About Us

Inspiring growth and positive change.

At Skills Cove, we’re driven by the belief that businesses grow stronger through collaboration, innovation, and strategic enablement. Our team works closely with clients across various industries, offering tailored solutions that create lasting impact. With a network of hand-picked experts, we’re able to deliver results through a blend of experience, passion, and expertise.

We work with early-stage startups, scale-ups, and large organisations to help them navigate the complexities of change, drive commercial growth, and engage their teams with purpose.

Meet the Team

A Collective of Talent, Passion, and Expertise

Behind Skills Cove is a team of skilled professionals who bring diverse expertise, fresh perspectives, and a shared passion for driving impactful change.
We thrive on collaboration, innovation, and working alongside our clients to turn ideas into action.

Founder & Principal Consultant

Vanesse Machill

Vanesse is passionate about helping people and organisations grow and navigate change in innovative, meaningful ways. With over 15 years of experience spanning sales and partner enablement, commercial growth, and education/EdTech, she builds strategic frameworks that drive impact and sustainable growth.

What sets Vanesse apart is her rare blend of experience - having worked across fast-paced startups, ambitious scale-ups, and large, complex organisations. This perspective allows her to spot opportunities, tailor strategies to context, and bring clarity in both high-growth and high-pressure environments.

Her depth of experience enables clients to unlock new opportunities, foster collaboration, and implement technology that sticks.

A natural connector, she bridges the gap between businesses, customers, and teams - helping drive engagement and long-term success.

Outside of work, you’ll find her in nature, immersed in the arts, or enjoying good food with loved ones.

Meet Vanesse

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RevOps Manager

Robyn-Lee Mc Avoy

With a strong background in B2B project implementation and client management, Robyn-Lee excels in stakeholder engagement, market analysis, and risk mitigation strategies that lead to seamless project execution. Her expertise in process optimisation, team leadership, and developing structured frameworks enhances operational efficiency and ensures measurable results.

Robyn-Lee’s proactive approach, honed in dynamic startup environments, enables her to identify growth opportunities and implement strategies that optimise revenue operations across all touchpoints.

Business Development Specialist

Marissa Makhele

Marissa is a business development specialist with over 10 years of experience in the sales environment in the tech industry. Marissa specialises in relationship building and customer success, both private and public institutions. She is a powerful force in the workplace and uses her positive attitude and tireless energy to encourage others to find their voice, work hard and succeed.

Marissa is inspired daily by her daughter. She is a true Cape Townian that enjoys reading and the scenic view of Cape Town on her free time.

Current, Past & Future Projects We’re Excited About

We take pride in the diverse range of projects we’ve undertaken, each designed to solve real business challenges. Whether we’re building bespoke sales playbooks or supporting large-scale digital transformations, our work spans across various domains. Below are examples of the types of projects we are currently leading, have delivered, and can support your business with:

Commercial Growth Enablement

Helping teams align, optimise, and scale through targeted strategies and actionable frameworks.

Building bespoke sales playbooks and customer sales training materials for growing sales teams
Enabling market expansion through integrated sales and marketing collaboration for startups
Driving cross-functional collaboration within teams to create stronger client experiences and drive more sales for any type of business

Explore the Sales Enablement Kickstarter →

Change & Innovation

Guiding organisations through change, supporting transformation, and embedding innovation in business processes.

Co-developing change management strategies for a large organisational restructure
Helping a growing company successfully roll out a new CRM system with minimal disruption
Supporting digital transformation projects by fostering cultural shifts and operational alignment

Engagement & Awareness

Driving alignment and fostering engagement through effective communication and stakeholder buy-in.

Creating internal campaigns and training resources for the launch of new internal tools or technologies
Designing and delivering awareness programs for compliance and regulatory requirements
Supporting leadership teams with comprehensive engagement strategies for new business initiatives

Our Approach: Embedded Partnerships

We collaborate with a hand-picked network of experts to deliver tailored solutions, ensuring every project benefits from diverse perspectives and specialised skills.

Want To Become a Partner? Get in Touch!