Services
Each engagement is unique and customized to the client’s circumstances, issues, and budget, but there are some constants. All our programs focus on catalyzing improvements in the following areas:
Personal leadership
Increasing self-awareness and self-regulation, and leveraging, but not over-using, strengths. It also entails developing clear goals and an authentic voice as a leader.
Change Leadership
Framing change in meaningful ways, exercising political savvy, and influencing perceptions and opinions through strategic business communication.
Team Leadership
Greater agility in managing up, down and laterally, increased effectiveness in building relationships and communicating with diverse audiences.
Business leadership
Developing an analytical and strategic approach to people as well as business issues, and increasing global awareness and business acumen.
WORKING WITH
A LEADERSHIP CONSULTANT OR COACH
When working with a leadership consultant or executive coach, it is vital that you understand and feel comfortable with their approach. Our approach – our world-view plus our methodology – is the unique way we interpret and teach the practices of effective leadership and create collaborative partnerships with clients. Here are some of the core constituents of our approach:
Methodology
Our methodology blends flexibility and responsiveness with a strong underlying structure. Each engagement has 5 phases:
Establish Rapport and Outcomes
We establish agreements about confidentiality, ways of working together, and definitions of successful outcomes.
Assess
We use a variety of methods to evaluate clients’ current situation. We gather 360 degree feedback by interviewing key stakeholders and may supplement these data with various assessment tools including the Leadership Circle Profile, XLead 360, Myers Briggs, EQ2i and others.
Anchor
We integrate all data to create a strategic development plan, with an “appreciative” mindset, that builds on strengths and is careful not to abandon that which is core, or already successful. The plan guides the coaching process, and links success measures to business results.
Adapt and adjust
Change occurs over time and through much iteration, so we support clients through the process, to ensure that they achieve desired results. Coaching sessions provide the opportunity to reflect, debrief and gain tips and tools, as they build competence and confidence in their development areas. Sharing progress with and seeking ongoing feedback from key stakeholders is encouraged.
Complete and Evaluate
The engagement ends by determining the extent and impact of changes that have occurred during coaching.
Principles
Every engagement is unique but the following principles underpin each one:
Fairness
We enable you take a strategic vantage point and set boundaries, to prioritize conflicting demands, align multiple stakeholders’ interests, make reasonable decisions and trade-offs, and manage your calendar, so you can take care of yourself and your team.
Relationships
We believe that productive relationships are at the heart of success in business, and offer you strategic communication and analytical tools to help you understand different points of view and build, nurture and improve business relationships. We also help you present yourself as a leader, through your presence and messaging.
Emotional Intelligence
This includes deepening self-awareness and self-regulation, as you develop your authentic voice and ease in leadership. This may be particularly challenging for people in analytical or technical disciplines, who need to strengthen empathy and listening skills, and develop more nuanced communication skills for influencing, negotiating and leading.
Discovery
Catalyzing insights and helping you to find new ways to look at and do things are the hallmark of our approach. Through data gathering, constructive feedback, self-reflection, and experimentation, our dialogue enables you to uncover patterns and identify what small changes can have greatest impact. But it is not all intense work – our sessions are never short of laughter and fun.
Implementing Insights
We know that it is not enough to spark the ideas if you want sustainable results. The human brain is capable of building new neural pathways over time, and we provide support, guidance and strategies, as you plan and put into practice your new insights and behaviors.