Know Your Worth

Denise Black

Director of Centre of Learning

Denise Black has over 32 years’ experience in the private sector, all of which was in the Financial Services Industry. In latter years she led a number of strategic change management programs within AIB. After moving from the Private sector to the Public Sector in 2018 Denise joined the Strategic investment Board and led on driving Transformational change as People Lead within the Department of Infrastructure. She was then appointed April 2020 as Executive Director, Human Resources for Invest NI. Her motivation to join WIB in 2023 is two-fold in providing a clear opportunity to carry out her lifelong interest in optimising peoples’ career motivations and abilities, as well as being able to ‘give back’ the training and investment given to her throughout her career. Her ‘People & Culture’ interest is reflected in her professional qualifications as Chartered member of CIPD, Level 7 ILM Executive Coach and Mentor, CIPD qualified Trainer and a MSc in Strategic Personnel and Development. As much as she values her professional accreditations, Denise believes her best learning has been from her ‘try it, learn from it, build on it’ mind set.

Colette Leeson

Career Coach & Interview Specialist

Colette Leeson is a career coach, mentor, and facilitator with over 25 years of experience supporting individuals to achieve their career aspirations. She specialises in helping senior executives, professionals, job seekers, and those returning to the workforce build confidence, negotiate effectively, and secure career success. During her career in the public sector, Colette led initiatives to enhance leadership, drive organisational change, and promote equality and diversity. She has designed award-winning programmes such as "Women Confidence to Succeed," empowering women to progress in their careers. Now running her own successful career coaching business, Colette continues to deliver one-to-one career and confidence coaching, group workshops, and programmes tailored to individual needs. With a proven track record of helping individuals secure roles at all levels, Colette offers a discreet, flexible service, working with a diverse range of clients, including professionals, students, and those transitioning back to work. A Chartered Fellow of CIPD and certified Change Management Practitioner, Colette mentors future leaders through initiatives such as Women in Business NI and SistersIn. While proud of her professional achievements, Colette values her ability to connect deeply with clients to ensure they embrace new opportunities with confidence. She is passionate about helping clients recognise their true worth, embrace new opportunities, and thrive professionally. She has led initiatives such as Timely Careers’ “Reignite Your Career” programme, which combines group workshops and one-to-one coaching to build confidence, update skills, develop CVs that bring participants’ authentic and best version of themselves to the fore, master job applications, and deliver impactful interview performances to get their dream job.