Executive coaching and leadership, without the jargon.
Plain-English guides for senior leaders and the people teams who support them: how executive coaching works, what the research says, leadership development and leading organizations. Every guide links to its sources.
Articles
18 articles
Executive Coaching Explained: What It Is and What It Isn't
A plain-English definition of executive coaching for senior leaders and HR teams, what it usually works on, and how it differs from therapy, consulting and mentoring.
Read · 6 min read →Executive Coaching ExplainedHow Executive Coaching Engagements Work: Contracts and Confidentiality
How executive coaching engagements are set up: the coaching agreement, the three-way relationship with the sponsor, confidentiality limits and conflicts of interest.
Read · 6 min read →Executive Coaching ExplainedExecutive Coaching Research: What Meta-Analyses Show and Don't
What peer-reviewed meta-analyses and reviews report about the effectiveness of executive and workplace coaching, and the limits their own authors acknowledge.
Read · 6 min read →Executive Coaching ExplainedHiring an Executive Coach: Credentials, Chemistry and Red Flags
How leaders and HR teams can choose an executive coach by writing a brief, checking ICF and EMCC credentials, running chemistry meetings and spotting red flags.
Read · 5 min read →Executive Coaching ExplainedExecutive Coaching vs. Mentoring, Consulting and Therapy
How executive coaching differs from mentoring, consulting and therapy, with a simple way to match a leader's problem to the right kind of help.
Read · 6 min read →Executive Coaching ExplainedEvaluating an Executive Coaching Program: Metrics, ROI and Limits
A practical way to evaluate executive coaching with layered frameworks, multiple data sources and honest reporting, without overclaiming ROI or breaking confidentiality.
Read · 6 min read →Leadership Development360-Degree Feedback: How It Works and How to Use It Well
How 360-degree feedback works, what research says about whether it changes behavior, and the design and follow-up choices that make it worth doing.
Read · 6 min read →Leadership DevelopmentEmotional Intelligence in Leadership: What the Evidence Supports
What research supports about emotional intelligence in leadership, where popular claims outrun the evidence, and how to build the skills that matter.
Read · 5 min read →Leadership DevelopmentExecutive Presence: A Practical Guide Without the Myths
A demystified guide to executive presence: a documented definition, the communication skills research supports, popular myths to drop, and a plan to build it.
Read · 5 min read →Leadership DevelopmentDelegation for Senior Leaders: What to Hand Off and What to Keep
How senior leaders can delegate decision authority, not just tasks: what to keep, what to hand off, and how to pass along intent so others decide well.
Read · 5 min read →Leadership DevelopmentMaking Decisions Under Pressure: What Decision Science Shows
What decision science says about how stress and time pressure change judgment, when to trust your gut, and how to build processes that hold up under pressure.
Read · 6 min read →Leadership DevelopmentLeadership Styles Compared: Transformational, Servant and Situational
What peer-reviewed research says about transformational, servant and situational leadership, where the models overlap, and how to use them as tools, not labels.
Read · 5 min read →Leading OrganizationsYour First 90 Days as a New Executive: Learn, Align, Then Act
A practical plan for a new executive's first quarter: what to learn, who to meet, how to assess your team and how to choose early moves that last.
Read · 6 min read →Leading OrganizationsWorking With a Board of Directors: Roles, Reporting and Trust
How executives can work well with a board: what boards are for, the duties behind directors' questions, better board materials and handling friction.
Read · 5 min read →Leading OrganizationsSuccession Planning for Leadership Roles: A Practical Guide
How to plan for leadership succession: identify critical roles, assess and develop a bench, transfer knowledge and prepare for both planned and sudden exits.
Read · 5 min read →Leading OrganizationsCommunicating Strategy So People Can Act on It
How executives can turn strategy into something people can use: align the top team, keep priorities few, explain intent and check understanding.
Read · 5 min read →Leading OrganizationsLeading an Executive Team: Alignment, Conflict and Accountability
How to turn a group of senior leaders into a real team: define its purpose, build alignment, make debate safe and productive, and share accountability.
Read · 5 min read →Leading OrganizationsExecutive Burnout: Recognizing It and Protecting Your Capacity
What burnout is under the WHO's ICD-11 definition, why executives miss the signs, and practical ways to protect your capacity and your team's.
Read · 5 min read →Glossary
55 Coaching and leadership terms explained in a sentence or three.