In every career, there comes a moment that changes the course of everything. For Michelle Raymond, that moment arrived unexpectedly, in a crowded room, when she was suddenly invited to speak about a business she didn’t yet have. What began as an impromptu talk on the importance of HR for small businesses became the spark that ignited her journey as an entrepreneur and leadership consultant.
Today, nearly a decade later, Michelle stands as the Founder of The People’s Partner, a consultancy that blends her 25 years of HR expertise with innovative strategies in leadership development, intrapreneurship, and cultural intelligence. Her work is focused on solving one of the most pressing challenges for organisations worldwide: retaining top talent while fostering innovation from within.
From publishing her book David’s Guide to Goliath to rolling out her INTRAPOWER™ Framework across the Gulf and Africa, Michelle’s journey is a story of resilience, transformation, and vision. She has built a platform that not only supports organisations in keeping their best talent but also empowers individuals to think and act like entrepreneurs within the safety of established structures.
Her insights, drawn from experiences across London, Dubai, and beyond, have positioned her as a trusted voice for leaders navigating the future of work. In this feature, Michelle shares the turning points of her journey, the purpose driving her consultancy, her expansion plans, and her advice for entrepreneurs who want to create lasting impact.
Read on to discover how Michelle Raymond is reshaping the conversation around leadership, innovation, and retention, and why her story is a testament to the power of unexpected beginnings.
An Unexpected Start
Could you briefly tell us about your background and how it led you to start your business?
Honestly, I never set out to be an entrepreneur. I was comfortable in my HR career, I had my own office, my own team, and a role with authority and stability. I wasn’t chasing business ownership; I was happy to cruise. Then one afternoon, at an event with my husband, everything changed. The speaker asked if anyone had a business they wanted to talk about. I stayed quiet (obviously), but my husband raised my hand for me. Out of hundreds of people, I was called on stage.
With no business to promote, I spoke about what I knew, the importance of HR for small businesses, and how hiring someone like me could be more cost-effective than an employment lawyer. To my surprise, that short talk sparked a wave of interest from people wanting to work with me. That moment planted the seed for my business.
At the time, I was also active in my creative life as a singer and performer, so my journey became about blending those worlds: building a consultancy while staying connected to my artistic side. Looking back, almost 10 years later, it was an unexpected start, but it was the push I didn’t know I needed.
Shaping Leaders from Within
What does your business focus on, and how is it positioned in the market?
My business focuses on leadership development through the lens of innovation, intrapreneurship, and cultural intelligence. I’ve identified a growing challenge: senior, high-performing employees, often in critical roles, are leaving organisations to start their own ventures. There are an estimated 582 million entrepreneurs worldwide, including 33.2 million in the U.S. They’re seeking autonomy, better work-life balance, or the chance to pursue a passion. The problem? Once they leave, many never reach the same level of impact or success they had as employees, and the organisation loses valuable talent.
I work with companies to change that story.
My approach helps leaders identify and retain these key people by creating an environment that offers them the freedom, challenge, and ownership they crave, without them needing to leave. This means rethinking roles, introducing stretch targets, giving more autonomy, and positioning employees as stakeholders in the organisation’s success.
The result? Employees shift from a purely institutional mindset to an entrepreneurial one, innovating, taking ownership, and driving value, all while enjoying the stability of employment. Organisations, in turn, keep their best talent, strengthen their culture, and foster innovation from within. That’s where I’m positioned: at the point where retention meets innovation, ensuring it becomes a win-win for both the individual and the company.
I lean into my 25 years of HR experience, and scientific evidence demonstrates that when employees feel a strong sense of purpose aligned with organisational mission, retention can increase by around 40%. Additionally, offering autonomy significantly boosts innovation, with employees up to 43% more likely to be highly innovative.
Growth Across Gulf & Africa
What are your plans for growth or expansion in the near future?
In the coming months, I’m focused on scaling our reach in the Gulf and Africa, two regions where rapid economic growth is creating both opportunity and competition for top talent. I’m rolling out my INTRAPOWER™ Framework, which is a system for identifying and nurturing hidden innovators across the GCC states, with a focus on sectors like finance, technology, and government. The aim is to help leaders harness entrepreneurial mindsets inside their organisations, so talent that might otherwise leave to start a business can instead innovate from within and drive the organisation forward.
This mission is also the driving force behind my David’s Guide to Goliath tour. The book, David’s Guide to Goliath: Strategies for Small Business Owners to Land Large Contracts, is the centrepiece of a 10-city, 12-month programme tour of talks, masterclasses, and keynotes inside corporate entities and events. The goal is to build “Davids” from within: employees who think, act, and create like entrepreneurs, but do it inside the structure of their organisation.
We’re also exploring how AI can be integrated into this journey. By equipping intrapreneurs with AI tools and insights, we can optimize their creativity, problem-solving, and decision-making, giving them the ability to deliver transformative results that benefit both themselves and the organisation. This is about shaping a new breed of leaders: entrepreneurial in spirit, innovative in approach, and committed to the future of the company they serve.
The vision is simple: help leaders retain and develop the people who will carry their organisation into the future.
A Defining Year
How has this year impacted your business, and what are your goals moving forward?
This year has been a true turning point. I completed, published, and launched my book to a crowd of 200 invited attendees. David’s Guide to Goliath is now available worldwide on Amazon and Waterstones, and it’s already influencing the direction of my work. The book has opened doors to new audiences and corporate engagements, reinforcing my mission to help leaders retain and develop the innovators within their teams.
At the same time, global market shifts have made leaders realise that retention isn’t just about salary. It’s about building cultures of purpose, growth, and innovation. That awareness has increased the demand for programmes like mine, where human connection is as important as business performance.
Operating between Dubai and London this year has also deepened my understanding of cultural and organisational differences. Different cities require different approaches, delivery styles, and engagement methods, and that insight has made my work even more adaptable and impactful.
We’ve strengthened relationships with existing clients, launched new leadership programmes in the UAE, and created more opportunities for leaders to exchange ideas through initiatives like the Diverse Business and Tech Summit, targeted implementation sessions, and corporate masterclasses.
Looking ahead, my goal is to cement The People’s Partner as the go-to consultancy for organisations that want to stay competitive by retaining top talent and fostering innovation from within. That’s the mission that drives every project, every programme, and every partnership we take on for the foreseeable future.
Advice for Entrepreneurs
What advice would you give to startups or entrepreneurs in your industry?
Start with clarity. Be crystal clear on who you serve, the problem you solve, and why it matters. Too often, entrepreneurs operate in silos, assuming everyone wants what they offer. In reality, companies invest when a solution saves money, makes money, saves time, or moves a key initiative forward.
Build relationships before you need them. In my experience, deals aren’t won solely on a pitch; they’re won through trust, built on credibility, and sustained through consistent follow-through.
Be willing to evolve. Strategies that worked five years ago may not work tomorrow. Stay ahead of trends, adapt quickly, and embrace growth as the market changes.
Finally, put yourself in the right rooms, whether physical or virtual, where the right people can see, understand, and value what you bring. Visibility, backed by credibility, is the foundation of lasting success.
Conclusion: Where Talent Thrives
Michelle Raymond’s journey demonstrates that entrepreneurship doesn’t always begin with a carefully laid plan, sometimes it starts with a single moment of courage. From that unexpected stage appearance to building a consultancy that influences leaders across industries, her story reflects the power of vision, adaptability, and purpose.
Her work with The People’s Partner is more than leadership consulting; it is about reshaping how organisations view talent, innovation, and retention. By equipping leaders with strategies to unlock intrapreneurship and cultural intelligence, Michelle is helping businesses remain competitive in an era defined by rapid change and disruption.
As she expands her reach across the Gulf, Africa, and beyond, her mission remains clear: to create environments where talent thrives, innovation flourishes, and leaders are prepared to carry their organisations into the future. For entrepreneurs and organisations alike, Michelle’s journey is both a blueprint and an inspiration.
To learn more about Michelle Raymond and her work, visit her official platforms:
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