Meet Our Experts
Leadersmith boasts a team of highly skilled and internationally certified leadership coaches who bring a wealth of experience from various industries. Our coaches have worked with leaders at all levels, from emerging talents to C-suite executives, and across diverse sectors in banking & finance and other corporate sectors.
We stay up-to-date with the latest research and trends in leadership development, enabling us to provide cutting-edge strategies that drive meaningful growth and sustainable change.
Resha Warnesuriye
Managing Director
Mentor/Coach/Corporate Governance Specialist
For the past three decades Resha has worked in a global environment specializing in the financial services industry holding senior leadership positions. She has had the privilege of helping individuals and teams work effectively across borders and understand differences in culture and communication.
Leadership
During her tenure as a member of the executive management of Mirabaud Middle East Limited, she led a multicultural team consisting of many nationalities. As a leader she earned trust and embraced diversity by actively fostering an inclusive environment, valuing diverse perspectives by promoting inclusivity, leading by example, addressing biases and providing learning to her team members. Resha exercises high level of emotional intelligence which enabled her to navigate interpersonal dynamics, foster positive work environments and lead with empathy and authenticity.
Corporate Governance
Resha was the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) registered Company Secretary for Mirabaud Middle East Limited and Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM) registered Company Secretary for Mirabaud (Abu Dhabi) Limited, where she played a crucial role in ensuring that the organization operates ethically, transparently, and in the best interest of its stakeholders, promoting good governance practices, impacting company’s long-term stability.
Her responsibilities typically include:
1. Policy Development: Developing and implementing corporate governance policies and practices to ensure compliance with laws and regulations.
2. Board Oversight: Assisting the board of directors in their roles and responsibilities, including selecting and evaluating board members.
3. Compliance: Ensuring the company adheres to legal and regulatory requirements, including financial reporting standards.
4. Risk Management: Identifying and managing risks that could affect the company’s financial stability or reputation.
5. Ethical Standards: Promoting ethical behavior and a culture of integrity throughout the organization.
6. Shareholder Relations: Managing relationships with shareholders and addressing their concerns.
7. Disclosure and Transparency: Overseeing the disclosure of financial and non-financial information to stakeholders.
8. Executive Compensation: Reviewing and recommending executive compensation packages to align with company performance.
9. Internal Controls: Monitoring and enhancing internal control systems to prevent fraud and ensure efficient operations.
10. Audit and Review: Collaborating with internal and external auditors to ensure accurate financial reporting.
11. Stakeholder Communication: Communicating with various stakeholders, including employees, customers, suppliers, and investors.
Training and Development
Resha was one of the pioneers of the Career Development program introduced at ABN AMRO Dubai during which time she headed the account management team of the Private banking unit. This career development approach provided a roadmap for career enhancement helping employees understand their career trajectory within the organization ultimately leading to better employee engagement.
Resha is passionate about leadership and people development and truly love coaching and mentoring. She is a believer that people are the biggest asset of a company therefore investing in employee training and development can lead to a more skilled, engaged, and satisfied workforce, which ultimately benefits the employer by improving performance, reducing employee turnover, and increasing competitiveness.
Resha is supported by two other industry experts Beat Blaesi and Juli Fairclough- Davis. Between the them they combine years of mentoring and coaching expertise and together they bring a rounded approach to leadership coaching and mentoring.
Resha holds an MBA from the University of Wollongong Australia and Professional Postgraduate Diploma in Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC). She is a Fellow of the International Compliance Association (FICA – ICA UK) and an ICA certified GRC specialist.
Industry experience
- Overseas Trust Bank Colombo Sri Lanka
- Seylan Bank, Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Amsterdam Rotterdam Bank, Colombo Sri Lanka
- ABN AMRO Bank Colombo, Sri Lanka
- ABN AMRO Dubai, UAE
- Fortis Banque (Suisse) S.A, Dubai UAE
- Fortis Bank, Dubai UAE
- BNP Paribas, Dubai UAE
- Mirabaud Middle East Ltd
Beat Blaesi
Trainer/Coach/Mentor
Leadership Excellence | Authentic Leadership | High Performing Executive Teams / Change Leadership
Beat encourages senior executives and executive teams to seek out creative opportunities as a key strategy for successfully adapting to challenges and rapid change. As a passionate and results-oriented leadership advisor Beat enables his clients to envision their potential and achieve their goals. He is convinced that change in organizations must be guided by enterprising and adaptive leadership. The most effective executive teams are those in which the individuals’ natural leadership styles and strengths match the challenges and common goals. With a demonstrated ability to establish rapport, Beat is a trusted advisor and partner on the leadership journey.
With more than 30 years of in-depth and diverse experiences with international organizations, Beat’s roles to date include:
Clients
Beat has worked extensively with managers and top executives in the financial services industry, government organization, med tech companies and mid sized family-owned organisations. He is a lecturer at an Executive MBA at the University of Zurich.
Beat brings deep knowledge and expertise in economics, general management and applied psychology in part gained at the University of Zurich, and the University of Applied Psychology Zurich (IAP) and at INSEAD (Coaching and Consulting for Change Program) and NLP Practitioner
Beat became an inspirational and professional expert in executive coaching and consulting, executive team building, and post-merger organizational change. Certified in a huge number of psychometrics, including MBTI, Korn/Ferry Lominger, GELI, DDA, FIRO-B etc.
Head of Leadership Development Faculty
Beat built from scratch a leadership development faculty for a global Bank. In cooperation with a leading Business Schoolhe developed and designed corporate leadership development programs for various management levels and target groups. This mandate included senior executive team coaching and consulting as well as facilitating strategy / leadership workshops. He became a trusted advisor for the senior management and supported the Human Capital Processes and the leadership pipeline succession planning.
M&A Leadership and Culture Work Stream
Beat supported the acquisition of two wealth management companies, bringing together American and Swiss cultures with very different business models and clients. Beat lead the Leadership and Culture work stream, this required coverage across 17 European, Asia and south American countries. A full range of senior management integration workshops and big group intervention was required, as well as handling difficult conversations and influencing multiple stakeholder groups. Beat developed, designed and facilitated workshops and conferences with up to 200 participants. Beat was instrumental in supporting the senior management teams of the regions.
Senior Executive Team Coaching & Consulting
Beat was supporting newly appointed leaders and their direct teams. He designed and facilitated Strategy / leadership workshops with the result that the management team could build trust, commitment and shared accountability for their collective and individual results and objectives. He supported the new senior leader to productive as quickly as possible and to identify behaviours that could stall his leadership effectiveness at the beginning of a new position
Results and Stakeholder oriented Coaching & Consulting Approach
Beat coached senior executives by a results and stakeholder oriented approach. He supported leaders achieve positive, long term measurable change in behaviour in the context of their business challenges and environment. The coaching and consulting is focussing on developing the key behaviours that will make the biggest impact on increased leadership effectiveness
Juli Fairclough-Davis
Business, Leadership Development, Talent, Training and Project Management Consultant
Juli is a Talent, Training and Leadership Development Consultant, Chartered CIPD Fellow, ICF Certified Corporate and Performance Coach, BSc Hons Biological Science and graduate from the Harvard Kennedy School in the Art and Practice of Leadership Development.
Juli spent the first 8 years of her career at Lloyds TSB in a number of training and development roles, latterly as a senior manager for HR leadership, performance management, talent management, training and development.
Since 2009 Juli has worked with a variety of organisations as a business consultant and coach. Firstly, with Bank of America supporting the Equity Research team with their talent initiatives, Nomura consulting and coaching management, implementing a 360 initiative and designing first 100 day on boarding framework. In 2011 Juli spent over 2 years working as a Practice Management Consultant to Financial Advisors at Merrill Lynch, travelling across 17 Europe and Middle East countries to develop their business plans, team and leadership development, wealth management investment strategy and client service models.
During the complex Julius Baer acquisition of Merrill Lynch International in 2013 Juli moved to Zurich to lead this transformation for the HR workstream. She designed and delivered a complex combination of training, leadership and cultural awareness initiatives across 17 worldwide locations, engaging with key stakeholders and senior leadership.
In 2014 Juli remained in Zurich to consult with UBS, reshaping their HR business university and designing a senior leadership program which resulted in partnering with the IMD Business school in Lausanne, Switzerland.
In 2015 Juli moved to the UAE to work for the Wealth Sovereign Fund ADIA; the role was to build talent frameworks, create talent pools, identify and develop key successors and design professional development programmes to support the next generation of leaders. Juli is currently the Strategic Development Partner for a Fixed Income and Alternative Investments placement agent Capital 3PM, she is also the COO for an Equine IT start up.
Juli also has a passion for sport, specifically equestrian, in her spare time, she can be found riding her dressage horse with a long-term dream and goal of riding in the Olympics. She also trains UAE Show Jumping teams of advanced teenagers who have goals to compete for their country
Area of Expertise:
- Talent Management and Development
- Enterprise learning design and delivery
- Project Management
- Business Development
- Change Management
- Cultural Change
- Executive Coaching
- Team building and creating high performing teams.
- Performance Management and career path frameworks
Assessments and Certifications:
- Harvard Kennedy School
The Art & Practice of Leadership Development
- Chartered CIPD
MCIPD accredited.
- Performance Coaching Diploma
ICF Accredited (The Coaching Academy)
- Corporate Coaching Diploma
ICF Accredited (The Coaching Academy)
- ANLP accredited.
ANLP Accredited (The Coaching Academy)
- MBTI Step 1 and 2 qualified
OPP Accredited
- Thought Field Therapist
Chris Milbank Training
- BSc Hons
Biological Science – Sussex University
Cultural and Multi-National Experience:
- United Kingdom
- EMEA (Geneva, Zurich, Paris, Amsterdam, Monaco, Milan, Madrid, Luxembourg, Dubai, Bahrain, Beirut, Abu Dhabi)
- America (New York, Montevideo, Uruguay, Panama)
Industry Experience:
- Financial Services and Banking
LTSB
Bank of America
Merrill Lynch
Nomura
Julius Baer
UBS
RBS
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
- Governmental
- Retail
Selected Project Management & Enterprise Learning Design and Delivery Experience:
Bank of America Merrill Lynch – Equity Research Management Training:
A change in team structures and positions required the development of managers who were new to roll. Juli designed an integrated coaching and classroom training 3-month course which provided these new managers with the tools and practice they required when dealing with their teams, conducting feedback, holding team meetings, dealing with challenge and end of year performance reviews.
Merrill Lynch – Optimal Practice Model Business Coaching
Juli developed with her US colleagues a European optimal practice model (OPM) The business model was used to coach Financial Advisors and their teams. The model was the key coaching tool used by Juli to work with each location and team across the 17 countries. The model helped the teams assess their books of business, identify areas for development and track goals set to target dates agreed. The Leadership in each region were also coached by Juli to ensure they were able to lead their teams, bringing the model and action plans to life.
Merrill Lynch and Julius Baer Wealth Management Acquisition:
Juli supported the acquisition of two wealth management companies, bringing together American and Swiss cultures with very different business models and clients. Juli lead the HR Transformation work stream, this required coverage across 17 European, middle east and south American countries. A full range of management and communication skills training was required, as well as handling difficult client conversations, influencing and presentation skills. Management of senior leaders and other workstream leads required a high level of stakeholder communication and collaboration.
Juli managed remote teams across 17 countries to conduct complex asset transfer support and reconciliation. Eighty Billion in assets moved from Merrill Lynch to Julius Baer over a 10-month period with no operational losses. Juli was instrumental in supporting the regions, teams and individual financial advisors through coaching, training and stakeholder management.
UBS – Senior Leadership Program
In partnership with IMD Business School and the head of UBS Leadership Development Juli supported the design of a 2-year Senior Leadership Program for the top 120 senior UBS executives. The two-year program included coaching, off-site events and classroom challenges that stretched leaders to their physical and mental limits.
UAE National Early Career Development Framework
Working with Senior Management and Leadership Juli re-designed the UAE National Recruitment, onboarding and Early Career Training & Development Framework across the organisation. The recruitment re-design process included assessments of intellect but also behavioural attributes and career type preference testing. The onboarding 1-year programme focusing on technical training specific to finance was re-designed to a 7-week intensive technical and professional skill building experience, combining projects, real life work scenarios and a final capstone project. Early Career Development training programmes within each business unit were designed to create a roadmap of both technical training and accreditations to professional skill building as the young professionals developed through the first 3 years of their corporate career.
Selected Coaching Experience:
Wealth Management Practice Management Consultant:
Coaching individuals and teams to improve their client experience, from reviewing their team structures to the way they managed their client relationships. Working across 17 EMEA locations meant a high appreciation for different cultures requiring different coaching styles and models. The 2.5-year coaching assignment resulted in realignment of teams, increases in assets under management and revenue generation.
Business start-up:
This coaching assignment was to support an individual who had left the corporate world and was looking to start their own company. This assignment worked through the limiting beliefs, barriers to progress and fear of failure the individual believed to be the reality. By breaking down each challenge and working with areas within their control the company was set up and is now a successful and profitable business.
Wealth Manager:
Coaching to improve communication and client management skills. This individual found it challenging to deal with some of his clients and when we conducted a breakdown of his book of business found his energy was spent on 85% of the clients that brought him 20% of the revenue, by re-structuring his focus, improving the way he communicated and managed expectations of those difficult clients meant his time was profitable and most of all more enjoyable, his health and mindset improved as well as his family life.
Leadership Coaching:
A successful and experienced leader had moved within the organisation but to a different country and culture. The skills and leadership style suited to the western world was not working as he had hoped in the Middle East. The coaching assignment spent a significant amount of time helping the individual to better understand the new culture, way of working and importance of relationships and networks. As the leader became more self-aware of his leadership style and consciously made an effort to adapt to the new environment the respect of his team grew as well as their trust in him as a leader.
Career Transition Coaching:
Working with a client who was stuck in a financial, money driven world but this was not generating happiness and fulfilment. His life was full of material things, but the return was short lived and fake. He wanted to explore how he could let go of linking the word ‘success’ to the amount of money in his bank account or car he drove. Through our coaching he decided to embark on a charity house build and this changed his perception on life entirely. On returning and following a few more coaching sessions he decided to leave his job, sell his property and move back to his home country and family roots. He now lives far more modestly but his life is fulfilled and has purpose.
Tessie Pereira
Organisational Psychologist/Coach
Embark on a journey of professional and personal transformation with Tess Pereira, a distinguished Organizational Psychologist and Transformational Executive Coach based in the heart of the UAE. With over two decades of international business experience, Tess is renowned for her empathetic approach and unparalleled expertise in cultivating leadership excellence.
Tess Pereira is more than a coach; she is your partner in navigating the complex landscape of organizational dynamics. Having honed her skills through extensive international exposure, Tess specializes in empowering leaders at every level, from managerial and supervisory positions to those aspiring to the C-suite.
With a diverse academic background that includes an MBA in Organizational Psychology from UCAM Spain, an MSc in Public Health from the University of Edinburgh, and a BSc Hons in Medical Biochemistry from Brunel University London. She is an NLP Master Practitioner with UK accredited counselling skills. She is CMI-certified and Prince 2-qualified. Tess’s coaching practice is distinguished by a unique combination of psychological insight and business acumen. As a result, the following businesses have placed their trust in her expertise:
Tess Pereira’s approach goes beyond traditional coaching methods. She leverages Talk Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Neuro-Linguistic Programming to facilitate transformative change. She applies the following ABCD approach:
Specializing in leadership training programs, Tess excels in:
- Environmental Social and Governance (ESG): Enhancing productivity, staff attraction, and retention.
- Culture Management: Shaping empathetic leadership and fostering a positive workplace culture.
- Goal Setting with Purpose: Aligning personal and professional objectives for holistic growth.
- Conflict Resolution: Navigating challenges and promoting harmonious work environments.
- Burnout Prevention: Proactively addressing and mitigating workplace burnout.
- Diversity and Inclusion: Championing a culture of diversity for increased innovation and collaboration.
Tess’ expertise translates into tangible benefits for both individuals and organizations:
- Top Talent Attraction: Elevating your brand as an employer of choice.
- Enhanced Employee Satisfaction: Aligning personal and ethical goals with organizational values.
- Soft Skills Development: Fostering essential skills such as teamwork, leadership, and critical thinking.
- Improved Well-being: Prioritizing employee mental health and satisfaction.
- High Retention Rates: Cultivating a culture where valued employees become loyal assets.
Tess invites all her clients to shatter limitations and embark on an inspiring journey of growth, ambition, and professional development. As well as elevate leadership potential, transform workplaces, and create a thriving organizational culture with her expert guidance.
