About Emma Thorp
Real leadership is human. Coaching should be too.
I’ve led through growth, change, and burnout. I’ve walked away from a successful career, and built something more aligned with who I really am. Thorp Coaching brings together the things I care most about: honest leadership, deep human connection, and making space to do the work that really matters.
Most of us want to lead with purpose, clarity, and impact.
But that’s not always easy. We get overwhelmed. We get triggered. Old patterns kick in, and it’s hard to pause long enough to notice what’s really going on.
I offer an Executive Coaching space where you can get curious about what’s driving you, and reconnect with who you are and how you want to lead. It’s not just support a challenging it’s a catalyst for lasting change, personally and professionally.
Commercial leadership meets deep coaching
Before I trained as a coach, I held senior roles including Chief Commercial Officer and Board Member of a global executive search firm. I also founded, scaled, and exited my own consultancy. That commercial grounding means I understand what it’s like to lead under pressure and make big decisions with people, pace, and performance in mind.
I completed my coach training at Henley Business School and hold EMCC Senior Practitioner accreditation. My practice is also shaped by my own personal development and trauma work. I believe that sometimes talking it through isn’t enough — we need to peel back the layers to get to the heart of what’s really going on. Often, that’s made easier by getting out of our heads and into our bodies.
You can view professional background here on linked in.
Coaching that goes deeper
I work with smart, capable, brilliant people — but that doesn’t mean it all feels easy. Coaching with me is about going beyond the surface to unpick patterns, shift stuckness, and reconnect with what really matters to you.
I’ll hold space when things feel vulnerable, and offer challenge when you need to break through old habits. I see through polished answers and gently push to get to what’s real — because that’s where the real change happens.
Why Work with Me
Credentials and Approach
✔️ Lived C-Suite leadership experience
✔️ Henley business school trained, EMCC-accredited coach
✔️ Evidence-based methods that go deep and deliver lasting impact
Coaching in Nature
Alongside my online coaching practice, I also offer immersive retreats and corporate away days bringing people out of the office and into nature.
My purpose-built coaching space on the edge of Ashdown Forest (Sussex) provides a powerful environment for deep reflection and transformation.
I believe environment shapes thinking—and that leadership development doesn’t always belong in a meeting room. How can we expect new thinking in the same old setting?
Find out more about coaching in Nature
Neuro-spicy, trauma-aware, and proudly different
I’m neurodivergent and I’ve done a lot of work to understand how that’s shaped the way I lead, relate, and think. That insight helps me support others (neurodivergent or not) to find ways of working and leading that feel more natural, not performative.
I also bring a trauma-aware lens to my practice, without pathologising. I understand what it’s like for the “then and there” to affect the “here and now” — and how past experiences can shape the way we lead, relate, and respond under pressure. This work is about creating space between trigger and reaction, so you can choose how you want to respond — not just repeat old patterns.
You can read more about my own spicy-brain journey here.
