Two Brummie businesses complete groundbreaking leadership programme

Two members of the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce - Gowling WLG and GuruYou Coaching - have joined forces to deliver a transformative leadership programme.

The Heads Together Programme has been designed to elevate leadership skills, enhance collaboration, and foster a coaching culture within Gowling WLG's teams.

The programme was launched in 2024 to bring together heads of departments from across Gowling WLG's offices. Its mission is to strengthen leadership skills, build cross-department collaboration, and equip leaders with coaching tools they can use long after the programme's completion.

Rebecca Mander (pictured), founder of GuruYou Coaching, led the programme, marking her first time delivering it at a company-wide scale. Sessions were hosted at Gowling WLG's Snowhill office in Birmingham, bringing participants together from diverse locations.

Over five sessions, small cohorts of eight leaders developed essential skills to tackle current business challenges.

With Rebecca’s expert guidance, participants engaged in Coaching Circles—a peer-driven coaching format that encouraged them to coach one another through real-world challenges, mirroring the support an external coach would provide.

Rebecca described the programme as “a journey in building trust and fostering authentic collaboration. Watching leaders support and empower each other in such a meaningful way has been a privilege.”

Edel Margetts, head of service delivery, said: “The course was excellent and really helped me to reflect on how I lead.

“It was great to consider behaviours and what is behind people’s actions. I’ve done these kinds of courses before, but Rebecca’s delivery was clear, simple, and supported by great real-life examples. 10 out of 10!”

Participants were particularly struck by how quickly they built rapport and developed meaningful relationships. 

Edel added: “In a large organisation, it’s easy to focus solely on individual goals.

“This programme provided real value by fostering collaboration and the sharing of ideas across teams.”

For more information about GuruYou Coaching or the Heads Together Programme, please contact the team and Rebecca at hello@guruyoucoach.com