Susan Robinson, CEO, IRLY DISTRIBUTORS LTD., (center) with Ron Short and Jan Johnson, Principals of Learning In Action (Leaders in the field of EQ)

In a recent edition of BLUEPRINTS, an internal publication of IRLY DISTRIBUTORS LTD., a leading Canadian materials distribution firm, their CEO, Susan Robinson, shared her executive leadership team’s (ELT) year-long coaching experience with all of their members and employees. Susan and her high performance ELT were kind enough to also allow us to  share this article with you.

“In 2010 we spent time and energy on group coaching. We formed an executive leadership team and made an effort to work together better than we had in the past. We had players that had been with our company a long time and others that were new to the business. Overall, we reached to achieve a more collaborative style, not only with our customers and our teams, but with each other.

The group coaching we engaged in was lead by our executive coach, Bob Benwick. Bob lead us through an assessment piece where we evaluated ourselves in five areas. Using Lencioni’s “The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team” we answered questions which gauged our effectiveness together in the following areas: Trust, Commitment, Conflict, Accountability, and Results.

We also engaged in extensive exercises to build trust between us, assess our commitment to each other, assess our conflict styles, define our accountability and understand what results we want to achieve together.

If you are interested in executive coaching or group coaching, Bob was a great resource for us. He is a Master Executive Coach & Confidante. You can reach him at bob@rwbenwick.com, and his website is www.rwbenwick.com . Bob is also a Professor at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, School of Business, Business Management Department.”

We would enjoy hearing your own experience of team and group coaching . . . the good, the bad and the ugly. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

As a global executive coaching practice we partner with leaders at all levels and disciplines in a wide array of global private and public sector organizations. Part of that coaching with our corporate clients more often than not touches on why they get stuck in certain perspectives and let their ‘Child’ run the show vs. being in ‘Adult’, self-managing and objectively taking care of business.

It typically surfaces as a ‘blinding glimpse of the obvious’ when they discover dichotomy for themselves. It’s typically a life, career and leadership changer when they do make this breakthrough. They learn their ‘Child’ also has a very positive side . . . . playful, laughter, fun, vitality, energy, compassion, caring etc. . . . as well as a negative side . . . judgmental (of themselves and others around them), anger, fear, shame, anxiety, sadness, etc.

We recently caught the following country music video on television that really captured the origins of what the child and what we agree  to early in their lives and becomes programmed when we leave home and create our own lives and careers (in this video more of the positive aspects). To this end, we trust you too will enjoy this music video as much as we. So turn up your sound, listen carefully to a great young country star Chris Young to the lyrics and be prepared to tap your cowboyski toes : ! 

We would love to hear your reactions to these comments and Chris Young’s song. Have a great day!

These are whitewater economic times and the job market is certainly reflective of this. Many executives are either out on the street looking for work or anticipating to one degree or another that very possibility. My client Ross, a former executive with a large international bank, just happen to be in the job search campaign mode himself . “So, what is it that I really need to pay attention to when I’m provided job search referrals to follow up on as I engage in my strategic networking?” he asked.

“What’s the purpose of your networking”, I inquired. “Simple, I want to get out there, meet as many people as possible and dig up hidden job opportunities. Essentially accelerate my transition into a new job . . . one that will be a good fit. I don’t want to rely on the formal job market where I’m competing directly with everyone else!”, Ross responded.

“Well, how we take a few minutes to brainstorm some ideas around this?” I put forward. “I’m game!”, Ross quickly responded. After a twenty minute exchange, the following sums up what ` we created.

• Be highly proactive in following up and contacting referrals from your colleagues, friends, family, etc. . . . don’t delay
• Research the organizations and the persons you’ve been referred to . . . very thoroughly
• Develop and ask powerful questions based on your research
• Listen very carefully to both what each contact says as well as their non-verbals
• If appropriate, ask for permission prior to taking any notes . . . review them shortly after and deepen your learning 
• Develop a standard referral meeting assessment document to identify take-aways, insights, and any activity needing follow-up
• Remember each of your contacts’ time is valuable and limited . . . fully respect this
• Don’t hesitate to request additional referrals each and every time you engage each referred contact . . . make this a regular practice
• It’s critical to thank each contact at the end of your information referral meeting and express your sincere appreciation
• Immediately follow up with a written note, email . . . this is a MUST 
• Note that what is shared with you by the contact is always held in complete confidence
• Always secure a contact’s permission to use that contact as a future reference as you proceed with your strategic networking 

Ross did a super job in contributing to the creation of the foregoing list. Certainly a testament to his commitment to accelerating the success of his job search campaign. If you would like to add to this list, both Ross and I would be most interested in hearing your suggestions.

Jim, an executive with a large mining firm, asked a question in a recent coaching meeting relating to his search for a new position, “What do you know about working with search firms?” My initial response was that they can be a very valuable resource if you know what they are about and how to work with them.

There are essentially two approaches that an executive can take in their job search strategy. The first is working with the informal market using social networking . . . . where most of your opportunities actually exist. The other is the formal market which is where there are far less opportunities and where everyone and their uncle are competing with you. One area of the formal marketplace that is available to work with are retained search firms. These usually include retained executive search firms, contingency recruiters and employment agencies. Jim’s focus would definitely be on working with retained executive search firms.

By the way, the fee for retained search firms is normally paid by the hiring organization and can range between 24 to 40 percent of the first year’s starting compensation for a particular position.

When it comes to retained search firms, few executives seeking jobs actually obtain such positions through retained executive recruiters. However this aspect of the formal market is well worth including in your job search. Know that executive recruiters  will typicallyonly give you serious consideration if you meet the job specs required for a search that they currently have underway, if they specialize in your industry, if you are currently in a ‘hot profession’, or you’re considered an ‘expert’ in your field.

Some quick tips I shared with Jim should he decide to include retained executive search firms in his job search strategy include:

• Executive recruiters are not magicians . . . you need to be realistic!
• Honor executive recruiters very limited time.
• Understand the business relationship between executive recruiters and their corporate clients.
• When you receive an offer let the executive recruiters know.
• Going around a recruiter to a potential hiring organization is an absolute no-no!
• Know that the executive recruiter is in the ‘drivers-seat’ at all times when working with a corporate client who has retained them.
• Be positive, precise and realistic about your professional background and aspirations.
• Understand the search time-lines that executive recruiters are working with.
• Immediately follow up with a thank you communiqué after each and every in-person interview.
• Ensure you clearly understand the position your being considered for . . . . is it what you really want?
• Work with multiple executive recruiters . . . check out the Directory of Executive Recruiters.
• Always have a fresh, up-to-date professional resume . . . your professional brochure . . . and have it ready to go.
• Constantly keep your executive recruiter list up-to-date, letting them know of any significant changes in your search . . . including acceptance of a job offer.

I trust you will find these insights and tips Jim and I discussed of some value. Any related thoughts, feelings, experiences or suggestions you may have would be most appreciated. All  the best with your job search campaign! Take care

“What happens if you walk out the door and get hit by a bus?” It is not unusual when dealing with leaders in our coaching conversations when a question similar to this surfaces. There’s usual a bit of chuckling involved and an exchange of humorous comments before we get down to where the client wants to go . . . the serious five-sixths of the iceberg below the surface of the initial discussion. There is a tendency for some leaders (not you of course) to feel infallible and indestructible. This can get in the way of building greater capacity in those who report to us.

The metaphor of ‘the bus’ comes in many forms. If a version of the bus does in fact unexpectantly run over you (note Schultz’s Law: Murphy’s an optimist), then who is able to seamlessly step into your shoes should you find yourself temporarily out of the game . . . on the sidelines as it were? Are you ready my friend for such an event? Quickly filling the leadership pipeline is one of your major responsibilities . . . your organization should not expect less! As an executive coach who works with clients around the world, I have the slight luxury of a broader perspective of organizations . . . both private, public and not-for-profit sectors. In fact, this year to date I have seen three key senior leaders be unexpectedly moved over to the sidelines in their respective organizations. One leader, a Vice President – Operations, recently reflected on just such an experience. They shared just how thankful they were for the executive coaching support that was in service of their ability to see the value of changing their leadership behavior of shifting from a high need for absolute control to that of developing a greater capacity in others to grow, develop and increase their skills and abilities to take on increased accountability and delivery of high quality results . . . not to mention dramatically enhanced levels of professional and personal satisfaction. The value of succession planning for this particular leader has taken on a whole new level of importance, not to mention for the organization. 

Letting go of the reins of control can be exceptionally challenging for any leader, yet the return on the invested time and resources for the leader, key staff, other stakeholders and the organization typically exceeds all expectations when (not if) the inevitable reality of an unplanned highly stressful event occurs and readily takes the leader out of the game.

Should the inevitable surface for you, are you or your organization able to operate at you’re the most effective levels? Are you truly able to successfully step back and confidently address the presenting issue when temporarily sidelined? I would be most interested in hearing your thoughts, your truth, when the bus comes screaming through your world.