Career Matters, created by Erica Sosna

helping organisations retain and reinvigorate their talent by having the right #CareerConversations at the right time.

Head of Delivery

Penelope Layzell

Our careers are important to us, the give us focus and direction. Yet when they aren’t working cause so much pain and suffering through anxiety, stress, fear the list goes on. We could be an employee working in an environment that’s not right or a business owner struggling with a business that isn’t growing the way you wanted. This is signs of energy misalignment, get energy right and we work in flow. 

Yet it’s isn’t easy to just flick the switch and put things right we have to work out what is wrong, clear ineffective energy and replace with the right energy. This is where I come in, helping to find the block, generate the right energy so your business or career flows once again

Energy needs to flow a blockage can stop it and just like electricity things needs to be connected

The Career Whisperer

HeartMath UK+IRL

Certified HeartMath Coach

Aroma Freedom International

Aroma Freedom Practitioner

Raise Recruitment Ltd

Supporting companies to meet todays recruitment challenges head on by seamlessly blending consulting and staff resilience into traditional methods to ensure faster and targeted hiring with less stress, staff attrition to keep productivity strong

Director of Recruiting

Hamilton Cross

Took the opportunity to launch another branch for Hamilton Cross one of the UK’s leading Healthcare Staffing Companies, placing Nurses, Healthcare Assistants, and Support Workers into various Healthcare settings.  

Awarded Fastest Growth award

Implementing processes and KPIs for my branch. Ensuring compliance and recruitment processes in place, recruitment of a branch team. 

Building up a strong client base as well as recruiting a team of qualified carers and nurses to meet the need of the services we support.

Engaging with key stakeholders at all levels

Hamilton Cross has built an exceptional reputation for supplying exceptional healthcare professionals whilst providing an unrivalled service, becoming the first choice supplier to the majority of our customers

Regional Business Manager

Layzell Maintenance

Helped establish my husbands business, helping to establish marketing and generating leads.

Manager

Newcross Healthcare Solutions

In 2016 I successfully launched the Lincoln branch of Newcross,  becoming launch branch of the year within my first year. 

Business Development to establish a strong client base for a team of care staff throughout Lincolnshire  within a range of settings including Residential Homes, Nursing Homes and supported living

HR functions including interviews, disciplinary and monitoring performance of all staff

Specialties 
Healthcare, Nursing, Complex Care, Care, Nurses, Healthcare Assistants, Care at Home, Home Care, Community Nursing, Domiciliary Care, Support Work, Learning Disabilities, Mental Health

Business Centre Manager

Osiris Educational

Coming into a new role within the company, had to establish the operational aspects of the post. Implementing new procedures across the company to ensure and maintain exceptional overall customer relationships.  Delivering reliable support and customer relations 
•	Maintaining a strong working knowledge of products with the company
•	Resolving customers’ queries within agreed authority
•	Contributing to the development of new products and services, based on trainer feedback
•	Excellent interpersonal skills, able to communicate with a wide range of people
•	Strong negotiation skills for fee setting 
•	Strong decision making skills and the ability to take the lead
•	Developing, monitoring KPIs and Successfully working to targets

Client Relationship Manager

Staffline Recruitment Limited

I successfully launched and managed an onsite office ensure the smooth and efficient provision of temporary staff to a food industry client.
Full understanding of Swedish Derogation Contractors well versed on disciplinary hearings and managing permanent contractors
Recruitment planning and ensuring peak periods are filled smoothly so as not to cause disruption to client
Full understanding of client  requirements is essential.
Management of team to ensure service of client is maximised
Monitoring KPI and budgets
Essential compliance of paperwork, through regular auditing
Performance Management of both agency and direct team
Full understanding of agency worker regulations
Adherring to SLA agreements 
Outstanding Customer Service
250 temps on site at peak times to rosta and recruit 
Key stakeholder management

Contract Manager

Award Winning Growth Consultant | Helping create thriving work cultures through streamlining & systemising processes, & career conversations which reduces high turnover, builds engagement, supports Gen Z & career growth

Hi, I'm Penelope Layzell, with over 20 years of experience in senior management and recruitment. 

Certified HeartMath Coach, 
Sound & Energy Healer,  
Aroma Freeman Practitioner
Author  
Resident Expert for a leading magazine,

You can heal the negative impact of job hunting the traditional way, or being in toxic work cultures through meditation and coaching so you can create an abundant, purposeful career full of joy.

As Head of Delivery at Career Matters the unique and simple Career Equation makes it easy for firms to keep and grow their best people.

The Сareer Equation model is quick to learn and easy to apply. This IP has helped Thales, Puig, Savills, Amazon, Capital One, Mastercard, Nomura, AXA and ComplyAdvantage to mobilise and retain key talent. 

Provide expert digital learning, virtual masterclasses and in-person group career coaching to help your people own and design their ideal career trajectory in your firm. 

WHAT YOU CAN ACHIEVE:

-Retain your hard-to-hire employees at all levels and all stages of the employment cycle
-Equip internal coaches, managers, and mentors to have the right conversation in a consistent and skilful way
-Co-design a high-performing hybrid environment that your people thrive in 
-Increased productivity and internal mobility
-Provide a personalised career development track that makes your people un-poachable! 

Career conversations are a critical business lever in the 21st century. If you aren’t talking to your people about their careers, they’ll leave for somewhere that is. 

"Career Matters worked with MSD to design and deliver a Career Coaching and Engagement one-day event for 150 People Managers. The career method was just what we needed and they immediately built rapport and impact with a large audience. The feedback from the attendees was extremely positive and I have no doubt that results will follow."
JULIE ARNELL, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES AT MSD

"Erica and her team are extremely professional and innovative, Erica delivered a day of fun and thought-provoking Careers Matters material to 15 of our wonderful grads from the EuroNorth Graduate Program. The grads came away buzzing and full of ideas for the future. The day was a great success and I would be very happy to recommend Erica and will definitely be reaching out to her again to arrange other training events."
SHIRLENE GRIFFITHS, HR POP – UK AT DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

Or check out our free career conversations training for managers here.
https://www.careermatters.today/confident-career-conversations-course-for-managers-access

Nicola Richardson  - Creating High-Performing Teams

The People Mentor

Self-employed | Dec 2015 – Present | Hybrid (Lincolnshire-based)

Team conflict. Avoided conversations. That tension that never quite goes away.

I help leaders and small business owners handle the conversations they've been putting off before performance, morale, or trust take a hit.

With over 30 years' experience leading teams and projects, and 9+ years working with local authorities, GP Surgeries, business owners, and managers, I know the signs when things are unspoken but not unnoticed.

Because behind every strong team is calm, clear, confident communication, and that's where I come in.

What I Help With:

• Difficult conversations
• Conflict resolution
• Leadership confidence
• DISC profiling
• Team culture and trust
• Manager development

Services:

• 1:1 mentoring and coaching
• DISC profiling and feedback
• The Conversations Catalyst Programme
• Online courses
• Culture and communication reviews
• Bespoke workshops

Results I've Helped Create:

• Boosted performance by 25% by resolving internal conflict in an engineering team
• Helped a recruitment firm ditch a 'lads culture' and retain top talent
• Saved a contractor 520+ hours a year by developing confident, independent team leads
• Rebuilt trust on a stalled local authority project through team coaching
• Repaired a failing tech partnership using DISC insights
• Supported a care manager to address team underperformance, restoring accountability and reducing stress confidently
• Enabled a founder to step back from day-to-day firefighting by upskilling their team to handle issues independently

No jargon. No fluff. Just practical support grounded in emotional intelligence, lived experience, and the belief that leadership doesn't need to feel lonely.

Let's stop firefighting and start leading.

👉 www.thepeoplementor.co.uk | DM me to connect

Leadership Communication Coach and Mentor

Services provided:
•	Initial free personal consultation through a 1-2-1, either face to face or through zoom to understand the business needs.
•	Thorough ‘business: employee’ engagement and Staff: Learning, Development & Training needs reviews
•	Employer/Manager needs analysed and support provided 
•	In-depth report covering Actions needed and the root cause of the problems
•	Action plan implemented 
•	Mentoring to build the team’s capability and increase performance
•	Emotional Intelligence technique training and leadership/ Employer mentoring all optional.
•	Monthly Follow-on support
•	On-line courses and Workshops available as support
•	Outcome review

plus leadership and management mentoring.
"The Managers Academy" Membership  - online with accountability calls and a community space

All activities are undertaken using The People Mentor Employee Engagement model developing a high performing team and business with compassion and empathy engrained. to build teams that focus on goals, achieve high results and work cohesively together

Management Consultant

• Conducted virtual and face-to-face management training sessions on customer service, team building, conflict resolution, communication skills, and emotional intelligence.
• Developed and delivered workshops covering various team and management subjects to enhance leadership skills.
• Established The Managers Academy, an online course for new managers, creating a supportive community for professional growth.

Management Trainer

HM Revenue & Customs

Responsible for identifying waste in processes, transform to efficient methods and evaluate digital solutions to assist HMRC to meet the current and future demands, give great customer service within the areas of Business Tax and support the business to streamline and engage with its employees and key stakeholders.
Responsible for 3 areas within Business Tax, leading a key project team to identify major improvements to the services provided which are now in implementation.  Worked with key external and internal stakeholders including other Government departments.
Worked across Customs to understand the impact of the UK leaving the EU. Leading in bringing in a key change to assist with the EU transition. High Performer of the Year 2020

Senior Continuous Improvement Consultant

Responsibility for sharing and using Customer Insight Data to assist all parts of the Department to improve the customer experience on Inheritance Tax, Pension Schemes Services and Trusts.
Leading on Change projects to improve the Customer journey, improve processes and transform the business.  Working across the grades and external stakeholders.  Led key workshops to understand the processes for the implementation of Digital Mail Scanning and reviewed after implemented to identify improvements and take forward. 
Organised key recruitment drives within the Inheritance Tax Arena, coaching others through the process.
Facilitated workshops on building teams and point of contact for addressing issues raised in the people survey.
Part of a Merger team for 3 business areas, leading on people Impact Analysis and bringing in a successful merger uniting the 3 business areas with one common aim.

Supported colleagues using operational knowledge and skill sets.

Customer Insights Lead 

Key responsibilities were: to achieve key performance Indicators for the processing of work & other areas as well as generate a culture of excellent customer service & identify improvements for the business & customer and overall lead for 70 staff & 4 Managers

Pension Schemes Senior Leadership team member - Working across the business setting the strategic view, building capability; increasing performance & employee engagement, & tackling non-compliant external activity.

Leading on Pensions business transformation project – Identifying a new operating model enabling savings
o Using Demand Management tools to identify improvements
o Bringing in digital solutions to automate processes
o Trialling some of wider HMRC initiatives
o Re-engineering business processes to be more efficient including preparation to move to digital solutions.
o Leading jointly on bringing in a new organisational structure within the Specialist Personal Tax structure
o Using Project governance & planning

Worked with key external stakeholders to develop a streamlined digital certificate of residency process for Pension Schemes Services.

Attendance Management Pensions Portfolio including coaching Managers through sick absence processes & designing & leading on Attendance Management Workshops
Identifying trends & risks to the business - implementing a Risks & Issues register with mitigations 

Took on lead for the Managers’ cafe's establishing an events programme to assist Managers across the campus. 
Manager of Support staff including Health & Safety responsibilities ensuring mandatory training completed, performance management, coaching & support, devising employee-led training & development schemes through utilising tools such as job analysis, appraisal schemes & regular consultation & implementing individual learner records
Leading on implementing training & Quality across the operational business side.
Supporting Managers’ as Managers’ Manager through coaching & setting the direction

Pension Schemes Service Lead and Business transformation Lead

•	Member of the Pensions Senior Leadership team working across the business to build capability; increase performance/employee engagement, and tackle non-compliant external activity. Leading from the front sharing the strategic view and implementing quality and training initiatives.  Implementing the European Commission’s digital transformation agenda; storage project and attendance management. Responsible for management of the Operations Manager, 3 technical support staff with responsibility for 60 frontline staff.  Designing/implementing workshops to develop employees and Managers.
•	Responsible for the management of 12 staff involved in enquiry work.  Building capability and reviewing Quality.  Implementing smarter ways of working using problem-solving tools and eliminating waste in processes.  Working with Data capture team members to roll out across the business
•	Responsible for managing 4 managers plus 50 staff across 2 separate business areas aligning processes; Implementing improvement and working towards one consistent HMRC. Deploying LEAN to accomplish continuous improvement, sustain budgetary constraints while delivering best outcomes.  Planning / risk assessing delivery.  Leading Customer experience project working to understand customer needs/implementing solutions.  Leading Planning and Forecasting Project across 5 businesses for consistency, accuracy, good planning, and performance. Implementing coaching for Managers and supporting by 1-2-1s.  Designed and Implemented Workshops to support/develop Managers.
•	Responsible for managing 5 Team Managers and 70 staff.  Planning work and resources, guiding and coaching Managers to develop teams.  Implementing quality initiatives and fit for work occupational health assessment duties.  Making quick decisions and referring to specialists as needed.  Liaison on office transfers Facilitating a smooth transfer through, excellent communication with staff whilst organising office closure processes.

Various roles across HMRC

Helping leaders resolve conflict & lead with clarity | Creator of the COMPASS Framework | Build resilient, high-performing teams | Leadership Mentor & DiSC Facilitator

I help leaders turn dreaded workplace conversations into trust-building moments that drive performance and team health.

If you're losing sleep over tough feedback, team tension, or underperformance, you're not alone. Most managers were never taught how to handle these challenges.

Using my proprietary COMPASS framework, I mentor leaders to handle conflict, performance issues, and emotional dynamics with clarity and composure. My approach blends emotional intelligence, DiSC insights, and 30+ years of leadership experience.

I've worked with local authority employees, micro-businesses, and national teams, helping them rebuild trust, reduce attrition, and lead without constant firefighting. From revitalising toxic cultures to saving 500+ hours annually through improved team dynamics, my work delivers.

If you're ready to lead without stress and build a conflict-resilient team, message me to set up a 30-minute strategy call.

Leadership Consultant

Services provided:
•	Initial free personal consultation through a 1-2-1, either face to face or through zoom to understand the business needs.
•	Thorough ‘business: employee’ engagement and Staff: Learning, Development & Training needs reviews
•	Employer/Manager needs analysed and support provided 
•	In-depth report covering Actions needed and the root cause of the problems
•	Action plan implemented 
•	Mentoring to build the team’s capability and increase performance
•	Emotional Intelligence technique training and leadership/ Employer mentoring all optional.
•	Monthly Follow-on support
•	On-line courses and Workshops available as support
•	Outcome review

plus leadership and management mentoring.
"Success with Employees" Membership  - online with accountability calls and a community space

All activities are undertaken using The People Mentor Employee Engagement model developing a high performing team and business with compassion and empathy engrained. to build teams that focus on goals, achieve high results and work cohesively together

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The Battle

Penelope Layzell

Nicola Richardson - Leadership Communications Mentor

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