Client Case Study: Kelly & Morgan

Co-founders of Perci Health, Kelly and Morgan hired Jennifer off the back of raising Seed funding, to maintain alignment as co-founders and step up a business leaders as they entered a phase of rapid business growth.

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Coaching Contract: Organisation coaching retainer since 2023 including co-founder alignment coaching, one to one coaching, Leader as Coach training and coaching for the leadership team.

When did you start working with Jennifer and what stage were you at then?

Kelly: We had just raised our first institutional investment - seed funding through Octopus Ventures around March 2023. As part of that, Octopus mandates that their portfolio companies have executive coaching because they see the benefit of it. So we were looking for coaches around summer 2023.

At that time we had early revenue but were just pivoting to B2B. We had a product that was live in the market and were starting to sell to large enterprise clients. I would say the business has transformed since then - it was a completely different business when we first started working with Jennifer than what it is today.

What made you decide to get a coach at that point?

Kelly: The things we were really focused on were co-founder alignment - how did we maintain our relationship as the business grew? Bringing in institutional investors, changing the board, as things get a bit more sticky - how do we make sure we're a solid team all the time? And then obviously our own personal development as well, making sure that we were growing and adapting as the business grows.

Morgan: We needed to grow as leaders. We'd been working, working, working, and then suddenly realised we're founders and we've got to lead people, and we need to understand what that means.

What's it like working with Jennifer? How would you describe her coaching?

Kelly: The co-founder alignment has been one of the most impactful things. Morgan and I have a really strong relationship, so it wasn't about resolving conflict - it was about how do we protect this relationship that is working? How do we make sure that as all the other things change, there's always something stressful, we protect that relationship?

We have individual coaching sessions and then regular co-founder alignment sessions every two months. We set very clear objectives with each other and Jennifer about what we wanted to achieve. It's a protected time for us to think. With Jennifer there as a facilitator, we always leave those sessions with new ideas or more clarity over the strategy for the next period.

Morgan: Jennifer's very structured, very organized. She's an excellent listener. She picks up on the small things and remembers them and brings them back. She knows when to push and knows when to hold back. She always asks the right questions that make you really think. She doesn't tell you what to do - she helps you work it out yourself, which is exactly what you need.

Kelly: She's very disciplined about confidentiality. She's been coaching me, Morgan, and our whole leadership team, so she knows a lot about us as individuals. What she does is encourage the person to go speak with the rest of the team about what they're working on in coaching if she thinks it would be helpful, but she would never do that herself.

Morgan:She keeps you accountable. She remembers what you said last time, which makes you action-oriented. You can evidence progress - last month we were doing this, and since speaking to you, I've now done this.

What difference has that work made for you?

Kelly: The biggest shift for me has been moving from an operator - where I'm project managing every project - to being a CEO with a senior leadership team, being able to drive the vision and strategy through delegation. Moving from doing all the work to properly being in a leadership position. That happened gradually over two or three years.

We've talked about delegation, how to get the best out of different team members when everybody works differently, org charts, target operating models. We've talked about confidence when speaking to investors and the board. How to be more assertive and less nice - we really unpicked that being kind is a core value, but nice is not the same. Being able to be a lot more transparent and clear with my team.

Morgan: It's given us space to do really deep thinking that wouldn't get done otherwise. We make some really big strategic decisions in those sessions because we don't have time otherwise. We come together and we unlock something. It's not the same as our weekly meetings - it's two hours of dedicated time for what is the one thing we really need to solve today.

She's given me loads of tools and techniques that I actually use. She's very outcome-driven - it's not about her, it's about what you're trying to achieve. She's helped me understand what my strengths are as a leader, and that's made such a difference in how I show up every day.

What growth or changes have you noticed in yourselves over time?

Kelly: Three years ago I was an operator. Now I'm properly in a leadership position with a senior leadership team. I've become much more confident, more assertive, clearer in my communication.

Morgan:  She's helped me realise what I'm actually good at and what my strengths are, and she's made me feel confident about it. I’d managed teams before, but I didn’t yet feel like the kind of leader a fast-growing company needed. Jennifer helped me become more rounded, less reactive, and much clearer in how I show up. I feel genuinely equipped now and that confidence has been transformational.

Who would you recommend Jennifer to, and why?

Kelly: I tell everyone to get a coach now. Everyone needs a Jennifer. I’d recommend her to anyone who needs to grow as a leader. Anyone going through significant transitions - whether that's raising investment, building a leadership team, scaling a business. If you're serious about your own development and your business's development, Jennifer is invaluable.

Morgan: Founders. Definitely founders because she understands the unique challenges. She gets what it's like to be running a startup - the pressures, the constant change, the need to grow fast. She understands that context completely.