They have absolute clarity on where the business is heading even if unsure how and by when they will get there. They truly believe in the vision.

2. Big picture thinkers

They focus on what’s critical and allow others to manage the detail by clearly understanding the key drivers and associated success indicators. They do not micromanage.

3. Invest in their people

They see that a primary role for them is to ensure that people are performing at an optimum level. Talent management, from recruitment to retirement, is one of their top priorities.

4. Sufficient general business knowledge

They know enough about all disciplines to execute upon the vision even though their expertise maybe in sales, operations, finance or some other discipline.

5. Possess a quiet determination

They work through adversity and understand that this is a journey, not a destination. They expect challenges along the way and work through them with great resolve.

6. Demonstrate emotionally intelligent behavior

They understand that working with people is emotional and involves doing the appropriate thing, at the appropriate time, with the appropriate people.

7. Have personal humility

They possess an uncanny ability to downplay their own contribution and are more driven by supporting other people’s growth and success. They genuinely care about others and less about their own ego.

8. Self driven towards success

They are on their own with few peers and many reports. It can be lonely but they have learned to adapt well to this environment through a personal inner drive to succeed. They are determined and self motivated.

9. Look after their personal health

In order to perform at their best, they see their physical well-being as key to their being sharp and alert. They exercise regularly.

10. Have a stable personal life

They ensure time for family because one cannot detach personal and professional life; consequently family provides a reciprocal understanding for their work commitments. They make time for both.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

• The Market – Coaching as a profession still remains at an evolutionary stage in its development and understanding. The market is characterized by multiple individuals creating their own coaching practice with a minimal amount of collaboration. This is meeting the needs of the individual coaches but is preventing the profession from creating the scale and recognition necessary to make coaching more mainstream. Executive Coaching remains widely accepted and valued, while Life Coaching needs further refinement and definition. Life Coaches need to be clear in terms of niche definition to better help the public understand the type of service provided.

• Credibility – Barriers to entry remain relatively low with those serious about this new undertaking as a coach at least investing in being formally trained and certified. Coaches may not be as classroom prepared as therapists or counselors but are receiving much more practical hands on training. This in turn becomes the vehicle through which they can draw on their own knowledge, experience and passion to serve clients effectively. The International Coach Federation continues to gain traction in terms of recognition as the leading professional body of coaches. This alignment with ICF, whether through membership, participation in an ICF accredited coach training program or ICF certification itself, are all important stepping stones to advancing the profession and the individual coach in a credible manner.

• Corporate – More organizations are embracing the coaching concepts and looking to use the coaching model and tools as a much more effective way of managing / leading their people. In addition progressive companies are looking to develop internal coaching capabilities in order to make what might be viewed as “expensive external executive coaching” more accessible to mid level management and high potential individuals. The primary participants are the HR function but management level positions, in all disciplines, are also embracing coaching to help develop more effective communication and interpersonal skills.

The services provided through the skillful execution of the coaching process undoubtedly provide a value on many levels. The key to the accelerated growth of the Coaching Profession is the articulation of this value and the relentless pursuit of helping clients reach their full potential.

Post By: Bill Sex – CEO New England Coaching and Past President ICFNE

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

What might be of interest to many large organizations is the commentary on the benefits of External versus Internal Coaching. Though they both share the common goal of developing leadership competencies, the following “pros” and “pros” emerged.

External Coaches

• Credibility – many are former C suite individuals and can relate at a higher level

• Formal Training – this is their chosen profession and therefore more in touch with best practices

• Objectivity – not attached in any way to the outcome and therefore no conflicts of interest

• Confidentiality – clients feel much safer sharing with somebody from outside the organization

Internal Coaches

• Affordability – not withstanding the expense of training, costs of providing coaching are much lower

• Accessibility – many more people can reap the benefits of coaching

• Familiarity – greater knowledge of corporate culture

• Consistency – can control the coaching process more readily throughout the organization

Truthfully, there is a place for both types of coaches in large organizations. External coaching will typically be the domain of senior executives where the overall impact of change can be significant. On the other hand, internal coaching makes this form of development much more accessible and certainly viable for mid level management and high potential candidates.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

Here are a few tips to consider ensuring this happens.

• Start with the end in mind. In other words get absolute clarity from the executive in terms of what success would look like for them. Write it down and reference it often throughout the process.
• Speak with his / her boss. Typically the boss has either suggested or acknowledged the need to hire a coach in the first place; understanding their role in the process (i.e supportive) and their perspective of what success looks like to them, is very important for you as the coach to know.
• If there is an HR person involved in the process, get their perspective as well. They very often have knowledge that may not be all that forthcoming from the client or their boss.
• Even though you maybe planning some assessments ask for any that they may have done recently. This may well be their current frame of reference and therefore would be important for you to get on this same page.
• Finally, remember that both the individual and the organization are your clients and be sure to have clearly defined what is confidential and what can be shared.

With all of these activities addressed in advance, you will be well on the way to ensuring a very successful coaching engagement.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

According to Marshall Goldsmith and together with some work done at GE Capital, they found that Internal Coaches could work with senior executives if they met the following criteria:

Confidentiality (Trust)

The executive needs to be able to trust the coach whole heartedly that the contents of their discussions will remain between them. Any doubts in this regard and it will be a total waste of time and money; and a backward step for all involved.

Credibility (Experience)

The executive must believe that the coach has sufficient knowledge and experience to me able to relate to the issues and challenges brought forth. Not unlike the selection process for an external coach, the coach must be able to demonstrate this.

Training (Capability)

To coach people at the senior level requires business knowledge but also proficiency with the skills and tools of coaching. Often it is assumed just because you have read the books or you are a go to person that you can be a good coach. These are certainly key ingredients but to coach at the senior level requires that people have the competencies of a fully trained coach.

Time (Resources)

Coaching internally cannot be regarded merely as an adjunct to what is normally done. It needs to be an inclusive part of the individual’s job description and therefore the time (and supporting resources) made available to execute upon effectively. Internal coaches to senior staff must see this as one of their primary responsibilities.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

Within the realm of Executive Coaching, Emotional Intelligence has emerged as a key tool when working with the C-Suite. It is widely held that senior leaders are not lacking in technical capacity; this usually is what got them to that level in the first place. However what separates the real leaders is their ability to also work effectively with all the various stakeholders whether customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and indeed the community. They have the ability to connect; they are emotionally intelligent.

What are the specific characteristics of people who can do this?

• Self Awareness – can see in themselves what others see
• Confident Communicators – say the right thing at the right time to the right people
• Awareness of Others – foster believability rather than like-ability
• Decision Making – work with the feelings as well as the facts
• Self Managed – rebound quickly from setbacks
• Management of Others – can hold the space in a positive way
• Self Control – possess the ability to respond rather than react

Think about the current CEO of BP Petroleum, Tony Hayward. He is obviously a very smart individual and nobody can question the magnitude of challenge he faces. He is probably among the world’s least popular people if there was such a list. This is despite the fact that BP has admitted full responsibility and will to pay for the damage caused. Of course the responsibility and liability are technically sound business decisions and you would think that citizens and lawmakers would be happy with that. That is clearly not the case and so one wonders to what degree his lack of Emotional Intelligence has become his nemesis.

Let us know what you think!

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

One well recognized Coaching Organization, Coachville provides some great resources in terms of the benefits of Group Coaching both in terms of the dynamic and financial benefits. They say that:

• It enhances your business model in two strong ways
  • It can work as a low cost entry point into your practice AND
  • It can work as a powerful maintenance program for clients before or after they complete 1-1 coaching engagement with you.

• You create a powerful group environment
  • Each member feels like they are part of a highly connected and supportive team – which builds confidence and community.

• Group Coaching is often the perfect entry into organization coaching
  • High-impact and low-cost per person coaching is highly valued by organizations especially as a follow on to skills training programs.

One of the keys for Group Coaching to work effectively is to have a very clearly defined process to follow. You may not be able to do much of the inner work that traditional one on one coaching allows but you certainly can do some generic work around clarity, priorities, goal setting and action planning, to name a few. The results from this are that clients:

• Make positive changes in their lives
• Gain a better understanding of coaching,
• Appreciate the value of the coach
• Tell other people

So perhaps a key to getting Coaching more widely accepted and embraced is to recognize that working in groups is a very effective model and to be a great coach you also need to be a great teacher.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

More recently organizations have moved to develop their Human Resources specialist and generalists to becoming Internal Coaches. Although these individuals may not have the confidence and competence levels mentioned previously, they do understand the business and the human challenges that their organization are faced with. With the appropriate Coaching Training, these individuals are now making coaching accessible to many more people but are also using coaching methodologies as their normal modus operandi – with great results. Consequently the perception of HR is changing; they are now seen as much more strategic, rather than the traditional “problem fixers”.

If you are interested in learning more, check out New England Coaching’s Corporate Coaching Certification.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

In very practical terms Executive Coaching creates a powerful relationship and therefore a context to truly understand what is important and consequently make the right decisions. It operates on a process level to help individuals understand where there are, and where they want to go.

For the individual business leader, Executive Coaching also requires an integrated approach because people have a whole life. They take their work frustrations home with them where it spills into their relationships, health and family. Conversely, when there are challenges at home these also appear at the door of the office.

Coaching, in general, is unique yet there is an indirect association with therapy, mentoring and consulting that is not often fully understood. The following illustration assists somewhat with this understanding:

An Executive Coach understands that principles and people make up a business. They have the ability to ask the incisive questions that allow people to “figure it out for themselves”. Their listening skills are honed to be there 100% present for the client. They share experiences but they don’t tell the client what to do. They help with prioritization, goal setting and accountability, staying with the client right until the end. They are there to applaud the successes and help pick up the pieces when things do not work out as planned. They are very often the “Silent Partner”.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.

Worcester, MA, October 7, 2008 – “It takes a community,” is a phrase often said by FLIC founder, Deborah Penta. The Female Leadership Interest Council (FLIC), announced today that New England Coaching will be the sponsor for FLIC’s upcoming program, “An Evening with Liz Walker,” featuring one of the most respected faces in New England Broadcast media, Liz Walker. The event will be hosted at the Hanover Theater on Thursday, Oct. 30 and will feature a conversation with Walker followed by a showing of her documentary, “A Glory from the God,” then a dialogue with both Walker and Maya Balle, Walker’s co-producer and co-founder of Liz Walker Productions.

“We are sponsoring this event primarily to support FLIC on their very worthy mission to help women become more effective leaders. We also wish to increase the profile of New England Coaching,” said Bill Sex, founder and president of New England Coaching. “In addition, we also want to acknowledge the inspiring work of Liz Walker, as well as Maya Balle whom I have known for many years through our Board involvement with the International Coach Federation.”

New England Coaching offers a myriad of innovative and cutting-edge programs such as Coach Certification, Life Potentials Training, Emotional Intelligence Certification, Emotional Intelligence Training, Leadership Development, Sales Effectiveness and Executive Coaching. These help its clients develop and refine the necessary people skills to ensure optimum performance.

“Our entire board is very grateful to New England Coaching for stepping up to the plate and sponsoring this extraordinary event with Liz Walker,” said Deborah Penta, founder of FLIC. “Bill has taken an interest in FLIC since its inception and has been working with our organization to develop an exclusive world-class Executive Leadership Program for women. We are looking forward to launching this program in January and we are thrilled that New England Coaching will be introducing itself to FLIC members and the community at our October event featuring Liz.”

According to Sex, New England Coaching will be working more closely with FLIC in the coming months.

“New England Coaching and FLIC have been creating an exclusive Leadership Program scheduled to launch in early 2009. This is a very exciting project for us and it will focus on optimizing the many innate leadership talents women already possess, together with new skills, and techniques to achieve personal and professional success,” Sex said.

“FLIC is very confident that this new leadership program, will be highly valuable to participants. It was developed with the highest standards of excellence and delivery; and, we believe it will yield great results for those who participate and have the desire to get their executive leadership skills to the next level,” said Penta.

“FLIC, in focusing primarily on the role of women in leadership, has their finger on the pulse for where we are heading. Organizations are undergoing major changes in terms of their people, values and business drivers,” Sex said. “To this end, I believe that women can and will play a much more significant role in the future where authentic leadership will be the order of the day. In partnering with FLIC, New England Coaching has the opportunity to provide the developmental component that will allow women to aspire toward many more leadership roles.”

“I have always believed that in leadership, one must be true to themselves, possess strong personal values and let those values guide them in their professional lives. The leadership program that we are developing with Bill and his team has taken into consideration a holistic view of the whole person and the successful ingredients to be a stronger professional leader,” said Penta “This is one of the reasons that we believe it will be so successful.”

FLIC is a non-profit organization founded on the principles of female leadership, mentoring and the belief that when you can help someone else succeed, you personally grow and prosper. The Council’s mission is to provide educational instruction to women to assist in developing their capabilities in the business world, which will increase the likelihood that their successes will benefit the community.

For more information about FLIC, visit www.femaleleaders.org.

©2012 New England Coaching. All Rights Reserved.