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APSCo Kai Murray

Kai specialises in guiding business leaders and their teams to play a bigger game effectively and sustainably. She has a real passion for helping leaders who are serious about change, and is familiar with the often-lonely challenges facing the entrepreneur. She brings a wealth of experience and a strong track record of building highly successful teams and implementing structures and systems to improve long-term performance. Kai spent over 10 years as Managing Director of Search Consultancy, becoming part of the management buy-in/buy-out team in February 2000. Whilst firmly establishing Search as the leading independent player in Scotland, the successful foot print was rolled out south of the border, opening locations in Manchester, Crawley, Leicester, Liverpool, Leeds, Birmingham and London, and increasing staff numbers from 170 to over 600.

As a result, Search was recognised as one of the UK’s 100 fastest growing private companies in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ ‘Profit Track 100’ and Kai was acknowledged as Business Women of the Year.

The company turnover on exit (end 2007) was over £120m and NFI had grown at 20% year on year for the previous 5 years.

Kai has an MBA from Edinburgh University Management School and her dissertation title was ‘Managing Change in the Pharmaceutical Industry.’

Accreditations

• Worldwide Association of Business Coaches (WABC)

• Registered Corporate Coach Status (RCC)

• ILM accredited coaching and mentoring qualifications improve management performance, conflict resolution and communication and interpersonal skills

• Accredited Shirlaws Business Coach Winner

• Business Insiders Elite Leadership Award 2014

• BEd

• Marketing Diploma

• MBA

Specialisms
  • Growth Management & Business Planning - Growth – the key platforms in place to support, accelerate and deliver continued, sustainable and profitable growth. Many examples where revenues have increased and even doubled.
  • Mentoring & Leadership Support - Is about boosting the person’s ability to perform as a leader and to achieve the vision. I work with ambitious leaders who embrace change.
  • Merger, Acquisition & Exit - Experience in IPO process and acquiring SME’s. As a coach I have supported clients during the exit process and have designed/ran Merger Integration workshops.
  • Executive Coaching - I have worked with many executives/ high-potential employees to help them gain self-awareness, clarify goals, achieve their development objectives, unlock their potential, and act as a sounding board.
Reference 1

"Kai has been a great asset to our exec team. She is motivational, direct and very knowledgeable. I would highly recommend Kai as a Business Coach, Exec Leader and Non Exec. She gets results!"

Reference 2

"I have worked with Kai for over 20 years now... Previously, she was my MD and more recently she has performed a NED role and set on the BE-IT board for the last 4 years. Her experience within recruitment and business generally is phenomenal. Kai is able to offer first class insight, experience and support across such a wide and complex range of business issues. Very pragmatic, level-headed and above all fun to have on your top team! It is my pleasure to recommend Kai as a positive agent of change to any growing business."

Reference 3

"I have personally worked and engaged with Kai Murray over a period of time for Sellick Partnership in developing teams at differing levels with her extensive experience and wisdom from an industry perspective. The joy and benefit of Kai is that she has worked at every level within the recruitment sector from a business perspective – when you put her in front of sales teams her impact and empathy is immediate. Having personally sat on the APSCo Executive Committee on two occasions, Kai is exactly the kind of individual who will enhance the reputation of everything good that flows from the organisation. She is an asset I would highly recommend."

Reference 4

"Typical projects/support:

• Strategic Business Reviews (first step in any new relationship): The Strategic Business Review is a valuable standalone exercise, which is designed to support a business to really understand/validate the areas in which it could perform better. It provides an objective forum to discuss the issues a business faces and also provides us with a more detailed picture of your business. We spend time talking with you and some other members of your team about what you see working well, what issues exist etc. This will highlight a number of key areas to focus on in order to help you achieve our desired outcomes. Based on these findings, we then develop an approach for addressing the issues the business faces. Both the findings and the approach are captured in a strategy paper, which we come back and talk you through. Each issue is identified as a potential project and in addition to highlighting the approach for addressing the issues. From here, you can then decide how you wish to proceed

• SME – Challenge toxic culture/high staff turnover

• Supported the Board on Design & implementation of Cultural Change Program

• Doubled revenue and now Award Winner Business

• Corp – Leadership Development (fast track)

• SME Business Owner – strategic re-structure of business/identify potential successors

• Corp – support CEO move to main board then an additional project to align board members."

Reference 5

"Kai and I have worked together for 4+ years now and she is a real inspiration to work with. She has been and remains a fantastic coach for me personally and has helped to revolutionise my business, which has led to growth in profit by 120%. Being an ex-recruiter herself she “gets it” and always takes time to truly get under the skin of the organisation, therefore she understands the hearts and minds of everyone in the company, which leads to more informed opinions and tailored support. Kai adapts her coaching/training style accordingly to suit the person she is working with, she is instinctive, can feel the “mood of the camp” and knows when a supportive chat is required or more probing/challenging conversation is needed. If there is an urgent or important requirement for her support she always makes herself available at short notice. Kai is results focussed and will hold you/your team accountable and will always act in the best interests of the company. She is professional and a real positive thinker and fun to work with, her goal is to motivate and inspire you to be the best you can be!"