Meet the Team: Tracey Stead – Leadership, Coaching & Mentoring

I’m a freelance coach, facilitator and trainer and over the last 15 years I’ve been specialising in working with researchers at all stages of their career. My work is very varied, but the common theme is helping researchers to establish, lead and manage themselves and their teams, as well as research ideas, projects and collaborations.

My potted career history includes a PhD in Freshwater Ecology, followed by five years working as a Fast Stream Statistician for Defra and the Scottish Government. I subsequently went back in to HE where I established and ran the researcher development programme at the University of Bath. This is where my passion for supporting researchers in their leadership development began.

In 2013 I started my own coaching and leadership development company. I’ve increasingly worked with Research Fellows and new PIs over the last eight years. Something that I really love doing is working with researchers at the transition phase from being managed to leading. That transition can be daunting, liberating, exciting, frustrating …I could keep adding adjectives here! In my coaching I aim to help researchers to notice, be better equipped and make positive choices to develop themselves and others.

I’m going to be working with the FLF Development Network team to support, plan and facilitate much of the leadership training: working closely with the theme leads to make sure you get the bespoke development support that you need. My particular emphasis will be around coaching and leadership skills. My main focus right now is working with Steve Joy to deliver the 360 degree feedback surveys and coaching for you all. This is something I’m really passionate about, having seen the impact of 360 feedback on my previous coaching clients. Understanding how others perceive you, and what they need from you, is crucial for your leadership development.

We’ll be launching the 360 feedback at Research Encounter on 12th March – I’m looking forward to seeing you there.