Wil James
Principal Consultant
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Wil James is a Principal Consultant at Lane4 combining 15 years experience as a sport psychologist with extensive commercial expertise. He draws on his ongoing work with elite coaches and performers to facilitate improved performance at individual, team and organisational level for a range of clients across multiple industry sectors.
Leadership Development
Wil is responsible for the strategic design and delivery of international leadership development programmes, regularly leading workshops that play a key role in organisational engagement and performance strategies. His key achievements include a leadership programme designed in partnership with a global pharmaceutical's Executive & Management Education Team. The programme was delivered in six languages, across 15 countries and was implemented to support the personal and career development of high potential managers. Wil has a wealth of experience in delivering sustainable behavioural change in the services, retail and manufacturing sectors including the delivery of a FTSE 100 retailer's leadership programme to embed the company's leadership behaviours within the Operations Board and the top 1000 in the business. The programme had a significant impact on the business at every level including engagement levels rising 11% since the programme start.
Team Development
Wil has a particular interest and expertise in top team development and has worked with senior executive teams, leadership groups, high potential teams and Management Boards to sustain and improve performance. His approach involves challenging senior leaders to share experiences with their teams in order to role model behaviour and integrate learning and development with delivery of performance. He has worked with teams in multiple business functions to develop more efficient ways of working, communicate effectively, generate more accountability and set goals.
Organisational Change
Wil works with clients to sustain performance during periods of significant organisational change. Drawing on a specialised understanding of the human psychology of performance, he has worked with teams and individuals to develop resilience, maintain focus and motivation and achieve exceptional results under pressure. Following the recent merger of two travel businesses, Wil ran a series of post-integration workshops with the Board and their respective leadership teams. The workshops were branded 'Making a Success of Mergers' and the content focused primarily on the internal psychological and emotional journey that people typically experience during a major transition of this type. He also explored team working in each of the top teams and the leadership example which they present to the rest of their business.
Coaching
Wil is an experienced executive coach and has worked on a 1:1 basis with individuals at multiple levels and functions across a range of industries including financial, retail, manufacturing and pharmaceutical. Alongside 1:1 coaching, Wil had designed and led Coaching for Performance workshops as a key component of wider Leadership and Team Development interventions. His coaching based approach is central to his consulting style and he focuses on developing coaching skills which can be used to facilitate personal learning and developed as key leadership tools.
Work at Lane4
Wil James is a BOA (British Olympic Association) BASES accredited Sport Psychologist with a range of 1:1, team and organisational experience with both corporate clients and elite sports performers.
His areas of specialism include Consulting and Coaching groups in:
- Performance Leadership
- High Performance Environments
- High Performing Teams
- Mental Toughness / Personal Resilience
Leadership
Post Office - Inspire Programme
Sainsbury's - Making Sainsbury's Great Again
Currys - High Performing Leaders Programme
Honda - Leadership Programme
Bourne Leisure - Leadership, Coaching, Managing Peak Performance
DSM (DNP) - Leadership Coaching for Performance Development, 1:1 Coaching and Transformational Selling Behaviour
Marsh- Graduate Personal Leadership Development
TUI Travel - Making a Success of Mergers and Leadership Development
CSR - Leadership / Top Team Development and Culture Change Programme
DSM - Leading Self and Teamship
Royal Mail Group - Leadership
RBS - Leadership
Peformance Coaching
CCE - Executive Coaching
Surrey and Sussex Strategic Health Authority- Coaching and Leadership
Lloyds Banking Group - Leadership and Coaching
BT (Operate) - Leadership and Performance Coaching
Sainsbury's - Master Coaching
RBS- Leadership and Coaching
Top Team & Teamwork Development
Nestle Waters
Tui Travel (UK and Ireland)
Nestle
Cambridge Silicon Radio
RBS
Background
Wil has 15 years experience of sport psychology consulting with professional and international performers and national coaches. Wil was selected as Head Quarter psychologist for the holding camp prior to the Athens Olympic Games in 2004 and is working with the GB Hockey Squad in preparation for 2012.
Wil received a Ph.D. in Sport Psychology from Exeter University in 1999.
Before joining Lane4 as a consultant in 2005, Wil had five years management experience, turning a loss making company into a commercially viable operation by improving staff engagement which in turn provided a higher quality of service to customers. In 2000, Wil developed his own successful performance consultancy business, focusing on sport psychology coaching, Corporate Coaching and Leadership Training.
Wil's work schedule at Lane4 allows him to continue working in sport. He is the national lead psychologist for the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) leading a team of psychologists to support Coaches, players and teams throughout the performance pathway. Wil is married with a young daughter and son. He is passionate about sport in general and manages to find time to play as well as coach. Nowadays he takes his golf, skiing and fitness most seriously.
