Charity & third sector CEOs
Leading mission-driven organisations through funding pressure, governance complexity and organisational change.
— The Kind CEO · Est. with intent
Executive Coaching · Strategic Mentoring
Index — 01 / 14
Kindness is not weakness.It is a leadership strategy.
Grounded in real chief executive experience — not theory.
For CEOs, Directors and senior leaders navigating pressure, complexity and people leadership — without losing themselves in the process.
— On being in the seat
02 / 14
Leadership can be a lonely place.
Senior leaders are expected to carry pressure, make difficult decisions, manage conflict, protect reputation, retain staff, build partnerships and stay resilient — often without much space to think.
- 01The decisions are harder.
- 02The scrutiny is higher.
- 03The people issues are more complex.
- 04The pressure follows you home.
- 05And everyone still expects you to have the answer.
— A reframe
03 / 14
Kind leadership is not about being soft.
It is about making clear decisions, holding boundaries, living your values and treating people with respect — especially when things are difficult.
“
Kindness without clarity becomes avoidance.
Clarity without kindness becomes damage.
— Who this is for
04 / 14
Built for leaders carrying real responsibility.
Directors stepping into senior roles
Moving from operational confidence into strategic responsibility, scrutiny and visibility.
Local authority leaders
Navigating political complexity, public accountability and intersecting community pressures.
NHS senior managers
Leading teams under unrelenting demand while protecting people, performance and yourself.
Operational to strategic leaders
Letting go of doing-the-work in order to lead the people who do — without losing your edge.
Senior management teams
Groups of senior and middle managers developing together through facilitated group coaching — leading with consistency and trust.
— The founder
05 / 14
Tina Butler
Founder · The Kind CEO
Led by someone who has been in the seat.
Tina Butler is a former chief executive in the charity sector, with over thirty-five years in the third sector. She understands the pressure, loneliness and complexity that comes with senior leadership. Her approach is grounded in lived experience — not leadership theory. She knows what it feels like to make difficult decisions, protect people, manage scrutiny and still try to lead with integrity.
The lessons she learned along the way — about people, character, boundaries and trust — are exactly what shape the coaching today. See what she learned as a CEO →
“Quite simply, I want to help you lead well — without losing yourself.”
Tina Butler · Founder · The Kind CEO
— What I learned as a CEO
06 / 14
Thirty-five years in the third sector. A few of the lessons.
For over thirty-five years Tina worked in the third sector — seven of those as a chief executive of a local charity. These six themes shape the coaching: each pairs a real lesson with what we actually work on together.
01
Leadership
“There were weeks I felt completely alone with a decision no one else could make. I learned that uncertainty doesn’t mean you’ve failed — being honest about what you don’t yet know is often the most steadying thing a leader can do.”
- It can be lonely — some of the time, not all of the time
- You don’t need every answer; you need to be clear
- Confident decisions matter more than perfect ones
- Calm is a leadership skill
In coachingWe work on holding clarity under pressure — not pretending to have it all figured out.
02
People
“A colleague once said, ‘Tina, it can wait — do you really need to respond right this minute?’ She was right. People don’t remember how fast you replied. They remember how you made them feel in the hardest moments.”
- People remember how you made them feel
- Not everything needs an immediate response
- Know who to lean on
- Listen to hear, not to respond
In coachingWe build the habits that let you slow down and lead people, not just tasks.
03
Character
“Imposter syndrome followed me into senior rooms for years. Letting people see the real me — wobbles included — built more trust than any polished front ever did.”
- Kindness and accountability live together
- Respect is earned, not assumed
- Vulnerability is strength, not weakness
- Leave ego at the door
In coachingWe separate authentic confidence from the armour that quietly exhausts you.
04
Growth
“The leaders I trusted most were the ones who did what they said they would. I learned to model the values I wanted — and to keep learning openly, even as the most senior person in the room.”
- Know your weaknesses — you have them
- Do what you say you’ll do
- Model values through your actions
- Keep learning and observing
In coachingWe turn self-awareness into consistent, visible leadership behaviour.
05
Culture & Relationships
“Partnerships never worked because of job titles — they worked because of relationships. And trust that took months to build could be damaged in a single careless meeting.”
- Partnerships thrive on relationships, not titles
- Culture follows what leaders do
- Trust takes time to build, moments to lose
- Great leadership is collaboration and shared purpose
In coachingWe focus on the relationships and culture that quietly determine your results.
06
Wellbeing
“You can’t keep pouring from an empty cup — it’s like trying to run a car with no fuel. Protecting my own energy wasn’t indulgent; it was what allowed me to lead for the long term.”
- You can’t pour from an empty cup
- Boundaries are healthily essential
- Protect your energy to lead long term
- Sustainable leadership starts with you
In coachingWe put boundaries and energy at the centre, so leadership stays sustainable.
— The biggest lesson
It’s always about the people.
— The signature framework
07 / 14
The KIND CEO Framework™
A practical leadership framework designed to help senior leaders stay clear, grounded and effective — even under pressure.
Know Yourself
Clarity on values, self-awareness, triggers and leadership identity.
Intentional Leadership
Clear decisions, aligned actions and healthy boundaries.
Navigate Complexity
Stakeholders, pressure, politics and difficult conversations.
Deliver with Integrity
Achieving results while protecting relationships and trust — without compromise.
— Outcomes
08 / 14
Better leadership. Better relationships. Better outcomes.
- 01Stronger staff retention
- 02More resilient decision-making under pressure
- 03Better partnership working across sectors and systems
- 04Reduced conflict and reputational risk
- 05Greater confidence and authority
- 06Healthier boundaries and less burnout
- 07More authentic leadership presence
— Philosophy
09 / 14
Results matter.
So do people.
The Kind CEO is not about choosing between performance and people. It is about creating the conditions for better decisions, stronger relationships and more sustainable leadership.
— Principles
- 01Clarity over avoidance
- 02Respect under pressure
- 03Boundaries without guilt
- 04Decisions with integrity
- 05Compassion without compromise
— Working together
10 / 14
Support designed around the reality of senior leadership.
Every option draws on the same hard-won lessons — that leadership can be lonely, that it’s always about the people, and that you can’t pour from an empty cup. Whether you work with Tina alone or develop your whole team, the foundations are the same.
01 / Coaching
1:1 Executive Coaching
For senior leaders who want to strengthen confidence, navigate pressure and lead without burnout or self-doubt.
- One-off, 3-month or 6-month support
- Fortnightly or monthly 1:1 sessions
- Ongoing messaging & email support
- Practical, real-world guidance
02 / Mentoring
Strategic Mentoring
Direct, experience-led support for leaders asking, “What would you do in my position?”
- New CEOs or Directors
- Senior leaders stepping into bigger roles
- Leaders facing complex decisions
- Honest, grounded guidance
03 / Group
Group Coaching for Senior Managers
Small, facilitated cohorts where senior managers grow together — shared challenges, peer insight and a trusted space to think.
- Cohorts of senior & middle managers
- Facilitated peer learning
- Leading teams under pressure
- Cost-effective, high-trust development
04 / Intensives
Leadership Intensives
Half-day or full-day deep dives for urgent or focused leadership challenges.
- Leading through challenge without losing yourself
- Building high-trust partnerships
- Difficult conversations without damage
- Pressure, scrutiny and uncertainty
— Group coaching
11 / 14
Group Coaching for Senior Managers.
Leadership is rarely a solo act. Group coaching develops a whole team together — turning the biggest lesson, that it’s always about the people, into how a leadership team actually works day to day.
Format
Facilitated peer coaching — structured discussion, real cases and shared reflection, not lectures.
Group size
Small cohorts of 6–8 senior or middle managers, kept intentionally intimate to protect trust.
Cadence
Monthly 2-hour sessions across 6 months, with a clear theme each time and space between to apply it.
Delivery
In-person or online, for a single organisation’s leadership team or a mixed cross-sector cohort.
— Best for
- 01Senior management teams who want to lead with more consistency and trust
- 02Middle managers stepping up into greater responsibility
- 03Organisations developing several leaders at once, cost-effectively
- 04Teams who learn best from each other’s real challenges
— How it works
01
A shared language
Built on the KIND CEO framework, so the whole team leads from the same foundations.
02
Real challenges
Sessions work through the live issues people are actually carrying — not hypotheticals.
03
Peer insight
The room becomes the resource: people learn as much from each other as from facilitation.
04
A trusted space
Confidential, honest and kind — where it’s safe to admit what you don’t yet know.
— In their words
12 / 14
Trusted by leaders across charity, public service and the NHS.
Working with Tina gave me the space, clarity and confidence to lead through one of the most difficult periods of my career.
Honest, grounded and quietly challenging in all the right ways. I left every conversation thinking more clearly.
Finally — coaching that understands what it actually feels like to be in the seat. Practical, human and deeply credible.
— Questions answered
13 / 14
Frequently asked questions.
The practical detail behind the coaching. If your question isn’t here, just ask when you get in touch.
- 01Is everything confidential?
- Completely. What you share with Tina stays between you. Coaching is a private, judgement-free space — your details are never shared, and in group coaching the cohort agrees clear confidentiality from the very first session.
- 02How do you decide who you work with?
- The short application helps Tina understand your role, your sector and the challenge you’re facing, followed by a no-obligation conversation. It’s a two-way fit: coaching only works when there’s genuine trust, so she takes on a limited number of leaders at a time.
- 03How do the sessions actually work?
- 1:1 coaching is delivered fortnightly or monthly, in person or online, with ongoing email and message support between sessions. Each conversation is grounded in your real situation — practical, honest and shaped around where you are right now.
- 04How does group coaching work logistically?
- Group coaching runs in small cohorts of 6–8 senior or middle managers, meeting monthly for around two hours over six months. It can be delivered for a single organisation’s leadership team or as a mixed cross-sector group, in person or online.
- 05What’s the time commitment?
- 1:1 coaching is available as a one-off, 3-month or 6-month engagement — usually an hour per session plus a little reflection time. Group coaching is a six-month commitment of one half-day-equivalent per month. Leadership intensives are a focused half or full day.
- 06What if I’m not sure which option is right?
- That’s completely normal — choose “help me decide” on the application. Tina will talk it through with you and recommend whether 1:1 coaching, mentoring, group coaching or an intensive best fits your situation.
— A quiet invitation
14 / 14
You do not have to lead through it alone.
Whether you are stepping into a new role, navigating a difficult period or simply need space to think with someone who understands senior leadership, The Kind CEO offers grounded, practical support.
Lead well — without losing yourself.