Who
we are
People Development Associates are a versatile and confident team of development and training professionals. We all have wide-ranging experience and a natural ability to create an energetic and productive learning climate. We are proud of our reputation as relationship-oriented consultants and engaging and challenging facilitators.
PDA has enjoyed a strong relationship with many diverse clients for over 15 years, and has a proven track record of solid skills training as well as executive coaching, performance improvement and development consulting.
All our team have a wide-ranging experience delivering workshops across sectors and organisations and a proven ability to create a stimulating and challenging learning climate, which is also safe enough for participants to experiment and stretch, make mistakes and learn from them.
We are highly authentic, engaging, straight talking people who are genuinely good company on the learning journey. We’re not ‘entertainers’ and we don’t go in for group hugs, or expensive metaphors held out there in the hills or the forest!
Finally, we have developed a fantastic reputation for excellence in the design and delivery of skills workshops and continue to evolve our offer based on the changing needs of our clients and the unknown world emerging around us.
For more information call us on 020 7503 1400 or email
Sarah Vogel
Sarah co-founded PDA in 1994 after many years experience in retail Training and Development. As well as being Director of the operational, sales and people side of the business, Sarah is also a Fierce “Master Facilitator” and together with David leads all PDA’s Fierce Train the Trainer and accreditation workshops. She also has a busy coaching practice and works with leaders from small businesses to blue chip clients and everything in between. Sarah has a BSc in psychology, a post graduate certificate in coaching from Lancaster University and is licensed to use MBTI.
“At PDA we are honest and not afraid of telling it how it is. We’re not interested in creating systems or procedures that will never be used. We’re light on our feet in responding quickly to clients’ needs, and thrive on collaboration. Ultimately, we want our clients to walk away with something practical and real that they can use immediately”.
David Cripps
David co-founded PDA with Sarah Vogel in 1994 following a career with Selfridges. David is Director of marketing, finance and innovation at PDA, as well as delivering learning events to senior teams. He has also developed particular expertise in coaching, career counselling and designing learning events. Like Sarah, David is a Master Facilitator of Fierce Conversations, and is also licensed to use several psychometric tools including MBTI.
“Key to PDA is that we’re open to the ideas that work for our clients. I really enjoy reflecting on what is genuinely worthwhile in contrast to what looks more like a fad. PDA never jumps on the latest bandwagon, but concentrates on what’s really important and what can make a positive difference for our clients. I bring this reflective approach to our work so that I can quickly get to the core of issues and challenges”.
Emily Parker
Emily has worked in learning and development for over 18 years and has been working independently since 1997. Since then PDA have collaborated with Emily many times and consider her to be one of the family! Recent projects include delivering influencing skills to senior teams, teaching image and impact to women in a major banking group, and training Fierce Conversations workshops to retail directors at a major Building Society. She is licensed to use Verax lifestyles 360 degrees feedback tool as well as SHL’s OPQ and MBTI psychometric tools. Emily is also accredited to deliver Fierce workshops and is a key member of our skills delivery team.
“I am passionate about working with PDA. There’s a real connection between us and enormous integrity in making sure that we provide training and development that is genuine and has real impact”.
Natasha George
Natasha joined PDA as a coach and facilitator in 2005, following many years experience working in the retail and service industry, and in sales and marketing management. Tasha now delivers intensive skills training and follow up coaching to many of our key clients. She also collaborates on our marketing team when required! She has a BSc in Psychology and an MSc in Cognitive Science and is accredited to deliver Fierce workshops.
“My enthusiasm in working with PDA comes from the fact that we treat every client with a fresh approach, respecting their needs and supporting them through their learning and development. We are also intuitive, helping individuals reach their potential and achieving important results in the workplace”.
Robbie Lightfoot
Robbie is an experienced consultant, facilitator, coach and NLP business practitioner with fourteen years experience leading teams in Human Resources. PDA first met Robbie when he was a client on a Fierce Conversations course, and when Robbie left to set up his own business, we jumped at the chance to partner with him on many PDA projects from coaching to OD and team building events. Robbie is licensed to deliver Fierce workshops and as well as being part of PDA’s Fierce delivery team is also working with us to bring Fierce to his own clients.
“PDA focuses on the bottom line. If a client has an issue, we get to the heart of it in order to deliver the right solution. We believe in being truthful to get the best result”
Paul Sayers
Paul is our business and financial consultant and advises on the financial, legal and procedural sides of the business. He is a coach, trained with the Coaches Training Institute, and specialises in coaching owners and managers of small to medium businesses and organisations through change and development. Paul is a fantastic all round member of the team: he has worked in the legal sector, commerical publishing, the charity sector and as an actor and director in his own theatre company.
“The team at PDA is very creative and talented. I became involved as I wanted to work for a company that connects with its clients and really understands the benefits of what it offers”.
Penny Heater
Penny manages our office and training administration, and is PA to both Sarah and David She is also a member of our coaching team, with over 20 years cross-sector experience. She has recently been working with entrepreneurs, both individually and in peer groups, working with them to expand and develop their ideas and create lasting growth. She is currently finishing a post-graduate certificate in coaching, originally completing accredited training with the Coaches Training Institute. She has HND in Journalism and Business Studies.
“PDA’s facilitators create an excellent learning environment which really helps an individual’s confidence to increase. We provide coaching as well as skills training so clients can find solutions for improving their working lives and use them immediately”.
Simon Bolton
Simon joined PDA’s delivery team in 2009 after over 20 years experience in educational and learning environments. As a professional teacher, he mentored staff in new and creative approaches to teaching. He has also worked with voluntary agencies training adults who work with children. He now delivers a variety of intensive skills training events for PDA and is working on our portfolio of development courses for teachers and leaders in education.
“PDA presents people with really useful and easy to understand tools that work. And we do it in an interesting and non-scary way. It’s really good when you see what we do really working for people”.
Partners
PDA values its relationships with partner organisations.
Act for Clarity Personal & Business Coaching
Clear thinking and action for your career, business and confidence
Transforming human resources into resourceful humans: specialists in employee engagement, performance management and Resourceful Conversations
Marianne Skelcher
Marianne joined the Board of PDA as a non-executive director in August 2010. Helping people develop to achieve their potential and deliver great work has been at the core of all the roles she has held over the last thirty five years. A Chartered Director, who also holds NED roles in housing, social care and health, Marianne brings her passion for helping people and organisations succeed, along with extensive experience and skills as a business leader, facilitator, consultant, coach and trainer, to her role with PDA.
"I love the values and the feel of PDA, and the commitment everyone the team has to doing a really great job for the client. My first contact with the team was in 2005 when I commissioned them to deliver Fierce to the sixty senior leaders in the organisation where I was Group HRD, so I know first-hand the impact they have and the difference they can make."