Meet Your Plug-In People & HR Team
Fractional & Project HR · Executive Coaching · Workforce Transformation for businesses navigating the Human + AI era.

Encourager Makes Implementing & Optimising People & HR Practices Easy
People & HR can be a complex and time-consuming challenge, especially for
start-ups & SMEs. You need someone you can rely on to help you navigate the complexities and unlock your team’s full potential.
Solutions Tailored to Your Unique Needs
One-size-fits-all People & HR strategies simply don't work for most businesses. That's why I take a deeply personalised approach, taking the time to understand your challenges, goals, and culture, ensuring I can deliver measurable, long-lasting results.

A Trusted Partner, Not Just Another Agency
I operate like a true extension of your team, working hand-in-hand with you, providing ongoing guidance and support to ensure your People & HR practices continue to evolve and thrive alongside your business.

HR Support That Speaks Your Language
For many business owners, HR can feel like a foreign language. That's why I’ve committed to providing approachable, easy-to-understand guidance. No jargon, no generic advice - just practical solutions.

Flexible & Affordable For Businesses of Any Size
Encourager HR offers flexible service models and pricing structures to ensure you get the HR support you need without breaking the bank. From on-demand consulting to fully-outsourced management, I'll work with you to find the right fit.





All Your People & HR Needs Handled
Encourager offers a range of key services. From compliance to training and recruitment support, I make HR easy to understand and implement.

HR Strategy
Modern people strategy for organisations changing fast — designed for the realities of the Human + AI era, not the playbooks from before it. Senior HR judgment, applied to your business, not borrowed from someone else's

HR Transformation
Senior HR judgment for organisations going through real change — restructures, post-acquisition integration, scale-up redesigns. The work designed to leave the function stronger than I found it.

Executive & Team Coaching
Senior coaching for executives and teams navigating change — particularly the kind AI is now driving across most organisations. Strengths-based, person-centred, ICF and Henley-trained. Designed to help leaders find clarity and steady ground when the path forward isn't obvious.

Talent Management
Attract, retain, and develop top-performing employees with a robust talent management system. From onboarding to succession planning, together we'll build a world-class team.

Learning & Development
Build the human skills your team will lean on more, not less, as AI handles more of the technical work. Strengths-based development for individuals, leaders, and teams — designed to land, not just be delivered.

Employee Relations
Foster a positive, engaging work environment. I’ll help you handle everything from performance reviews and dispute resolution to benefits administration and redundancies.

HR Compliance
Navigate the complex web of employment laws and regulations. Tap into a wealth of experience & ensure your HR practices meet the legal requirements.
Encourager HR offers a range of key services. From compliance to training and recruitment support, I make HR easy to understand and implement.
Tap Into Senior HR & Coaching Expertise
Hi, I'm Steve Thompson — founder of Encourager.
I help organisations build modern HR functions, run people operations, and navigate workforce transformation — all designed for the Human + AI era. Sometimes that's a fractional or project HR engagement. Sometimes it's executive coaching. Sometimes it's advising investors or CEOs on the human side of AI rollouts.
They're different shapes of the same work.I spent 5½ years inside a London AI consultancy as Global People Director. The technology was always going to land. The human side was the real work.I work with PE-backed businesses, CEOs, founders, CHROs, and SMEs across the UK. Henley Business School (ICF) trained, CIPD member, accredited in CliftonStrengths, Predictive Index, and TalentPredix.
CIPD Associate
Predictive Index Practitioner
Certified Gallup Strengths Coach
International Coaching Federation Member

What People Say About Encourager
Hear directly from companies across various industries about their experience partnering with Encourager.
REBECCA ROSE
Director, MCA Consulting Engineers Ltd
Google Review
DAVID BADOVINAC
Director, TimeWise Labs
ALVARO SILVA-SANTISTEBAN
AI Solution Lead, Google
Jamie Peacock
Ex-England Rugby League Captain & Leadership Coach
Senior HR & Coaching Without the Corporate Overhead
Director-level expertise, embedded directly into your business - without the bureaucracy, the layers, or the off-the-shelf playbooks.

FAQs
Common questions about working with Encourager:
I focus on senior-level HR work — fractional HR leadership for businesses without a full-time HR Director, project-based work like restructures and post-acquisition integration, and HR transformation for organisations modernising their people function. I also provide executive and team coaching, often alongside the HR work.
I spent 5½ years inside a London AI consultancy as Global People Director — leading the people function through rapid growth and the human side of AI-driven workforce change. Most HR consultants haven't worked inside an AI-native business. That perspective shapes how I approach modern HR, performance management, and workforce transformation.
Yes — most of my engagements involve working with an in-house HR team, not replacing one. I tend to come in at director level to lead specific projects, advise on strategy, or provide senior judgment on complex situations. The HR team continues running operations; I focus on the work that needs my level of experience.
Yes. I'm Henley Business School / ICF-trained, and accredited in CliftonStrengths, Predictive Index, and TalentPredix. Coaching is often combined with HR work — particularly when I'm working with leaders going through change. Some clients engage me for coaching only.
Typically 1–3 days a week over 3–12 months, depending on the business stage and what's needed. I become an embedded part of the leadership team during that period — attending exec meetings, leading on people strategy, and acting as the senior HR voice in key decisions. Engagements can flex up or down as the work demands.
I work to a transparent day rate or project fee, depending on the engagement. After an initial conversation about what you need, I'll provide a clear quote — no retainers locked in for longer than the work requires. For specific guide rates, please get in touch.
No. I offer flexible engagement models from one-off projects to multi-month fractional support. Most clients start with a defined piece of work — a restructure, a scale-up build, an HR transformation project — and continue from there if it's working.
My consulting approach is fully customisable to your organisation's size, industry, and specific challenges. For smaller businesses, I often focus on establishing foundational HR practices and compliance. For mid-sized and larger organisations, I may develop more complex strategies around talent management, organisational design, and HR technology implementation.
Yes, I provide both in-person and remote consulting. I work flexibly across virtual meetings, assessments, and engagements — most of my clients are a mix of remote and on-site, depending on what each piece of work needs.
Most engagements can start within 2–3 weeks. For urgent work — a sudden restructure, a fast-moving M&A integration, a senior departure that needs covering — I can often start sooner. The first conversation will tell us if there's a fit.
