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Quote from Charles Shelan, Community Youth Services. Leadership Coaching

We expect a lot from nonprofit leaders. The pace of the work is fast. The financial pressures are unrelenting. The importance of the work generates high levels of accountability…and burnout. Coaching has been shown to be an effective tool to help nonprofit leaders respond to the challenges and pressures of their roles.

A leadership coach can help you clarify the leadership skills and behaviors that are important in your job, assess your strengths, and identify areas where you want to improve as a leader. Coaches provide the opportunity to explore issues you are confronting through a relationship that relies upon trust, honesty, and dialogue. A coaching relationship allows a leader to set goals for themselves and then be accountable for those goals.

Working with a coach is different from working with a consultant. It is not like having a therapist or a mentor. A coach’s primary role is to establish a process based on inquiry and self-discovery that helps you develop your own solutions. Working with a coach helps you develop new strategies, better understand what is holding you back from taking action, and build confidence. The goal of your coach is to help you make changes in how you work and determine actions you want to take to improve as a leader and to advance your organization.

You will have the opportunity to interview ESC’s coaches and choose one who is a good match for you. The program includes 15 hours of coaching, generally over 5-7 months. You can establish the schedule and meeting time that works for you.

The Impact of Coaching

A Compasspoint study of leadership coaching with nonprofit leaders found that coaching resulted in improvements in leadership and management skills:

Key Findings: Leadership
Increased confidence in exercising leadership
Improved ability to connect with the organization’s vision
Increased confidence in leading the organization toward fulfilling the vision

Key Findings: Management
Increased task completion and productivity
Improved personnel management skills
Better relationships with staff and Board of Directors (e.g., communication skills)