Professional Development
Workshops designed to empower the Councillors and local government teams to meet professional development requirements as well as the essential skills to effectively manage conflict, navigate difficult conversations and cultivate civility.
Outcomes You Can Expect from the Workshops
You will leave feeling empowered to handle the challenges of civic leadership with confidence, respect, and a clear commitment to serving your community.
Promote cohesive team dynamics - workshops to equip the entire Councillor group with shared tools and language for conflict resolution, fostering a culture of collaboration and reducing divisive behavior.
Meet professional development requirements - to lead with integrity, master the rules and procedures for council meetings, ethical and effective use of social media and working together.
Reduce tension and prevent escalation - by learning conflict de-escalation techniques together, Councillors can manage disagreements constructively, preventing meetings from becoming adversarial or dysfunctional.
Build resilience and avoid burnout - tools to manage the mental and emotional demands of public office.
Workshops, masterclasses and keynotes
Whether you want to elevate leadership capability, transform team dynamics or create a more civil and psychologically safe workplace, I provide practical, research-backed tools that make an immediate difference.
All workshops can be fully customised to meet the needs, challenges, and culture of your organisation.
Suggested Workshop Topics
Conflict, Civility & Leadership
Leading Through Conflict: Tools for staying calm, confident and constructive under pressure
Working together: Building cultures of respect, trust and psychological safety
Conflict Intelligence for Leaders: Understanding triggers, emotions and high-conflict behaviour
From Reactive to Responsive: Neuroscience-based strategies for self-regulation in tough conversations
Communication & Difficult Conversations
Mastering Difficult Conversations: Frameworks for conversations that usually go off the rails
High-Stakes Communication: How to stay steady when emotions run high
The Understory of Conflict: How to uncover what’s really driving tension
De-escalation Skills for Leaders: Reducing defensiveness and rebuilding rapport
The Councillor Role in Practice - Governance and Compliance
Performing the role of a councillor
Good governance
Being strategic
Culture, Teams & Respectful Workplaces
Rebuilding Trust in Teams: Practical steps for restoring connection and alignment
Respectful Workplaces: Responding to incivility, rudeness, and undermining behaviour
Psychological Safety in Action: What it is, what it isn’t, and how leaders cultivate it
Values-Based Leadership: Leading with integrity, curiosity, and clarity
Other Workshops
The Councillor Role in Practice: Governance & Compliance
Negotiation and Influence
Reducing Incivility in Council Chambers
Working Together: Mayor–CEO or Councillor–Executive Collaboration Skills
Managing High-Conflict Residents and Stakeholders
Get in touch.
Feedback from participants-
“Very valuable workshop, I love the CALM model. I can confidently apply these techniques in my work. I love the use of real world case scenarios.”
“The most useful insight was learning to pause before responding. I found the workshop very valuable.”
“I found everything Anne-Marie talked about very practical and very valuable.”
“I found the workshop very valuable. I am now very confident that I can navigate conflict more effectively.”
“I loved this session so much. Every Councillor should have a coach.”
“There was lots of information and it was great.”
“The most valuable insight for me was asking questions, not being defensive in difficult conversations. Looking forward to your book.”
“Awesome webinar, thank you! I'd love a future webinar from Anne-Marie on how to influence internal stakeholders and leaders to help them move through change.”
“This was a fabulous session, lots of simple and practical advice.”
“Amazing information and very informative.”
“I was late coming in but some real pearls of wisdom delivered, thank you“
“Fantastic session - I would recommend it as a must do for councillors and staff!”