hello!

I'm Zoe, and I help junior leaders go from safe pair of hands to strategic advisors, one step at a time.

Because being good at research isn't enough.

I support brilliant researchers to become trusted leaders

Hello, my name is Zoe Fenn and I work with leaders ready to have more influence and impact.

At 30 I found myself in a leadership position. I was proud of the role and eager to learn, but I also felt totally out of my depth. I was managing a team of smart, creative people, many of whom had been doing the job a lot longer than me.

Luckily for me, my company paid for coaching to support me, and it was transformational. I learnt many things:

My belief that I had to be the smartest person in the room was getting in the way of listening to what clients and my team really needed.

My desire to be liked was leading me to take on my team’s problems, dodge difficult conversations and spend way too much time chatting over coffee.

My tendency to "say yes" to client requests and senior asks was reducing my authority.

Because what keeps many of us feeling overwhelmed, isn't lack of effort or skill, it's the beliefs we hold about what leadership is.

I work with small groups of leaders for 3 to 6 months. I blend practical tools and high commercial awareness with empathetic lived experience and real work experiments to support leaders to overcome perceived limits, and become trusted leaders people listen to and want to follow.

APPROACH

S

services

SERVICES

A small-group leadership coaching programme for research and insight leaders who are brilliant at delivery but recognise that over-servicing, over-rescuing and over-explaining limits their authority, influence and impact.

How it Works: 6 live online sessions to work through leadership challenges as a group, design and run real work experiments, track progress and be held accountable by me and peers.

6 x 90minute Learn & Test Modules

Trust Yourself - from heads down to visible value
Communicate with Authority
Lead Through Others - Delegation & Standards.
Accountability - Coaching & Feedback
Boundaries that Build Trust
Integration - Sustainable Habits

I run this twice a year as a X-Industry programme, and for groups of leaders within an organisation or agency.

Enrolling the Autumn 2026 and Winter 2027 Cohort Now.

the trusted advisor

A FREE 2-week Whatsapp experiment to practice speaking with authority.

Most of us describe what we do the way we learned to - we downplay, minimise or apologise.

Say It Like It Matters is a FREE two-week practice in noticing that gap - and closing it.

Know your worth
Catch diminishing language
Communicate your value
Get to know me & my style before you buy

Runs as a private WhatsApp group every 3-4 months. Next cohort 22nd June to 3rd July

I run 3 small group coaching programmes for brilliant researchers who want to become trusted leaders.

say it like it matters

let go to grow

Your top deliverers (your RM / PD level) are your most valuable cohort - they're the 'safe pair of hands' you can trust to execute the work to a near client-ready standard.

But AD level and above requires:

A different mindset - “your value isn’t only in what you produce — it’s in what you unlock in others.”
A different skillset - delegation, coaching and feedback.

How it Works: Let Go to Grow is a 4-module programme that takes researchers through every step of leading on delivery via coaching, real work experiments, measuring progress and ongoing accountability.

This isn’t about doing less. It’s about leading delivery more effectively — with cleaner ownership, more coaching (less correcting), and boundaries that protect quality.

I run this as an in-house programme for agencies.

Say It Like It Matters Details

Let Go To Grow Full Details

If you are a leader working in research, or have a remit to developing leaders and would like to find out more or join one of these programmes, click 'register your interest' to send me an email with what's caught your eye and how I can help.

Trusted Advisor Full Details

If there is something I am trying to work out the approach for I now have a voice in my head telling me “just give it a go” and “what’s the worst that can happen?”

Research Lead, Whitbread

I must admit to being a bit sceptical on how useful the programme would be for me, but it was an absolute revelation. Even now, a year later, I still remind myself of things I learnt

Associate Director, Magenta

I'd say the biggest way the course has supported me is knowing I'm not alone, and meeting great people who have all kept in touch. I also have a voice in my head now telling me to 'just give it a go' and 'what's the worse that will happen' if there's something I'm trying to work out the best approach for.

Head of Department, Centrica

ABOUT

You Burn Bright was set up by me, Zoe Fenn.

I have 15 years of global agency-side experience, held multiple leadership roles and have two coaching qualifications. I am a mum of 2 curious, opinionated girls.

As Head of the UK Practice and Head of Insight at Flamingo I led teams through good times and tough times. I understand what leadership under pressure and in times of change takes.

I moderated hundreds of groups, led a team of 30, and facilitated global workshops. Bringing people together brings me joy. Lena Dunham's words "A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats" is my motto. We are so much more than the sum of our parts.

I am also a double qualified coach (ICF Accredited), an AQR trainer and MRS member.

A

B

BLOG

But the data says... Why making the argument isn't enough

A few weeks ago, I watched Andy Burnham’s conference speech live, and whatever your politics, it was an absolute masterclass on how to build influence. He had understood something fundamental: that there’s a difference between helping people understand your argument and encouraging people to get behind it. And as researchers I think we often miss this. We think having the evidence, the commercial rationale and a well thought out recommendation is enough. And sometimes it can

influence isn't granted, its earned

Strategic influence isn’t built through polished decks of accurate data. It’s built through having powerful conversations in the rooms that matter and with the people making the decisions. I think we intellectually know this, yet we avoid it. In this month’s newsletter I look at why, and suggest some small things to try to get started. The Paradox Of Talking to People Talking to people we don’t know well makes us want to run for the hills. Yet it is also proven to make us hap

the effort trap

For a long time, I thought leadership meant doing more. It wasn’t my conscious goal. What I thought was driving me, was something like: “Lead a team to deliver excellent work, and enjoy doing it.” But underneath that sat a belief, that to do that well, I had to do more. beliefs drive behaviour For me, this belief showed up as: Over-Servicing Over-Rescuing Overthinking Over-Managing Over-Preparing Over-Explaining These patterns served me well as a researcher: work hard, be

Testimonials

T

By having honest conversations and running a role play exercise I have been able to have more honest conversations with the rest of my work team to discuss issues and possible solutions which has had a really positive impact on my working environment

Emily, PwC

I had a very positive experience of coaching with Zoe. She helped me clarify my ambitions and priority areas of focus, to frame goals as achievable, and to build habits that better help me manage stressful situations / reframe experiences in a constructive way

Sarah, Google

Testimonials

T

Zoe has been working with some of senior female leaders. It’s been fantastic to see the impact she had made with the team and the way they speak about how specific interventions have helped them in their roles over the past 6 months. I would definitely recommend getting in touch with Zoe if you want your next generation of leaders to succeed and support the growth of your company

Caroline Hawkins, Chief Talent Officer, Savanta

I used to think if I nailed the process, then change would happen, but now I see that I need to build those relationships and take people with me.”

AD, C Space

Coaching with Zoe has been enormously helpful to me over the past 6 months. It’s helped me think through specific issues I’m facing in my role at work, and also consider my behaviours and role more holistically.Coaching has helped change my relationship with work so that I’ve been able to focus on what I enjoy, and develop in areas that have been more challenging.

Charlotte, Lifestream

When I started coaching with Zoe I was preparing to apply for a leadership role in a new area; I’m a confident person and yet I just couldn’t get started. Talking with Zoe, I realised just how much self-doubt I was masking, even from myself. The coaching helped me focus on the strengths I could bring to the new role, and helped me show-up, as myself, from day one

Caroline, Mondelez International

When I started the programme I didn’t see myself as a leader, but now I have faith in myself and my decision making

AD, Kokoro

Testimonials

Subscribe to you burn bright

Monthly inspiration on self-leadership for research & insight leaders

C

CONTACT

If you are a leader working in the research sector or have a remit to developing leaders that people trust and would like support on that, then I'd love to chat.

zoe@youburnbright.com

CONTACTS