Consultant Philosophies

When someone gets into senior management, they are working in a very complex world where they have to influence others both up and down. Success in the C-Suite looks different: it requires being highly strategic and taking ownership of issues.

As a coach, I help executives gain insight into their own behaviors and contemplate new ways to respond to challenges and opportunities. We work on issues such as balancing questioning and listening with sharing experiences and opinions, building management teams, strengthening relationships with colleagues, direct reports and board members, and clarifying vision and strategy.

- Leigh Bailey
Executive Coach and Co-Principal

I work with people at multiple levels, often helping leaders who are on their way up in an organization. Coaching helps people get clear about what they want in their next leadership role. Effective learning requires practice. I establish development plans with my clients, build a structure to practice new behavior in a supportive way, and take what is learned and help translate it into action.

I try to initiate open, honest dialogue with my clients. When I see resistance, I name it, which usually opens up the conversation to address the source of resistance as well as options and opportunities.

- Martha Carlson
Executive Coach and Co-Principal

I take an individual approach to every coaching relationship.  While coaching is not therapy, it is a process of helping each person understand more deeply what is unique about them—both in terms of their talents and areas for development.   Each person is wired differently and that wiring does not fundamentally change—nor should it.  We need to focus first on what we do better than just about anyone else—those few things at which we are truly gifted—and become more aware of what gets in the way of our effectiveness.

Though we can’t change how we are wired, we CAN learn to change our behaviors. That is SO not easy, but with insight, commitment and practice, more effective behaviors can be learned. In most cases, the people I coach are able to grow in ways that give them greater confidence, stronger relationships, higher productivity and competence, and less stress.

- Barb Krantz Taylor
Executive Coach and Consultant