Learning Ventures was founded to challenge traditional consulting, replacing outdated leadership retreats with practical approaches to leadership development grounded in how people learn, change and transform.
About Us
Overview
Learning Ventures was founded in 2011 by Evelyn Moolenburgh with the primary purpose to challenge the consulting establishment about how leadership development and transformation of organisations was done.
Back in the day, leadership development consisted of “Boot Camps” and multi-day Retreats that mirrored academia, with little practical acknowledgement about how adult behaviour is changed.
Leadership development that changed behaviour
Rethinking people, systems and hierarchy for the future of work.
We design leadership development that delivers behaviour change and measurable return on investment. Our Collaborative Learning Circles™ methodology introduced small group peer coaching, replacing traditional training with skills-based sessions delivered over time.
By 2013, these radical methods were catching on, and with a little nudge from COVID-19, virtual learning has become commonplace.
Challenging how organisations work
Pioneering measurable leadership development.
We are a team of consultants, leadership experts, psychologists and executive coaches who accelerate organisational transformation with our deep understanding of people, leaders and systems.
In this age of augmentation of human and AI, Learning Ventures continues to innovate and challenge established practices. Our next target is the hierarchical organisation structure. In our view, it’s dead.
We partner with organisations to build capability and transformation across four critical areas:
Leadership Development
Building leaders who empower teams, lead change, and drive accountability.
People & Organisation
Designing team-based structures, improving collaboration, and enabling high performance at scale.
Transformation & Change
Delivering transformation that is executable, aligned, and sustained over time.
Strategy Execution
Translating strategy into clear priorities, aligned teams, and measurable outcomes.
Transformation that delivers results
What We Believe
What we believe shapes how we lead, how we behave and ultimately what we achieve in life. Without clear beliefs, organisations drift into turmoil or toxicity, but with them organisations move with focus, alignment and impact.
At Learning Ventures , our purpose is to develop people and maximise human value. We believe that in the Age of AI, human skills and lived experiences are more important than ever to ensure technology augments us for success.
We seek to be your most trusted partner in organisational transformation.
Most of our clients value our ideas and discipline around organisational change and leadership development. I’m a creative type, always thinking about unique ways to solve organisational issues, and clients value those fresh perspectives. I’ve had a long career both inside organisations (as a people and culture executive and transformation lead) and outside them as a consultant. I’ve been there; I know what it feels like. That gives me a unique perspective on the reality of organisational challenges.
We work hard to shift people’s thinking – encourage and support them to learn and change their behaviour. It’s not always corrective – albeit many leaders are set – but it’s about growth, and creating energy around new skills sets. The impact is huge – stronger relationships, promotions, growth, insight. Organisationally, when everyone shifts together, we see financial outcomes – like double-digit growth or a complete reduction in turnover for a specific generation in the organisation. When one person leads and inspires others through their own positive shifts, it creates a ripple effect, and a whole organisation can exceed expectations.
Outside Learning Ventures, I love to walk, long distances. Nature and slow travel give me time for reflection, for observing people, for creativity and thinking. Often, a chance conversation on a walk sparks an idea that later shapes one of our leadership programs.
I often work with senior leaders who know something needs to change but aren’t yet clear on what’s really getting in the way. It might be a team avoiding difficult conversations, a leadership group struggling to work together, or a development program that needs to lead to something real.
I help leaders see their situation more clearly, and have the conversations they may have been avoiding. This often leads to better decisions, stronger relationships, and greater confidence to act.
I’m deeply interested in why people behave the way they do, how they learn, and what helps them change. My background in neuroscience, education and operational leadership means I tend to look at challenges from both the human and practical sides.
People often say that empathy comes through strongly in the way I work. I take the time to understand what’s happening for someone, while still helping them get to the heart of the issue and move the conversation forward.
I often work with clients where the challenge is bigger than a simple skills gap – unclear expectations, leadership inconsistency, stakeholder friction, change fatigue, siloed ways of working, or teams that are busy but not always aligned. My role is to help clients get underneath what’s really going on, then design practical ways to shift behaviour and improve how people work together.
I help leaders turn insight into action. That often means having clearer conversations, making better decisions, delegating more effectively, influencing across the business, building stronger teams, and creating more accountability around what actually matters. The impact isn’t just that people understand leadership concepts better; it’s that they feel more confident applying them in real situations, with stronger relationships, clearer alignment and better execution back in the business.
I’ve always been interested in how people think, behave, learn and make decisions. Outside of work, I draw ideas from sport, business, psychology and the everyday realities of family life. That shapes how I work – practical, curious, and focused on what actually helps people change behaviour, rather than just talk about it.
People often value that I can make complex ideas feel clear, practical and actionable. I bring enough structure to help people make sense of what they’re dealing with, while creating an environment where they can be honest, ask questions, challenge their thinking, and apply the learning to their actual work.
I usually work with organisations that want to develop stronger leaders, build more capable teams, or create learning experiences people actually enjoy and use. A lot of the time, it’s about making leadership and development feel practical, engaging, and connected to the real work people do every day.
I help people slow down enough to reflect, get clear on what’s important, and take action. Whether that’s building confidence as a leader, improving communication, or navigating change, my goal is always to create learning experiences that lead to real behaviour change. The outcome is people are connected, capable, and engaged in their work.
I’m naturally curious about people and what helps them thrive. Beyond work, I love anything related to wellbeing, personal growth, mindfulness, travel, and being outdoors. Having lived in New Zealand, Europe and Australia, I’ve learned a lot from experiencing different cultures and perspectives, which has definitely shaped how I interact with people.
I make people feel comfortable while still challenging them to think differently. I like bringing warmth, energy and fun to my work, while creating space for honest conversations and growth.
I help projects run smoothly, holding the bigger picture in view while staying close enough to the detail that matters. My career has taken a fairly varied path, but underneath it all is the same thread: working closely with people and genuinely understanding what they need. That comes down to planning properly, thinking ahead, and connecting things other people might miss.
I help people look further ahead – weighing up options and challenging the easy answer if there’s a better way through. It means people feel more confident in their decisions, and better equipped when things don’t go to plan.
I’m curious about everything, with a real passion for learning – the kind that keeps me pushing outside my comfort zone and chasing new experiences, whether that’s through travel, picking up a new hobby, or training toward a physical challenge. Staying active and healthy, mentally and physically, matters just as much to me as that curiosity. I’ve always valued being around like-minded people and supporting others along the way, and that same energy is what I bring to my work and the people around me.
What people tend to notice most is the energy and joy I bring into a room, backed by a proactive streak and the adaptability to keep things moving, whatever a situation throws up.
Most of the challenges I help solve come down to alignment and pace. Teams lose clarity on goals or roles, or a project starts to drift off track, and my job is to bring both back into focus so the work keeps delivering real impact. When difficulties emerge, as they almost always do, I find a practical way through them.
I help leaders and teams get clear on who owns what and what success looks like before work begins. From there, I handle the coordination around them – timelines, moving pieces, problems solved before they cause delays. That combination means fewer stalled decisions and a program clients can count on. They know it will land on time and deliver what was promised.
Outside of work, I set goals and solve problems deliberately, whether that’s training for a race, developing a new recipe, or working through a puzzle. I like testing different angles, adjusting my approach, and tracking progress until the pieces fit. That same instinct shapes how I manage every project at work, from planning the approach to keeping it on track through to delivery.
I’m recognised for being organised, responsive and proactive – consistently delivering what’s needed on time and following up without being prompted. I also make a point of staying ahead of what’s coming next, and even under pressure, I maintain a steady and positive outlook.
David is a leading organisational and coaching psychologist with over thirty years of professional experience. He primarily works with senior leaders and executives across large organisations and professional service firms. While his work is usually characterised as executive coaching and leadership development, it also travels into broader organisational activities such as facilitating organisational and cultural change, replacing conflict with collaboration, facilitating strategic planning, and stakeholder management.
He has developed a wide repertoire of interventions over his years of practice and brings this experience to bear in tailoring each client’s program to their needs and preferences – as one client put it, “he meets you where you are, then takes you where you need to go.”
David loves the sand, sea and surf and excels at using his organisational psychology skills to assist executives across the tumultuous and unexpected waters of leadership – from grommets to long-boarders, he reads each person’s needs and adjusts his approach, keeping clients riding the crest of the wave and delivering them safely to shore.
Our Results
Turn strategy into measurable outcomes
Translate strategy into clear priorities, aligned teams, and measurable outcomes.
Excellence, recognised.
Making a meaningful impact.
Learning Ventures is not only a purpose-led organisation but socially conscious. If you are an NFP/NGO ask us how?