Donata Caira
Personal and organisational development consultant

Sometimes I give myself a pinch just to make sure I am not dreaming and I am in fact doing the work that I do. I have come a long way from studying textile design to running a small independent organisation consultancy. It was about 30 years ago, when as part of my study, I was inspired and a picture began to form of the work I wanted to be doing. I was listening to stories, both from a friend at the time and from my business management lecturer, about organisational life and the challenges facing managers in their work (leaders were not talked about so much then). Making the decision then that I wished to be involved in the world of business organisation, I started out on my path.
The routes I chose along the way did not always seem direct and indeed may have sounded crazy to family and friends; leaving full time work to become self employed with one day’s work in my diary is an example. Although it has been a circuitous journey the end picture was always clear and has meant that along the way I have had the joy and honour of working with a diverse group of people in a wide range of settings covering private sector, central and local government including NHS and Education.

Although my horizons have been constantly changing and I have often found myself at the edge of my comfort zone in my learning, there has been a consistent thread running through my work: helping people and organisations to realise their ambitions. I do this by engaging with my clients to discover what will best help them in their endeavours, often this means that I become involved in interventions such as; coaching, facilitation or training for either individuals, teams or indeed the whole organisation.

I take an eclectic approach to my work although at present I am attracted to working from an appreciative frame, inquiring into emerging patterns and themes and where and when possible engaging with ‘whole systems’. Of course I don’t always do work on my own; I am privileged to work with a number of different colleagues on a project or associate basis. I continue to be intrigued by the human dimension of organisational life which time and again excites my own practice and development.