About us - Paul Clifford Psychology

About

Paul Clifford

Career Journey:

I started my career in recruitment shortly after I became a registered psychologist. It took me six months of grind and struggle before I found my first real job – Recruitment Consultant at what was then called National Mutual (now AXA). My boss told me he thought I was going to jump the desk such was my keenness to be given a go. I applied myself to recruitment in search of mastery of process.

After 10 years my next challenge beckoned. That was when reality bit hard. Moving to HR Consulting required a different skill set, a different mindset. I was determined to get there. Boy was it hard, and slow. Every few years my mind would shift a gear, closer to understanding the world of ambiguity, nuance and subtlety. Motivation was always ahead of capability but persistence is my middle name. I became endorsed as an organizational psychologist and started, for the first time, to really feel like a true psychologist.

Over the last 10 years I have grown enormously. I have had experience working on a large number of projects across many different industries. Importantly I have developed a great depth of knowledge and skill in understanding why people struggle at work and designing and implementing solutions that create significant positive shifts in thought, feelings and behaviour.

Now in my own business I have the opportunity to make a greater impact than ever before. I am clear on my value proposition and I am ready to help you take your business to new heights.

Philosophy:

As a psychologist I’ve always been fascinated by how people think, feel and act at work – what drives them, what holds them back, and what enables them to excel. Our personalities follow us from home to work and back again and guide a lot of our behaviour. My belief is that things start at awareness. We must first seek to understand before we can get the best out of ourselves and others. What we hear and see from people can be just the tip of the iceberg. We need to go underneath the surface. This information is critical and priceless.

I have seen people make dramatic transformations when they have faced their fears and committed themselves to make change. Most people struggle working things through on their own. Things go around and around in their heads and its usually when they find the right person to talk to that they achieve their aha moments. I love the aha moments. I will give you your aha moments.

People join organisations because they have a fundamental desire to connect and belong. However, the formula for working well together often feels out of reach. High performance requires deliberate practice – a process of identifying and practicing specific behaviours that evidence has shown produces the desired result.

I believe that a mentally healthy workplace is the backbone of a thriving, high performing organisation and that managers are often the catalysts for achieving this goal. If we educate and upskill managers they can inspire and lead employees toward the kind of behaviour that can dramatically elevate organisational performance.

Primary Areas Of Expertise:

Key Skills:

Qualifications:

Bachelor of Arts (Major in Psychology)
Honours in Psychology
Registered Psychologist (1998)
Endorsed Organisational Psychologist
Member of the Australian Psychological Society
Member of the APS College of Organisational Psychologists

Partnerships

Amrop Carmichael Fisher is a global leadership advisory and executive search firm, helping agile organisations find and develop leaders for What’s Next. With a footprint across major markets worldwide, we operate through a collaborative network deeply connected to local markets and a global ecosystem of talent.

For over a decade, we have partnered with Paul Clifford Psychology to embed advanced psychometric assessments into our search process. Tools such as Facet5 profiling and cognitive ability assessments sharpen candidate evaluation, providing a clear view of personality, problem solving ability and thinking style. The team’s insights help us identify, select and support leaders who meet today’s demands and deliver sustained performance.

This partnership reflects our shared commitment to excellence, agility and forward-looking leadership. Together, we help organisations secure high impact talent ready to shape sustainable success for the future.