Training, Facilitation and Program Design
My training targets the avoidable issues that quietly erode culture: unclear feedback, poor communication, persistent conflict, and opaque decision-making. These pressure points undermine trust, performance, wellbeing, innovation—and the budget.
“The most valuable thing I experienced [from Susan’s training] was listening with an open mind.”
Why I get it.
I’ve stood in your shoes—on stage as a musician under pressure, and behind the scenes in senior management. I understand what makes or breaks a team in an orchestra or classical music organisation because I’ve lived it from every angle.
Here’s the experience I bring when we work together:
Senior leadership in Development and Philanthropy at a major classical music organisation.
Freelance orchestral musician, performed with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra.
University lecturer, international trainer, and PhD researcher specialising in trauma and workplace culture in orchestras.
Founder of a multi-million-dollar tech consultancy in Europe, with hands-on experience managing a high performance team under pressure.
I combine this unique blend of insights to design transformative training tailored specifically for musicians, managers, and leaders who want change that actually works.
“I was reminded of the importance of empathy and the need to let others be heard even with a belief system at odds with mine.”
My values
I’m driven by respect for people’s stories and creating safe spaces where everyone can grow and lead.
My approach blends practical empathy with effective tools designed for the specific challenges of our workplace.
2025 Training Workshops for Orchestras
“A great discussion! … The practical approach was refreshing, useful and fun!”
Giving Feedback 8 Jul, 3 Sep & 4 Dec Online
Poorly delivered feedback doesn’t just fall flat, it erodes trust, fuels tension, and makes critical conversations unsafe and ineffective. When collaboration is everything, unclear or unkind feedback can derail relationships, impede progress and compromise critical decisions including planning, budgeting, auditions and tenure processes.
Receiving Feedback 6 Aug & 2 Oct Online
Unclear, unkind, or confronting feedback can easily trigger defensiveness, withdrawal, or confusion, especially in high-stakes environments like orchestras. Without the skills to receive feedback reflectively, even well-meant comments can feel personal, erode trust, and create long-term disconnection between musicians, managers, and leaders.
Decision Frameworks 4 Sep & 4 Nov Online
From auditions to artistic planning, tenure to project selection, critical decisions in orchestras may unknowingly rely on gut instinct, legacy norms, or opaque processes. The result? Confusion, inconsistency, and unconscious bias that undermine fairness and erode trust across the organisation.
“[Susan’s training] was a great reminder to think deeper about the reason we create art and the ways that we share it, and especially that its value is determined by how it serves the needs of others.”
Training On Demand
Here are must some of my ready to go workshops that are suitable for small or all company training, let’s have a no obligation chat about delivering these for your team.
Difficult Conversations YOU NEED IT BECAUSE Clarity, empathy and emotional regulation are critical to navigating complex workplace conversations.
Building or Rebuilding Empathy YOU NEED IT BECAUSE Understanding the perspective of others is the key to problem solving and healthy collaboration.
Trust and Teaming YOU NEED IT BECAUSE Trust is the backbone of effective collaboration, but it doesn’t build itself it must be intentionally cultivated.
Design Thinking YOU NEED IT BECAUSE Loyalty and engagement come from shaping the entire customer journey—before, during and after the performance
Active Listening YOU NEED IT BECAUSE listening with intention fosters trust, reduces conflict, and deepens connection across teams and audiences.
Boundaries and Burnout YOU NEED IT BECAUSE boundaries protect people, prevent burnout, and enable long-term excellence.
“I took away the value in understanding what communities need, rather than providing what we want to give”
Facilitation
ONE AND DONE OR ALONG FOR THE RIDE
Sometimes you just need a chat with somebody who isn’t stuck in the weeds. I’m here for a one and done gig, and know that just one discussion can be transformative. Or I’ll hitch my carriage along for the ride bringing my obsession with all things business theory along for the ride. Full disclosure, we’re likely to try some or all of my skills in Design Thinking, Systems Thinking and Trauma Informed Process.
“Susan is a warm, intelligent and engaging moderator, and seamlessly manages conversation between speakers so that you never notice that she is directing the flow. She weaves the audience into the experience, so that the discussion really does offer something for everyone. She also manages to keep to time! And she’s funny!”
In less than an hour I helped my Global Leaders Program (GLP) mentee team to get from this hot mess…
There is a lack of centralized communication between researchers, organizations, practitioners, and performers that address health issues through music therapy. This inhibits the public’s access to diverse health resources long term. Our mission is to improve communication and understanding between these populations so that more job opportunities become available and funding and research becomes more centralized. During our first-year pilot project, our organization will partner with the Music Therapy Program at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA to provide early career development services and secure job opportunities post-graduation.
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To THIS crystal clear mission statement…
“To achieve more diverse job opportunities, music therapists need stronger advocacy to convince the health sector of the necessity of their work.”
In just two hours, I helped an executive leader work through complex organisational history to find a clear path that honoured the past and made space for what’s possible.
In the course of an hour, Susan helped to shift my thinking on key problematics involving the Grainger Museum and its eponymous founder, particularly helping me to understand challenges as opportunities… In my note-taking I had drawn a picture of two hands, cupped around dichotomous ideas: over the left hand I had written “sadomasochism, racialism”, and over the right hand, “experimentation, breaking boundaries, radicalism”. Through well-chosen metaphors, Susan guided me to conceptualise a resolution to the biggest challenges. From practical advice on immediate actions, to long-term radical thinking, Susan guided my strategic thought process across a range of ideas with a light, sure, warm, and encouraging hand, all the while giving generously of her deep professional expertise.
Dr Heather Gaunt, Curator, Grainger Museum
Program Design
Music needs virtuosi on and beyond the stage. I am obsessed with dreaming, designing, delivering and evaluating programs that develop talent.
I catapult forward the thinking and skills of all kinds of folks in the music sector from artists and arts managers to pre-college, tertiary students, early stage administrators, freelance and professional performers and experienced arts leaders. I’ve delivered culture shifting programming for the Australian National Academy of Music, Young Classical Artists Trust (UK) and IgniteLAB for the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music and here are a few other things I’ve hatched from scratch…
Artist Assembly for Melbourne Recital Centre
“Susan has provided invaluable advice on our program design and delivered much of the content. Our young artists have greatly benefitted from working with her, she has also been an eloquent and passionate advocate for the program when working with our staff and meeting with our program donors. Susan’s expertise as a musician, entrepreneur, educator and innovator ensures that the program aligns with our organisational priorities and supports our artists to thrive on and beyond the stage.”
Marshall McGuire, Director of Programming, Melbourne Recital Centre
AMEB Award for AMEB
“Susan is the perfect person to guide is in the design, philosophy and motivation behind the setting up of this Award. Her input at the webinar was fantastic. She said all the things that are sometimes quite hard to articulate about why this is important, and of course it’s always great to have someone not from AMEB to talk about it!
Fiona Seers, Head of Examining Australian Music Examinations Board.
Navigate Well for Arts Wellbeing Collective
“Susan is one of our incredible consultants who has done the most stellar job with Navigate Well (working with an unbelievably complex brief, she’s absolutely nailed it). I can also speak to her talents as a facilitator, strategist, writer, researcher and generally brilliant human.”
Tracy Margieson, Head of Program, Arts Wellbeing Collective