Expert Practice Diagnostic
Examining the conditions that shape expert performance and influence
A systemic organisational diagnostic designed for expert-heavy environments, revealing how structures, culture, and leadership enable or constrain expert judgment so technical capability can genuinely shape decisions, performance, and outcomes.
The Expert Practice Diagnostic
The Expert Practice Diagnostic is a systemic organisational diagnostic designed for expert-heavy environments. It provides a clear, evidence-based view of how expert judgment is currently enabled, constrained, and used across the organisation.
The diagnostic examines the interaction between expert behaviour and organisational conditions, recognising that expert performance and influence are shaped by both individual practice and the systems that surround it.
What the diagnostic explores
The diagnostic focuses on the conditions that most strongly shape expert contribution, including:
how leadership behaviours affect expert influence and decision-making
how culture supports or undermines the use of evidence and judgment
how structures, roles, and processes enable or restrict expert contribution
where friction or misalignment exists between experts, leaders, and stakeholders
how experts themselves experience, exercise, and limit their own influence
Why is this diagnostic different
Most organisational diagnostics focus on general engagement, capability, or culture. While these can be useful, they rarely examine how expertise actually operates in expert-heavy environments.
The Expert Practice Diagnostic is different because it is designed specifically to understand expert judgment, influence, and contribution, and the conditions that shape them.
What sets it apart
Where most organisational diagnostics are designed for general workforces, this diagnostic is designed to understand how expertise operates in practice.
It is designed specifically for experts, not generic employee populations
It examines influence and judgment, not just satisfaction, sentiment, or skills
It looks at systems, not just individuals, including leadership behaviour, structures, processes, and culture
It captures both expert and leader perspectives, revealing where understanding aligns and where it breaks down
It combines quantitative and qualitative data, rather than relying on survey results alone
It surfaces barriers that standard engagement surveys do not detect, including subtle constraints on expert contribution
Rather than producing a high-level snapshot, the diagnostic builds a grounded picture of how expertise is experienced, exercised, and used in practice.
The focus is not on labelling performance as good or bad, but on making visible the conditions that shape expert contribution, so organisations can take informed, responsible action.
How the Diagnostic Works
1. Discovery & Scoping
We clarify your goals, context, and challenges, and confirm whether the diagnostic will focus on a team, division, or the entire organisation.
2. Surveys & Data Collection
The Expert Experience Survey captures system-wide patterns in role clarity, influence, confidence, psychological safety, and organisational support.
3. Interviews & Stakeholder Insights
In-depth conversations with experts, leaders, and stakeholders uncover the deeper cultural, relational, and structural factors shaping expert performance.
4. Organisational Review & Analysis
Review of key documents, systems, structures, and processes.
Integrated analysis reveals how expert power is created, supported, or constrained.
5. Recommendations, Roadmap & Leadership Briefing
You receive a clear, evidence-based set of insights and practical actions, along with a facilitated leadership briefing to align senior stakeholders.
What You Receive
1. Comprehensive Diagnostic Report
Clear findings, themes, risks, and opportunities across culture, leadership, structure, and expert experience.
2. Expert Power Profile
A visual map of where expert power exists, where it is constrained, and where it needs to strengthen.
3. Recommendations Roadmap
Practical, prioritised actions for leaders, teams, and the organisation.
4. Leadership Briefing
A facilitated presentation for executives to align understanding and accelerate decision-making.
5. Team or Division-Level Summaries
Clear insights and recommendations for each unit assessed.
6. Current State vs Future State Map
A strategic comparison showing where the organisation is now and where it needs to be.
7. Perception Gap Analysis
Powerful insight into differences between expert, leader, and stakeholder perspectives.
8. Culture & Systems Insights
Clarity on the deeper forces shaping expert performance — and how to address them.
Choose the right diagnostic for your organisation:
Starting from $AU15,200
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Ideal for: A single expert-heavy team
Timeline: ~4 weeks
Includes surveys, interviews, core findings, and focused recommendations.Starting from $AU15,200
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Ideal for: Multiple teams or a full division
Timeline: 6–8 weeks
Includes wider survey reach, extended interviews, systems review, and team-level insights.From $AU43,100
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Ideal for: Whole-organisation assessment
Timeline: 10–12 weeks
Includes all deliverables: Expert Practice Profile, perception gap analysis, roadmap, team summaries, and leadership briefing.This version delivers the deepest, most transformative insights.
From $AU76,300
Optional Add-Ons:
Optional extensions to support deeper implementation and sustained change.
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Structured workshops drawn from the Expertship Institute, designed to strengthen how experts exercise judgment, influence decisions, and contribute at an enterprise level.
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Targeted workshops for leaders of technical teams, focused on building the capability to lead experts effectively and create conditions where expertise can flourish.
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Individual coaching to support experts in working through the specific habits, assumptions, and influence challenges surfaced by the diagnostic.
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Facilitated coaching for small groups of experts, allowing participants to work through shared challenges, test new practices, and learn from each other’s experiences.
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Individual coaching for leaders responsible for experts, focused on translating diagnostic insights into practical leadership behaviours and decisions.
More information
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Discounted access to the Expert Practice Forum, providing ongoing learning, reflection, and connection with other experts committed to deliberate practice.
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Ongoing advisory support to help translate diagnostic recommendations into practical changes in behaviour, processes, and ways of working over time.
More information
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A structured follow-up review to assess progress against the diagnostic findings, identify what has shifted, and refine priorities for the next phase of work.
More information
Why work with me
Many management consultants are skilled at analysing organisations, designing frameworks, and producing recommendations. Fewer have spent sustained time working with experts, leading expert-heavy functions, and navigating the realities of complex technical environments from the inside.
My work is different because it is built at the intersection of expert practice, organisational systems, and leadership responsibility.
When organisations work with me, they benefit from:
Deep, specialist focus on experts and expertise, rather than generic leadership or engagement models
First-hand experience leading and advising expert-heavy organisations, including large, regulated, and technically complex environments
A systemic lens, examining how leadership behaviour, culture, structures, and incentives shape expert performance and influence
Credible work at both individual and organisational levels, spanning expert coaching, leadership development, diagnostics, and consulting
Evidence-informed insight, grounded in research, data, and years of practical application rather than fashionable frameworks
Experience that shapes the work
Over the past 25 years, I have worked across government, infrastructure, technology, and highly regulated industries, supporting organisations to develop capability, navigate change, and better leverage internal expertise.
Contact
Contact
If you're ready to elevate expert influence, strengthen collaboration, and unlock the full potential of your expert workforce, the Expert Practice Diagnostic is the most powerful place to start.
Let’s begin a conversation about what this diagnostic could uncover for your organisation.