Susie is an experienced and respected corporate innovation and strategy leader, entrepreneur, speaker, writer and coach.  She has an unusual career and her experience and expertise as an innovation leader is unique.  

 

Corporate Experience

Her 19 years in the public sector covered a broad spectrum of roles, predominantly in the National Security arena. Her experience included managing large operational and assessments teams and navigating new legal, ethical and compliance issues. As a leader, she dealt with many fast-paced, changing and complex situations; she also stood out for her exceptional people leadership skills.

 

Between 2016 and 2021, Susie led innovation efforts within the UK Government as Head of Innovation, first at the Ministry of Defence and then at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.  In 2017, she set up and ran an Incubator comprising multi-agency and multi-disciplinary teams to iteratively design and develop solutions to some of the most challenging and complex problems in the national security space using a disciplined approach to innovation. 

 

Moving on in 2018 to develop the organisation-level innovation ecosystem, she designed and developed innovation strategy and governance; provided education, awareness and skills in innovation; tackled the friction and bureaucracy that slows progress; and developed organisational mindset and culture to explore alternatives to the way things have always been done.  

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Entrepreneur and Founder

In 2020, Susie co-founded Yellow Cat, an Innovation Consultancy and Academy focussed on supporting those corporate heroes who are trying to transform their organisations from within.  Yellow Cat also supports startups and small businesses in business model design and development.

 

In late 2020, the end of a challenging and tumultuous year, Susie went on to establish Mulberry Retreats, with the aim of providing sanctuary and optimism to individuals in challenging leadership positions. It is her belief that leaders can make or break both people and organisations.  The mission at Mulberry Retreats is to empower leaders with the mindset, skills and confidence to create a positive future for themselves, their organisations and the people within.

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Guest Speaker and Writer

Susie routinely writes and speaks about both leadership and innovation, providing insights from her experience and thought leadership.  You can find her writing here, and on Medium and Substack.  Susie has a natural and engaging style and her refreshingly candid approach makes her a popular speaker. 

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Susie lives in south-east London with her family.

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