Nina Witenden

 I’m Nina Witenden.

I work with team managerment, emerging leaders, and leadership.  I have been that person, leading large teams, carrying significant KPIs, and navigating the pressure of delivering results through others.

With over two decades in corporate leadership, I understand firsthand the tension between performance and people. And I also know this: when you truly understand your people, performance follows.

Through my business, The Gold Room, I support time-poor managers to lift engagement and performance by partnering with them on key areas of their role; performance development, teamwork and executive coaching.

I work one-on-one with leaders, coach teams, and facilitate team development days that uncover what truly drives people, their values, strengths, and goals.

My approach is focused and practical. Using Gallup CliftonStrengths®, my own values process, purpose based coaching.  I help individuals and teams identify what they naturally do best, and then build clear development pathways that align personal strengths with organisational goals. The result is more engaged individuals, stronger collaboration, and better performance outcomes.

The Gold Room is about finding the gold in your people.

My work is grounded in evidence. Strengths-based development has been shown to significantly increase engagement, profitability, and retention. Individuals who use their strengths daily are far more likely to be engaged, and organisations that focus on strengths consistently outperform those that don’t.

But beyond the data, my belief is simple:

People are most productive when they are given the space to be themselves; fully present, authentic, and aligned to their organisation and role.

That’s why I use CliftonStrengths®. It provides an objective, powerful lens for individuals to understand themselves more deeply, build confidence, and move forward with clarity.

One of the biggest gaps I see in organisations is career path and purpose. While many companies intend to support it, time constraints and capability gaps mean it often becomes a tick-box exercise. Yet lack of development, focus and direction  remains one of the leading reasons people leave.

Having led over 200 people in my coprporate career, I understand the pressure managers face. I also know what’s possible when development is done well.

In one transformation, I integrated a low-performing team into a high-performing environment. By using strengths profiling and long-term development planning, I realigned roles based on individual strengths, coached each person into their new focus areas, and supported the team to work more effectively together. The result was a significant uplift in performance—well beyond target.

This is the work I now bring to my clients.

I help organisations align individual capability with team and business goals; creating clarity, connection, and measurable results. I care with connection, with comittment and with humour. 

Because when people understand themselves, and feel understood by their leaders, everything changes.