Momentum Business Consulting

I would have no hesitation in recommending Pauline Caldwell as an Executive Coach. A highly experienced background in HR and an Executive Coach qualification is a potent combination. Pauline has a natural affinity for coaching and combines an empathic manner with a pragmatic style to crystalise problem areas and focus on solutions.

I have been working with Pauline for three months now and I have really valued the experience. Having coaching provides a safe space to explore problematic issues or questions and gives you time to really reflect on what has happened and to determine a way forward. Pauline really listens to what you have to say and then plays that back to you in a way that makes you properly question your thoughts and feelings. She always ensures that you have a clear action plan at the end of each session or provides practical techniques to use back in the workplace. I would really recommend Pauline.

I would highly recommend Pauline if you are considering any form of personal coaching.  She is very laid back in her style and totally gets what her clients' needs are. She is intuitive and sensitive in her approach and knows how to elicit what it is you are trying to achieve. I have adopted Pauline's suggestions and have used them on numerous occasions recently, she has also stretched my train of thought which has given me the confidence to move forward without so much doubt or trepidation.

If you are thinking of coaching, just do it, it is so insightful and I have learnt so much about my character and how to adapt it to my working style, that I can only see myself going from strength to strength!  

Thank you again Pauline.

Pauline agreed to coach me as I transitioned from a role I had held for 13 years to a new position within Lewis Silkin and I found her support invaluable.  Her experience and skills gained as an HR Director inform her coaching style, she is particularly skilled at summarising what she sees, leading to deeper personal insights. She is not afraid to challenge appropriately and constructively and the coaching experience was transformative.  I have already recommended her to several of my contacts.

I have recently moved into a new career and Pauline has expertly guided me through that transition by helping me to explore solutions to new challenges I am facing, build my confidence, and gain fresh perspective and clarity on my career path and progression. Pauline has provided this support in a wholly encouraging and personable, yet robust, way, and I now feel better equipped to navigate my way through my new career.

I have worked with Pauline one-on-one for the past 6 months and I have truly benefited from her executive coaching course. Pauline has in-depth commercial experience working within a similar sector and could resonate and connect to my business and position. I found it very easy to build rapport with Pauline due to her open and honest style, which fostered mutual trust and respect.

During each session, Pauline used some excellent coaching techniques to guide and encourage creative discussions to build on strengths and progression. As a result, I have gained appreciation of my own motivators and values, developing new leadership skills which I have benefited from personally, in addition to my wider team and the business. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Pauline.

I have known Pauline for a number of years. Pauline worked with a colleague at Shearman & Sterling on my recommendation. She is a consummate professional and a pleasure to work with. She is a very experienced HR practitioner and understands what is required to keep the relevant people informed without divulging sensitive, confidential information. It is easy to build rapport with Pauline as she is very likeable and personable. She is honest in her feedback and always tries to focus on solutions.

I would have no hesitation in recommending her as a coach.

This was my first foray into the world of coaching, and I will admit I was slightly apprehensive.  However I needn’t have been. Pauline immediately made me feel at ease, and I found I was surprisingly comfortable with sharing and opening up to her about what I wanted to achieve.

I liked Pauline’s relaxed yet professional style and the combination of probing questions, roles plays and ‘homework’ which really pushed me, and I was amazed by how much we achieved in such a short space of time. 

I would highly recommend Pauline, she’s taught me some invaluable techniques and has certainly helped change the way I approach challenges in the workplace. Thank you Pauline!

“Whether the client is an organisation recommending people for coaching or an individual looking to boost their own performance, Pauline will offer constructive challenge and recommend clear, practical steps to achieve the best outcome. She’s not easily fazed, even in difficult circumstances, and she is fantastic when it comes to enabling you to think through different situations logically and positively.”

“Pauline’s genuine insight into people and their different challenges, opportunities and motivations means she is adept at tailoring her advice and support to each individual’s particular circumstances. A natural leader, she is composed and professional; warm and engaging. People want to follow Pauline.”

Pauline is very collaborative. When we worked together, she always had plenty of ideas to add to the mix and our interactions have always been incredibly positive. We had invaluable meetings in which we’d discuss strategies for change. 

Pauline invites you to think differently about an issue rather than being prescriptive. It helps to bring out the best in you, and in the strategies and solutions you develop. 

Pauline was able to have difficult conversations with partners, and she was just as comfortable working with candidates. She was very hands-on, especially when it came to the process of preparing people for the partnership selection process before they’d even started it. All of these skills are everything you’d want in an executive coach.

Pauline does not shy away from the difficult message and is always clear and concise. She is a great listener too. Her knowledge of working within large, complex international organisations will be an asset to anyone looking for guidance and support, particularly at Board and senior management level.

I have worked with Pauline for a number of years both as a member of the firm's Management Board and as the Global Head of the firm's Global Projects and Construction Group. What I valued most about Pauline was her commercial awareness and her understanding of what I was seeking to achieve in growing a global platform. She was very much an ally in helping to support our business needs rather than looking to "manage" my expectations. She is creative in her thinking and very much solution driven in terms of addressing the issues that arose. As I lead a global group, Pauline's international expertise in dealing with cultural and local market issues was critically important. Given lawyers can be very inquisitive and at times adversarial in their dealings with each other, her skills in assisting me in managing them was invaluable. She was an essential sounding board for initiatives I had running and provided extremely wise counsel in terms of mentoring the wider team. I also trusted her completely so that it was possible to have very open conversations with her to help achieve the most productive outcome. In working with Human Resources for three decades, Pauline was the most talented individual and operated at the highest level. 

I worked with Pauline in her HR capacity for approx. 10 years. Her advice and counselling in that role was consistently focussed and perceptive – and I always made sure to take only my most difficult issues to Pauline! Most recently I had a number of sensitive issues, involving senior level individuals, where Pauline and I worked together to seek a resolution. In that capacity, Pauline was always happy advise on the best course of action and to take the lead as appropriate.  She always ensured that at each meeting we were fully prepared for what needed to be addressed, to have all the necessary documents in order and to ensure that there was a proper follow up after the meeting. In the meeting itself, even where the matter being addressed was often an emotional one, Pauline would balance the need to be firm, with a friendly and supportive approach. The goal or end result being worked towards was always made clear, and the plan to achieve that was clearly articulated. In short, I always found working with Pauline a pleasure, even in difficult situations, and her insight and input invaluable.

I worked closely with Pauline for many years at Clydes in my roles on the Global and UK management boards. Pauline has a real feel for the complexities of dealing with issues within a partnership context and an understanding of the regional variation and local nuances which are essential in a global role.  I always found Pauline to be clear thinking and a strong communicator, with the ability to deliver difficult messages straightforwardly but with appropriate sensitivity.  I particularly valued her sense of perspective and ability to cut through to the nub of the matter.

I hugely valued working with Pauline and having her support.  She is able to blend supporting an international business, and leading in relation to people and HR issues, with supporting and mentoring individuals within that business – in client facing roles, and in internal management and leadership roles.  Her experience in supporting and working with senior individuals, and in working within partnerships, was extremely valuable to me.

Pauline is a highly regarded former colleague and fellow Director of HR in Law (now People in Law) a successful UK legal HR, training, thought leadership and networking company. We worked together for 8 years. 

Pauline is fun to work with and is a hard-working and results orientated professional.  She is a great HR and people agenda influencer who is well known and respected by her peers and colleagues alike. Pauline possesses the ideal balanced skills set of listening carefully, thorough project design and planning, and strong execution, which I’m confident will make her a top-class executive coach. I will certainly be recommending her to my clients and instructing her. 

Pauline was a source of many successful event ideas and excellent contacts for People in Law.  She always delivers and often improves the solution based on an informed perspective and deep understanding of her subject and business. She is also prepared to question and challenge to come up with new ideas, events and ways of doing business. However, Pauline is collaborative with a proven track record of excellent working relationships with teams.   

She also has tremendous commercial vision and awareness.  She was a supportive, focused and highly valued colleague and just a pleasure to work with. 

I have known, and worked with, Pauline for a number of years in my senior leadership positions within Clyde & Co LLP and have always valued Pauline’s calm and pragmatic guidance. Pauline is alert to the need to offer up solutions. She’s also not afraid to tackle the difficult issues or to challenge those with whom she is working to think differently but does so with a dose of good humour and an eye to the competing positions of different stakeholders that may be involved – whether it is in getting to the best solution or getting the best out of people.

Pauline supported the firm in reviewing its Equality, Diversity & Inclusion approach.  She really took time to understand what we wanted, asking insightful questions, and challenging us constructively to get to the bottom of what would be of most value to us.  Consulting a range of stakeholders across our business worked very well and gave us the insight we needed.  Pauline was able to tailor her communication style perfectly to all audiences, including our Management Board, to present her findings and recommendations to us.  Her in-depth knowledge of professional services helped us massively and everything worked well, we were delighted with the work produced and level of service provided.

Pauline was engaged to provide the senior leadership team of SC with a report on our current ED&I activities along with recommendations on how to progress further in this area.  Her report, and her presentation to the Management Board, was clear and it focused on practical steps and a phased programme.  We were very satisfied with the advice and support provided and would definitely use her services again and would be very happy to recommend her to others.