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The Career Practice
+44 (0)7860 479 712

See what our clients have to say...

Since the first introduction to Nigel Cowdery in 2005 my career and opportunities to progress has been substantially enhanced. The tools and training Nigel prepared me with has greatly assisted me to prepare and deliver myself as a professional and worthy candidate when exploring the job market.

The confidence I have in both myself and preparation when applying for a senior management positions and when attending interviews is greatly attributed to Nigel’s personal competence and technique of preparing people so they are ahead of others.

  Graham, 
  Occupational Health & Safety Manager, 
  Cambridge    

I was working as an independent technical computer consultant in banks all over the world writing and maintaining software. I was introduced to The Career Practice in April 2011 when I was out of work not knowing what to do next.

They revived my enthusiasm for work. I casually mentioned an idea that had been fermenting in my mind. They had the insight to take this vague possibility and turn it into a business. I retired from the computer industry in January 2012, I started the website www.aid4disabled.com a month later. The aim is to give people with a progressively disabling disease independence and a better quality of life.

I entered a Dragon’s Den type competition run by my council in September 2012, I won a £1,000 investment in my website. This has helped aid4disabled grow in a way that is truly exciting.

The ability of The Career Practice to take the seed of an idea and help me to turn it into a growing business is something that I could never have foreseen.
   Patrick,
   Business Owner, Hertfordshire 
  


I had spent thirty plus years as an IT Consultant, Project Manager or Project Director. I was becoming tired of the lack of vitality and excellence of an industry that is becoming decadent. I was also tired of the box ticking and office politics which is pervading the industry. I was looking for a change.

The coaching sessions confirmed that I needed to change direction and to concentrate solely on Project Direction work. They also helped me develop the story of my achiements as opposed to what I just did. I was also able to summarise my achievements more clearly and sell myself more effectively. The sessions also convinced me that I should write about one of my passions, Wine, so I am now writing a wine blog

I was able to change direction. I am, now, using their network and my own to find companies that want to revitalise IT projects and make them more productive. I am much more confident about my future prospects.  I have achieved results which would not have been possible without Nigel and Denise’s encouragement and mentoring.

Nigel and Denise are fun people to work with but do not take themselves or working life too seriously. They are down to earth but full of ideas and their quiet confidence rubs off on you.

I recommend Career Practise highly and will always want to keep in contact with them.
   Trevor,
   Programme Director, Kent 
  


If you’re searching for the next step in your career development, I have the utmost confidence in recommending Career Practise.

They’re by far the most supportive and approachable career consultants that I dealt with and absolute pleasure to deal with. After our first meeting I felt I found a career consultancy perfect for me not only to assist me back into an ideal role but in terms business direction and on-going personal development. Both Nigel and Denise will always find the time to liaise with me in preparation for interviews, business planning meetings or even if I needed a boost in confidence and morale with a quick evening chat in a pub! They took the time to meet me, understand my strengths, listen to my thoughts and to figure out what I liked/didn’t like from my past experiences, and assisted in planning the motions for what I wanted moving forward.

The entire team has always provided me with the best information about developing and presenting a new business plan, gain business opportunities and have an excellent understanding of various industries with a fantastic network database including established relationships with the industry’s leading employers from smaller local companies and agencies to global firms.
   Marie,
   Digital Marketing Manager & Entrepreneur,   

   London    

I was looking to take my career to the next step and beyond. Having run my own strategic, financial and management consultancy firm for 11 years I needed to take expand and grow to the next level of work that I could undertake,  My roles were mainly at Head of Finance level, however I knew where I wanted to be in terms of running a department and moving to Assistant Director and above level but just needed a plan on how to achieve this. I’d heard about the Career Practice and their reputation for helping people not only towards their goals, but also developing themselves . I wanted to know if they could deliver the same results for me.

The most exciting and productive part of the whole experience was getting one on one coaching which helped me to focus on what I did well, where I needed to develop and what steps I needed to take to achieve my goals. This coupled with real networking opportunities helped me to connect with key people who were in a position to provide me with help, expertise and job opportunities.

Using The Career Practice has meant that I have a robust career plan which has been shaped through this essential service. I am now Assistant Director for a local authority a position I would not have attained without the guidance of The Career Practice. They have also helped with mentoring / guiding my staff.

The Career Practice is unique in delivering real results to where you want your career to be. It worked for me it can work for you!    
   Liz, 
   Finance Director, London

The difficulty in career progression is to surpass prejudices and poor self-perception. I had been in public sector for some time and was following the usual self-fulfilling prophecy: “I will never get out of here and get the job I really want”. But instead of digging that hole I took the first step out: I met with the bunch at The Career Practice. What they did is simple: they made me project myself into my dream job. More, they helped me project THAT winning image of myself rather than my usual doom and gloom. And it worked: I am going where I wanted to go and I know this only a step in my new fulfilling career.

It takes time, effort, patience and that nerve-braking experience of looking in a mirror and asking “what do I want?” After every meeting I was full of energy and new ideas, ready to project a winning self to anyone I would meet. The ideas and practice you get from TCP last a lifetime… The Career Practice is step one, your career is what you do next.
   Sebastian, 
   Chief Information Officer, London   
 


A friend introduced me to the Career Practice during summer 2010 when I was considering moving onto a new role. At that time I had been with the same organisation for quite a long time and I felt the need to assess my desired next steps and to redefine my brand before getting out there into the marketplace. My sessions with the Career Practice allowed me to understand the way that I needed to communicate in order for companies to understand my value to them, and they provided me with the confidence to do just that. My time spent with Denise and Nigel gave me the strength and the vision to change my situation and to move in a completely new direction. I not only found a new position but, much more importantly, came to understand what I wanted from my career. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with The Career Practice and intend to keep doing so for the rest of my career. I am also incredibly grateful to Denise and to Nigel for their ideas and constant support and can unreservedly recommend them to anyone looking to go through a similar experience as I did.
   Kate,
   VP International Markets, London   
 


A financial advisor recommended forecasting the means required to keep my dependants and my lifestyle aspirations where I wanted them.  Proactive career management was evidently the best (legal) means to achieve that!  I looked up Nigel who I had encountered in a previous incarnation and thus came across The Career Practice.

The sessions with Nigel & Denise confirmed that active career management is the means to a secure future.  But I already knew that.  It was the confidence for self-promotion and a clear understanding of what I did & didn’t want to do that they gave me  – with no mention of what you can and can’t do, since you can do anything!  Formal and informal networking quickly became natural and fascinated by the range of things people do for a living, it remains the most natural thing in the world.

I felt in control and totally responsible for what happened next … and the next thing that happened was a job offer from an old contact that I had looked up whilst going through The Career Practice coaching.  Result!  ROI confirmed – one happy and loyal customer.
   Matt,
   Global PMO Manager and Transformation

   Consultant , London    

I was working as a deputy facilities manager at a large bank and I kept looking at people above me on the careers ladder, thinking, I could do their job, and be better at it, but I just didn’t know how to make it happen!!

After one meeting with Nigel, I felt for the first time that I could actually do whatever I wanted to do, I just needed to get my story sorted out and put myself in front of the right people.

After my first coaching session with Denise (and my first telling off for having any doubts of my abilities) I left the office ready to buy my first Mulberry bag and red high heeled shoes, because from that moment on I was determined that I was going to succeed and no one was going to tell me otherwise!

Since I met Nigel and Denise a year ago I have secured two great positions and have been offered four. I have never left an interview feeling I didn’t leave them wanting more, and will never again settle for a job that is not 100% what I want.  I no longer feel that I am not capable of achieving great things; I know I can, and that confidence means I attract attention, for all the right reasons.

Seems corny but Nigel and Denise changed me forever. For the first time I invested in myself and my career and I struck Gold. They made me proud to be me, to shout about what I can do, and to never sell myself short.  All this in just 12 months and I have them with me for life……just doesn’t get better than that!    
   Philippa , 
   Facilities Manager, Cambridgeshire  


By the time I found Nigel and Denise I was in a place where most people find themselves after looking for a new job for some time. I was frustrated with the job market and recruiters who over promised and under delivered every time. I started to dumb down my searches and was willing to take anything to move from my current position, which could have been career suicide.

I had already moved sideways in my career and needed to get back on track. Due to the diversity in my skill sets I found that I was difficult to market, future employers and agencies didn’t really know what to do with me.

When we got started we worked on various techniques enabling me to open my mind and outlook, my confidence grew and we defined exactly what I wanted to do and where I needed to be. I found out how to work the job market and get onto the right people’s radar. My whole outlook, attitude and approach changed. I had a renewed confidence which came across to everyone I made contact with. My interview and negotiation techniques were honed and I felt fully prepared.

I started getting interviews and all of a sudden I was in a position where I had 3 great offers in front of me.

As a direct result of the coaching and help I got from Denise and Nigel I am now a software consultant in London. I negotiated a superb package and doubled my salary.

Would I have changed job? Yes….. eventually.

Would I have achieved the salary level that I have now ? Maybe ….. One day.

Ask yourself what you really want to do and where you want to be then call the guys at The Career Practice and make it happen.
   Enzo,
   Software Consultant, Bedfordshire 
  


I had a wide-ranging work history covering a number of sectors and disciplines; finance, entertainment, marketing, property, communications. When I recently wanted to reassess my career options, I felt I had masses to offer, but knew I was a ‘challenge’ for prospective employers .

I thought I knew what I wanted to be doing, but working with TCP I widened the scope of my ambition, re-gained the confidence (and some!) that changing direction can sap, worked to become more focused and confident in my proposition and understood how beneficial (and even fun) networking can be if approached the right way.

I secured meetings with MDs of companies I wanted to work with, some great interviews for jobs I thought interested me and got great feedback.  Eventually I realised I’d rather use that energy to build a business where my efforts produced direct returns than to secure a role where my earnings were capped by a salary!

My positive approach put some great opportunities in my path, including business development work with an acquaintance which proved so successful that we decided to form an advertising agency together and now work with Oakley and AXA Insurance amongst others.

Nigel and Denise continue to be an invaluable source of advice, support and connections and are still very much a part of what I’m doing and will remain so.
   Ben,
   Entrepreneur and Business Owner , Hove
 
  
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The Career Practice Limited is registered in England and Wales. Company number 07076806. 
Registered address: Woburn Court, 2 Railton Road, Kempston, Bedford MK42 7PN.
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