How P4L prepares strategic leaders to succeed

Coralie Hooper coordinates Telos Partners' support for P4L

What do senior leaders say about the difference Partners for Leadership (P4L) has made to their development at a pivotal transition point in their career?

‘Thought-provoking’, ‘insightful’ and ‘simply brilliant’ are just three of the ways participants have described the impact of our two-year strategic leadership development experience.

Our immersive experience helps organisations effectively prepare their next generation of leaders for the challenges they will face – and ensure they lead the field once in role.

Drawing on our 25-plus years’ track record, P4L enables organisations to feel confident that the person they’ve lined up to take the place of their current leader is ready for the pressure of the top job.

It recognises that the transition from operational to strategic leader is a major step up that requires a different mindset – self-confidence, self-awareness and the emotional intelligence to develop a leadership style and corporate culture that inspires others to give their best.

Three new cohorts join our strategic leadership experience each year in February, June and September. Applications are open for our June and September 2026 intakes – find out more and register your interest here.

Deepening leaders' personal and professional development

'On our retreats, leaders can stop, reflect and think about what's going on around them, both in and for their business, in a safe and quiet space – a luxury to most senior leaders'

So why is Partners for Leadership particularly relevant for organisations today? Here, Coralie Hooper – who coordinates the involvement of strategic change consultancy Telos Partners’ with P4L (with colleague Emma Jordan) – explains.

‘Firstly, P4L is a strategic leadership development experience, not a leadership ‘programme’,’ she says.

That ‘experience’ spans two years because it puts an emphasis on each leader’s personal development as well as providing experienced professional development.

Both of these evolve and deepen over time, supported by P4L’s thoughtful blend of face-to-face events (three overnight retreats per year), cross-sector interaction and learning, webinars and one-to-one access to a ‘Critical Friend’.

The six in-person gatherings are one of the experience’s key strengths.

As Coralie explains: ‘P4L enables senior leaders to take 24 hours out of their day-to-day three times each year at Cumberland Lodge – an exclusive secluded venue in Windsor Great Park.

‘This provides a safe and quiet space with minimal distractions – a luxury to most senior leaders. Here they can stop, reflect and think about what’s going on around them that they need to respond to, both in and for their business.’

‘In a busy and complex world, having 24 hours to reflect on your own leadership and what’s going on (geopolitically/economically) – and having non-judgmental peers to discuss it with, to offer challenge, insight and support – is so important.

‘Twenty-four hours may not seem long but it’s amazing how much good it does the brain and soul to have that time to reset.’

Adam Campbell, Telos Partners' Managing Partner, at Cumberland Lodge for a P4L retreat last year

Providing an independent sounding board for senior leaders

There’s also no ‘teaching element’ to P4L, Coralie says. Instead, participants hear from speakers with relevant expertise and leadership experience.

‘The speakers offer insight, provocation and personal experience to which the group then responds – through discussion, sharing, challenge and support. The experience is set up to ensure participants are drawn from all sectors and industries so their experiences are varied.’

In addition, each participant on P4L’s strategic leadership experience benefits from working with a Critical Friend.

Partners for Leadership's board-level Critical Friends provide individual support

‘The Critical Friend isn’t a coach or a mentor,’ Coralie explains. ‘They are an independent sounding board who isn’t there to judge, but is there to listen and offer the right amount of challenge and support.

‘The Critical Friend is someone the senior leader can call on, as and when things come up.’

Connecting senior leaders as they learn

No surprise that the words Coralie chooses to describe P4L’s impact on participants are ‘reflection’, ‘reenergising’ and ‘connection’.

At a personal level, she finds it deeply fulfilling to see leaders from all walks of life with different experiences come together to engage in ‘real dialogue’ through P4L.  

She also highlights the way in which participants ‘look for points of connection’, the ‘honesty in the room’ and the way in which they share challenges, learn from the past and ‘the energy with which they look to make differences in the future’.

‘I also enjoy hearing our speakers when they share really interesting insights and their personal story of what it has meant to them – its impact and their own learning,’ she says.

Next steps

Spanning two years, Partners for Leadership’s strategic leadership development experience is run in association with Telos Partners.

Find out more here and get in touch to explore joining our 2026 cohorts with our team.