Unlock your team’s potential through applied improvisation.
Playful exercises with a powerful purpose. My experiential coaching can rewire how your people communicate, collaborate, and adapt under pressure.
Why Improv Works
Enhanced Communication
Break through communication barriers to create real understanding and unlock honest, productive dialogue.
Deeper Listening
Cut through surface chatter to discover deeper meaning. Listen for what’s realaly being said and what isn’t.
Faster Adaptation
Build mental agility and comfort with uncertainty. Teams learn to pivot quickly and find creative solutions under pressure.
Stronger Cohesion
Create shared experiences that help teams to click. Laughter and play build trust and psychological safety.
Improved Reactions
Develop emotional intelligence and response flexibility. Learn to stay calm and constructive in challenging situations.
Innovation Boost
Unlock creative thinking and collaborative problem‐solving. “Yes and …” mindset transforms how teams approach challenges.
”The team really enjoyed the session and it has kick started the conversation on the power of storytelling. Thank you for the informative, engaging and fun session.
Vanessa RossTeam Development Day, Ministry of Primary Industries
Play Hard.
Work Better.
Behind every laugh is research showing how improv training drives peak performance in the real world. Your team isn’t just having fun—they’re developing the cognitive flexibility that boosts performance and morale.
The Experience
Assess & Design
We start by understanding your team’s specific challenges and goals, then design a customised programme using proven improv techniques.
Engage & Play
Teams participate in carefully crafted exercises that are fun, engaging and purposeful. Every game has a specific learning objective.
Reflect & Apply
We connect each exercise back to real workplace situations, ensuring the insights gained translate into improved daily interactions and performance.
”A great team building afternoon with Nicola, each activity challenging us in different ways.
Catherine HallNational Leadership Hui for Alzheimers NZ
Leadership Coaching: Your Personal Performance Lab
The most challenging leadership moments happen without a script: a presentation goes off‐track, a difficult conversation unexpectedly arises, a struggling team needs sensitive motivation. These are the moments improv training prepares you for.
This isn’t about becoming a performer—it’s about you becoming the kind of leader who can navigate uncertainty with confidence, connect authentically, and inspire others .
The Skills You’ll Develop
Authentic Presence
Learn to bring your genuine self to key interactions while reading and responding to room.
Agile Communication
Learn to stay present responsive even when the heat is on.
Collaborative Leadership
Develop the “yes, and…” mindset. Move from someone who has all the answers to someone who helps the team find better solutions together.
Storytelling That Inspires
Discover how to craft compelling narratives: scripted or spontaneous.
Resilience Under Pressure
Build the mental agility to remain creative and decisive when stakes are high and time is short.
The Coaching Experience
Working together, we’ll use improvisation exercises designed for your leadership challenges. Session are tailored to your unique situation—whether you’re stepping into your first leadership role, navigating a major transition, or refining your executive presence.
Through experiential learning, you’ll practice new behaviours in a safe environment before applying them in real‐world situations. You’ll develop instincts, not just techniques—the kind of leadership intuition that can’t be taught through case studies or theory alone.
”Nicola has helped me become a more effective negotiator and advocate. The role play, storytelling and feedback have improved my ‘voice’ and given me insight, tools and experience that embed the learning.
Amanda Leness, UK Lawyer (Infrastructure)Coaching Client
Who This Is For
Emerging Leaders ready to develop their authentic leadership voice and build confidence in unscripted moments.
Experienced Leaders looking to refine their presence, improve their ability to connect with diverse groups, and lead with greater agility.
Anyone who wants to transform into a leader who shapes circumstances, rather than reacting to them.
”As an inveterate improvisor and actor, Nicola knows how to communicate – with words and body – and how to keep an audience interested, enraptured, captivated. And she knows how to have fun!
LeeAnne Duncan, Too Young FoundationCoaching Client
Stage Ready
Performance Coaching for Your Most Important Moments
Pitching to investors, delivering a keynote, or interviewing for your dream role, when the stakes are high and all eyes are on you, you need more than your specialist expertise, you need to be stage ready.
For High‐Stakes Presentations Master the art of compelling storytelling, dynamic stage presence, and audience connection. Learn to structure your content for maximum engagement and handle Q&A sessions with confidence.
For Critical Interviews test and improve your ability to think on your feet and communicate well under pressure.
For Public Speaking Events Overcome nervous energy, project authority, and create genuine connection with any audience. Transform anxiety into excitement and use your whole presence to support your message.
The Stage Ready Approach
Directors see what others miss: Theatre directors are trained to spot exactly what’s blocking a performer from their best work. I identify the subtle habits, physical tensions, and mental blocks that undermine your natural charisma.
Actor training for real‐world impact: The same techniques that help actors embody characters and captivate audiences will help you embody your professional best self. You’ll learn to access confidence on command, project your voice with authority, and use purposeful movement and gesture.
Customized to your specific event: Coaching can be built around your actual presentation, interview, or speaking opportunity. We’ll work with your content, anticipate questions and specific challenges and get you ready to excel.
”Nicola’s skill and experience shone through every moment in taking me from reciting a speech to getting in the moment with all the gravitas it required.
Trevor CuttrissCoaching Client
Why Me?
As a trained actor, improviser, and director I jave spent a lifetime exploring the power of performance to connect, develop, and transform. For over 20 years I have supported people’s development working as a coach and facilitator across a wide range of sectors. My clients have included ‘Big Four’ tax and legal partners, government departments, NGOs, university leaders, college teachers, and private professional clients in New Zealand, the US and the UK.
I am committed to creating environments where people can expand their capacity to relate, collaborate, and imagine new possibilities—both personally and professionally.
A decades‐long career in broadcast journalism has given me a strong foundation in storytelling, communication, and the ability to listen with depth and precision. This experience continues to inform my work, helping others to find and express their own narratives with clarity and confidence.
I was the founder and Creative Director of Voice Arts, a creative hub dedicated to expression, performance, and well‐being. Through this initiative, I led workshops and programmes that integrate artistic practice with personal and social development.
I am also an associate of the East Side Institute, a global leader in performance‐based developmental psychology, and a professional member of the Applied Improvisation Network (AIN).
Ready to change the game?
Let’s discuss how applied improvisation can broaden your team’s dynamics and performance, develop your leadership strengths or prepare you to make an impact on any audience.
021 404 615