Leadership is personal. Who you are fundamentally impacts how you show up as a leader and what results you can produce. Working with a professional coach facilitates you to develop your leadership in an intentional way. Whether you are a Board Member or C-suite executive, high-potential or aspiring leader, we’ll help you become an exemplary leader – one known for authenticity, influence and impact!
Our coaching process begins with a thorough intake or “discovery” conversation and several assessments. Based on what we learn, a customized program will be built around your specific challenges and goals. We’ll integrate the real bottom-line results you’re responsible for at work into the outcomes.
We bring coaching “best practices” and a deep understanding of organizational and team dynamics that are present for every leader. Most of the real “work” is done by you, between sessions, through a combination of focused self-observation, meaningful exercises, and custom-designed practices to build the specific skills or competencies you’re developing. In our coaching conversations we explore what you are learning, address difficulties, and deepen your insights.
Our typical coaching engagement is 6-12 months. Here are the steps:
- Establishing the Relationship: we’ll establish an agreement outlining mutual expectations and confidentiality parameters that define our coach-client relationship. If desired, an initial 3-way meeting with you and your sponsor is scheduled (with additional check-ins as needed throughout engagement to ensure alignment with organizational goals).
2. Intake & Discovery Session: we’ll explore your career and leadership priorities, values, habits, levels of effectiveness and satisfaction in a two-hour discovery session. In preparation, we ask you to answer some questions and complete assessments to understand your experience, strengths, style and preferences.
3. Coaching Outcomes: the discovery session leads us to develop some observable and measurable written outcomes that will be our guidepost for the coaching engagement.
4. Formal Assessments: you’ll take assessments to provide additional data. Expert debriefing and development materials are provided for each assessment.
We use The Leadership Circle Profile™ (TLCP), a 360-degree leadership survey that defines observable competencies that lead to success. The Leadership Circle Profile is a true breakthrough among 360-degree assessments as it is the first to connect a well-researched battery of competencies with the underlying motivations and habits of thought. It reveals the relationship between patterns of action and the internal assumptions that drive behavior. It immediately helps a leader learn what is working, what is not, and why!
In addition, we use the EQ-in-Action Profile to measure emotional intelligence and relationship preferences.
5. Direct Observation: if possible, we’ll schedule time to observe you doing real work – in key meetings, interactions, presentations and leadership activities. Based on your goals, we’ll provide real-time feedback to capture the relevant lessons from the observation.
6. Coaching Conversations: you are responsible for establishing the agenda for each coaching session. We’ll focus on your coaching outcomes, emerging issues and resolving situational roadblocks that may appear along the way. Generally, we’ll meet twice per month for 60-90 minutes by phone or in-person. We encourage you to provide us brief email updates on your learning and progress in between sessions to keep up the momentum.
7. Homework & resources: after each coaching session, we’ll design some “homework” for you to pursue in between sessions. This might include reading, reflecting on specific questions, or practicing new skills. We incorporate somatic exercises and practice in our programs to support your development as a leader. You’ll learn how to build a strong leadership presence and manage your reactivity in the midst of daily challenges and frustrations of leadership. Based on your challenges and goals, we’ll provide tools and structure to meet your needs.
8. Coaching Evaluation: we’ll ask for feedback about your experience throughout our engagement. If you’re not getting value or moving toward your goals in the way you want, we’ll make a course correction. At the end of the initial engagement, we’ll evaluate the outcomes, celebrate successes, note challenges and opportunities, and talk about what’s next for you. We’ll also discuss whether to complete the coaching or start a new engagement.
If this coaching approach sounds appealing to you, contact us for a complimentary 30-minute session. We’ll explore your current situation and challenges, what results you’d like instead, and whether our approach could be a good fit for you. To request a complementary introductory session, please contact us.