Sara Milne Rowe

Performance has always been at the heart of my life. When I was five, I started ballet classes. Alongside my dance, I also took up the violin. It was very hard. I persisted and worked my way to Grade 8. Toured with the Cambridge Youth Orchestra and danced at Sadlers Wells before attending University.

Looking back, I now see how these early experiences began to shape my core beliefs about some vital conditions for performance improvement. Firstly, a total commitment to practice and the rigour involved; secondly, having someone to both support and challenge you to be better.

As a teacher I worked in two inner city comprehensives. In both I noticed that some teachers had an almost magical influence over their students. Even children who were disaffected and disruptive for most of the day seemed to suddenly choose a different mood and act like committed pupils in their lessons. What were those great teachers doing to influence the children so they wanted to learn? And how might that relate to Business leaders and those they lead? This compelled me to found Coaching Impact in 2004.

I now work alongside leaders and often their teams in a variety of organisations - like a curious detective - helping them define and then choose the most useful practices to measurably improve their performance and impact. Every interaction fuels my fascination for what it takes to be better at something. My personal ambition is to continue learning, practicing and improving in the spirit of impact for good.