Over the years, I’ve worked with all sorts of different organisations. Here are just a few of them: (click text for testimonials)
Aberdeen Journals Limited
Alan Scott, Managing Director, Aberdeen Journals Limited
Ace Europe
Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc
Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc
Alisdair is the only person I know who can make hard work truly fun. Regardless of the group, their feelings walking into a session or the complexity of the task in hand, Alisdair can help any organisation at any level efficiently and effectively get through a process. His approach is creative and his understanding of what’s required to run a business, helps ensure clear positive outcomes and delivers an experience for participants that leaves them wanting more.”
Chris Meredith, Chief Operating Officer, Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc
Baxter Healthcare Limited
Baxter Healthcare Limited
Our challenge: Baxter managers utilized many project management techniques. These busy managers were reluctant to spend a day away from the business to learn skills they thought they already possessed. Many projects were not completed, fizzled out or were simply not bought into by participants. Time, effort, cash & credibility was being wasted.
Our outcome: Balancing wit, personality, fun and a simple, practical process that meant the training session dealt with a live, current and real challenge to the participants, the response to Alisdair was such that after our first session, Baxter managers were queuing to be part of the programme. We now have an effective Project Management process, adopted by all and widely used – I have even seen it used as a template for a presentation to our corporate CEO. Baxter projects, large and small are now clearly articulated, have defined scope and end points, are delivered on time, within budget and most importantly owned by all participants and stakeholders. Alisdair is a credible and effective partner of Baxter and is widely used by us all, both as a facilitator and trainer.
Glen Hodgson, Growth Director, Baxter Healthcare Limited
BBC
Boots Contract Manufacturing
Broadsystem plc
Broadsystem plc
Alisdair in 1996 immediately impressed with his enthusiasm and energy, making a potentially boring subject (Project Management) interesting and fun. Since that initial meeting I have called upon Alisdair’s help on numerous occasions, most recently when I was charged with introducing a project driven culture. This was tricky! Many people in the company viewed Project Management as a bureaucratic barrier. I knew the method I wanted to use was the right one but I needed to ‘sell it’ in the right way. Alisdair was the obvious choice. His fun approach mixed with solid practical knowledge and experience won over the doubters. My original plan was to just run 2 workshops, because of demand we ended up running 5. Alisdair’s training coupled with initial successes using the project approach has put a very positive light on project management at Broadsystem and has helped put me on my way to meeting my objective. In summary, Alisdair is a teacher who uses a mixture of energy, enthusiasm, risk, solid practical experience and diligence to make the whole learning experience very productive and lots of fun!
Mike Robinson, Head of Operations, Broadsystem plc
Building Societies Association
Alisdair spoke at our Annual Conference Seminar in May. His message was that work should be fun. His lively presentation was invigorating, thought provoking and motivating and made the delegates want to transmit his eagerness into their workplaces. His energy and enthusiasm certainly uplifted a flagging audience at the end of the session.
Louise Thornbury, Building Societies Association.
Business & Enterprise
I have worked with Alisdair over a period of approximately 14 years in a number of different businesses. The businesses that I refer to were all very different, ranging from newspaper publishing businesses to businesses delivering largely public sector contracts concerned with economic development. In each case I have asked Alisdair to help facilitate large scale and complex change programmes, often involving new and innovative ways of working. Alisdair has always produced great results. His assured approach, effective communication and willingness to challenge orthodoxy has meant that I have asked him to repeatedly help make things happen when I have faced the kind of big opportunities that needed exceptional facilitation. He really does help to make the right things happen in the right way, promptly. I would recommend Alisdair to anybody requiring the kind of high level facilitation that helps to make organisations achieve their ambitions.
Alastair MacColl, Chief Executive, Business & Enterprise North East
CBI Yorkshire & Humberside
Alisdair has run a series of workshops and seminars for the CBI in Yorkshire & Humberside. He is very versatile and has covered topics including business strategy, culture change, innovation and creativity. The feedback from attendees has been overwhelmingly positive. His style is energetic and highly interactive. He exudes a real enthusiasm for his work which is very infectious and draws his audiences in. He is keen to experiment and explore new approaches. Consequently, he remains fresh and entertaining. He puts an enormous amount into every event and this is appreciated and returned by the people that he works with.
Penny Hemming, Regional Director, CBI, Yorkshire & Humberside.
Crookes Healthcare
Ernst & Young Belgium
Greenhead College, Huddersfield
Greenhead College, Huddersfield
Alisdair has led a number of very successful student conferences at Greenhead Sixth Form College, Huddersfield. He has worked with many groups of A level Business Studies students providing them with an excellent, interactive learning experience. He communicated key concepts in an exciting and memorable manner. He has both charisma and humour. The atmosphere was busy and the students were all on task as Alisdair gradually introduced the more advanced concepts in a coherent, entertaining and meaningful way. This quote from Andrew Taylor, one of the students, says it all: “Thanks for a great morning. I learnt lots and had fun. Is that possible?” Overall I would strongly recommend the “Wiseman Experience”!
Bernadette Stephenson, Head of Business Studies and Economics, Greenhead College, Huddersfield.
Hoffman-LaRoche
Impact Plus Management Consultancy
Impact Plus Management Consultancy
Impact Plus is a client-focused management consultancy. Being able to provide new perspectives and ideas to our clients’ problems is vital for us. We have used the Innovation Zone to help our consultants do this more effectively and have found the approach invigorating, helpful and also fun – we would recommend it to others.
Kevin Dean, Senior Consultant, Impact Plus.
Locala
As an organization delivering NHS care in the community of Kirklees, we have concentrated on developing our front line leaders to enable them to make quick decisions in the best interests of the people they serve. Alisdair has helped us do this in many ways. He helped us to develop a fabulous leadership framework which helps all leaders understand their behaviours and how they interact with those they lead. He also helped the senior team to pull together of a complex series of plans to form a simple, coherent and easily actioned strategy, with clear milestones. One of Alisdair’s great strengths is that he begins any project believing that people already know the answers – he simply needs to help them see them more clearly. This means he is both popular and credible with all staff – and always helps people to help themselves.
Robert Flack, Chief Executive, Locala
Markel International
Alisdair facilitated two of our recent Overseas Meetings which involved the Executive Team, the Divisional MD’s and the Heads of Business from our overseas offices. The goal was to first establish a foundation for effective collaboration and then to focus on business performance. Alisdair provided a clear programme of activities which enabled us to develop our own perspectives and solutions. He steered both meetings to a successful conclusion, generally with a light touch. Equally, he wasn’t afraid to address the tougher issues. He is a strong and able facilitator.
William Stovin, President & Chief Operating Officer, Markel International
Northern & Yorkshire Learning Alliance
Northern Foods
RAC Motoring Services
Roche Consumer Health
Saint-Gobain
Scarborough & Whitby Primary Care Trust
South Yorkshire Strategic Health Authority
Sunday Post
Alisdair Wiseman is a fantastic facilitator, providing professional focus and clarity no matter the complexities of the tasks. His inclusive, friendly and relaxed approach not only helps create strategies and provide solutions but builds empowered and positive teams. He has always made a tremendous contribution to our business and I highly recommend him.
Donald Martin, Editor, Sunday Post
Superglass
It is no overstatement to say that Alisdair has helped me turn around 2 businesses. In both cases, he has facilitated strategy development sessions with management teams unaccustomed to involvement in setting the direction of the business. Alisdair does this with great energy and enthusiasm to deliver excellent results but also in an enjoyable fashion. The most recent events Alisdair facilitated for me are already talked about at all levels as the turning point for our business.
Alex McLeod, Chief Executive, Superglass
Swiss Pharma Licensing Group
Thomas Miller
D C Thomson
Alisdair has a unique way of working with a group of people to bring together their wide ranging ideas into a cohesive plan for implementation. Our time was fully utilized and it would not have been possible to pack more in.
As a facilitator I think that he is the best that I have encountered. He is professional, extremely well organized and gets the most out of a group without wearing them down. A day with Alisdair is always good fun as well as productive.
His style was temperamentally spot on, as he provided the shape to the day, sustained the pace without too much intrusion, faded into the background during productive team debates, but gently entered and steered the debate when either the pace or substance were weakening. The focus on outcomes was relentless, but never uncomfortably so.
I think Alisdair is a fantastic facilitator who provides clarity and focus no matter the complexity of the project or task. He does so in a relaxed but professional manner and his approach is inclusive and helps unite the team.
David Thomson, Joint Managing Director – D C Thomson
Trinity Mirror Regionals Newspaper Group
Virgin Money
Vodafone
Warburtons
Alisdair has a delightful style that hides a determination to stay focused and to deliver! His questionable taste in music has never interfered with getting the job done! And he has always been stimulating, challenging and fun to work with.
Brett Warburton, Managing Director, Warburtons Limited
Wurttembergische Gmbh
York Health Services NHS Trust
York Health Services NHS Trust
York NHS Trust have used Alisdair for various events, including a conference for 200 delegates. He has proved a major success, both in terms of appealing to the delegates and in terms of delivering our business objective. Alisdair’s innovative approach and lively persona have been essential factors in our continued relationship with him and I would not hesitate to recommend him to any other organisation who wish to stimulate thinking about innovation and team work.
Simon Pleydell, Chief Executive