Orla is an inspirational business mentor and coach. I worked with Orla on a large scale project for my online business and through Orla’s mentoring I was capable of achieving my business goals. Orla has in depth knowledge and a real understanding for the retail sector and no question or road bump that I stumbled upon along the way was a problem – Orla only provides you with solutions and the empowerment of believing you can achieve what you set out to. In addition to all of this, Orla will inspire you with her outlook and attitude towards business and life. Thank you again Orla, for all of your support, help and encouragement along the way.

Orla was a fantastic support to me! When we first met I had only a vision of my possible business but Orla gave me the necessary tools to begin making that vision a reality. She supported me along every step of the way; from applying for funding/loans, creating my business plan, marketing and advertising advice. Orla also put me in contact with the Local Enterprise Office and encouraged me to take part in starting your own business courses. Orla was always on the end of the phone or email when I had questions and was constructive and supportive in her response. She helped me establish goals and set realistic targets to successfully meet them. I highly commend Orla and would definitely recommend her to anyone who is starting up their own business.

Orla is a positive, passionate, driven leader with an excellent commercial mind. During my time working with Orla, she was a dedicated professional. Orla’s ability to get the most from the team in a fast-paced retail environment where decisions need to be made quickly was exemplary. A pleasure to work with, supportive of all her team and peers, a completer finisher who leads by example.

I opened my small retail store, Freemypicture.com 4 years ago with big dreams and hopes, however I have been busy working in it & not on it. Working with Orla has been an eye opener & through our sessions I have been re-energised & now more focused on working on the business not in it.
Orla helped me to make the life changes I knew were needed but deep down feared making. Throughout the sessions Orla was & remains very supportive, positive & friendly. My business has seen some big changes in a matter of weeks & will continue to for some time.
I highly recommend working with Orla to help clear that path to success, understanding your obstacles & proactively finding solutions that will get you those goals. Professional, honest & caring, I cannot thank you enough for the help you have given me Orla.

Many thanks

“Having recently attended Orla’s Rapid Results Workshop, I have experienced first-hand her enthusiastic support and guidance.

As an interactive, hands-on training session the workshop introduced effective tools for reviewing short and long-term goals and was most helpful for me in developing our business targets and our Ideal Client Persona.”

I can’t rate Orla highly enough. I attended a Rapid Retail course which she ran at The Creative Spark. She has helped me with my business and personal goals immensely. I have adopted new strategies into both my business and personal life and already can see great results. Thank-you Orla

I attended a workshop with Orla in September where she presented in a very professional, engaging and informative way. Highly recommended!

“I attended a Rapid Retail course which Orla ran at The Creative Spark back in September. She has helped me with my business and personal goals immensely. I have adopted new strategies into both my business and personal life and already I can see great results. My vision for my business has never been as clear, I have been really focused on the actions that I need to take which has been driving my business forward. I am delighted with the sales that have grown month on month and in December the sales quadrupled! I now realise how busy I was before this workshop working in my business and not on my business, I would have argued that this wasn’t the case, but I can clearly see now that it was. I am delighted to have a balance back between my business life and personal life. Thanks to you Orla.”

Cannot recommend this lovely lady highly enough. Will definitely be using Orla’s services again in the future. Being your own boss in a small business can be challenging when you have no-one to share your ideas with, ask for advice and make sure your going in the right direction. Orla knows what she’s doing, will steer you in the right direction and genuinely cares about you succeeding. Passionate about what she does and with fantastic ideas. Loved working with her.

I would highly recommend orla as a business coach. Orla helped me to obtain investment for my business and continues to give me help and support.She goes above and beyond and genuinely wants to see the best for people in business

I came to Orla looking for a new direction in my career after working in the same industry for 20 years. She made me think through my issues in a step by step, organised manner by focusing and prioritising. Orla also made me find the solutions to my issues myself through providing insights, ideas and direction and take the measures needed to get results. I found her firm but helpful and positive – always providing honest feedback as well as support and encouragement along the way. As a result I have enrolled in a course to develop new skills for a career which will give me more personal satisfaction and sense of achievement. I would strongly recommend Orla to anyone who is looking for a new direction or even needs focus in any aspect of life.

Orla McDonnell executive coach, has been instrumental in my career to date.

I have had the privilege to have worked with her on a number of occassions over the past 20years.
As a retail professional she has assisted me by being a naturally gifted mentor who has an objective outlook and can allow you to stand back and see what is important and where you need to focus both individually and strategically
Orla has proved to be a solid sounding board who can guide your decisions with balance and conscience. Her ability to help you empower those around you through strong leadership skills and challenging allows you to set targets and goals which assist the group to acheive.

Orla’s ability to encourage the sharing of thoughts and help recognise improvement opportunities have had a marked impact on my leadership presence and allowed me to accept change and deal positively with navigating difficult circumstances.

Orla is a fantastic coach and mentor who has a committed attitude and has helped me acheive throughout my career, I would not have achieved the progression within my career without her guidance, support and expertise.

“Moved my life in areas which I wanted to change”

I didn’t have much focus in my life when I met Orla.Orla guided me through the process and explained everything so well as we went along.It was through the sessions I discovered I needed to become more assertive in my current position. I was determined to focus on what I needed to do in order to become more assertive. At times it was challenging however I stook with it.

I did feel a bit nervous if I had to speak out with opinions on projects which may had been easier to have said less and went with others recommendations.However where and when appropriate I did speak up. I contributed on projects even if my opinions where different to others viewpoint. Following this I was assigned projects which I am to manage.I continue to take new challenges in my job which has helped me gain a lot more confidence. I believe I have gained addional skills, showed leadership and at my 6 month review I asked for 10% pay rise.

To my surpise it was acknowledged that I had added value to the company, taken initiative and my pay rise was given. Whilst I continue to enjoy my current position my confidence has increased so much so I am considering other positions in management roles.Great experience! Boosted my confidence and have received extra pay which I gladly needed!Thanks Orla!!

Loved what I got from our sessions…. I found then motivating and encouraging!!