Who we are
Kura Consulting was formed by Ben Ward and Barry Harding in 2017. Having worked together for more than a decade, they decided it was time to pool their collective years of experience in learning & development and operations.
Their vision is to create a business that places value on relationships, offering a real-world, practical approach to development. It is their shared belief that everyone has the ability to excel.
Ben leads the business in his role as Director, with Barry providing invaluable support as an advisory consultant, offering mentoring, advice, challenge and above all, friendship.
In addition to the skills Ben and Barry offer, Kura is enhanced through the trusted group of consultants we work with – our Associates – each drawing on a huge breadth of experience. Collectively, we deliver programmes around the globe with administrative support based in the UK
Meet the team
Our team are wonderfully talented people with years of experience working in the field of learning & development. Each brings their own unique style, strengths and perspective, as well as individual specialisms. We all share a belief that doing the best for others and helping them to help themselves, makes all the difference.
Above all, we build relationships based on mutual trust and understanding. Always acting in the best interests of the client, every one of our team is helpful, thoughtful and a pleasure to work with – allowing us to deliver a truly unique and tailored offering.
PROFILE: BEN WARD
Coach, Facilitator, Consultant
Ben is the Director of the business and lead consultant. In addition to a strong operational management background, he has a wealth of experience working within the field of learning & development. He practices what he preaches, being genuine and transparent, whilst working in a way that is practical and results focused. He strives to help others get to where they need to be.
Our approach
Central to our approach is the value we place on building strong, genuine relationships, where there is mutual trust and understanding.
Working with organisations, teams and individuals we use a straight forward framework to help you gain clarity. We will seek to understand your requirements and aspirations, building a clear picture of where you are now, where you need to be and what needs to happen to bridge the gap from one to the other.
The other key question we will explore, is what genuinely may stop you or get in the way of achieving your desired outcome? Having clarity on this allows you to plan for and overcome these potential obstacles.
It’s a simple approach – yet highly effective.
We believe that all organisations, teams and individuals have the capability to excel beyond their expectations, all they have to do is believe it, value it and be prepared to go for it.
What we do
Ways we can help teams, organisations and individuals thrive
Leadership Development
Great leaders come in many shapes and guises, but they all have one thing in common, they give others compelling reasons to follow them.
At Kura, we believe anyone can lead and at any moment in time. We are surrounded by great examples of this every day.
Our approach to leadership focuses on two key areas.
The first is helping individuals raise their self-awareness, allowing them to identify the kind of leader they need to be, leading in a way that is consistent and congruent with their own values, preferences and strengths.
The second area focuses on raising awareness of what others need from their leaders. This allows the individual to work with these needs, getting the best out of others and giving them compelling reasons to follow them.
Coaching
Raising awareness of self and others is at the heart of understanding how to make a difference, be successful, happy and fulfilled.
Our coaching focuses on helping individuals gain clarity on where they are now and where they need to be.
This clarity ensures that when we ask, what needs to happen to move between the two states, the options generated are driven by this clarity, giving a far higher chance of success.
Through supporting others to embrace their own uniqueness and talents we help create a personal road map that helps the person realise their desired outcomes in a way that works for them and is consistent with them as an individual.
Team Development
High performing, exemplar teams act and engage with a clear and common purpose. They play to the key strengths of their team members.
We support teams through asking and helping them explore the answers to a few key fundamental questions, that we believe all teams need to ask to be happy, successful and fulfilled.
We help teams to create and develop their own unique culture, identifying what really matters to them as a group and what needs to happen for them to commit to and embody this. This allows them to understand where they need to be as a team, where they currently are and how to move between the two.
Managing Change
There is nothing more constant than change, those that can recognise, accept and adapt to it, hold the key to successfully managing it.
The key to managing change is to recognise the impact that change has on us as individuals.
Often change processes focus solely on the practical; what do we need to do, when do we need to do it etc? Although this is important, what is perhaps more important is the emotional impact change has on us personally.
We are all different and respond to change in different ways. Our approach helps people raise their awareness of what change means for them and what needs to happen to be able to work with it and be successful.
Interview Preparation
The key to a great interview is getting your message across in a way that is unique, engaging and persuasive.
It’s not what you say, it is the way you say it!
People want to work with those whom they feel they can trust, allowing them to build genuine, strong and mutually beneficial relationships.
Our approach focuses on being authentic, conveying your key messages in a way that builds confidence and trust in others, whilst being unique, persuasive and engaging.
We will help you develop your winning themes, always ensuring that they are aligned with the interviewer’s requirements.
Organisational Development
Great organisations know where they are going and what they stand for. They develop a clear culture based on what they value, believe and have a genuine passion for.
We work across many industries
Some of our recent work...
CONSTRUCTION
Empowering the Senior Leadership Team to collectively take responsibility for driving the organisations vision, values and beliefs forward
Working with the Senior Leadership Team of the organisation to help them define their culture and develop their unique mission statement. This, in turn, allowed them to be clear about how all the other parts of their business need to operate to support their mission, whether it be their strategy, organisation, process or people.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Identifying individual and team strengths and learning how to apply them to achieve results
Working with the Head of an international sales division spanning 3000+ employees to embed a strengths-based approach to building high performance teams. Identifying individual and team strengths and learning how to apply them to achieve results. Facilitated through Senior Leadership Team development sessions, 1:1 feedback sessions, train the trainer sessions and webinars to the wider team.
EDUCATION
Working collaboratively to support members of a supply chain to engage more holistically with projects, realising greater value for themselves and other stakeholders
Working with the Strategic Partnership Team to write and deliver a culture and behaviours workshop to develop attitudes and behaviours required to build strong, productive and lasting relationships that drive collaboration and deliver benefits to everyone.
CHARITIES
Delivering quality coaching and executive support to charities, trusts and institutions
Working with an in-house learning & development function to develop and deliver a business wide self-development programme to build self-awareness and resilience in their employees. Allowing employees to become more effective through their ability to be flexible and change to the requirements of the business.
At BHC we believe in creating open, trusting relationships. In Ben we have found an experienced coach and facilitator who consistently delivers excellent sessions - fully aligned to the values we promote.
BARRY HARDING, Barry Harding Consultancy
Kura epitomise the Development Partner approach. To me they are unique in not only developing our teams, their work there has been transformational, but also in developing our own internal L&D function to be able to continue the work, upskilling and encouraging their involvement and learning. There is no ‘dark art’ approach, it is one of sharing and developing as one team.
ANNE LIGHTOWLER, The Woodland Trust
Some of the great organisations we have the pleasure of working with…
So often, we feel like we’re faced with a choice between people or results. We focus on harnessing your energy and creativity to deliver exceptional results through people, now and in the future.
Frequently asked questions
We’d like to change the shape of our business and we’re looking for some support?
Can you help us develop a team that is already high performing?
We’d like some support in putting a development programme together to deliver a specific outcome?
How can we get the best from our teams while working remotely?
Are you a leader looking to become more effective? Do you need some help clarifying and communicating your vision?