Dr Linda Latham

Qualifications

• Diploma in Corporate and Executive Coaching – The Coaching Academy
• Doctor of Philosophy (Implementation of Clinical Governance)– University of Birmingham
• Master of Business Administration – Lancaster University
• Master of Science (Distinction) (Quality in Healthcare) - University of Birmingham
• Chartered Secretary (ACIS) – Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators
• Certificate in Counselling Studies and Certificate in Counselling Skills: Aylesbury College 
• Registered Nurse
• Registered Midwife. 

About me 

I am a qualified and experienced corporate and executive coach.  I specialise in working with doctors in formal leadership roles such as specialty leads, divisional and clinical directors, medical directors and medical academics.  I also work with consultants; those who are very experienced and those who are new to this role.  I work with doctors who feel they are already thriving and want to develop further and doctors who, for a variety of reasons, find themselves in difficulty and are committed to moving forward.

I have had a long and varied career both in and associated with the NHS.  My work has been an interesting and, at times challenging, non-linear journey from the front line of health service delivery through to the board; my career path has also included a commission in the defence medical services, appointments in academia and, latterly, consultancy.  I have been privileged to experience first-hand the rewards and challenges of daily life in the NHS and have also witnessed the reality facing doctors who work in such demanding environments; hence my commitment to providing coaching support to medical practitioners seeking to achieve their full potential.

Coaching process

Coaching is a structured conversation designed to support you as you move from where you are now through to the achievement of the personal and professional goals that are important to you.  Whether you are looking to commission a coaching programme or one or two coaching sessions, either option can be tailored to meet your needs.  I will offer coaching models and tools that best suit you and what you want to achieve; these serve as supporting frameworks for our coaching conversations and can facilitate self-awareness, reflection, insight, learning and, ultimately, action.  Coaching models are aids to the coaching process and are brought to life through a combination of the knowledge, skills and experience of your coach, your intrinsic curiosity and resourcefulness, the rapport we create between us and the humour we share when appropriate.

What I can offer you

The doctors I work with bring a wide range of topics to coaching.  In the arena of career coaching, some clients start with a broad aspiration such as the desire to transform individual potential into career success; they then move their focus to the detail of how this will be achieved.  Other clients may be further on in thinking about their career journey and come to coaching with specific goals such as the next promotion; transitioning to a new role and/or organisation; or translating leadership theory into a leadership voice and style that is congruent, authentic and personal to them.  Other topics range from the strategic to the challenges arising from day to day delivery of the service; the development of specific skill sets (such as influencing and persuasion, time management (in particular, integrating new leadership and management roles with clinical responsibilities), negotiation, delegation/holding to account; through to building on and sustaining personal resilience. 

To reflect the breadth of potential coaching topics, my coaching approach draws on a range of coaching disciplines; it is dynamic, tailored to meet your needs and designed to build on your existing resourcefulness.  My aim is to combine support with appropriate challenge and to provide a protected, confidential space in which you can think through and work on what is really important to you.  I will invite feedback from you at the end of each session so that we can keep track of how the coaching is going and, if necessary, make any adjustments to our approach.

Coaching sessions may take place face to face and, increasingly, via Skype or FaceTime.  Many of my clients, prefer to arrange sessions before or after work to protect their session time and online options mean that I am able to offer you greater flexibility around start times.

I am a Member of the Association for Coaching and work to its Code of Ethics.  I have a formal arrangement for supervision and supervision is provided by another experienced coach.  I am committed to an ongoing programme of CPD activity.

Which region of the UK would you be willing to coach? All regions of the UK

How will you be willing to coach? Face to face (if an option), Skype and FaceTime

Who will you be willing to coach?  Individuals

For what medical career stages are you willing to coach? Consultants, GPs and doctors in formal medical leadership positions

Testimonials

“I strongly believe that Linda’s coaching was instrumental in my success in obtaining my professorship.  She encouraged me to focus on my career aspirations, facilitating their expression and provided me with a framework to answer the most difficult questions during the interview.  The techniques we practised have served me well since then in challenging situations.  Linda also worked with me to proactively maintain my work-life balance during the promotion process.  I have no hesitation in recommending Linda as a coach”.  Professor of Medicine and NHS Consultant.

“I felt there was more clarity in what I wish to achieve in my professional and personal life following my coaching sessions with Linda.  Some of the questions she asked helped me prioritise things I wish to achieve and also made me realise I have options.  I also felt encouraged and supported for what I needed to do to make things better for myself.  Many thanks again”.  Consultant

“Linda inspires confidence in her coaching approach, and she allowed me the space I needed to develop, supporting me in the different stages of my leadership journey through to Medical Director level.  She quickly established my trust and provided the right level of challenge and guidance to maximise the benefits of each session.  She is highly professional in her approach, flexible and reliable, and I have found her support highly enabling. I would recommend her without hesitation”.  Medical Director, NHS Trust

“I was coached by Linda Latham from December 2015 to December 2016.  I found Linda very flexible and approachable and made me comfortable whilst discussing confidential matters.  My sessions with her gave me an opportunity to reflect on my values and behaviours in relation to people I manage.  This has improved my resilience, ability to influence change, effectively communicate and dealing with difficult colleagues.  I would strongly recommend Linda Latham as a coach, to colleagues as her coaching skills are excellent and tailored to individual needs”.  Clinical Director, NHS Trust.

"Coaching with Linda is a transformation.  Over the course of a year she has confidently and confidentially lead me on a journey of self-analysis to a place that is still evolving, but where I am no longer reactive and in the bunker of the Covid war.   For all the subtle use of the techniques she is so expert in, the single most amazing aspect of this whole process is Linda herself.  She genuinely does deliver the constant positive non-judgemental regard that she tries to describe (probably better than I can) in the first session, and this sets the tone for a long conversation in which she will guide you to where you take yourself." NHS Consultant