Leadership Coaching
Humanity, Authenticity, Ability.
Effective Coaching for Leaders
at all levels
All leaders, whether new in their roles, or highly experienced, face difficult challenges and obstacles – especially when operating in a fast-paced, modern environment. Leaders faced with a lack of engagement, or organisational change, including those adopting a new, or more senior role, managing new sectors, or heading change within a group or company may require skill development and personal growth in a number of new directions in order to ensure success.
A key measure of how well you’re doing as a leader is how engaged your people are in the goals you want them to achieve. When someone is fully engaged, they are willing to give their best to a cause they believe in. Aspirationally, that’s what you need to aim for as a leader.
You have just one tool to use to create your impact as a leader – your behaviour. In particular – the behaviours you demonstrate sincerely that show your people how much you care about them.
Experiencing leadership coaching with me involves analysing and assessing the behaviours you’re choosing with which to connect with and engage your people.
The sad truth is leadership is poor in far too many places. It’s my aim to ensure you are a shining exception to that unfortunate situation and that not only are you engaging your people fully, but you are a role model to other leaders who desperately need help.
Contact me for a free, no-obligation discussion of your needs.
Chat to me today.
Why choose
Executive Coaching Services?
I’m proud to offer a bespoke leadership coaching service, tailored on an individual basis to the needs of managers at all levels across the UK and beyond. Some of the key features of my unique approach are summarised below:
Your time and investment are valuable. I will get straight into the issue that’s most important to you. Unlike some other coaches, I won’t waste your time on your background or your history. You already know that. Relevant parts of that will emerge naturally as we work on what you want to achieve.
You will also receive ‘tough love’ from me when appropriate during our leadership coaching journey. You will find me accepting, compassionate, and non-judgmental but be prepared to be challenged as well. I won’t let you off the hook if I believe it’s in your interests to face something uncomfortable.
We can reach into the deep reservoir of tools, concepts, and models I have built up over the 25 years plus I’ve been a coach. My leadership coaching is very practical and action-focused. Often employing a proven framework helps realise the value of the actions you will take.
I will work with you to uncover ‘cause’ – not just deal with the ‘symptoms’ of your situation.
I will listen forensically to you, looking for the deeper, significant themes that need to be highlighted and addressed. This will help your thinking about yourself and your decision-making.
Free, no obligation 30-minute consultation, we’ll establish what your most important issues or goals are, and whether or not coaching is right for you.
Developing Leaders effectively
through Humanity, Authenticity and Ability
My leadership coaching service is designed around a core of three critical, mutually sustaining areas. I believe tailoring around these three areas allows for an essential balance between a sole focus on performance improvement, and the effectiveness of the human behind the leader title, resulting in the development of truly meaningful, and sustainable solutions.
Though three areas are equally applicable to teams and whole organisations, I will adopt the perspective most suitable for your leadership coaching needs.
As a leader, you are judged every day. You never get a day off. Three questions that people will continuously ask themselves about you are:
- Is this leader a real person? (How much humanity have you got?) – This is important so that people can relate to and connect with you
- Is this leader being the real version of themselves? (How much authenticity have you got?) – This is important for people to trust you
- Is this leader really a leader? (How do you behave to show you care about your people so that they make the decision to fully engage?)- This is important for people to respect you
Humanity
When you know yourself as a person, you can be your true self as a leader.
Our leadership coaching relationship will help you find and manage your balance point among three fundamental human motivators. I will also attend to the five pillars of your wellbeing to ensure you’re feeling physically, mentally, and emotionally solid. Well-being is the foundation of success at any level and particularly true to meet the challenges of leadership.
Key outcome: you feel part of the human race, not the rat race
Authenticity
When you are being your true self, you can be your best self as a leader.
We will identify your core purpose – how you want to ‘change your world’ as a leader. I will work alongside you to celebrate your unique strengths and the value you create with them consistent with your purpose. Grounding what you do in your behavioural strengths is the best way to ensure your leadership success.
Key outcome: you recognise and are proud of the person you see in the mirror
Ability
When you are your best self, you will achieve the most as a leader.
Our leadership coaching relationship works to create the best possible space for you to bring your strengths to the fore to work effectively towards your most important goals. My leadership coaching service will be fully personalised to you, and will include developing other attributes you might need to thrive – such as resilience and emotional intelligence.
Key outcome: your leadership is engaging, nurturing and inspiring
Leadership Coaching will help you form even better behavioural habits that build the trust and commitment of your people. Unhelpful behaviours and responses will diminish and you will grow the resilience to meet challenges, uncertainty and volatility more effectively with your people on board with you.
Who is this for?
The Benefits
of Leadership Coaching
Effective leadership coaching can give you:
By the end of your leadership coaching program, you will be a calmer, more considerate, more resilient leader who gets even more commitment from your people.
The Executive Coaching Services
Leadership Coaching Process
My leadership coaching is highly personalised and collaborative. It is centred on realising sustainable change so that you become even more caring, confident and engaging as a leader. We will work closely on a one-to-one basis. There is also the option of addressing any leadership gaps we might find through leadership training which could extend to your people if desired. Discover more about my leadership coaching process below and discover more about my training offering here.
Coaching and Training
Packages
Leadership Coaching
The best measure of your leadership is how engaged your people and stakeholders are. The only tool you have to achieve this is your behaviour.
My leadership coaching packages focus on your current behaviour, the level of engagement you’re looking to attain, and what’s getting in the way. Even small changes in your behaviour as a leader can produce dramatic increases in engagement – you just need to learn to make effective, authentic, and habitual changes. Leadership coaching will help you do this.
Management Coaching
A useful indicator of your management effectiveness is how much control you feel you have over how you’re using your resources. Some key inputs to that include how much clarity you’re creating, how agile you and your team are in the face of adversity, and how consistently you’re producing the tangible results you need.
My management coaching service works to collaboratively explore what you’re doing as a manager to keep your actions efficiently aligned towards the results you want. Most managers try to do too much. Sometimes, streamlining your responsibilities and actions creates as much value as directly improving your actions. Throughout your management coaching journey, we will aim to create even more clarity, control and consistency, letting you feel more confident and effective in your management role.
Leadership and Management Training
Training is one of the best ways to acquire knowledge.
Throughout the leadership or management training process, I will work with you to design and deliver a tailored training programme to fill key gaps and improve your leadership and management knowledge.
We will also discuss how to embed the value of the training afterwards so that your newly acquired knowledge turns into workplace value for you. The training can be extended to include your team if required.
Key Contributor Coaching
As a key contributor, you’re probably highly skilled and effective within your role, but may struggle to exert the authority and influence you need to create the best possible results. You might also have your ambitions thwarted by rigid rules, or well-intentioned but inflexible gatekeepers.
Through tailored coaching we will work collaboratively to explore how much agency and power you actually have, and look at the potential for increasing these through strategies such as credible self-promotion, building alliances and nurturing reciprocal relationships.
Key contributor coaching seeks to maximise your impact and influence so that your contribution is valued and supported to the extent it should be.
Meet Executive Coaching Services
Executive Coaching Services has been a leadership coach and trainer for over 25 years. He is a highly qualified coach, accredited by the Institute of Leadership & Management, and the Chartered Management Institute to Level 7 Strategic Leadership.
In 2010 he received a UK National Training Award for his Senior Leadership Training and Coaching Programme that the judges described as ‘outstanding’.
He works with leaders, managers, and key contributors at all levels and across all sectors, including financial services, engineering, pharmaceuticals, FMCG, social enterprise, local government and SMEs.
His coaching purpose is to help you uncover your truth, whatever that is for you, with a strong focus on identifying what is true about ourselves and our situation. Executive Coaching Services believes this puts us in the best position to solve our problems, grow and succeed.
Client Testimonials
My management team and I worked with Executive Coaching Services over a year during a turbulent and challenging time for our business. He created a climate of trust in which we engaged in honest, open self-examination. He helped us embrace our uncomfortable reality and work together to create a strategy for coping with the present and adjusting to our new future effectively.
Jenny Lyons, Divisional Manager, Medivet, Watford
Executive Coaching Services worked with us through an accredited management development programme over several months. He used coaching extensively within it to give us the support and guidance we needed to come to our own realisations and understanding of topics. We could then apply this insight effectively to our own situations and real-life scenarios. Executive Coaching Services has an incredibly approachable style, his sessions were thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who attended them and we had great feedback from our attendees that they got a lot out of their time with him.
April Duckman, Head of People Support Services, CMS Distribution
Through skillful and targeted questioning, Executive Coaching Services enabled me to clarify my true professional aspirations. He also got me to challenge my existing viewpoints and form new insights for much better decision-making.
Dipendra Mistry, Senior System Test, and Integration Engineer, SatixFy, Farnborough
Executive Coaching Services helped me gain valuable perspective on our business during a challenging and sometimes chaotic period. Often my assumptions about issues were changed significantly after meeting with him. He is an excellent sounding board and a stimulating questioner. He was also instrumental in forging my senior people into an effective, interdependent team.
James Francis, CEO, Saffron Housing Trust, Norfolk
“I was overloaded at work, out of control, and blaming myself for not coping. Executive Coaching Services helped me gain perspective and realise most of my problems had external causes and were stopping me from using my talent as an educator. He helped me put a compelling case together to ‘manage up’, influence senior leadership, and enlist support for myself in a sustainable way. Now I feel much more solid and able to create the teaching value I love.”
Jo S, Key Contributor, International School, Stockholm
Leadership Coaching FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
What is leadership coaching?
Though the definitions of both coaching and leadership coaching vary depending on source, leadership coaching in particular is generally thought of as the process of improving the performance and engagement level achieved by an individual in a position of through the assistance of an experienced specialist. This specialist, known as a coach, may use a number of techniques to assess the behaviours used by a leader to connect with their team, improve upon strengths, identify weaknesses, and alter leadership style. During this time, coaches should work to develop a trustworthy, structured, supportive environment, in which the individual or ‘coachee’ may develop a further understanding of their current performance, behaviour, and perception, whilst working to establish and achieve relevant, achievable goals, and take appropriate steps to meet them.
How much does leadership coaching cost?
The cost of leadership coaching varies greatly depending on coach or provider – alongside the format in which they provide their services – with many offering coaching priced per session, and others offering packages. Executive Coaching Services offers a number of leadership coaching packages designed to suit both individuals and teams across a variety of budgets and timescales. Options include;
Transformation Package - £1150 for six one-hour coaching conversations over three months
Breakthrough Package £595 for three one-hour coaching conversations over six weeks
Problem Solver - £200 for a one-hour intensive conversation
Team/Group Day - £1295 for six hours of coaching/facilitation over one day
These packages may be further tailored to suit your exact needs. Discover the full Grant Cullen Coaching pricelist here, or, to further discuss your management coaching goals, get in touch with Grant today for a free 30-minute consultation call.
How can I be a better leader?
There are a huge number of habitual and personal changes you can make to become a better leader – however, it is important to recognise that your circumstances are almost entirely individual and that your improvement strategy should be tailored to reflect this. That’s where leadership training comes in. Outside of this, Executive Coaching Services believes that all successful leaders possess the following traits;
They are people first. They recognise their humanity as foundational to their identity. They are comfortable with themselves without being complacent. They are compassionate towards others without sacrificing responsibility and accountability.
They know themselves. They make self-awareness a lifelong study. As a result, they behave authentically as a cornerstone of their integrity. They have developed self-belief based on their true impact on the world, and have no need to hide behind over-confidence or self-delusion.
They use their strengths to succeed. They accept they can’t be excellent at everything so they focus on the abilities they have that create the highest value for the people around them. They relish opportunities to develop, empower and support others to be excellent in areas they are not.
Looking to further develop these traits? Contact Grant Cullen today to further discuss the creation of a tailored leadership coaching plan built on a foundation of humanity, authenticity, and ability.
Does leadership coaching really work?
The effectiveness of leadership coaching is highly dependent on a number of factors, including both coach and coachee, alongside individual circumstance. With this being said – when correctly implemented, the value of leadership coaching goes beyond ‘self-improvement’. Leadership coaching has the power to sustainably and positively evolve the mindset, attitude, and abilities of not just one individual – but the teams they lead – resulting in higher levels of engagement, and improved performance across the board. The effectiveness of a leader truly impacts team morale and performance.
Ready to experience the benefits of a leadership coach who balances elements of humanity, authenticity, and ability to build a genuinely effective coaching dynamic? Contact Executive Coaching Services today for a 30-minute free consultation.
What are the qualities of a good leader?
Besides the previously established common factors shared by good leaders (including their ‘people first’ mindset, their heightened level of self-awareness, and their effective use of strengths), the widely recognised qualities of a good leader include;
Integrity – leaders are generally entrusted with significant amounts of power. Should they wish to retain their people’s engagement and respect, this power should be paired with integrity
Strong communication abilities – as an individual typically tasked with guiding and leading groups, leaders are expected to be highly effective communicators with the ability to ‘get the message across’ to team members of all roles, levels, and abilities
Empathy – emotional intelligence is a huge factor in the performance of individuals in key roles, including leaders. Empathising with others is shown to increase performance across a variety of team formats
Respect – respect for oneself and others is key in establishing an effective working or team atmosphere
Listening skills – just as leaders should be able to influence a team to perform, they should be able to actively listen to those ‘following’ them, taking on board relevant information and adjusting their behaviours according
Strategic thinking skills – leaders should be able to quickly adapt to a number of complex situations, using strategic thinking skills to effectively problem solve in ways that work from themselves, and their team
How long does leadership coaching take?
The length of a leadership coaching engagement can vary according to context, goals set, the coaching dynamic established, and the level of support required by the coachee – amongst a huge number of variables. In accordance with this variability, the leadership coaching ‘process’ is generally very flexible, and can last anywhere from one ‘problem solving’ call to a supportive relationship spanning years.
Executive Coaching Services package options offer a ‘set’ alternative to those looking to book a coaching over a set period, with the problem solver package offering a one-hour long intensive conversation, and the transformation package offering six coaching conversations and review over a period of six months.
Who is leadership coaching for?
Leadership coaching is best suited to individuals in active positions of leadership or seniority, though it may be adapted to high potential individuals set to take on such roles in the near future. Though leadership training is often used to overcome issues in leader performance, to help resolve issues, and move past barriers to success, it may also be used to ensure experienced leaders stay at the top of their game. Viewed by many as an investment in both an individual, and their team, leadership training works to ensure the behaviours of a leader are effective within the context of their team, driving higher levels of engagement, and improving performance.
Looking to improve your performance as a leader with the help of an experienced coach? Contact Executive Coaching Services today for a 30-minute free consultation.
What skills should a leader have?
There is an endless list of skills suited to leaders across a number of contexts – many suited to individual circumstances and individual specialisms. Those most applicable to leaders across all contexts include;
Listening skills - just as leaders should be able to influence a team to perform, they should be able to actively listen to those ‘following’ them, taking on board relevant information and adjusting their behaviours accordingly
Communication skills - as an individual typically tasked with guiding and leading groups, leaders are expected to be highly effective communicators with the ability to ‘get the message across’ to team members of all roles, levels, and abilities
Strategic thinking skills - leaders should be able to quickly adapt to a number of complex situations, using strategic thinking skills to effectively problem solve in ways that work from themselves, and their team
Looking to improve your performance as a leader with the help of an experienced coach? Contact Executive Coaching Services today for a 30-minute free consultation.
What are the 7 leadership styles?
There are a number of pre-defined leadership ‘styles’ – with many academics and coaches arguing that there are 7 ‘primary’ options suiting most individuals. These include;
Autocratic – in which the leader has high levels of authority and generally makes decisions without high levels of input from team members
Authoritative – in which the leader works to actively guide followers, allowing more autonomy than autocratic leaders
Pacesetting – pacesetting leaders tend to lead by example, setting a high bar for quality and pace of work output
Democratic – allows for high levels of delegation, and takes into consideration the opinions of team members at all stages
Coaching – works to develop the abilities of team members throughout the leading process
Affiliative – a ‘people first’ approach in which leaders place high value upon the creation of collaborative working relationships
Laissez-Faire – in which both leader and team members ‘go with the flow’, generally possessing high levels of freedom.
Looking to improve your performance as a leader with the help of an experienced coach? Contact Executive Coaching Services today for a 30-minute free consultation.
What does a leadership coach do?
Leadership coaches are most often highly qualified professionals with extensive experience. They typically work alongside individuals either in positions of, or with high potential to move to roles in which leadership is required, assisting with their development of strong effective leading behaviour both within and outside of their individual context, before working to establish tailored goals and objectives, alongside a clear path of action towards sustainable improvement – in many cases, measured by the level of engagement reached.
Looking to improve your performance as a leader with the help of an experienced leadership coach? Contact Executive Coaching Services today for a 30-minute free consultation.