Services

What is Coaching?

Coaching is a process that helps individuals, teams, and organizations achieve exceptional results based on goals that you set. It supports you to:

clarify what really matters,
broaden your perspective on possible choices,
take action, and
be accountable for following through.

By doing so, coaching supports you, your team, or your organization in getting what you most want far more quickly and thoroughly than might otherwise seem possible.

Why have a coach?

There are many reasons to have a coach. Here are a few of them:

You or your organization are tired of just “getting by” and now are ready to be highly effective, productive, and fulfilled.
You face a big challenge, setback, or opportunity that is urgent.
You want to get unstuck, make some big changes, and accelerate your results.
You want to leave a legacy of having made a real difference.

The coaching process

As your coach, I am your ally who is 100% committed to your success. With one-on-one coaching, we typically begin with an initial Discovery session which lasts between 1.5 – 2 hours. At that time, you have a chance to discuss your goals for coaching, the issues you would like to explore, what motivates you, and what holds you back. We will then design how we will work together so that the coaching is most powerful for you.

With subsequent sessions each week or every other week, you decide what you would like coaching on, and then we explore the topics together for either 45 minutes or an hour. While some clients prefer that I coach them in person, others prefer the convenience of the telephone. Either way, I typically ask lots of questions, reflect back to you what I am hearing you say, provide you with frameworks, support you in seeing issues from new perspectives, help you align with what you most value, and support you in moving forward. At the end of each session, we co-design the homework that will help you make the most progress toward your goals. Throughout, you will be challenged and supported to be and do what you may not have thought was possible.

When coaching organizations and teams, I typically work with the leadership of the team(s) to design an approach which will elicit strong buy-in of all team members, and then facilitate a number of different processes to enable the team to make the changes it desires. Team coaching is highly participative, and assumes that all the voices in a system are important. My objectives when working with teams and organizations is to strengthen the effectiveness of the entire system as well as all members of that system.

To learn more, please click on the link below for the kind of coaching that interests you:

Leadership coaching
Organizational coaching
Retreats and workshops
Programs and teleclasses
Results of Mary's coaching

Leadership Coaching

While leaders typically tend to organizational and individual needs of people all day long, they often do not have the time, space, and opportunity to tend to their own leadership needs adequately. Leadership coaching offers you a rigorous and confidential means to develop yourself as a leader so that you are more effective organizationally and more fulfilled personally. As we work together, I will always be keeping one ear on what it is you most want, and keeping that as our north star as we delve into specific issues. I’ll provide you with tools and frameworks to help you gain clarity, find your own answers, and move forward. I'll then hold you accountable for doing what you said you would do between sessions so that, in the end, you have far greater impact and fulfillment.

“Mary knows how to walk the delicate balance between listening and providing a gentle prod on the one hand, and calling you to the carpet on the other, definitely an asset in the coaching business.”

-Rob, Education and Management Consultant, Maryland

Organizational Coaching

Most organizations don’t get the results they want because of a myriad of human factors. Perhaps you feel relatively clear about the people challenges in your organization. Or perhaps you don’t, but know that they are there. Either way, addressing them successfully can be an illusive challenge. Organizational and team coaching is a partnership designed to support you in meeting these organizational challenges far more effectively than you otherwise could do alone, so that you not only meet your goals, but exceed them. Whether you are looking to align your leadership group, improve the dynamics between departments, and/or boost the synergy in individual teams, organizational coaching offers you the opportunity to boost your collective effectiveness.

“I interviewed four leadership and organizational coaches and Mary stood out for her understanding of both organizational structures and interpersonal dynamics. As the Director of a major division in our Company, I am responsible for effectively managing the teams delivering our services. I, as well as our division, need to be in alignment for maximum results. Mary has been providing the support and guidance for all of us to gain maximum synergies so we can meet our goals.”

-Sarah, Director, Jonathan Rose Companies, New York

Retreats and Workshops

In addition to one-on-one, team, and organizational coaching, I also design and facilitate retreats for organizations. All retreats are custom designed to suit your needs, and typically are highly participative and interactive. Some may integrate strategic planning while others may be more strictly team building in nature. Retreats may last anywhere from a half day to several days.

I also design and facilitate workshops for organizations, conferences, and the public. In addition to workshops that are custom designed, I am also available to deliver the following:

“Being Present in Life’s Fast Lane” (4 hours)
A highly interactive workshop for the busy professional who does not have time to slow down but who wishes to be more present to their life.

“Leadership Development: Coaching as an Option” (1.5 hours)
An experiential workshop intended to help leaders explore how coaching can enhance their own leadership skills as well as the leadership skills of others in their organization.

“The Soul of Sustainable Leadership” (2.5 hours) (Co-led with Pearl Mattenson)
http://www.pearlmattenson.com/
This workshop provides some powerful leadership tools that build personal and organizational sustainability and effectiveness

Programs and Teleclasses

Coming soon. Stay tuned.

Results of Mary's Coaching

Here are a few examples of the value my coaching has brought both leaders and organizations:

With the support of both leadership and organizational coaching, a major division of a national Green development company stemmed its turnover rate from 1 person per month to zero turnover in a year, while transforming itself from a traditional work group to a high performance team, increasing its staffing by 30%, and improving bottom line results.
After working through organizational assessment tools, a start-up biofuels company came to understand and successfully work through issues of trust, conflict, commitment, accountability, and results, supporting it organizationally so that it could go on to gain full venture funding.
With the support of 1-on-1 leadership coaching, numerous leaders I've worked with in both corporations and nonprofits have been able to work through issues of overwhelm, communication, personal habits, trust, personal transitions and organizational changes in order to improve significantly both their professional and personal effectiveness.
After just three coaching sessions, a boss and subordinate in a major Green company worked through numerous “hot spots”, met all 7 of their coaching goals, and significantly improved their communications, synergy, and productivity.
With the support of coaching, a strategy consultant to Green leaders clarified his values, goals, direction, choices, and work-life balance.
At a day-long, off-site retreat I designed, the staff of a community non profit significantly improved its understanding and appreciation of staff members’ roles and challenges, resulting in a significant boost to staff morale.
After I improved the sourcing and performance management of a key technical division of a major engine manufacturer, the group became the #1 ranking division in a corporate survey for its “people processes”.

Services

Free Coaching Consultation

If you are ready to make some dramatic improvements to how you or your organization is working, call or e-mail Mary today for a free, no obligation coaching consultation.

Tel: (203) 389-7343
E-mail: mary@marygorham.com