Comentco Partners - supporting growth for you and your business, from all angles.
Consulting
Mentoring
Coaching
Comentco Partners work with SMEs and regional business communities through a flexible blend of consulting, mentoring and coaching. Our engagements are based around real business situations rather than fixed programmes, allowing leaders to access the right level of practical support at the right time.
How we help: a blend of Partners and Services
Bespoke Support
Focused, situation-specific assistance for businesses facing immediate challenges or opportunities
Typical scenarios include
• Preparing for investment or funding pitches
• Shaping proposals, bids or commercial presentations
• Strategic decision support
• Leadership or organisational problem-solving
• Short-term mentoring during periods of change
This model suits SMEs requiring clarity, external perspective, or experienced thinking input without committing to longer programmes.
AI and leadership a practical starting point
AI is reshaping how businesses operate - but for most SME leaders, the question isn’t what is AI? It’s what does this actually mean for my business, my team, and my role as a leader?
To help make that more tangible, we’ve created a short AI Leadership Reflection survey. It takes around three minutes to complete. If it prompts useful thinking - and you’d like to explore it further - we’re happy to follow up with a more tailored conversation.
Who we are
Comentco Partners was founded by Steve Paul and Andy Hickman, both Fellows of the Association of Business Mentors. As entrepreneurs, coach-mentors, and former senior leaders, we bring experience from corporate, agency, and small-business ownership. With expertise in sales, marketing, technology, and digital transformation, we deliver a practical, real-world approach to growth.
Steve PAUL
Co-founder and Senior Partner
Steve Paul is a business mentor and coach with a career spanning senior marketing, sales and strategy roles at Philips Electronics, HarperCollins, IBM/Lotus, and the BBC. He was Client Director and Head of Digital at a number of brand and digital agencies before moving to set up an independent practice.
Steve holds a Master’s in Coaching and Mentoring, and combines brand and marketing expertise with a passion for helping leaders unlock potential and achieve sustainable growth. Steve is a co-founder of Comentco and a Fellow of the ABM and has been a mentor on the UK Government Help to Grow Management Course since 2022.
Andy HICKMAN
Co-founder and Senior Partner
Andy Hickman is a highly experienced business leader, mentor, and consultant whose career began in product design at Xerox before moving into IT solutions with IBM, and later into senior leadership, managing global teams and multi-million-pound budgets across many industries. A trusted adviser to business owners and boards, he has delivered numerous large-scale digital and business transformations. Since 2014, Andy has supported hundreds of SMEs, drawing on his own ventures. He holds an MBA, an ILM Level 7 in Executive Coaching and Mentoring, and is a Fellow of the ABM.
How we work
1. Chemistry
Every engagement begins with a free Chemistry Session. This allows us to understand your situation, explore priorities, and establish whether we can build an effective working partnership.
2. Discovery
We clarify objectives, examine your current reality, and identify where focused thinking support will create the most value.
3. Engagement Model
Based on discovery, we select the most appropriate approach:
• Bespoke or ad hoc support
• Structured engagements
• Partnership or framework relationships
4. Scope
We define clear priorities, areas of focus, and practical outcomes to ensure the work is proportionate and relevant.
5. Programme and Support
We collaborate as experienced thinking partners, providing perspective, challenge, and practical guidance while drawing on specialist expertise where beneficial.
Podcast
'Mentoring that moves stuck leaders forward' is a podcast episode with host Dave Sharpe and co-founder of Comentco Partner's, Steve Paul, a business mentor and strategic adviser with more than 30 years’ experience across leadership, brand, marketing, and digital transformation. In this episode, Steve explores what mentoring looks like when it genuinely works: creating space for leaders to think, reducing noise and emotional heat, and helping businesses rebuild momentum when progress is stalled. Drawing on real mentoring scenarios, the conversation looks at how mentors navigate conflict, culture change, and different personality styles within leadership teams.
Book a Chemistry Call
We’d love to get to know you and your business. Book a free chemistry call to find out about our blend of consulting, mentoring, and coaching - our approach could help you unlock new opportunities for growth.