Services
Leadership | Communication | Career Transitions

• Leadership Coaching
• Meeting Facilitation
• Communication -
  1. Individual Coaching
  2. Team Workshops
• Career and Life Transitions

Leadership Coaching
Being a great leader is no easy task. I work with senior executives and high-potential leaders to help them ascend to the next level of effectiveness. Engagements are typically six months in length. Often, the first phase of the engagement includes conversations with my client’s colleagues to hear their perspectives on the leader’s strengths and development areas. Each client leader receives this feedback and then explores what he or she would like to set as compelling goals for our work together. Sometimes, the client has already received feedback of this nature, and we move directly to exploring a compelling picture of their desired future. We discuss which actions will support the achievement of that future and set targets for measuring progress along the way. During our time together, we will discuss what’s working and what’s not, as the client leader tries on new perspectives and behaviors in support of his or her goals. Near the end of our time together, we will look back at progress made and discuss strategies for maintaining the momentum created during coaching.

Although each leader is unique, there are common themes that have arisen in my work with executives:

• Focusing time and energy on the vital few priorities that best address the needs of the business
• Engaging in courageous conversations needed for high performance and a highly functioning team
• Increasing one’s versatility – how best to respond in each leadership situation
• Enhancing one’s effectiveness as coach and people developer - creating the environment for others to perform at their best
• Developing and articulating one’s compelling vision of the future, and helping people “connect the dots” to how they can best support that future

If you know that you are not realizing your full potential as a leader, contact me and let’s talk about what’s getting in your way.

Meeting Facilitation
Preparing for and facilitating team meetings on your own can be very difficult. I work with client leaders to identify the desired outcomes for their meeting and the best agenda to achieve those outcomes. During the meeting, I act as facilitator of the group’s process which frees up the team leader to fully participate.

If you have an upcoming meeting in which you’d like some help, please contact me.

Communication
Your ability to communicate affects your success in business, and in life. It is through communication that we influence others, make connections, and build relationships. It is through communication that we find common ground and create shared agendas. It is also one of the fundamental ways in which we learn from others.

I provide individual communication coaching and consulting, as well as team workshops, to leaders who are seeking to improve their ability to convey their ideas in a compelling way, build stronger connections with their various audiences, increase trust and confidence, and inspire higher levels of engagement from others.

1. Individual Coaching
   Sometimes this work centers around a particular communication event. Sometimes, it spans a six-month period in which we use real-life communication at meetings and events as the practice opportunities to hone the leader’s skills. Either way, the engagement includes a combination of assessment, instruction, practice with coaching, videotaping and video review with feedback.
   
   A sample of areas where I’ve worked with clients include:
   • Assessing the leader’s baseline communication style and effectiveness
   • Developing compelling, listener-focused messages
   • Building the leader’s skills to deliver
   • Engaging in strategic conversations
   • Leveraging the client’s natural style
   • Using stories, metaphors and visuals to heighten impact
   • Discovering the communication role that best fits the situation
   
2. Team Workshops
   Some teams have identified “communication” or “increasing influence” as an area in which to improve. I provide workshops to groups of up to 10 people. Given that extensive research has shown the value of “spaced learning”, I recommend that we meet initially for two half-day sessions, spaced approximately one week apart to lay the foundation skills for success. Then, one month later, a follow-on half-day provides the opportunity for participants to report out on what’s worked, remaining challenge areas and objectives for future focus. During these three sessions, we focus on many of the topics listed above. The specifics of the agenda are determined based on each group’s needs and desired outcomes.

Career and Life Transition Coaching
Feeling stuck in a job or relationship that drains you? Knowing you need to make a change and feeling lost about where to start? These are two of the most common situations that clients find themselves in prior to coaching.

I work with clients for three to six months to support them as they navigate through career and life transitions. First, we focus on getting clear on what the client knows to be true. At the same time, we identify the fears that are making it hard to connect to one’s inner wisdom. We explore various scenarios together and develop a personal vision statement that paints a powerful picture of the future they desire. Next, we identify possible pathways to create that future and begin the journey to explore those possibilities.

If you know you’re not living your best life, contact me to discuss how coaching can support you.

 

Elmhirst & Associates - Coaching and Consulting | www.karenelmhirst.com