LEADERSHIP · TRAINING · WORKSHOPS · SPEAKING
Helping businesses grow by developing the people who lead them.
Strategy looks great on paper. It's people who make it happen, or don't.
I'm Michelle Reade. I work with organisations and business owners to build leaders who actually lead, teams who pull together and people who finally believe they're capable of more.
Leadership sessions, workshops, training and talks that people enjoy, remember and act on. No death by PowerPoint. No role-play nobody wanted to do.
Based in Dorset. Working with organisations across the UK and beyond.
Book Michelle to Speak → · Looking for 1:1 coaching? Book A Cuppa & a Natter →
Let's Talk About Your Team
26+
years in business and leadership
1,000+
business owners supported
17 years
inside franchising
Finalist
UK StartUp Awards 2026
DEVELOPING YOUR PEOPLE
Sessions your people will actually remember
Practical, honest and properly human. People leave knowing what to do differently on Monday morning, and actually wanting to do it.
Leadership development sessions
For the managers who got promoted for being brilliant at the job, then got handed a team with no instructions. How to lead, delegate and finally have the conversation they've been putting off.
Team workshops
Confidence, communication and working better together. The kind of session where the quiet one speaks up and the loud one listens.
Bespoke organisational training
You tell me what's really going on. I build the session around it. Nothing off the shelf, nothing that doesn't fit your people.
Conference speaking & facilitation
Real stories, honest lessons and a few laughs. Talks on leadership, confidence and self-belief that people are still talking about at the coffee break.
Team days, retreats & experiences
An away day, a retreat or a mastermind dinner. Time out of the day-to-day to reconnect, plan properly and have the conversations that never quite happen in the office.
Training your team?
Tell me what's going on and I'll come back with ideas and a clear price.
Enquire About a WorkshopRunning a conference or event?
Talks on leadership, confidence and self-belief, from someone who's lived every bit of it.
Book Michelle to SpeakWATCH MY SPEAKER REEL
WHAT THE ROOM SAYS
Still being talked about months later.
"Michelle was a beacon of enthusiasm and inspiration when she conducted a training on self belief for my team. Everyone felt so empowered and excited to move forward with their businesses after the session. I can't recommend Michelle enough for bespoke tailored training to motivate teams."
Heather O'Brien, Manager, Utility Warehouse ★★★★★ Google review
"Still getting really good comments from your presentation at the conference."
Alex, Host, STA Conference (three months after the event)
Spoken and trained at: the STA Conference, Womanifest, Utility Warehouse and Chamber of Commerce events.
Book Michelle to SpeakWHAT ACTUALLY CHANGES
Nobody books me for “leadership development”.
They book me because something isn't working and they're tired of it. Here's what it looks like afterwards:
- The manager finally has the conversation they've been avoiding for months.
- The team meeting stops being the thing everyone dreads.
- The owner takes a proper day off, and the business doesn't fall over.
- Decisions get made instead of sitting in someone's head for weeks.
- The quiet ones speak up. The busy ones stop firefighting.
- Everyone knows what's next, and actually does it.
AS FEATURED IN
Bournemouth Echo · The International Franchise Entrepreneur · MSN · Dorset Business Matters podcast
Board Director, Bournemouth Chamber of Trade & Commerce · Finalist, UK StartUp Awards 2026
HOW I CAN HELP
Three ways to work with me
FOR ORGANISATIONS
Leadership & People Development
Helping managers and business owners become confident leaders people actually want to follow.
- New Managers Training, for people who were one of the team last month
- Leadership sessions and programmes for managers and senior teams
- Franchisee and head office development for franchise networks
FOR TEAMS & EVENTS
Training, Workshops & Speaking
Sessions that get people thinking differently and doing things differently. For your team, your network or your event.
- Team workshops and bespoke training
- Conference talks, panels and facilitation
- Team days, retreats and mastermind dinners
FOR YOU
Coaching & Mentoring
One-to-one support when you want someone in your corner. Not a programme with 200 people in it. Just me, properly in your business.
- Your Business Yoda, monthly support from £199 a month
- VIP Days, one full day with a clear plan by home time
REAL PEOPLE, REAL CHANGE
What happens when people are properly supported
★★★★★
"Working with Michelle has been one of the best investments I've made in my business."
"I was unsure whether business coaching was right for me. After our first conversation, I felt completely at ease and knew I wanted to work with her."
Katy Oxley
Business owner · Google review
TURNOVER UP 60%
From doing the care calls to leading the team
Dawn's care business was stalling, and she was still doing the care calls herself. A year on: turnover up 60%, new premises, a manager leading the team, and she's finally had a holiday.
Dawn
Care business owner
TOOK THE LEAP
"Starting my own business felt overwhelming, and I wasn't sure whether I had what it took… I always knew she had my back. We're now going through our very first CQC inspection, and I couldn't be prouder of how far we've come."
Jane Carolan
Managing Director, GoodOaks Homecare Cheshire
FROM STUCK TO A PLAN
"I came to Michelle with big dreams and no idea how to act on them. Now I have clarity, a plan that actually feels right for my business, and the confidence to grow it more profitably than I thought possible."
Kim Street
Award-Winning Team Manager, Slimming World
HI, I'M MICHELLE
I know what leadership really asks of people, because it asked it of me.
I started my first business on an army base in Germany, then built and ran three franchise businesses of my own. After that I spent 17 years in franchising, supporting more than 1,000 business owners and the teams around them.
Then I took a role that looked perfect on paper and fell apart in reality. I cried in the car on the way to head office and blamed the traffic. Then one day I couldn't hold it together any more.
That's why I do this. I know what happens when good people are stretched, unsupported and left to work it out alone. And I know how much changes when someone finally invests in them.
I don't train from a script or coach from 30,000 feet. I get into the detail with you.
Read my storyMY SPECIALISM: FRANCHISING
17 years inside franchising. Three franchises of my own.
I've sat on both sides of the table, so I understand what it really takes to develop franchisees, support franchisors and build stronger networks.
Franchisee training and workshops, leadership development for support teams, conference sessions, and helping businesses that are ready to franchise do it properly from day one.
How I help franchise networksFREE QUIZ
Not ready to talk yet? Start here.
Take the Are You In The Owner Trap? quiz. Ten quick questions, no sign-up, and you'll see straight away whether you're in the driving seat, feeling the squeeze or in the trap.
Take the free quizQuestions people ask me
What kind of sessions do you deliver?
Do you work with organisations or business owners?
How much does training or speaking cost?
Do you work online, in person or internationally?
How much does 1:1 coaching cost?
What happens on A Cuppa & a Natter?
Am I tied into a long contract?
Let's talk about developing your people.
A leadership session, a workshop for your team, a talk at your conference or someone in your corner one-to-one. Whatever you need, it starts with a cuppa and a conversation.
Booking for your team or event? Enquire about a workshop or book me to speak.
Looking for coaching for yourself? Book A Cuppa & a Natter. Thirty minutes, no pitch, no pressure.
Let's Talk About Your Team