about

Kaleidoscope Development is led by me, Emma Pearson. I consider myself to be a “European Brit” in that I have spent over two-thirds of my life living outside my native UK, mostly in continental Europe. I currently live near Geneva (Switzerland), and have worked as a business psychologist for the past 20+ years. I have stayed close to my Psychology roots throughout my career, specialising in working with individuals, teams and organisations who are eager to maximise their talent and potential.

A bit about me: I have an unshakeable belief in people, in their talent and potential, their goodwill and best intentions. People have tremendous skills and gifts to bring to the work environment. Typically, where individuals, teams or organisations are less effective than they might be, this is not due to a lack of goodwill or even skill. This belief might seem naïve, and perhaps not very business-like, but through my personal and professional experiences, this belief is stronger than ever. Invariably, people have enormous contributions to bring, but face barriers – either within themselves or in their interactions with others – that dilute their impact.

I believe that people have the same fundamental desires, hopes, fears and concerns: they want to feel connected, to contribute, to be heard, to learn, and to leave a lasting, positive mark as they move on. They want to do well, to be their best selves. I believe that unless people’s hopes and desires are discussed and shared, and their fears and concerns explored, people cannot bring their full talent, energy and potential to their daily lives.

As a business psychologist, I understand that much can prevent us from fully living our potential. I also understand how to unleash talent and creativity, and the personal and organisational barriers that prevent this unleashing. People’s lives, careers, teams, organisations and societies suffer from this untapped, unused passion and skill. And in today’s world of complexity and “white water” change, we need all the passion and creativity, collaboration and connection we can get.

A bit about my professional path: I have lived and worked in a number of European countries as well as in the US, and business has taken me to the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. Most of my career has been spent consulting with large, global organisations where I was brought in for my expertise in Organisational Talent. Working for a global talent consulting firm, I specialised in the assessment and development of senior leaders and their teams, and had the opportunity to help establish the company’s Swiss presence. I managed a team of consultants and support staff for the office, then took an EMEA Region role leading a core business segment. In 2009 I joined a global life sciences organisation as Talent Director for the European Region, then in 2011 moved into Organisation Development supporting significant change initiatives. I established Kaleidoscope Development in 2013, to help individuals and organisations who recognise that it’s time to accentuate people’s power, passion and potential so they can best serve organisations and the world – and in so doing, live their lives to the fullest.

How I Work

• Partnership: I am client-centred and collaborative. This means that I listen to understand your experience of what is going on and work with you to find solutions that work for you. While I have expertise, I do not lead with it. I do not pretend to have the answer. I certainly do not assume to know what will work in your context. I am curious about your world-view, uncover issues and barriers with you, challenge your thinking and assumptions, (with love and care!), and explore alternative ways forward.
• Positive: I believe that people have great wisdom and good intentions. With space for reflection, increased awareness, listening to one’s intuition, and the encouragement to step into one’s power and take responsibility, people, teams and organisations find solutions that work best for their context. We look for what is working and build from that. There is always a positive core.
• Psychology: If we do not have an understanding of how we develop, or lack awareness as to our barriers to change (conscious or subconscious), we cannot develop, adapt, or move forward. In today’s world, we get stuck: we lose our edge as skills and attitudes become obsolete, as our teams fail to engage in their work, or cannot perform optimally. As a result, business health and results suffer. Personal health can suffer too. With psychology at the heart of its services, Kaleidoscope Development proposes holistic approaches to development, enabling patterns of behaviour to be understood, barriers explored and acknowledged, and new strategies developed.
• Personal: I bring my “whole self” to my work and encourage my clients to do the same. This means digging into – and accepting – what makes us who we are, our background, personality and fundamental psychology, as well as drivers and motives for life as a whole. I am straightforward, honest, trust-worthy and kind, and genuinely love people, business, and life.
• Professional: I have worked professionally since my university years. I have worked in public, private and not-for-profit organisations, services and manufacturing sectors, high-tech and low-tech, in luxury goods and in concrete, in gender-balanced and not so gender-balanced settings, and more. My style is open and direct, and I seek to understand the systemic issues that are always at play. I recognise the need to deliver results while also attend to longer-term priorities and multiple agendas. I understand that every organisation is unique (of course!), as is every team, and individual within it. And I understand that to thrive, people, teams and their organisations need to bring their voice, energy and commitment to the fore.