Build psychologically safe teams that deliver exceptional performance through Kind Leadership


Are you finding it challenging to lead with impact in today's demanding environment?

Kind Leadership means building psychologically safe, collaborative, and accountable relationships that drive performance. It is a human-centred approach, revolving around a co-created working agreement, that ensures positive change spreads throughout the entire organisation.

Sustainable growth and lasting change

WHERE YOU MIGHT BE NOW:

  • Feeling "crazy busy" all the time and unsure where to focus

  • Caught up in day-to-day tasks, making it hard to lead with a broader perspective

  • Avoiding difficult conversations, worried they might damage relationships

  • Uncertain how to effectively manage and develop your teams

WHAT YOU'LL EXPERIENCE:

  • Strengthen relationships through trust, accountability and explicit working agreements

  • Lead with confidence and clarity, even in challenging situations

  • Gain practical tools to sustainably align team performance with organisational goals

  • Enjoy time and capacity released back to you to focus on the bigger picture

A HUMAN-CENTRED APPROACH:

We blend practical expertise with formal training in leadership theory, coaching & psychometrics to help you develop the skills to adapt to the evolving needs of your team and the changing demands of your organisation.

"John brought agility and thoughtfulness to the programme that he built for our benefit, adjusting course as we needed and at the same time holding us to account in delivering our shared commitments and target outcomes. His ability to work with us as individuals and as a collective was powerful.

John brought interesting tools, insights, questions and perspectives to us and through excellent facilitation he succeeded in creating an environment where all colleagues could contribute positively to what we wanted to build."

Luke Hanlon, Managing Director SuperValu & Centra

Meet John Counihan

With over 32 years of experience from the shop floor to the Head of HR, I’ve seen firsthand what it takes for individuals, teams, and organisations to perform at their best.

We blend practical expertise with formal training in leadership theory and coaching & psychometrics to help leaders develop the skills to adapt to the evolving needs of their teams and the changing demands of their organisation.

Kind Leadership is founded on aligning both the organisation and the individual. It’s about setting the standard for effective, sustainable leadership. My goal is to optimise individual and team effectiveness, with kindness at the heart of every action.

Solutions Tailored to You

  • Personalised one-to-one coaching and tailored, practical programmes to support you on your leadership journey.

    Become a better leader today

  • Strengthen dynamics, improve collaboration, and align teams with a shared purpose.

    Build a cohesive team

  • Transform your organisation with a streamlined, effective and efficient operating model that promotes autonomy and enables growth.

    Request an organisational assessment

Advance your leadership and build a high-performing team

Take the first step towards transformation

  • John worked with our leadership team to develop and deliver a senior leadership development programme to enhance the performance of our already high performing team. The content designed by John and the quality of delivery was exceptional. It is clear that John's coaching style is informed by his successful career in senior roles in Supply Chain, giving him a level of credibility and authenticity which adds incredible value when working with company directors and other senior leaders. We are extremely grateful for our partnership with John and look forward to working together for many years to come.

    Conor O'Donovan, Head of Human Resources of Musgrave

  • John ran a leadership development programme for the Turas Nua team of operations and support managers. The aim of the programme was to help our team to come together to work towards developing a leadership framework for the overall good of everyone working in Turas Nua. The programme was very well structured, spanning over 8 months, with a blend of in house development programmes and one to one coaching sessions. We found the content of the in person modules to be highly engaging, interactive, enlightening and impactful both personally and for our day jobs.

    John’s style of facilitation and delivery is inviting, warm and educated. His years of hands on management experience shines through in his coaching and training, making his content not just theoretical, but very practical, empathetic and professional.

    By the middle of the programme, we really felt as though John was a part of our team, encouraging both our individual and collective growth. His time with our team was so valuable and our teams and clients have all benefited from the growth and learnings that the leadership team took from the programme.

    JulieAnn, General Manager of Turas Nua

  • I have worked with John over a long number of years, and when a need arose to bring my team to a new level of performance, engaging John was an easy decision.

    John and I worked together to agree the outcomes we wanted to achieve upfront. These were focused around developing my team, in how we worked together, understanding some mindset shifts needed and individual development needs. The programme was delivered over a number of phases, and John’s experience and access to a number of diagnostics tools proved very useful.

    There remained a level of flexibility right through, where John adapted to meet my own evolving needs and understanding where the team were at individually. In the delivery phase, John brings a clarity on best practice, particularly in high performing teams and has the life and work experience to bring this to life in the room.

    His ability to get to the crux of the issue, is exceptional, whilst keeping the right pace and fun in the agenda. John followed-up to ensure we achieved the outcomes set-out, and the team have moved to a new level of performance and impact on the business. I would not hesitate in recommending John to support any need you may have in moving your team and culture from good to great.

    Eoin Butler, Chief Supply Chain Officer of Musgrave

  • I have known and worked with John for many years and was very keen to ask for his expertise in supporting me and my team to reach the next level of our combined potential.

    John brought agility and thoughtfulness to the programme that he built for our benefit, adjusting course as we needed and at the same time holding us to account in delivering our shared commitments and target outcomes.

    His ability to work with us as individuals and as a collective was powerful. John brought interesting tools, insights, questions and perspectives to us and through excellent facilitation he succeeded in creating an environment where all colleagues could contribute positively to what we wanted to build.

    I am very grateful to John for his support, care and interest in our team and I look forward to working with him again in the future.

    Luke Hanlon, Managing Director SuperValu & Centra

  • John’s professionalism and expertise in leadership development is evident in the results he has produced working with our senior leadership team. His passion and commitment to develop people through his knowledge and real life experience is infectious and captive.

    John has a great demeanour and a naturally skilful way of enabling people to develop and grow. Presentations, subject matter, frameworks and preparations are a real strong point alongside a determination to deliver results.

    We have continued to work with John outside of our initial leadership development programme to help further develop our business.

    Garrett White, Managing Director of Hevac