Patrick Read

I help organisations support first-time managers in professional and technical roles as they make the transition from high-performing professional to people leader – building confidence, handling difficult conversations and developing their own leadership approach.

About

When a capable professional becomes a manager, the transition isn’t always as straightforward as it appears.

They may be technically strong and well regarded yet struggle with the people side of their new role. They may hesitate over decisions, avoid difficult conversations, find delegation difficult or worry about how they are perceived. Some continue doing too much themselves because they aren’t yet confident letting go.

For organisations, these difficulties aren’t always easy to spot. A first-time manager may not ask for help when they feel expected to have the answers. Yet the transition can affect their confidence, their team and their effectiveness.

As an external coach, I provide a confidential space outside normal reporting relationships to step back and make sense of what’s happening. I listen carefully, challenge assumptions where appropriate, and help individuals build the confidence, clarity and self-awareness to find their own way forward.

My role isn’t to tell someone what they should do. It’s to help them think things through, explore different perspectives and develop their own approach to management.

Areas I commonly coach around:

• Confidence and self-belief

Stepping into management can affect the confidence of even capable professionals. They may question decisions, feel uncomfortable managing former peers, worry about how they are perceived or experience self-doubt after promotion.

Coaching can help them understand what is affecting their confidence, challenge unhelpful thinking and reconnect with their strengths.

An Engineering Manager said:

“Patrick’s approach helped me rediscover my strengths, reassess my skills, and build genuine confidence.”

• Difficult conversations and relationships

Moving from colleague to manager can make conversations about feedback, performance, expectations or disagreement feel much more difficult. A new manager may know a conversation needs to happen but hesitate over how to approach it.

Coaching provides a confidential space to think through the situation, explore different perspectives, challenge assumptions and find an approach that feels appropriate to them.

A Product Manager said:

“Patrick’s calm and considered manner made for easy conversation.”

• Clarity, decision-making and leadership approach

Becoming a manager often means making decisions without having all the answers. A new manager may be balancing technical responsibilities with people management, deciding what to delegate, managing competing priorities or working out how they want to lead.

Sometimes they don’t need more advice. They need space to think, step back from the immediate situation and work out what really matters.

Coaching gives them space to examine their assumptions, work out what’s really driving them and decide how they want to approach their role. Rather than telling them what to do, I help them find their own answers.

A Management Consultant in Technology said:

“I always felt empowered, with a greater sense of self-belief after my sessions with Patrick.”

Work with me

I bring more than three decades of experience working in IT within major banking organisations, primarily as a Business Analyst and subject matter expert in debit and credit card processing. I have worked alongside highly skilled technical and professional people throughout my career and understand the pressures of complex corporate environments.

My analytical background helps me notice patterns, explore assumptions and ask questions that may otherwise go unasked. It also helps me understand the workplace context behind the transition from individual contributor to people leader.

I also spent 15 years as a volunteer athletics coach. Helping young athletes develop confidence, skills and belief in themselves showed me how rewarding I found coaching and developing people, and ultimately led me to pursue coaching professionally.

If you’re an HR Director, Chief People Officer or senior manager looking to support a first-time manager, I’d be happy to discuss your requirements. I offer a free consultation to explore whether external coaching could help.

Confidentiality

Coaching conversations are confidential. What an individual discusses is not reported back to their manager or HR, unless agreed in advance or there is a serious concern about the safety of the employee or others.

This confidentiality gives people somewhere safe to think out loud and talk openly.

My coaching practice is guided by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) Code of Ethics, including its principles around confidentiality.