Who is Louise?
You’ll usually hear me before you see me…the laugh travels, and so does the energy behind it.
Change has been a constant in my life from the get-go.
I was born to Welsh immigrants who moved to Perth, Western Australia, having never set foot in the country before. By the time I finished school I'd lived across two countries, two states and four different schools. I'm now up to home number 18 including two stints in regional towns, because my husband and I tend to get itchy feet.
That "pick a path" life had me leaning into leadership early, thriving in the ambiguity and complexity that comes with constant change. During my corporate career, I became the person leaders turned to in the middle of the whirlwind helping them navigate uncertainty, create clarity, and turn complexity into sustainable outcomes.
Leaving the comfort zone of the corporate world was the hardest leap I've taken. But some big life events like having children and losing a parent shift your perspective quickly. I realised I wanted a bigger, wider, longer-lasting impact.
So I built With Verve, named for what I bring to every room, and what I believe purpose-led leaders need most: the vigour, spirit and enthusiasm to lead deliberately through whatever's in front of them.
Verve:
the qualities of vigour, spirit or enthusiasm
25 years lived and breathed experience.
For more than 25 years, I’ve worked in leadership, business transformation and organisational development, leading teams and partnering leaders to be and bring their best.
“Leadership isn’t about having all the answers or being perfect. It’s about being real enough to build connection, deliberate enough to create impact, and connected enough to bring others with you.”
Be Real. Be Curious. Be Connected
BE REAL
• Show up as your best authentic self
• Lead with energy, values and integrity
BE CURIOUS
• Stretch what you think is possible
• Courage to experiment and pursue new possibilities
BE CONNECTED
• People first, impact will follow
• Collaborate inclusively and with trust
‘Greater than the sum of their parts’
I’m in my element guiding leadership teams to shift from misaligned and reactive to cohesive and strategic - so they collectively create greater impact for the communities they serve, without the CEO carrying it all alone.
One of my proudest career achievements was leading leadership capability development and culture change across a 20,000-strong workforce at BHP - driving statistically significant gains across the business.
But credentials are only part of the story. I’ve practised leadership from the frontline to the boardroom. Steel-capped boots to high heels, as I like to say (although you’ll find me in flats these days)! Big organisations, medium and small. For-profit and for-purpose. Locally, regionally and globally.
My experience is both strategic and operational - lived, not just observed. It means I’m pragmatic, I keep things real, and I spot the patterns quickly. I cut through the noise and help leaders focus on what will make the biggest difference.
I’ve operated at scale. Now I bring that thinking to small-to-medium for-purpose organisations who don’t always have this depth of expertise in-house.