WHO WE ARE
The Sympatico team are skilled professionals who have committed their career to providing quality and effective coaching and organisational development services. All the team have business backgrounds, graduate and postgraduate qualifications in behavioural sciences and business/coaching related majors as well as over 15 years of specialised individual and organisational development experience.
View our Professional Bios:
Annie Stewart
Founder and Managing Director
Annie is regarded as a committed and experienced corporate coach and career management specialist. She is also a facilitator, professional speaker and the author of How to Find and Follow Your Calling: 7 steps to living with passion and purpose.
During the first phase of her career, Annie built a reputation for leading successful businesses. In her role as an executive manager for a national HR consulting company she was acknowledged for her strong leadership skills and her ability to provide quality service to clients, develop leaders amongst her team, deliver excellent returns on investment and facilitate growth of the company over a five year period. She repeated a similar track record with two other businesses.
Over the past 14 years she has coached and trained hundreds of clients from organisations such as Optus, MLC, APRA, Deloitte, Qantas, Commonwealth Bank, Lend Lease, IAG and several not for profit groups.
Clients describe Annie's approach as rigorous and outcomes based, yet encouraging and empathic. Her style, combined with a genuine interest in people, facilitates her clients' professional and personal growth - empowering them to live closer to their own potential, with passion, creativity and courage.
Annie holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (University of Sydney) and a Masters Degree in Ergonomics (UNSW). Her doctoral studies researched how leaders found, follow and sustain their calling. Annie is also a Master Practitioner in NLP. She is a Member of the Career Development Association of Australia and an Associate Member of the National Speakers Association of Australia.
Jennifer Beard
Senior Associate
Jennifer has over 20 years professional experience in enhancing individual and corporate performance. Coaching and facilitation to unlock people's potential are her key strengths and passion.
Jennifer understands the demands of a corporate career. Her background has included establishing and managing a successful marketing division within a national corporation. In addition, she has over 12 years experience in a professional services industry consulting to both the private and public sectors.
Jennifer's recent individual and team corporate coaching and facilitation experience includes clients such as Commonwealth Bank, MLC, APRA, Uniting Care Aged Services and The Australian Health Management Group.
Jennifer holds a degree in Behavioural Science (B App Sc OT University Sydney) and a post graduate diploma in human factors at work (Grad Dip Safety Sc UNSW).
Linley Curtyane
Senior Associate
Linley has an extensive background of over 20 years professional experience in executive coaching and corporate consulting in both the public and corporate sector. She specialises in coaching programs for ‘Transformational Leadership’, Building High Performance Teams and Positive Cultures; Partnership Transition; Personal Resilience and in Career Direction, Enhancement and Transition.
Early in her career, Linley held leadership roles in both government and the private sector, where she also serviced corporate 'blue chip' customer accounts in a fast-growing national HR consultancy firm.
Corporate and individual clients have included PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Johnson and Johnson (Pacific), Qantas, SAP, Ernst and Young, Deloitte, Henry Davis York, Westpac, Dept of Health, AT Kearney, Mallesons, Graduate School of Management, Suncorp, Sydney Water, Wyeth, Sanofi-Aventis, Optus, Telstra, Centrelink, ATO and News Limited.
Linley has recently co-authored a world-first research paper with Dr Anthony Grant, University of Sydney and Geraldine Burton, which was published in September 2009 in the International Journal of Positive Psychology. It focuses on the positive individual and organisational outcomes from a large scale Leadership Development and Career Development Program for Senior Managers, in which she led the customer relationship, design, project management, delivery and evaluation.
Linley holds a Masters in Human Resource Management and Coaching (University of Sydney) and a Bachelors Degree in Behavioural Sciences (University of Sydney). She is an Associate Member of International Positive Psychology Association; Member of Career Development Association of Australia; Affiliate of Australian Psychological Society (Coaching Group).
Jo Knorr
Senior Associate
Jo is a highly regarded corporate trainer and facilitator who is passionate about helping people achieve their goals. Throughout every aspect of her work, she maintains a strong focus on empowering people in their life, work and personal journey.
With a Bachelor of Business and a Master Practitioner in Neuro-Linguistics, Jo has a successful track record in executive management roles. She has worked with public and private sector groups, both within Australia and internationally as a business and training consultant.
The development and delivery of programs based on the needs of her clients has included work in the areas of leadership development, innovation, diversity in the workplace, strategic planning, project management, team building, communication skills and presenting with impact.