Organisation and system change
Helping committed people and organisations bring their strengths, evidence, relationships and resources together to move an important change forward.
We establish what is holding progress back, reveal possibilities people may be overlooking, and develop a credible route to the outcome they want. The work connects internal readiness with the wider people, decisions and conditions that shape what can happen.
See what is true
Bring the starting position and wider landscape into view. Gather existing work, strengths, evidence and relationships; identify internal blocks, external constraints and the decisions that matter.
Result: a grounded picture of the situation and the change sought.
Remove what blocks progress
Reconnect purpose with the current situation. Agree the outcome, priorities and responsibilities. Address the habits, incentives, differences or capability gaps that could keep the work stuck.
Result: a shared direction and a clear commitment to act.
Establish a credible role
Challenge the assumed choices and recognise overlooked strengths. Test alternative routes, relevant partners and opportunities. Shape a case that matters to the people able to support or authorise the change.
Result: a defensible direction and a credible case for pursuing it.
Move selected priorities
Turn agreed choices into preparation and first moves. Sequence the relationships, advocacy, funding or commercial activity required, with named owners, specific asks and practical next actions.
Result: an accountable mobilisation plan and agreed first steps.
Leave capability with the client
Put usable evidence, the plan and working tools into the hands of those carrying the change. Establish implementation ownership, data stewardship and a review routine.
Result: people equipped to continue under their own ownership.
Review what changed
Compare the starting position, intervention and subsequent action with observed progress. Record what helped, what remains blocked and other contributing factors, then reassess the next decision.
Result: evidenced learning and a clearer next move.
Option Three within the method
People can lose sight of resources and capabilities they already have. We make those strengths visible, question how the problem has been framed, and test another route before adding more activity.
From individual engagements to wider influence
A shared record of interventions and observed progress helps us recognise patterns, gaps and momentum. That learning informs where we contribute next and what we can bring to sector, policy and funding discussions.
Where the method applies
Help a committed leadership team choose a stronger direction and bring the capabilities, partners and resources needed to pursue it.
Help a group make its value visible, align participants and develop an approach to a shared policy, funding or sector outcome.
Help funders and participating organisations understand where progress is falling short and what could improve the outcome.
The engagement journey
Clarify the goal, prior effort, responsible sponsor and ability to commission and carry the work.
Undertake a defined paid assessment. Establish the real constraint and recommend the next scope or decision.
Apply the relevant stages to create the strategy, influencing approach, mobilisation plan and tools. Begin the first moves included in scope.
Hand over to named owners and agree progress reviews. Further support is scoped around a specific need.
Clients bring commitment, a responsible sponsor and capacity to act. The route can be developed together. Paid scope, financial commitment, responsibilities and handover are agreed before substantive work begins.
Tools that support the work
Establish the internal position: alignment, capability, readiness and the conditions affecting progress.
Understand the external landscape. The Opportunity Atlas connects the client’s position, relevant organisations and opportunities, lead information and the agreed plan.
Investigate resourcing when funding is a constraint or an opportunity to amplify the work.
Where resourcing is the first constraint, an initial funding scan can help define the route. A client or sponsor funds the agreed first step; additional funding work has its own scope and terms.
Relationship knowledge and the practice’s learning record support route selection. A public ecosystem platform or specialist impact reporting is commissioned where the client needs it, with clear responsibility for keeping information useful and current.
Strategic judgement, pivotal conversations, alignment, relevant relationships and the influencing approach.
Reframing, evidence, positioning, research, working tools and materials, and the structure for transfer and learning.
Commercial and practical testing, mobilisation planning and delivery assumptions, as agreed within each scope.
Set stage responsibilities for each engagement. The client owns decisions and ongoing implementation; specialist partners own their separately agreed contribution.
Make the situation we help with recognisable, show the value of our contribution, and give committed people a clear route to commission the work.
Opening focus
Prioritise leaders, mission-led organisations and funded peak bodies or coalitions pursuing a social, environmental or sector outcome whose progress depends on more than their own organisation. Look for meaningful work already done, a live obstacle, a responsible sponsor and readiness to act.
Weeks 1–2
Nicole + Scarlet · Nick contributes to delivery feasibility
Weeks 3–6
Nicole leads relationships and speaking · Scarlet supports copy and materials
Weeks 7–12
Agreed delivery team · Review cadence and workload together
Identify a live situation, who owns the outcome and why this work could help now. Ask a relevant connection for a purposeful introduction or scoping conversation.
Use speaking, LinkedIn and referrals to show Nicole’s judgement and experience. Connect the insight to a clear invitation to engage in a defined process.
Topics to build visibility around
Why good work stallsThe decisions, relationships and internal conditions that prevent progress.
What people already haveStrengths, evidence and connections that a different perspective brings into view.
Making evidence usefulConnecting a sector’s value to the people deciding policy, funding or partnership.
Turning commitment into outcomesThe practical route, ownership and learning that help people carry the change.
Use specific examples and observed results with permission. Bring philanthropic questions into the story as relevant work and evidence develop.
A clear way to explain the work
“I help people who are committed to an important change work out how to move it forward—what is holding them back, what they already have to work with, and which people, decisions and resources they need to bring together.”
Through Lockwood Advisory, we work with leaders, organisations and groups who have done meaningful work but need a clearer path to their next outcome.
We use the Systems Shift Method to understand their starting position, reveal possibilities they may be overlooking, and develop a practical approach to the decisions, partnerships or funding they need.
We put the plan, tools and responsibilities in place so the people leading the change can carry it, then review what is happening and what needs to adapt.
I’m bringing the next phase of Lockwood Advisory into focus around helping committed leaders and groups move an important change forward.
It is particularly relevant where people have already done meaningful work, but progress depends on a stronger evidence base, the right partners or a clearer approach to decisions and funding. We start with a scoped assessment and develop the plan and tools they need to carry the work.
If you know someone in that position who is ready to commission support and act on it, I’d welcome an introduction.