Comeback Coach

Ask me a Q **Quick link to register interest in the Raising & Rising leadership retreat for mothers in senior roles – CPO’s and HR professionals please leave your details if interested for your people.** Hello Bright Minds this episode is an unexpected and delightful turn of events off the back of seeing my mate Katy Fridman for coffee a couple of weeks ago. We’d been talking about the state o...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, you’re about to eavesdrop on a coaching conversation with a woman who wants to do big things in the world of philanthropy. She has a bold ambition to work with Melinda Gates and create a movement that leads to many, many more big female philanthropists around the globe. Female financial empowerment is her driving force and I gave her my ear to help her think about ho...

Ask me a Q My guest today is Donna Nichol, from Chloe James Lifestyle who started her career in fashion buying and gave into her urge to open an independent store of her own 16 years in the place I call home: St Albans. Earlier this year Donna took a month out of her business to go travelling with her husband and when I saw her photos on Instagram and just how happy the break had made her I though...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, this episode is for anyone who's just come second in a recruitment process for a job really wanted.  LINKS REFERENCES IN EPISODE Executive coaching for 'overlooked professionals'. Raising & Rising register of interest. Raising & Rising career retreat (for mothers in senior roles). Comeback Community employee experience. I’m Jessica Chivers, a c...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, my guest today is Helen Rickards, who last year was made redundant from the German insurer Allianz after 25 years. It was traumatic. She’s now back in role at Lloyd’s of London and she’s loving it. You are about to eavesdrop on a wonderfully uplifting tale of how Helen got back to work. We talk about networking, the nuts and bolts of making LinkedIn work, what it’s l...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, this episode is for anyone who is currently grappling with a drop in motivation at work or a loss of drive to push forward in your career after a break from work – a break that has shifted your identity in some way. I want to let you know that it’s normal. And that your drive is still there. It’s just staying quiet for a while – and that accepting it will take time f...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, my chat with Suzy was deeply engaging for me as a fellow psychologist – and therapeutic at times - and I think it’s a great big, warm, virtual hug for anyone who is wrung out from taking care of children, partners, direct reports and all the other people who you give to in your life.  We talk about themes connected to Suzy’s latest book, How to be selfish , which is...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, this is an episode written from the heart on my 47th birthday about audacity being a behavioural muscle we can develop in service of fuelling our careers and getting more women into top jobs. I'm Jessica Chivers, a chartered coaching psychologist, executive coach and author of "Mothers Work!" ** TELL ME ABOUT YOUR AUDACIOUS ACTS & ASKS AT WORK - li...

Ask me a Q My guest today is Microsoft’s AI Workforce Lead for Government who recently returned to the business after her second maternity leave. Rakhi Sachdeva moved from India to the UK in 2015 and she’s risen in one of the world largest technology companies without a traditional tech background.  Rahki is a wonderful example of the power of not waiting until you feel fully ready before you put...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds and welcome to the first episode of season 10 of COMEBACK COACH with the author of the brand new book, People Glue: Hold onto your best people by setting them free . If you have ever craved more freedom at work, if you are a business leader worried about losing your best people or if you are a Chief People Officer tasked with generating a new talent attraction and ret...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, this is the third of three bonus episodes of season nine where I’m lifting the lid on what the people I and my colleagues coach, actually get from coaching. I’m Jessica Chivers, a chartered coaching psychologist and executive coach of 20 years.  I’m the founder of a boutique coaching business called The Talent Keeper Specialists , and this year we turned 13 and compl...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, this is the second of three bonus episodes of season nine where I’m lifting the lid on what people really get from coaching. If you’ve listened to any COACH episode of the podcast you’ve heard coaching in action. Now’s the time to hear the impact and the positive ripple effects of coaching.   Please enjoy the reflections of Laura Scougall, the Head of ITV Academy who...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, on a whim at the end of the final episode of season nine with Jeremy Bradbury from ITV (episode 117) I wondered aloud about doing a few bonus episodes about what people really get from coaching. This was inspired by the conversations I’ve had recently with a series of past coachees for a 'Success Story’ page on our new website. Listener Suzy heard that and voice...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, my guest today loves his job and is incredibly appreciative of the support he received from his employer, ITV, when illness came out of nowhere. This year Jeremy Bradbury had two months away from work with ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and took around four months to phase back to full time. ITV has been a client of The Talent Keeper Specialists for eight years and I ha...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, I am worried about what's happening to mothers in UK Plc. In February I am hosting the first Raising & Rising retreat with my colleague Anita Cleare. It’s a small, intimate gathering of 8-12 mothers (of children 0-18) in senior roles to give them space, tools and encouragement to explore what they want next in their careers. These women are the ‘talent pipel...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, Stephanie Ogden, loves her job. She is the UK CEO of the global insurance company HDI Global and she was an absolute treat to chat to because she was so open and honest. We get into the nitty gritty of how to step away from your business when you are holding the top job or another really senior role. But this is not just an episode for senior leaders – if you work in...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Mind, I start this episode by sharing a piece of academic astonishing research that demonstrates, unequivocally, the powerful and positive link between values and career success. Values frequently come into the work I do with leaders who are having a challenging time at work or in combining work and home. I do a lot of work with professional women with children who place im...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, QUICK LINKS to things in this episode: HR webinar on female talent not stepping up. Raising & Rising leadership retreat early bird registration. Women & Men receive different developmental feedback . Anna Marthur’s new book, The Uncomfortable Truth . Little Dish x The Felix Project My guest today is the wonderfully warm and open psychotherapist, speaker and a...

Ask me a Q **Quick link to register interest in the Raising & Rising leadership retreat for mothers in senior roles in February 2026 – CPO’s and HR professionals please register and we'll be in touch about places for your senior female talent.** Hello Bright Minds, today you are going to eavesdrop on a coaching conversation with a senior woman who is 2 months back from a 10 month maternit...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, today’s guest has had a squiggly career, graduating as a graphic designer and making it up to creative art director before moving into an MD role and then into entrepreneurship. She’s the co-founder of The Hustle Factory where she and her co-founder are disrupting the outplacement world. Outplacement is when an employer supports an employee to bounce back more quickl...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, **Here's the link to register your interest and get early bird access to the exclusive gathering for 12 senior talented professional working mothers who are future Directors, MDs or Partners to help them feel equipped to take the next career step. I'm running this with Anita Cleare in 2026.** E-mail me: jc@talentkeepers.co.uk to discuss an executive coachin...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, I’m trying something new for this season of the podcast and that’s to bring you a couple of expert voices on topics that are coming up in coaching conversations with the people I, and my colleagues, are coaching. Today I am bringing you a conversation with chartered psychologist Nicola Jane Hobbs who is the author of a new book, The Relaxed Woman: Reclaim Rest and Li...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, you are in for a treat with this first episode of the new season. I am so pleased you’re here and you are about to hear a magnificent tale of grit, perseverance, honesty and so much warmth from my guest Nora Prida-Bay from Jupiter Asset Management. She had an 8-year career break and it took her 118 interviews to land a job back in banking.  You are going to get the i...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, I have a completely wonderful powerhouse for you today who returned from maternity leave eight months ago. Her dream job came up whilst she was away so she decided to return six months early and on day two of her comeback there was a wholescale restructure of the entire business which changed everything. She’s just returned from a company celebration trip to Miami in...

Ask me a Q Hello Bright Minds, my guest coachee today is Emilia, which isn’t her real name. She’s been an avid listener of the podcast and got in touch about having a coaching session to support her in making a lateral move in a large multinational healthcare company. Not long after we arranged to speak she e-mailed to say her line manager was going to be leaving and could we talk about how she na...