Financial services expertise, built into everything we do.
Our directors and facilitators bring decades of experience in financial services and learning and development.
It's why our programmes feel different, because they're designed and delivered by people who understand your world.
Recognised for our work
ABSTRACT has been recognised across learning and development, inclusive leadership and business performance.
Why we exist
David Nikolich founded ABSTRACT in 2007 after a career in financial services, where he became increasingly frustrated witnessing day-to-day common-sense behaviours failing to become common practice across the front lines of the businesses he worked for and with. Most L&D providers offered off-the-shelf products based on little more than the transfer of information. He knew there was a better way.
Drawing on his background in business and psychology, David built a methodology grounded in how people actually change; brilliant content combined with the artistry of facilitation, layering key messages through carefully constructed activities designed to shift thinking long after the programme ends.
Before any conversation about solutions, we start with a forensic analysis of the business through our LNA to identify the real problem before we design anything. Only then can we be confident the work will deliver lasting behavioural change.
When we're asked why we do what we do, the answer is always the same: our purpose is to change people's lives. We hear it reflected back to us regularly in feedback from delegates and clients about the moments in our programmes that changed things for them, for good.
Our team
Every person who works with ABSTRACT brings deep, current experience from inside financial services.
That first-hand expertise is what makes our programmes feel different.
Combined with a programme design approach rooted in behavioural psychology, it means we understand both the commercial environment our clients operate in and how to create lasting change within it.
Our values
Our mission is to improve business performance through people.
Everything we do is built around four values:
Creative intelligence.
Highly motivated and driven.
Unwavering commitment, persistence and resilience.
Fanatical discipline and loyalty.
Our facilitators
Every ABSTRACT facilitator has worked at a senior level inside financial services before they ever stepped into a training room.
They understand the pressures, the culture and the commercial realities of the sector from the inside.
Which is why our programmes feel different from generic L&D.
The ABSTRACT Standard
Every facilitator in our network is selected, trained and developed by us. Our accreditation process goes beyond a one-off sign-off.
It's an ongoing pathway of training, research and development that ensures every person delivering an ABSTRACT programme is operating at the level our clients expect.
We invest in our facilitators the same way we ask our clients to invest in their people.
Facilitating with ABSTRACT is a genuine joy.
I get space to bring my best: humour that breaks down barriers, expertise that builds confidence, and actionable insight that teams can put to work immediately.
Every session feels like a meaningful partnership, and I leave each one inspired by the energy and ambition of our delegates.
Debbie Phillips
Working as an associate with ABSTRACT has allowed me to collaborate with people who know their craft, develop their materials to precisely meet client needs, and demonstrate adaptability in times of change.
Associates are empowered to be themselves, and trusted to ensure that all learning is delivered in a positive and impactful manner which is then transferred to the workplace to make a real difference.
Louise Nicolaou
