Notes

Wallace Associates: Executive Coaching

In today's fast-paced and ever-changing world, organizations must strive harder than ever to maintain a competitive advantage. They need leaders at all levels who can navigate change confidently, develop and execute strategy, build effective teams, and optimize their key strengths. Progressive organizations are providing their leaders with coaching to help them lead and succeed.

An executive coach is an individual who operates within a formally defined coaching agreement to assist an individual within an organization, or an organization, achieve increased performance by utilizing appropriate executive coaching methods. They can be thought of as a "thought partner, a trusted advisor". Executive coaching may assist key executives and managers to identify and optimize the use of key strengths, develop effective communication, assure organizational alignment, address performance issues, and build the competencies of emotional intelligence. Effective coaching is not in isolation, but within the organization, with cooperation from the person being coached, the manager, peers, and direct reports.

As executive coaching practitioners, we have direct experience demonstrating that this process has a lasting impact on the individuals who participate in it, on the organizations of which are a part, on the organization's financial bottom line. We understand the important link between business results and the coachee's actions and behaviors. Coaching is a strong investment that organizations make to drive business results.

At Wallace Associates, we specialize in three areas of executive coaching: Developmental, Performance, and Emerging Leader Coaching.

DEVELOPMENTAL COACHING

Individuals who are currently in leadership roles, or may have changed roles, but need to enhance their leadership effectiveness or develop competencies that will facilitate a promotion or new career opportunities. The coaching focus is on examining success factors, meeting current challenges, enhancing interpersonal skills and possibly change specific behaviors. We work on building and sustaining alignment with the organization's strategy, values, and mission.

PERFORMANCE COACHING

Individuals who may or may not be succeeding in their current role, and desire a coach to assist them accelerate or improve their performance. Coaching can help on fine-tuning skills and actions, clarifying goals (both the individual's and the organization's), and developing action steps to achieve short-term goals and improved performance. The coaching focus helps people improve in the current context of their career or personal life.

EMERGING LEADER COACHING

Individuals who are considered high-potential, new to leadership role, or being groomed for a higher profile position. These individuals are high performers with great potential for future leadership roles. The concentration is on self-understanding, organizational and personal insight, skill building, navigation of political issues, and enhancement of leadership skills.

THE ASSESSMENT

We believe in the value of assessments as an important tool in the coaching process. Assessments can help the individual being coached by increased self-awareness, uncover potential blind sports, understand themselves in relation to others, and develop increased perspective. The skilled use of assessments is clearly a way to bring an empirically validated, value-enhancing tool to the coaching arena. Some of the assessments instruments we use include:

• MBTI
• FIRO-B
• CPI-260
• Multi-Rater Assessments (360 Feedback, Leadership Practices Inventory)