have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending Eve

Sharon Armstrong-WilliamsClore Leadership Programme
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Eve coached me for over two years. Together we worked on improving my professional impact, strengthening relationships with others and developing my career. She has a very engaging style and is a very energizing presence. She brings to each coaching session a rich mix of human psychology, commercial acumen and a senior management perspective. Be prepared for penetrating questions, candid advice and sometimes unorthodox solutions to challenging and difficult situations. Also be prepared to have fun!

Mike O'DonohueTesco
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Eve's support over the last few years on a couple of projects has been totally invaluable. She applies her razor sharp intellect to cut right to the core of the issue you are trying to solve and gives advice that leads to real results. Eve somehow manages to work through what should be difficult challenges with her unique blend of wit and humour that makes any conversation not only a pleasure but also highly entertaining. I will be working with Eve for many years to come.

Dan BerelowitzInternational Centre for Social Franchising
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As a lecturer and coach, Eve is an outstanding professional, with a wonderful ability to make complex theories come alive for mixed ability groups. She is highly engaging and energising. Eve ensures that each individual is inspired to achieve their learning objectives in a memorable and thought provoking way. As a service provider, Eve built a positive and long lasting relationship. She is someone I hope to know for a long time to come and whose services I would choose to use again and highly endorse.

Paul HillanTesco
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