profile

Volante Consulting Kenya

Supporting leaders when it's tough: A new chapter I'm building

Published over 1 year ago • 2 min read

Launching a portfolio career with Volante at its heart

Dear Reader

Reconnecting with Purpose

After stepping down from my role as CEO of Living Goods six months ago, I took a short but much need pause. That time gave me the opportunity to reflect on what kind of impact I want to have next. One thing became clear: leadership can be profoundly lonely - especially during moments of change, when the stakes are high and the path ahead uncertain. That's the space I now feel called to step into - walking alongside other leaders as they navigate growth, complexity and transition.

With over 30 years in leadership across the private and nonprofit sectors, I'm now building a portfolio career with Volante at it's heart.

Introducing Volante

Volante is a strategic advisory and mentoring practice designed to support purpose-driven leaders, funders and boards through pivotal moments - whether that's scaling up, resetting direction, navigating transitions or simply needing a trusted perspective at times of uncertainty.

Volante evokes movement, momentum and lift - because great leadership lifts others, navigates complexities and creates forward momentum.

I've been in the seat when funding fell through, when the team wasn't aligned and when growth outpaced culture. I've also been there when we secured game-changing investment and had to rapidly ready the organisation for scale. I've led strategic pivots and reworked business models. I've shifted the centre of gravity to Kenya and built a board to match a bold new vision. I know how isolating and energising these inflection points can be. That's why I now support leaders, boards and funders with practical, grounded insight - rooted in real experience and tailored to the moment.

How I can help:

  • Leadership Support: Strategic and personal guidance for CEOs and senior leaders navigating pivotal moments such as new roles, business model shifts, leadership transition, scaling challenges and tough calls. Includes mentoring, leadership team development and values-driven culture work.

Outcomes: aligned leadership, resilient culture and confident decision making through complexity and change.

  • Strategy & Scaling: Collaborative support to clarify direction, test and adjust business models and design adaptive strategies especially in times of uncertainty or rapid change. I help pressure-test plans, build alignment and ensure organisation readiness for intentional, sustainable scaling.

Outcomes: clear strategic direction, adaptable business model and strong foundations for scaling impact.

  • Governance & Funder Insight: Support for boards, funders and investors seeking sharper oversight, stronger alignment and deeper on-the-ground perspective. Includes board development, CEO-board dynamics and trusted insights for better investment and governance decisions.

Outcomes: effective oversight, aligned leadership and better informed decisions that drive impact.

Warm regards,

Liz

Strategic Advisor | Former CEO | Founder, Volante

Kenya- based, available globally

Let's stay connected!

I would love to reconnect. If you are working through a big shift (or know others who are), seeking new perspectives or just want to catch up, I'd love to hear from you. The next phase is about collaboration, curiosity and contribution. If you're in the thick of change or on the edge of one - or simply need a sounding board, I'd love to hear what's on your mind.

You can learn more about Volante by visiting my website

Or book a call

Thanks for reading and here's to finding new ways to work on tough problem together.

Volante Consulting Kenya

Read more from Volante Consulting Kenya

Your year end review should not contain surprises Agreeing what success looks like is only the start. Keeping that understanding shared takes work throughout the year. Dear Reader, As we head towards the end of the year, many of us will be preparing for performance reviews. Either our own, or those of the people we lead. I have been thinking about two questions. Have we kept a shared understanding of what success looks like? And are we recognising the full contribution we expect from senior...

6 days ago • 2 min read

You promoted your best performer. Now it isn't working. Before deciding what to do, work out what has actually gone wrong Dear Reader, They were one of your strongest performers. So you promoted them. Six months later, they are struggling. Or perhaps worse, they are still delivering, but the way they are leading is creating problems for everyone around them. I have seen this quite a few times. And I think one of the mistakes we make is assuming that because someone was ready for promotion,...

13 days ago • 2 min read

Is your strategy driving your choices, or are your choices rewriting your strategy? In a difficult funding environment, staying anchored to the problem matters more than ever Dear Reader, There is a phrase I keep coming back to: Fall in love with the problem, not the solution. It sounds simple. In practice, I think it is becoming increasingly difficult. This is an incredibly tough funding environment. Organisations are cutting costs, looking for new sources of revenue and asking where the...

20 days ago • 3 min read