Germinate Collective (WillCoach Pty Ltd)

Last Updated: November 2025

1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how WillCoach Pty Ltd, trading as Germinate Collective (“we”, “us”, “our”), collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal information when you access:

  • our website (www.willcoach.co.za)

  • our Thinkific school (willcoach-learning.thinkific.com)

  • the Germinate Ecosystem

  • our coaching services

  • our online courses, programs, and memberships

  • our digital products

  • our communities, workshops, tools, and resources

  • any related platforms used to deliver services

We are committed to complying with:

  • The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA)

  • The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

  • South African electronic commerce guidelines (ECTA)

  • Professional coaching ethical standards (ICF, EMCC)

By using any of our services, you consent to the processing of your personal information as described in this policy.

2. Who We Are

Legal Entity:
WillCoach Pty Ltd
Trading Name: Germinate Collective
Digital Environment: Germinate Ecosystem (extended learning + community space)

All references to “we” or “our” refer to WillCoach Pty Ltd trading as Germinate Collective.

We offer coaching, leadership development, courses, digital tools, and online learning experiences for individuals, leaders, teams, and organisations.

3. What Information We Collect

We collect personal information in the following categories:

3.1 Voluntary Information You Provide

  • Name and surname

  • Email address

  • Phone number (optional)

  • Organisation and job role

  • Coaching goals or responses (voluntary)

  • Course participation and progress

  • Program assignments or reflections

  • Payment-related metadata (not card data)

  • Consent selections (research, email marketing, coaching agreements)

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

Via our platforms and analytics tools:

  • IP address

  • Browser type

  • Device information

  • Location (approximate)

  • Session duration

  • Pages visited

  • Course access logs

  • Downloads and completion data

  • Thinkific mobile app usage

3.3 Information Collected Through Third-Party Tools

  • Calendly booking data

  • Email engagement via HubSpot

  • Zoom/Google Meet usage (sessions not recorded unless agreed)

  • Ecosystem community interactions

  • Form submissions via WordPress, Thinkific, or HubSpot

  • Coaching notes voluntarily provided (never stored without consent)

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

4.1 Service Delivery

  • Providing access to courses and digital products

  • Delivering coaching services

  • Facilitating group programs and workshops

  • Granting access to the Germinate Ecosystem

4.2 Communication

  • Course access emails

  • Coaching reminders

  • Support responses

  • Program notifications

  • Administrative updates

  • Optional email communication (if subscribed)

4.3 Personalisation & Improvement

  • Improving our courses, content, and coaching offerings

  • Analysing learning progress

  • Understanding user behaviour trends

  • Tailoring your learning pathway

4.4 Legal, Security & Compliance

  • Fraud prevention

  • Payment verification

  • Compliance with POPIA/GDPR

  • Incident response

4.5 Research (With Explicit Consent Only)

For organisational or developmental coaching journeys, clients may be asked:

“Do you consent to your commitment form or reflections being used anonymously for research and development purposes?”

If you opt in:

  • Data is anonymised

  • Themes may be aggregated

  • No identities or organisations are disclosed

  • You may withdraw consent at any time

If you do not consent:

  • Data is not stored beyond required service delivery

  • Data is deleted after the coaching journey is complete

Consent is always optional and never affects access to services.

5. Where We Store Your Data

We only store personal information through secure, reputable third-party processors:

5.1 Thinkific

  • Course access

  • Training history

  • Learning analytics

5.2 HubSpot CRM

  • Communications

  • Email list (optional opt-in)

  • Contact records

5.3 Airtable

  • Operational data

  • Coaching journey logistics

  • Ecosystem activity logs (non-sensitive)

5.4 Make.com (Integromat)

  • Automation between platforms

  • No sensitive or payment data stored

5.5 Calendly

  • Booking information

  • Scheduling preferences

5.6 Zoom

  • Coaching sessions

  • Group or Team calls

  • Meeting logistics

5.7 WordPress (Website)

  • Contact form submissions

  • Cookies & analytics

5.8 Payment Gateway: PayGate / Network International

Card details are NOT stored by WillCoach or Germinate Collective.
PayGate is a PCI-DSS Level 1 certified processor.

5.9 Memberstack & Webflow

  • Membership login credentials and gated access to journeys, purchased tools and access to content

6. Confidentiality & Coaching Data

We adhere to strict coaching confidentiality standards.
This means:

  • Coaching notes are not stored without consent

  • Session data is never shared with third parties

  • Supervisors receive only anonymised material

  • Sponsors in organisational contexts receive only agreed-upon summaries

  • No session recordings are made unless explicitly agreed

AI & Confidentiality

We explicitly disable:

  • Zoom AI Companion

  • Automated transcription

  • Automated meeting analysis

  • AI-assisted summarisation

  • Machine learning model training

Clients may request alternative platforms if required.

7. Cookies & Tracking

Our website may use cookies to:

  • improve your user experience

  • analyse website performance

  • store preferences

You may disable cookies via your browser settings.

8. How Long We Keep Your Data

Retention is based on:

8.1 Service Delivery

Your data is kept for as long as required to deliver the service you purchased.

8.2 Research Consent

If you consent to anonymous research participation, anonymised data may be retained indefinitely.

If no consent is given, data is deleted after the coaching journey concludes.

8.3 Legal Obligations

Basic financial records must be retained for compliance (typically 5 years).

8.4 Course Access

Thinkific stores course progress for the duration of your access period.

9. Sharing Your Information

We do not sell your data.
We do not share your personal information with third parties for advertising.

We only share data with:

  • Thinkific (for course access)

  • HubSpot (for communication)

  • PayGate (for secure payments)

  • Zoom/Meet (for video calls)

  • Airtable (for operational usage)

  • Memberstack (for membership area login and secure access)
  • Webflow (for the hosting of the Germinate collective Ecosystem)

  • Service providers necessary to deliver your services

All providers operate under strict confidentiality and data protection agreements.

We never disclose coaching information to employers or sponsors without explicit written agreement.

10. Your Rights

Under POPIA and GDPR, you may:

  • access your personal information

  • request correction

  • request deletion (“right to be forgotten”)

  • withdraw consent

  • unsubscribe from communications

  • object to data processing

  • request a copy of the data we hold about you

To exercise your rights, email us at:
📧 willem@willcoach.co.za

11. Security Measures

We take security seriously and use:

  • encrypted transmission (HTTPS/TLS)

  • encrypted storage (HubSpot, Airtable, Thinkific, Memberstack)

  • access controls and role permissions

  • password-protected systems

  • anti-fraud monitoring

  • 2FA where supported

  • secure backups

We respond to data breaches according to POPIA requirements.

12. Third-Party Links

Our website and courses may contain links to third-party websites.
We are not responsible for the content, policies, or security of these sites.

13. Children’s Privacy

Our services are intended for individuals aged 18+.
We do not knowingly collect or process data for minors without parental or organisational consent.

14. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this policy periodically.
If significant changes occur, we will notify you through email or system notification.

Continued use of our services constitutes acceptance of updated terms.

15. Contact Information

For privacy enquiries, data requests, or concerns:

 willem@willcoach.co.za
 www.willcoach.co.za

(We do not publish phone numbers or physical addresses publicly for security reasons.
These are available to banks and regulators upon request.)