AIM Higher consultants

This is the pool of consultants available through the AIM Higher (the new name for Prospering Boards) programme. AIM will match you to the consultant who is best placed to help with your question.

Isilda Almeida is an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Consultant and a PhD Heritage Science student at the University of Brighton. Isilda is experienced in audience engagement, strategic planning, project management and is very passionate about supporting museums to make their service more inclusive and relevant to communities, particularly underserved audiences. Isilda designs and delivers Equity programmes and consultancy, for cultural and sector support organisations such as Sussex Dance Network; Artswork; Museum Development Programmes across the UK, and others. She is also an AIM New Stories New Audiences mentor.

Lucy Asbridge has particular experience in stakeholder and visitor consultation, audience analysis, and a detailed understanding of social and economic trends affecting the heritage industry across the UK and beyond. She is able to advise on the integration of consultation data into Activity Plans, Evaluation Reports, Business Plans and Funding Bids.

Lucy, along with Katie Pennington (see below), is part of the Consultancy Team at museum planners and designers, Haley Sharpe Design (hsd). Lucy Asbridge | LinkedIn

Rod Barlow is an accomplished technology and business specialist who has spent much of his career helping museums and other cultural institutions understand, implement and use technology solutions to improve and streamline their commercial operations. He is also a successful C-level executive and has owned and sat on the boards of several technology companies both in the UK and Europe.

Rod is CEO of Rod Barlow Digital Consulting and leads a small team in supporting museums select and implement the best technology available to provide retail, hospitality and ticketing operations a platform for providing the best of customer experiences. Click here to view the Rod Barlow Digital Consulting website>>

Hilary Barnard is a highly experienced organisational and business planning consultant. He is the co-author of Successful Museum Governance  (AIM 2020)  – with Ruth Lesirge.

Hilary’s work has included support to pursue new business models, advance partnership working, consider merger, and align Board, staff and volunteer practice with the changing conditions.  He has conducted over 60 governance reviews, including 16 within the museum and heritage sector. He is an experienced Chair of Trustees, and a former Senior Visiting Fellow at Cass (now Bayes) Business School. Together with Ruth Lesirge (as HBRL Consulting), he designed and delivered the Spark! programme (2021-23), the Induction programme for new museum Trustees (2021-23) and the Museum Leaders and Museum Enablers residential development programmes (2016-18) – for the Association of Independent Museums. He is a member of The Experience Network and a former charity Chief Executive. Click here for Hilary Barnard’s website>> 

Emma Chaplin is a highly experienced and respected museum professional, having led AIM from 2018-21 and run a successful consultancy business from 2009-18, building on senior management and curatorial roles in independent and local authority museums. Her work is characterised by energy, professionalism and a deep knowledge of the museum and heritage sector and its networks. She takes a pragmatic approach to ensure the best possible outcome whilst building confidence and skills for the future.

Her skills, knowledge and experience, relevant to the AIM Higher Programme, include governance review, business planning, advocacy, collections development, writing funding applications and developing new projects. You can find out more about Emma here>>

Laura Crean has 10 years’ experience in the museum and heritage sector focusing on strategy, governance, project management and business planning. Over the past 10 years, Laura has delivered business change, effective business plans and performance measures, and designed collaborative planning processes. Laura is passionate about creating inclusive working cultures. Her focus is on eliminating systemic marginalisation through removing and reducing barriers and redesigning processes, policies, and structures to ensure they are inclusive.

Louise Emerson has worked at CEO and senior management (Natural History Museum) in Museums and the Arts for 25 years. Louise helps organisations focus, think differently, take difficult decisions and progress. She specialises in all stages of strategic and business planning; including organisational refocus and change, income generation and fundraising, developing audiences, Board development, establishing partners. She has worked with several AIM members since 2020 and on the AIM New Stories New Audiences programme as well as delivering webinars for The Heritage Alliance.

She is a National Lottery Heritage Fund consultant, an accredited Coach and Mentor (senior level practitioner EMCC), a Help to Grow consultant and mentors with AMA, Universities or Warwick, Leeds & Kingston, and has an MBA.  Click here to visit Louise’s website>>

Stephanie Hartick specialises in the development of creative programmes linked to museum collections. As founder and director and of social enterprise Art Branches, which aims to improve health and wellbeing through creative projects linked to the environment, Stephanie is an agile, creative thinker and project manager. https://artbranches.org. 

Stephanie is happy to help with widening audiences and holds specialist and practical knowledge of creating stimulating and accessible social prescriptions based upon collections and heritage, alongside supporting mental health and wellbeing in the community and for those with health inequalities. Stephanie also holds a wealth of experience in developing strategic networks and diversifying income streams and is a Chartered Member of the Landscape Institute. Email Stephanie on stephaniehartick@gmail.com.

Sara Hilton is an accomplished cultural and heritage leader, with significant strategic and project experience.  She has excellent facilitation and mentoring skills and supports clients to challenge assumptions, encourage innovative thinking, and explore creative solutions. Sara is an accredited coach and uses a coaching approach in her work with individuals, teams and governing bodies, supporting them to open up their thinking and find their own solutions.

Sara is an effective advocate and strategic communicator, with strong regional and national networks. She has recently moved to Devon, but works across the whole of the UK and is Chair of the National Trust’s Regional Advisory Board for the North of England.

Sara supports organisations of all sizes with:

  • Governance and board development
  • Strategy and organisational change
  • Strategic partnerships – engagement, stakeholder perceptions and impact
  • Project development – project visioning, project mentoring, project health-checks and investment readiness
  • Mentoring – acting as a supportive critical friend to chairs, trustees and museum leaders
  • Facilitation – supporting the thinking of organisations, teams and governing bodies
  • Crucial conversations – supporting the sometimes difficult, but necessary conversations that may be needed to enable change
  • Evaluating change and impact.

Sam Hunt is based in the South West. He has extensive experience of working with heritage organisations across the UK – large and small. Previous appointments include Executive Director of AIM, Chief Executive of South West Museums, Libraries and Archive Council and Head of Bath Museums Service. He is a trustee of the National Maritime Museum Cornwall and Lyme Regis Museum, and a Fellow of the Museums Association. His specialisms are visioning and strategic planning, options studies, governance, and organisational reviews, change management, staff and trustee recruitment. Click here to visit Sam’s website>>

Sarah Lawrance has more than thirty years’ management and leadership experience in the museums and heritage sector, with a specialism in the strategic development of collections and programming aligned to organisational and audience development goals.  Sarah is especially keen to support smaller and volunteer-run independent museums to achieve their full potential as centres of creative resilience and place-making, celebrating local heritage and contributing to community wellbeing.  She is particularly committed to developing collections-inspired creative programming for older people including people with dementia and was awarded an Arts Council England: Developing Your Creative Practice grant to focus on this area in May 2022.  She is a Mentor for the AIM: New Stories New Audiences programme and a member of Arts Council England’s Designation panel.  Click here to see Sarah’s LinkedIn profile:  Click here to see Sarah’s LinkedIn profile>> or email on: sarah@curatoratlarge.co.uk

Ruth Lesirge is a highly experienced governance consultant and has conducted several governance reviews in the museum and heritage sector.  She is the co-author of Successful Museum Governance  (AIM 2020)  – with Hilary Barnard.

Her focus is on enhancing the contribution of the Chair-Chief Executive/Director relationship to realising the museum’s goals. She is currently President of the Association of Chairs and is a former Head of Governance Practice for Centre for Charity Effectiveness and former Senior Visiting Fellow at Cass (now Bayes) Business School.

Together with Hilary Barnard (as HBRL Consulting), she designed and delivered the Spark! programme (2021-23), the Induction programme for new museum Trustees (2021-23) and the Museum Leaders and Museum Enablers residential development programmes (2016-18),  – for the Association of Independent Museums. She is a former Chief Executive of two national charities and a member of The Experience Network. Click here to find out more about Ruth>>  

Alex Lindley is the director of Alchemy, an Organisation and People Development consultancy that specialises in working with clients in the cultural and Not-for-Profit sectors. Alchemy works with organisations that value the flexible and bespoke service that a micro-consultancy can offer.  We focus on helping people and organisations to reach their full potential, whether that be through organisational development research and consultancy, leadership development training, coaching or mentoring. Click here to visit the Alchemy Consulting website>>

Christina Lister is a marketing and audience development consultant, trainer and facilitator with 20 years of in-house, agency and consultancy experience. She supports organisations with creating marketing and audience development strategies; developing compelling missions and visions; analysing data and undertaking research; advising on communications and strategic positioning; running training and providing mentoring.

Christina has written AIM’s Marketing Success Guide and is the author of an upcoming book on Marketing Strategy for Museums, to be published by Routledge. Click here to visit Christina’s website>>

Heather Lomas specialises in helping boards with visioning, reviewing structures and leadership and culture, including coaching and mentoring support for chairs. Click here for Heather Lomas’s website>> 

“Key areas I can help with are governance issues, business planning, cashflow, organisational changes and business continuity thinking and general coaching for key staff and trustees.”   

Nancy Lyons is a heritage professional and qualified archivist involved with engaging projects to help organisations of all sizes investigate and interpret untold / difficult narratives or sensitive histories, with a view to tackling inequality by working with diverse audiences.

She has worked across most sectors including museums, the arts, charities, councils and government departments. She brings a passion for social history, research, content development, interpretation and communications. She uses her knowledge of volunteer management, collections management, and community outreach, and working with various culture professionals and supporters, to make sustainable positive impacts. Skills she possesses include using creative flair to plan, report and deliver projects; as well as to research and write for specific audiences. She is driven by wanting to make a real difference through an inclusive, creative, collaborative and holistic approach. She is currently a panel member for the AIM New Stories New Audiences scheme.

Her background also includes talks and workshop facilitation as a part of culture change initiatives. She has facilitated anti-racist training for Group for Education in Museums (GEM), and has been a board member of Museum Detox. Click here for Nancy’s LinkedIn profile>>

Hilary McGowan has over 30 years experience of the museum and heritage sector and has run her own business since 1996. Her background as a museum director in York, Exeter and Bristol gives her a pragmatic approach. She specialises in building resilience through Board and staff/volunteer development workshops, governance advice, coaching, mentoring, and succession planning. Click here for Hilary McGowan’s website>> 

“I’m happy to do telephone coaching sessions regarding work or addressing practical things you can do to keep the museum/volunteers/staff engaged.  Tips for holding Board meetings online/by conference call, how to use social media to communicate with everyone, or just someone to talk to.”  

Julie Molloy is currently the Managing Director of NGG. With excellent personal leadership, management expertise and over twenty years operational experience at Director Level, she has held positions of consistently increased responsibility in Arts and Business. Julie has proven experience in strategic development, planning and implementation, driving and managing significant change programmes focused on increasing organisational capability and effectiveness. A talented and natural leader who, throughout her career, has ensured that individuals reach their full potential within their organisation. Julie has strong technical skills in Financial Planning, Business Management and Process Improvement. Her entrepreneurial commercial approach is underpinned by significant specialist knowledge in operations, experiential retail, buying and merchandising, brand development and book publishing.

Julie steps down from her role as Managing Director in Autumn 2022 to embark on a portfolio consultancy career.  Click here for Julie’s LinkedIn profile>>

Judy Niner has worked with numerous UK museums and heritage organisations, large and small, primarily focusing on fundraising and income generation. She was a trustee of the Roald Dahl Museum & Story Centre and the Waterways Trust. Since 2011 she has chaired the board of trustees of Cogges Manor Farm in Oxfordshire through a period of survival and stabilisation, preparing the organisation for exciting future development and long-term sustainability.  

Judy is happy to help with income generation and trading activities, fundraising, relationships and stewardship, communications and defining board roles and responsibilities. 

Sarah O’Grady is a non-practising solicitor, former chair of an NGO and manager in a public sector regulator, she works with charities to improve governance and related operational matters, developing practical tools. She specialises in governance reviews, board skills and effectiveness, leadership development and coaching and, as an accredited mediator, conflict management. She can also provide support with constitutional matters and help boards seek and implement legal advice. Click here to view Sarah’s LinkedIn profile>> 

“The support I could give is on governance, operational matters such as policies and risk management, difficult relationships and situations and coaching especially of chairs.”  

Katie Pennington has a wealth of experience in the arts, culture and heritage sector undertaking a variety of projects including operational and organisational development, audience development, feasibility studies, options appraisals, funding bids and consultation. She is experienced at writing business cases to support both early stage concept and options development, as well as more detailed operational plans. Through this work and with her experience of undertaking governance reviews for a wide variety of heritage and cultural sites, she has supported organisations to move projects forwards, attracting funding from a range of sources including the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Katie has a clear understanding of the need for cultural and heritage organisations, in both the public and charitable sectors, to increase their commercial income at a time when public sector funding is becoming more constrained. In addition, her understanding of audiences and their needs and motivations helps to ensure that the viability and sustainability of projects are considered through balancing community, heritage and commercial outcomes.

Katie, along with Lucy Asbridge (see above) is part of the Consultancy Team at museum planners and designers, Haley Sharpe Design (hsd). Katie Pennington | LinkedIn

Debbie Read is a fundraising specialist and helps boards to shape governance to tackle their financial realities. She is experienced in working with boards where personal relationships get in the way of successful governance and can also motivate well balanced boards to move to the next level of organisational development. This includes translating dry trustee recruitment approaches into an attractive, but realistic sell on behalf of the museum. Click here to visit the Read Consultancy website>> 

Kate Rolfe is a dynamic, creative and action-focused consultant, with particular expertise in marketing and audience development, commercial planning and new revenue sources, and responsible recruitment for the cultural sector. Kate’s approach is practical, objective and creative; as a consultant she wants to help her clients feel they are having a moment of freedom from their everyday, seeing their challenges with fresh eyes and feeling invigorated to try out new solutions with their teams. Thanks to having always worked at the cross-section between commerce and culture, she knows how to help clients navigate multiple (and sometimes conflicting) priorities, using Design Thinking techniques to help clients overcome ongoing barriers.

Kate runs The Revels Office, a commercial, audience and organisational development consultancy for the cultural sector; full details on the projects that she and her wider team have worked on can be found here: http://therevelsoffice.co.uk/our-clients. Kate also recently set up Equality In Focus: Arts Edition, as a tool to help the sector consider their approach to diversity, equity and inclusion. www.therevelsoffice.co.uk 

Marilyn Scott is based in the South East and is happy to travel across the UK. Marilyn is an independent heritage and arts consultant working with the Cultural Consulting Network She has experience of supporting boards with all kinds of governance review including trustee skill audits, recruitment, succession planning and process and procedure. She has also supported reviews of governance structure and strategic planning and works as a mentor to boards and chairs. Click here to visit the Cultural Consulting Network website>> 

Rachel Shepherd is a fundraising specialist based in the West Midlands. Having worked in the museum and heritage sector since 2006 she set up her consultancy nine years ago with the aim of supporting small and medium third-sector organisations to achieve their goals through strategic planning, fundraising, stewardship and income generation. Her experience includes working with organisations in the areas of heritage, the arts, local government, advocacy, medical care, animal welfare and community support. Her outlook is entrepreneurial and works with each client to create a sustainable legacy. Click here to visit Rachel’s LinkedIn profile>>

Lori Streich has been an independent consultant since 1996.  She focuses on

  • Supporting the development of effective and sustainable organisations, including all aspects of good governance and strategic planning.
  • Engaging stakeholders in communities and in community heritage.
  • Partnership development.
  • Evaluation and impact assessment.

Lori has worked with over 140 national, regional and local organisations, including those delivering heritage, community and wellbeing projects and services.  She also has experience of developing, delivering and evaluating projects in the culture and heritage sectors, and believes that the sector offers a valuable approach to community and public engagement.   Lori is a School Governor, a Director of Consultants for Good, and a Non-Executive Director of Suez Communities Trust, and she has extensive experience as a Charity Trustee including as Chair of Arnos Vale Cemetery Trust. Click here to visit the Rowan Associates website>>

Joe Traynor is the former Head of Museum Development at Scotland’s national museum development body, Museums Galleries Scotland.  He has worked in national, local authority and independent museums and galleries.  Believing passionately that the museum sector should be relevant to communities, Joe works in partnership to make sure that museums are the best they can be.

He is experienced in strategy and business planning, governance reviews, audience and collections development and fundraising.  He is an experienced and approachable trainer and mentor in all things museum. Click here for Joe’s LinkedIn profile>>

Rhian Tritton has worked in the museum and heritage sector since 1991, most recently as Deputy CEO at SS Great Britain in Bristol. Her experience covers museums of all sizes; independent, local authority and university, as well as the National Trust and Historic England. Her expertise lies in visioning, change management, staff and volunteer development, audiences and visitor experience, and interpretation. Rhian works with organisations to look beyond a specific problem and analyse their operation holistically in order to transform performance. Rhian also brings skills as a trained counsellor, teacher of adults and experienced media communicator to her work with clients.

Claire Turner brings over 30 years’ experience of working with museums, cultural and community organisations, festivals, tourist boards and local authorities. She has been both CEO and Trustee of a number of independent charities and is currently Chair and Founder of a new small charity. She coaches, mentors and supports independent organisations who have very few members of staff and reply on volunteers to deliver their goals, and can bring particular benefit to organisations of this type.

Claire has a passion for encouraging and supporting creative thinking, and prides herself on being able to help Boards identify the real challenges that may be preventing them from achieving their goals. She specialises in working with boards on organisational purpose, diversity, leadership, income generation and stakeholder engagement.

Claire has the Chartered Institute of Marketing’s Post-Graduate Diploma in Marketing and is currently studying for the Institute of Leadership & Management’s Level 7 (Masters Equivalent) in Executive Coaching & Mentoring with the University of Bangor Business School. She is based between Manchester and North Wales. Click here to view Claire Turner’s LinkedIn profile>>  

Iain Watson OBE is a cultural consultant and visiting professor at Newcastle University, based in the north east of England. He has extensive experience in leading and working with museums of varying sizes and budgets, with a variety of complex governance arrangements including joint local authority, university, independent and national. He also has experience as a board member of several cultural organisations, again operating with very different budgets.

Iain is currently mentoring in small and large museums and supporting a creative tech start-up. He is available to work with boards and senior staff on strategic change, leadership and governance, and prides himself on strong problem solving skills, the ability to communicate complex ideas in a simple manner and a reflective approach to learning and development. View Iain’s Linked In profile here>>

Scott Williamson is CEO of Magic Little Giants, a marketing agency for attractions, travel and leisure business with the aim of inspiring sustainable commercial growth. Magic Little Giants specialise in marketing strategy for attractions, pricing and revenue management, affiliate marketing and gift card solutions all geared to be your gateway to growth.

Through an un-disputable customer-focussed lens, our performance services put the budget back in your hands to enable efficiency, scalability and progress. Click here for the Magic Little Giants website>>

Nick Winterbotham has worked at Director/CEO level in eight different heritage organisations over the last 30 years in national, local authority and independent museums. He teaches, lectures, coaches and mentors across the sector, specialises in event facilitation and is based in North Wales.

During the current ‘lockdown’ phase of the Covid19 emergency he has been advising individuals and small- to medium-sized organisations on what steps they might make in planning re-starts and organisational change.

He leads several development programmes for leaders and for whole teams where change is needed in order to secure organisational purpose, business effectiveness and longer-term sustainability. Click here to visit Nick’s website>>