Member News
North East executive coaching firm Is This You? has partnered with Sage, the leader in accounting, financial, HR and payroll technology for small and medium-sized businesses, to design and deliver coaching for its High Performance Programme, a bespoke 12-month leadership development initiative for high-potential leaders in Sage’s IT division.
The programme will support a cohort of senior leaders and emerging directors through personalised development planning, one-to-one coaching and structured leadership support.
The programme will help Sage IT to strengthen its leadership pipeline by developing individuals who have been identified as future director-level leaders.
Alongside its coaching delivery, Is This You? has developed a digital platform that supports its coaching framework by giving both participants and their organisation greater clarity around focus, development priorities and progress throughout the programme.
Phil Gray, Co-founder and CEO of Is This You? said: “We’re proud to be partnering with Sage on a programme that invests in the next generation of leadership. For us, this is about helping people grow with clarity, confidence and measurable progress, while supporting organisations to build leadership strength for the future.”
Kerry Sinclair, Executive Vice President, Sage IT added: “Our development programme brings together business skills, technology skills and Sage mastery for emerging and newly appointed leaders. Finding the right coaching partner was an important decision for us. We wanted a partner who could offer personalised, confidential development, and Is This You? stood out for their lived experience, professional approach, and their ability to balance one to one coaching with cohort learning.”
Supporting leadership capacity for the future
While other traditional training programmes aim to meet the needs of a business for a limited period of time, this initiative focuses on the long term development of leadership potential, and succession planning for Sage IT.
In addition to receiving personalised development plans and one-on-one coaching sessions, each participant will have the opportunity to gain insight into, and participate in Sage's broader strategic initiatives.
Ultimately, the goal of the programme is to ensure that Sage has a steady pipeline of high-quality talent who can be prepared for leadership positions when they become available.
An Evolution in Leadership Development
This reflects an evolution in Sage IT’s approach to developing its leaders through a more personalised and holistic coaching model, backed by Is This You’s digital platform and app.
Sage selected Is This You? because of its unique blend of real-world entrepreneurial experience combined with practical coaching expertise within corporate organisations. The goal of Is This You? is to deliver meaningful change and leadership development for each participant, while collectively enhancing colleagues’ overall leadership capabilities.
Supported by the North East BIC
As well as providing entrepreneurial experience and coaching expertise, Is This You? has also benefited from the support provided by the North East BIC.
The BIC has provided strategic guidance, mentoring, and connections to a large regional network. Through these means, the BIC has contributed significantly to Is This You?'s ability to grow, expand and secure partnerships at this level.
John Forth, Co-Founder and COO of Is This You? said: “The North East BIC have been instrumental in supporting our growth. We have been challenged and supported by them, and they’ve helped us think bigger as a business. I believe that their backing has certainly been important in allowing us to reach this point.”
Growing Impact
For Is This You? securing the partnership with Sage is an important achievement. It reinforces Is This You?’s reputation as a trusted partner for organisations seeking to cultivate high performing leaders in rapidly changing environments.
"This is about developing leaders who are capable and prepared, not just in title, but also in mind-set & capability. We're excited about being able to deliver a programme that will make a sustainable difference to all parties involved.” Added John Forth
The partnership marks an important step in the continued growth of Is This You?, reinforcing its reputation as a trusted development partner for organisations looking to build high-performance leaders in rapidly changing environments.
