we help you transform your business
what’s in a name?
I am neither especially clever nor especially gifted, I am only very very curious (Albert Einstein)
The name Shadow refers to two different things; the first one being a black cat named Shadow, who like all cats is extremely curious. We believe curiosity is our super power. Through curiosity we fall in love with the problem before coming up with solutions. The second thing has more to do with the literal meaning of the word ‘shadow’ – we aim to make you successful & shine whilst we are right beside you.
what do we do?
,What got you here won’t get you there! Whether you are growing rapidly as a scale-up, or having to adapt to a new reality/direction in a more established company, transformation doesn’t come easy. We help your top team to become really efficient and effective. For your organization (or part thereof) we diagnose what is holding you back from your aspired business performance and then we work with you to develop realistic and practical plans that will get you where you want to be. We love to help you implement these plans; we like being accountable for the end result because let’s be frank, the value isn’t created until things actually change. We can also develop your staff whilst doing so, so you won’t need us in the longer term. We also develop, design and facilitate Leadership Development programs and team interventions.
who is behind this?
Tessa has 20 years of Change Management and Organizational Effectiveness consulting experience; a strong track record in organisational health diagnostics, design and execution of results-driven improvement initiatives including business transformation. She helps her clients diagnose the causes behind the challenges they are facing and then makes practical, simple and effective plans to overcome these. She has the execution power to make sure that the value that is sought is actually realized. She has solid experience in establishing and managing high-performing teams.
She uses her passion and the fact that she genuinely cares about a client company to build relationships of deep trust with stakeholders, operating as a sounding board and counsel for leaders. Her clients range from start-ups to FTSE 100 companies. She has had the pleasure of doing her work in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas covering a range of industries. She is a level 2 certified 6TeamConditions practitioner and certified in Behavioral Change Through Experimentation by ?WhatIf! (an Accenture company)
In her personal time, Tessa spends her time raising her children (teenaged triplets), doing sports (hiking and road biking), traveling and spending time with friends. She loves taking pictures, is a self-declared coffee addict, bakes her own bread and sings in the shower.
Tessa van Westrenen – owner & principal consultant
Agnes van Ommen – principal consultant
Agnes is a HR professional with 20+ years international experience as a trusted HR partner to leaders and managers in large, medium and small sized companies.
Her experience includes designing and implementing global transformation programs at corporates like Unilever and Shell. She has helped many scale-ups to get their HR organizations and processes in place, sometimes by filling the CHRO role ad interim.
Agnes is a certified organisational systems coach, which means she can identify the (hidden) currents in teams and organisations and has the expertise to increase their performance. She has used her expertise in team coaching to align and kick-start teams in scale-ups. She loves helping founders translate their vision into a clear and practical message to staff, and to help the top team form practical plans to get there.
In her spare time Agnes is often out on hikes or runs and on top of that is learning how to speak Spanish. She is a foodie with a passion for travel and her two beautiful British shorthair cats.
They really get what it takes for a successful organizational change – of any kind – to land well and how to engage people in it.
They are great at both delivering commercial outcomes and thoughtfully coaching, supporting and enabling others to do more and be better.
They can boast on delivery of complex work; the approach is practical, yet creative.
They exude positive energy and drive for results which are fit for purpose in a quick timeframe – they are a pleasure to work with.