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Trusted by a wide range of public services, start-ups, charities and system partnerships
The Future Works is a change and transformation consultancy created by Lydia Paris.
I support change at different levels - within organisations, across systems, and for individuals.
I do this in four main ways:
Support for individual leaders and founders who want to develop, while staying connected to what matters
I often work in partnership with other experts where helpful for the project.
Who I help
I work with leaders at turning points - when change is no longer optional, and it really needs to work.
The trigger might be a regulator's review, a national policy mandate, financial growth targets, funding pressure or performance challenges.
You also know that change starts with people, not just process. Your people need to co-develop and co-deliver it, and come with you on the journey.
That means involving staff, leaders, partners or stakeholders in a way that is proportionate and meaningful.
But leading that process well takes time, expertise and holding complexity. You may not have the capacity or specialist support to deliver it alone.
That is where I help.
I create the structure, and provide expertise and practical support, to help you lead change successfully.
You might be here because...
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You’ve identified a cultural challenge, but need help understanding what’s driving it and how to shift it.
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You need leaders to understand their role in shaping culture - and get behind the change.
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You need to engage a wide group of staff or stakeholders in a change and need practical help.
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You want space and support to work through leadership challenges yourself as an individual, or as a team.
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Your organisation is growing or changing, and its culture, leadership or ways of working need to evolve with it.
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You need to convene a system or multi-partner conversation to make sense of something complex.
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You need a facilitator who understands systems, complexity and people.
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You need conversations that are genuinely inclusive.
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You need to understand whether your work has had an impact, and what to do next.
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You need to lead change, but don’t have the capacity, clarity or expertise to do it alone.
If any of these resonate, you're in the right place.
Change starts with people
The people closest to the work hold knowledge that a 'plan' alone can't capture.
You may know something needs to change. You may even have a clear vision in mind. But change often fails when designed too far from the people who understand the day-to-day reality and will ultimately make the new way work.
Involving people means giving the right people meaningful influence over how the problem is understood, what the future should look like and how you get there.
That doesn't mean everything is decided by committee. It means creating a process which captures your people's collective intelligence purposefully and proportionately, knowing this leads to effective, sustained transformation.
I help leaders design and hold that process - bringing the right people together, facilitating honest conversations, making sense of what emerges and turning it into action.
Questions we work through together
What my clients say
Summary: Culture Change
Summary: R&E
Summary: Facilitation
I help you in these three ways...
Culture change and
leadership development
For when you need to improve how your organisation is performing and its current culture is blocking success.
I help organisations understand their culture today, and envision and embed an improved future culture which works for them, not against them.
This includes:
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culture diagnosis
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culture co-design
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leadership development, incl. 1:1 and group coaching
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staff engagement
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manager development
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bespoke support to help culture shift day-to-day
Best if you want... A high-performing organisation which feels good to work in.
Facilitation and system convening
For when you need to tackle a shared challenge, and must bring different stakeholders together to do so.
I design and facilitate workshops and events which help you make sense of complexity and solve shared challenges together.
This includes:
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designing sessions for specific objectives
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bringing the right stakeholders into the room
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managing logistics
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facilitation of the session
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capturing and translating what emerges into clear, actionable recommendations and next steps
Best if you want... A partner who helps different people contribute equitably, and makes sense of complexity. A partner to help stakeholders build trust, clarity and shared direction.
Research, evaluation and learning
For when you need to understand if you have achieved the change you intended, and learn from what happened.
I am a research, evaluation and learning partner for organisations who want to understand their theory of change, what is working, what is changing and what impact a programme or approach is having.
This includes:
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designing theories of change
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evaluation frameworks
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qualitative and quantitative research
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learning outputs and reports
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practical recommendations that help you and others make better decisions
Best if you want... To understand what is changing, what is and isn’t working, and where to focus next.
Summary: Deeper Work
...I also work directly with leaders and founders
Leading can be demanding, lonely and full of questions that do not have an easy answer.
I provide direct support for people leading organisations, teams and change, through:
The principle behind my work...
"The wisdom is already there"
The work that I do revolves around this principle, and I'm passionate about helping you harness it via my work.
Whether I’m working with an organisation, system, team or individual, my role is to help surface the wisdom held by the people involved, by bringing them together for honest conversations. I then make sense of it, and help you use it to create effective change.
That doesn't mean the work is always easy. Often, it means:
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creating space for honest, gritty conversations about what needs to be different.
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helping people say what they really think.
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hearing voices that are often missed.
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noticing what sits beneath the obvious problem.
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helping leaders reflect on how they show up.
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helping hold yourself and others accountable.
And turning all of that insight into practical next steps.
My guiding belief is that you hold the wisdom and the answers. My job is to create the conditions for those answers to surface, be understood and be put into action – to enable positive, lasting change.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are your services for?
I work with leaders, teams and organisations who know that something needs to change, but need help leading it well. You may be looking for clarity, assurance and practical support from someone you can trust.
Does the leadership need to be fully onboard with this before I approach you?
Though it helps if they are, they don’t need to be. Part of the service is helping you to obtain that buy-in from your leadership team and the wider organisation to ensure that the journey runs well.
I have a small budget, is it worth me reaching out?
I charge competitive rates as a small business, and I design and price each project to your precise needs.
How long do your services take?
It depends on the size of your organisation and the service you need. Some programmes take as little as three weeks to complete. Larger, more comprehensive programmes may take a few months.
I'm worried you'll try to change us too much - is there a risk of that?
If some things are working really well, why change them? I work as a partner alongside you, rather than trying to impose anything onto you. This work is always about building on your strengths.
Do you offer one-off workshops and away days?
Yes, I do design and deliver bespoke offsites, workshops and events according to what you need.
Who will lead our project?
I lead each project, but a consultant team may work alongside me if the project requires it.
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