Scott McInnes – Inspiring Change
We spoke to Scott McInnes of Inspiring Change and started by asking him, what exactly does Inspiring Change do…
Scott: “At Inspiring Change we’re all about helping organisations to connect their people to their strategy, purpose and change programmes. We connect leaders to teams and people to each other. We do that by helping our clients to think about how they communicate with, engage and lead their people, all of which contribute to successful, productive cultures that attract and retain the best people.”
Breandán: Ready for your 10 questions!
Scott: Absolutely…
Q1. Did you always want to become a consultant or did you fall into the role?
I actively decided to start Inspiring Change having looked at the market here in Ireland and seeing an opportunity to help organisations struggling with internal comms, engagement and leadership – foundational elements for strong organisational culture.
Q2. What makes a good consultant?
Someone who listens to understand, not to respond, and has the experience to be able to know what will help a client in that moment and into the future.
Q3. Do you feel you manage yourself well or is it a case of ‘the cobbler’s shoes’?I don’t think I’m dreadful from a cobblers perspective as our communications is quite good. But I do tend to jump from job-to-job, multitasking and telling myself that that’s exactly what I tell clients not to do!
Q4. Are there enough hours in your day?
I don’t really do a standard 9-5 so ‘hours in the day’ is a bit of a fluid concept. I love what I do, so I tend to work whatever hours need to be worked – key is to take advantage of the quieter hours by actively making time for other things in my life.
Q5. If you could magically stop your clients from making one mistake – what would that be?
Not listening to their people – or listening to them and then not taking the feedback on board. Employee voice is a great way to find out what’s going on in a business and how you can do things better – it’s a long way from the top to the front line!
Q6. What do you find is the best way to market yourself?
The best way to market yourself is to NOT market yourself. I podcast and I put out thought leadership content in my area of specialism but rarely market my services. Often, the big win is helping potential clients see that they actually have a need. I’ve found that often, people don’t know what they don’t know so education is key.
Q7. What do you do to unwind?
I love to cook and bake and I also do triathlon (largely because I’m 48 and desperately trying to cling to my youth!). I live beside the sea so I enjoy sea swims too.
Q8. What advice would you give a starting consultant?
Decide what it is you do and be niche – ‘be an inch wide and a mile deep’ as my coach told me. Then build a strong network of people who’ll advise you, listen to you, steer you, advocate for you and refer you.
Q9. What’s your guilty pleasure?
Chocolate. And spending money on things that I REALLY don’t need!
Q10. What’s your goal for next year?
To continue to broaden my client list, to expand the Inspiring Change team, create a couple of training courses and a communications audit; and go on a BIG foreign holiday!
Find out more about Scott McInnes and Inspiring Change, at inspiringchange.ie