Mike Pearton
Oxford, England, United Kingdom
14
Years of Coaching Experience
2650
Coaching Hours Logged
About
I run The Coaching Specialist as a boutique executive, business, and individual, coaching practice, personally managing all coaching engagements, client relationships, and operational oversight to ensure a high‑impact experience. There is often a core focus on Authenticity and its relationship with Personal Growth.
I also provide Business Process Mentoring services, mainly for small and medium businesses of up to about 250 employees. My focus here is quite broad, but much of what I do relates to organisation structure, delegation of authority, control, and measurement of results.
My primary focus, however, is on Management to Leadership transformation. The business environment is experiencing a substantial amount of turmoil at this time. Managers, and particularly Business Owners and First-line Managers (Managers who manage Managers) are in the front line and need to be supported and to develop new skills to deal with the pressure and win through. This is where I come in. See my Leadership Coaching package at the end of this profile for more information.
The common thread through all the work I do is to assist my Clients to become more Purpose Driven. This path often leads to Authenticity which is my true love and passion!
It is self-evident that for both coaching and mentoring, the agenda is always the Client’s, and assistance can be provided in a number of areas:
Developing yourself – self-awareness | emotional intelligence | assertiveness | work-life balance | communication | conflict management | delegation | influencing | problem solving | procrastination |
Improving team performance – cross cultural issues | effective meetings | performance management | strategic focus |
Planning your next step – promotion | career management | retirement
Managing work processes – an area where an independent experienced third party is often invaluable - a safe space to reflect | a personal testing ground before you launch | managing change | negotiation skills |
Languages
Meeting Modality
Who is Mike Pearton?
Coaching is often offered by individuals who have high levels of theoretical coaching process knowledge and good coaching qualifications, but who are sometimes short of actual senior management practical experience.
I am a seasoned business professional, with a wide range of experience at a senior level. A self-motivated individual with above average interpersonal skills. I have a strong bias toward achieving defined objectives through the promotion of strategic thinking, strong management and leadership, clear communication and organisational alignment.
EDUCATION and FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS
- A degree in languages, Theory of Literature, and Psychology
- A two-year post-graduate Diploma in Industrial Marketing
- A three-year part-time Diploma in Human Resources
- A two-year part-time Diploma in World Class Manufacturing
- A one-year Advanced Franchise Management Diploma
WORK EXPERIENCE
- Sales Representative with a Unilever company (FMCG)
- Sales Representative with Eli Lilly (pharmaceuticals)
- Regional Manager with Maskew Miller (Publishing)
- Company Human Resources Manager – PG Group (Automotive Glass)
- Marketing Manager – PG Group (Automotive Glass)
- National Franchise Manager - PG Group (Automotive Glass)
As Company Human Resources Manager, I was a member of the Executive Committee reporting to the CEO. In addition to my functional responsibility, I also had a significant broader strategic accountability relating to corporate governance and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
PROFESSIONAL ACCREDITATION
Institute for Independent Business International (London)
Business School for Consultancy and Business Coaching Accreditation
In 2004 I took a voluntary separation package from my employer. I then started the application process for accreditation with the prestigious “Institute for Independent Business International” (the IIBI) which had been established in 1984 in London. This affiliation made me a member of a group of approximately 3,500 Associates across the world each of whom had twenty years of verified senior management business experience, in their own areas of speciality, and who had successfully completely the gruelling Residential Business School Programme in Watford. These were only two of the stringent requirements for accreditation. Sadly, this business, which required personal attendance, participation, peer assessment, and ongoing personal development, did not survive Covid with its travel restrictions. I attended in October of 2004 and the 27 applicants that month came from eleven different countries. Enrichment and networking at a momentous level, indeed! I still include a significant number of these Associates in my network.
OTHER
Very few Business Coaches have coaches. For me this has been an essential process for converting knowledge and theory into skills and experience. It also aids me greatly in keeping up to date with new coaching techniques and the application thereof.
My personal coach is a certified and practising Career Psychologist. I have worked with him for a number of years and, in the early stages, he assisted me in refining and developing my basic, primarily theoretical, IIBI coaching qualification. Over a period of about two years, he worked me through a number of hand-picked books and research articles relating to the application of coaching theory in the working world.
One of the key elements we covered was the choice of a coaching model. I eventually settled on the Solution Focused Approach (SFA), with elements of Narrative and CBT. The SFA has, and continues to, work well for me and my clients. The primary focus is on the Future Desired State, and this delivers results timeously.
We recently worked through a coaching tool known as Socratic Thinking, and I am now starting to use this in my work. The primary focus is on Truth and this fits in well with Authenticity.
Why coach with Mike Pearton?
In the early days of working for myself, I offered a range of consulting services including Business Plans, Due Diligence Studies, Marketing Plans and a range of other general consulting work, much of it related to organization structure. After a few years I moved away from this and focused predominantly on Business Process Mentoring. I then started moving into Business Coaching and Mentoring and that is now all I do.
Given that my coaching practice has continued to grow, I recently took the decision to partner with Coaching Loft, a sophisticated coaching platform that was voted the best coaching management software in 2024. It has been reported that more than 3,650 professional coaches and 117 organisations worldwide currently use this renowned coaching support system.
There are a number of distinct benefits for each of the parties involved in the coaching process i.e. the Coach, the Coachee, and the coaching sponsor / company. These include: shared diaries | appointment scheduling | integrated video conferencing | integration with MS Teams and Zoom | chat facility | journals and more.
Packages
Leadership Coaching
“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge”
Stephen Hawking - English Theoretical Physicist (1942 to 2018)
“If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got”
Popular saying variously attributed - Henry Ford (?) – Albert Einstein (?)
Preamble
The stage is set for 2026 to be “The Year of the Leader”
The business operating environment has become significantly more complex over the last four or five years and this trend will continue into the future. (Forbes.com)
The environment - Why Managers need upskilling
Managers, and particularly First-Line Managers (Managers who manage Managers), and Business Owners are under serious pressure as they face new challenges each day.
Issues such as technological acceleration, economic uncertainty, hybrid work, AI and people substitution, and changed work expectations post-Covid, among others, require sophisticated responses and interventions. (Forbes.com).
These issues are broad-based and can be strategic, operational, human, and cultural in nature.
Linear Management practices (the traditional concepts of Planning, Organising, Controlling, Performance Management, etc.) are no longer enough and, particularly for First-Line Managers, additional, more sophisticated, skill sets are required. These are rightfully described as “Leadership” skills. In simple terms these additional skills sets are broadly encompassed in the concept known as “Systems Thinking”.
The reinforcement of Linear Management Skills with Systems Thinking (Leadership) Skills is becoming more urgent each day. There is a strong need to create direction, inspire commitment, and enthuse subordinates to strive for a future state that is changing in real time.
The core of the matter
I have worked with many managers over the years ranging from those with a handful of reports to those heading up diverse corporations. One of the most surprising revelations has been that virtually no two of them have had the same definitions of the key concepts of "Management" and "Leadership". While the tendency of the literature and the press to use the words interchangeably is a large part of the problem, the value of clear distinction is paramount.
Given the dire need to urgently develop managers’ ability to improve employee engagement levels, years of experience has taught me that this distinction is the cornerstone of the leadership development process.
There is no doubt that there is a distinct progression from “Manager” to “Leader” and most, (but not all), managers can make the transition with expert support. This is where I come in.
About Leadership Coaching
Coaching is a strategic partnership, and the process is highly personalised and confidential. I employ the Solution Focused Approach as a coaching methodology. This is well suited to the business environment and emphasises that the class of problems is distinct from the class of solutions. This concept facilitates and expedites lasting, positive behaviour change.
Given that Leadership is less about authority and more about influence, adaptability, and relationship management, the Manager who has low self-awareness is unlikely, without assistance, to become a good leader. My coaching package addresses this key issue, and others, and helps managers to build the essential mindset and skills necessary to inspire teams, drive results, and lead confidently in the midst of complexity.
This programme is designed for leaders who want to elevate their leadership impact and gear up for greater responsibility.
Targeted Outcomes – Benefits of Leadership Coaching
There are many benefits to Leadership development:
- Self-leadership and Awareness: understanding strengths, blind spots, and leadership style
- Personal Adaptability: leading confidently in times of change and uncertainty
- Team Leadership: motivating, delegating, and creating accountability for high performance
- Strategic thinking: moving from tactical execution to more strategic decision making
- Sustained resilience – reducing reactivity and improving strategic composure
- Influence and Communication: communicating with clarity and confidence
As a takeaway from the coaching engagement the Coachee is guided to develop a personalised Leadership Growth Plan, which defines agreed desired weekly habits, metrics, and accountability and is intended to reinforce positive change into the future.
Structure, Duration, and Pricing
The structure and duration of the coaching engagement needs to be aligned with your programme and availability. In view of this I am always open to suggestions.
Although not essential, I most often employ a three stage take-on process. Leadership Coaching is a transformative mindset change process and the Coachee needs to understand the implications while being enthusiastic and committed. The process of a deepened sense of Self-awareness can be challenging for some individuals.
A typical engagement might look like the following:
Stage 01: A “Discovery Call”
This is a short, informal meeting to ensure that there is a good fit between the parties before committing to a coaching engagement.
There are three key elements to this process: (1) to confirm that we will be able to build rapport and trust, (2) to gain some insight into the challenges to be addressed and goals to be achieved, (3) for me to briefly explain my coaching methodology, style and process. This also presents an opportunity to experience the coaching process.
DURATION: 30 Minutes
PRICING: No charge - for serious enquiries
Stage 02: Project definition
As per the Discovery Call process, suitability will now have been confirmed, and the process of Project Definition can proceed. I use an American university developed Leadership questionnaire (the STS - more information on request) and I now send the Coachee this document. Once he / she has completed the document it is sent back to me and I score it and prepare for the first coaching session. I bill the equivalent of one half-hour at this stage which must be paid before we proceed further. We then engage and develop the project objectives over the next two one-hour sessions. It is recommended that a buy-in process is completed at this stage, as necessary, depending on the Coachee’s working arrangements.
DURATION: Two one-hour sessions
PRICING: 75 GBP| 100 USD | 1,650 ZAR per hour
Stage 03: Conventional programme
Having established the Project objectives, we engage on a structured basis, typically one hour per week with a month-to-month commitment. Payment on presentation of invoice.
DURATION: Calendar month-to-month.
PRICING: 75 GBP | 100 USD | 1,650 ZAR per hour
Mike Pearton