Coach School is a WA owned company that delivers the highest standard of professional coaching training offered in Western Australia, offering the Certificate of Coaching and the Diploma of Professional Coaching.

Coach School is one of three mutually supportive businesses owned by The Winding Staircase Pty Ltd; the others being:

We are proud of having a team with considerable, and relatively unique combination of professional coaching experience, and experience in facilitating adult learning forums.

The members of our training team are coaches who have, together, worked with hundreds of coaching clients, who have themselves trained professionally as coaches, and who also have impressive backgrounds working as organisational and leadership development consultants.

Kim Lisson – Director

As the founder and director of Coach School, Kim is the most experienced and qualified of Western Australia's dedicated professional coaches. Kim was the first professional coach in WA to have achieved the status of Professional Certified Coach (PCC) status with the ICF, having coached over 150 clients (2000 hours) worldwide.

Prior to becoming a professional coach, Kim spent 12 years working as a staff and organisational development practitioner and manager, and he combines his knowledge of how to meet personal and organisational development needs, with a passion and commitment to the growth of coaching as profession and as an approach to relating and leading.

'Looking back on that work' says Kim, 'I realized that many of my most interesting and fruitful experiences were in taking time with individual colleagues, listening to their personal stories and problems, and supporting them to identify solutions and to move forward. These "coffee shop" discussions often resulted in more personally relevant and more sustained, solutions and changes than organised training sessions or consulting interventions. Like so many of the coaches I've subsequently trained, I've since recognised that what I had been doing in essence, had an occupational title; "coaching"!'

Michael Prince – Director

Michael Prince is a founder member of the Coach School team and current director of Training, bringing to us over 20 years experience working with leaders in Australia and Asia as a manager, consultant and coach.

Michael began his working life as a youth worker and through his 'temporary' job in federal government - lasting 9 years! - he was first introduced to coaching processes in the mid 1980s, designing and running long-term 'action learning' programs. As a manager for an aid organisation in Nepal, Michael adopted coaching methodologies in leading his own team and encouraged the development of a coaching culture amongst the 2000 strong workforce.

He currently combines organisational consulting and coaching and has trained in ontological coaching models and frameworks. Michael and brings a blend of intelligent care, support, challenge and accountability for action to his coaching relationships, with a focus on helping leaders to lead with greater integrity of character and relationships, and to lead with greater rigour and clarity of thought.

'My approach to life and coaching is shaped by a long-standing interest in contemplative spirituality' says Michael. 'I am committed to working in ways that are intensely practical and deep, that treat people with great dignity, compassion and respect as human beings, not as things that need managing, controlling or fixing! I am also committed to strong sense of vocation in organisations - to helping leaders create work places that achieve great things and enable people to thrive and grow.'

Susan Kroening – Facilitator

Susan recently joined Coach School as a workshop facilitator and is Director of her own coaching and consulting business, Susan Kroening & Associates, working in strategic alliance with national and international associates, such as McKinsey & Company. She has an extensive consulting background in organisational development for over 13 years and is passionate about creating and nurturing innovative leadership, high performing work cultures and leading edge people management practices which highlight the value of “intangible assets” - mindsets and behaviours, emotional literacy, values, spirit, cultural capital and personal meaning.

Originally from the field of education, Susan was intrigued by the human potential movement and the business world and initially promoted international speakers seminars for the likes of Zig Ziglar, James Rohn, Wayne Dyer and Deepak Chopra. She has gone onto hands-on delivery of corporate and personal training workshops and uses the neuro-cognitive tools of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), Accelerated Learning and Behavioural Science in all her consulting, training and coaching work. Susan says ‘These tools are valuable in helping me to support people to better understand the mindsets and behaviours involved in personal growth and results achievement.’ ‘I’m not an “ivory tower educator”; I’m fascinated with the learning process and love creating dynamic and highly interactive learning environments with enthusiasm, diversity, impact, fun and lasting value!’

Tony Clitheroe – Program Director, Facilitator

Tony Clitheroe has 23 years experience as a manager, consultant and coach. He has experience of working in the areas of leadership, management, training and development, human resources development and coaching, and works with a wide range of organisations large and small in the public and private sectors, including local government, engineering, mining and utilities.

Tony has over 12 years experience in a range of line management roles in operational areas of a large public utility. From this he moved internal consulting roles in organisation development, training and development, human resources and coaching. As the Manager of an in-house technical training centre (Power Training Services WA), he led and supported the team through a process of commercialisation. This involved establishing, developing and leading a team of 18 human resource professionals to provide a comprehensive range of in-house HR consulting services to a large and complex organisation. Fundamental to his role was the adoption of a coaching approach to support team members shift their role from being technical trainers to consultants.

He has a keen interest in supporting people and organisations undertaking transformation, learning and development. This arises out of his own learning journey as a leader, consultant and coach. Tony has degree qualifications in human resource management and management, has completed a significant proportion of a Diploma in Ontological Coaching with Newfield Australia and has completed Coach School’s 18 month Diploma of Professional Coaching. He is accredited to use the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and has completed the core curriculum of psychodrama training.


Graham Taylor – Facilitator

Graham joined Coach School as a workshop facilitator in 2004 and is the Director of his own consulting business, Graham Taylor & Associates. He has directed his consultancy for 20 years and over that period has specialised in leadership development, facilitation & coaching and training. Graham has focussed on developing the human resource within organisations with a particular emphasis on the relational aspects of organisations and providing insight in how human beings ‘think and interact’ and the resultant impact on organisational effectiveness.

Prior to moving into his consultancy business Graham worked as a Youth Worker in Perth. This role involved encouragement, development and coaching with young people based on a strong relational foundation. This same relational focus was carried over into the commercial world with the observation that organisations are a ‘network of relationships’. A set of principles for ‘building and maintaining relationships’ called ‘REG’ (Respect, Empathy and Genuineness) have informed all of Graham’s work. He endeavours to model these guiding principles in his coaching and consulting and draws on a combination of coaching models including ontological (coaching) models and frameworks.

Graham says ‘The models and interpretations within the ontological work have both deepened and developed my observations of myself and have led to major changes in my ‘way of being’. I count it an absolute privilege to be involved in a coaching relationship with other people where these models and distinctions can be shared and applied in a caring environment of respect, ‘journeying/learning’ together and contracted permission. Coaching is the work I love to do!’

Anne Courtney –  Facilitator, Mentor Coach

Anne Courtney graduated from Coach School’s first Diploma program in 2004 and has been running her own coaching business part-time since that time. Her clients include people in leadership positions in large organisations and smaller community groups, professionals in various fields and private consultants. She is passionate about partnering people in their personal lives as they create lives that are deeply fulfilling and rich as well as working with organisations to enable them to move forward with greater clarity, effectiveness and spirit. She is pleased to continue her involvement with Coach School now as a member of the staff team.

Over the past twenty years Anne has worked in the community sector in the fields of youth work, social work, Church work, community development and management. Anne is a qualified social worker with a Diploma in Religious Studies and is currently undertaking a Business Qualification in Leadership at the Graduate School of Business at Curtin University.

Anne enjoys putting time and energy into her other passions and pursuits which include reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, global development projects and awareness raising, spirituality, quilting and native gardens.

Janine Warden – Diploma Co-ordinator, Mentor Coach

Janine Warden is a Coach School Diploma graduate and ICF member with more than 20 years professional experience in leadership and people management. She brings to her coaching relationships a passion for developing people to be the best they can be combined with the belief that everyone has the potential within to be successful and to live their dreams.

Director of her our own coaching practice Balanced Momentum, Janine specialises in 1-1 coaching for enhanced performance, authentic leadership and career/role transition within corporate settings, working predominantly with leaders and emerging leaders. She also partners individual clients, in the areas of personal development, individual achievement, career enrichment and lifestyle balance.

Janine says; “Looking back the coach in me evolved over a period of several years; and for as long as I can remember I’ve been sharing informal coaching conversations with family, friends and colleagues. Working within contact centre environments as manager and leader, also presented me with many opportunities to develop and foster a ‘coaching approach’ to support and develop others.”

Her journey as a professional coach began when she engaged her own coach to help clarify and plan a new future for her. This profound desire for a ‘sea change’, prompted by two significant life events also awakened her interest in adult transitions and lifelong learning. Janine is pleased to be continuing her association with Coach School and looking forward to supporting and partnering others on their own unique journeys.

Pauline Shanley - Certificate Co-ordinator, Mentor Coach

Pauline is a professional coach, who started her career as an accountant and business administrator. Along the way she added human resource management and coaching to her skills. Pauline has spent over 25 years creating, developing and managing workplaces predominately in the finance and education sectors. As well as this Pauline has been an active proponent of volunteerism – currently holding a position on the international board of an educational peace organisation amongst other roles. This powerful mix gives her a broad and unique approach to coaching and the business of coaching.

Pauline enjoys coaching in the area of change and works with organisations as well as personal clients. In her business, Mosaic Coaching, she partners with clients within organisations as they navigate transitions such as appointment/promotion, change management and redundancy. She also works with personal clients in the areas of transition – return to work, career changes, retirement and relationship changes.

Pauline is an active member of the International Coach Federation (ICF) and Coach School Diploma graduate. She holds a Bachelor of Business (Accounting & Business Law), a Post-Graduate Diploma in Business (Human Resource Management) from Curtin University, Perth, and a Certificate in Coaching and a Diploma in Professional Coaching.

Pauline’s strengths lie in her curiosity, intuitive understanding, enthusiasm, humour and respect for individuality.

Mary Jo Harris -  Mentor Coach

Mary Jo has had over 25 years experience working with adult learners in a variety of contexts, in both the private and public sector. She has lectured part time for many years in the Diploma of Management for TAFE and really enjoyed the opportunity to engage with her learners around the people skills areas such as performance management and team development – people are Mary Jo’s passion!

Mary Jo sees coaching as a wonderful learning space and finds it a privilege to partner with her workplace clients around the relationships they have in their workplace. She is a passionate believer in the concept that we succeed or fail at work, and in other aspects of our lives, one conversation at a time. In her coaching practice she has observed what a shift in this area can do for a client’s effectiveness in their personal and work life and is very convinced that coaching offers organisations the chance to improve productivity through improved working relationships.

When Mary Jo isn’t having lots of fun coaching or facilitating, she loves being outdoors on her 8 acre property in the foothills, where she grows and sells Christmas Trees. She walks in the hills and is an active member of her semi-rural community. She enjoys the company of her four adult children and her large extended family.

As part of her commitment to community life, Mary Jo has been a long-standing member of the Board of Management of the Armadale Domestic Violence Intervention Project. She is currently focused on fund raising activities to support a learning centre in East Timor – her neighbourhood has strong connections with the project and her property has been a beautiful location for fundraising events.

Mary Jo holds a Bachelor of Education, Certificate IV Workplace Assessment and Training and is a Coach School Diploma graduate.

Jo Marshall  - Mentor Coach

Jo Marshall has a background in management and education. She is passionate about facilitating a work place or a “school place” that is challenging and satisfying - a place where people can make meaningful contribution and also grow and develop - considering that we spend a large proportion of our lives in these spaces.

Jo has an MBA (UWA 2000) and completed the Diploma of Professional Coaching with Coach School in 2004. Jo currently enjoys the variety of a portfolio career working at UWA, Central TAFE, her own coaching business - Intelligent Performance Leveraging, and now with Coach School.
As part of a rich and balanced life, Jo’s family is very important. She also enjoys running and fun runs, socialising with friends, arts and crafts, festival movies and gardening.