Executive Coaching
GAIA Coaching. Impactful, focused and conscious executive coaching in Sydney.
A new style of executive coaching in Sydney, for a new kind of leader.
What is Executive Coaching?
Coaching is one of the newer and fast-growing industries, especially in the US and Europe; and now also in Australia. And like with every other re-invented growing craft, there are many unknowns, misunderstandings and open questions. Executive coaching is a specialised area within the coaching industry focusing on the distinct needs of seasoned executives.
This Executive Coaching guide will cover all you need to know about executive coaching, why it is important, what is leading-edge in this field, how you can best benefit from it, and how you know that this is for you. The guide answers frequently asked questions we receive about Executive Coaching here at GAIA Coaching in Sydney. Our aim is to provide you the knowledge, insights and tools to make a conscious decision for yourself. In particular we will cover:- What this Executive Coaching and Conscious Leadership guide covers?
- How senior executives review executive coaching?
- What leading-edge executive coaching is?
- What conscious leadership is and how it helps senior leaders and their organisations?
- How conscious leadership training helps your organisation?
- How you know that executive coaching is for you?
- What executive coaching results you can expect?
- How executive coaching benefits your organisation?
- What the Return of investment (ROI) of executive coaching is?
- How independent executive coaching drives impactful performance?
- How to find the best executive coach for you?
- What qualifications should I look for in an executive coach?
- How to get the most out of executive coaching?
- How you can transform your leadership impact within weeks
- Meet us: Susanne Rauer – your expert Sydney-based master executive coach.
- How to start your leadership acceleration, today.
Anna Wintour, Editor-in-chief – Vogue
How can I change my executive career?
1 in 4 senior business leaders say executive coaching transformed their caeers.
Learn how to propel your executive leadership to new heights with highly personalised, deeply transformative executive coaching for senior business leaders. While trusted colleagues and stakeholders in the workplace may be there to support and guide you towards decisions, conflicting agendas, KPIs and skillsets may lend themselves to less than optimum advice and guidance. Enlisting the help of an independent executive coach who is objective instead, means you have a trusted partner who acts as a guide, strategic confidant and sounding board for you to share and discuss your ideas, challenges, concerns and plans for the future – away from the politics and dynamics of the workplace. As an experienced senior professional with a deep understanding of the work context and subject matter, your executive coach won’t tell you what to do. Instead, executive coaching will question you into insight and therefore help to unlock your potential in order to maximise your leadership performance. Through a deep understanding of your personal strengths, limiting beliefs, strategies and behaviours, together you will work towards creating a new powerful belief system where you learn how to make quick, conscious decisions, from a place of authenticity. This is the transformative platform which acts as a springboard for building the agency, intuition and self-reliance that give you the tools to make the right decision with ease and grace, in every moment of every day. And this is what leading-edge executive coaches call Conscious Leadership. And the evidence speaks for itself – a European study reported that 9 in 10 people who received executive coaching felt it was ‘very effective’ or ‘effective’ for them.The aim of executive coaching?
To provide a safe space for senior leaders to overcome challenges and explore possibilities from a place of deep self-awareness. Executive coaching helps you to start asking the right questions and create a path that feels aligned and true to your authentic self, whilst providing maximum benefit to your team and your organisation. At GAIA Coaching, we designed our Executive Coaching program with the unique challenges faced by Sydney-based, top-tier management consulting, IT, engineering and finance professionals in mind. Our model promotes conscious leadership as the way forward for cutting-edge-executives in leading-edge industries.“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”
Steve Jobs, former CEO of Apple, American business magnate, industrial designer, investor, and media proprietor
Does CEO loneliness impact their executive performance?
In the fast-changing worlds of management consulting, IT, finance and engineering, you’ll know that dealing with complicated and complex situations leading to difficult decisions daily is the norm.
Leading-edge, impactful leaders are facing unique challenges against a backdrop of increasing uncertainty and constant paradigm shifts across almost every area of business. Succeeding in a ever changing management consulting, IT, finance and engineering environment as a senior leader means being highly competent, emotionally intelligent and constantly having your finger on the pulse.
But, as you know, the leadership strategies of yesterday are fast becoming outdated. Stakeholder and employee management is more complex than ever, and work-life balance seems little more than a pipe dream. Feelings of isolation at the top are all too common; with 50% of CEOs expressing feelings of loneliness, of which 61% believe it hinders their job performance.
Stepping into true leadership with conscious leadership training and independent executive coaching in Sydney.
It’s no surprise then that expert executive coaching, facilitated in a safe and professional environment, has quickly become a necessity to propel your executive career and sense of professional fulfilment forward – rather than a luxury. And the research supports this – according to a Stanford University study, nearly two thirds of CEOs do not receive outside leadership coaching, however nearly all want it.
At GAIA Coaching, our executive coaching packages in Sydney are designed to transition you into a model of highly effective, authentic senior leadership by raising deep consciousness, one leader at a time.
What is conscious leadership training? And why is it so important for being a successful and fulfilled executive?
‘Conscious leaders speak with integrity, lead with authenticity and hold themselves accountable.’
According to Forbes ‘Conscious leaders speak with integrity, lead with authenticity and hold themselves accountable.’ The qualities of conscious leadership are honed through reflection, practice, and experience. A conscious leader sees great leadership as a state of being; achievable by having a growth mindset, curiosity, open-mindedness, and a willingness to be sensitive to others around them. The challenges faced by modern organisations, whether in Sydney or beyond, mean that adopting a conscious leadership approach is now necessary to build a thriving and prosperous business. This is especially true for the management consulting, IT, engineering and finance sectors high levels of leading-edge thinking and emotional intelligence are required. When you operate from a place of conscious leadership, you are able to efficiently and effectively navigate the constant demands and inputs from your peers, teams, or employees with sensitivity and flexibility. It means stepping into a new way of being – where the ‘whole’ self is brought into the leadership journey. A new leadership style where personal integrity, emotional intelligence and self-awareness are emphasised and at the heart of the decision-making process; with equal weight as other important ‘hard’ business skills. This enables senior leaders to move away from reactionary behaviour to a place of calm and sound decisioning; always keeping the bigger picture in mind. It’s a way of extending your vision beyond ‘distractions’ such as phone calls, emails, meetings, and the daily to-do list.Complete self-awareness is the road to make successful conscious decisions that are authentically aligned.
Complete self-awareness, also called higher conscious awareness, is the successful road to finding the confidence to make decisions that feel authentically aligned with your own intrinsic values as well as your company’s values. Through the power of conscious leadership, at GAIA Coaching we help you build a solid, intuitive decision-making process that helps cultivate a culture of clarity, confidence and trust within you, as well as any organisation. The result is a meaningful impact on morale and, by extension, productivity – for yourself and the team around you.“You’re going to have very good days, and you’re going to have very bad days. But it’s rare that things are as good as they look, and it’s rare that things are as bad as they seem. So, having perspective, and challenging perspective, is important to making good decisions.”
Lynn Good – Chairman, President and CEO at Duke Energy Corporation
How will conscious leadership training help my organisation?
When executives lead from a place of higher conscious awareness, it allows them to move beyond reacting.
When executives lead from a place of higher conscious awareness, it allows them to move beyond reacting to daily stressors and interruptions and focus on what is truly important. It allows meaningful outcomes to be generated from a place of authenticity, where decisions are intuitive and come naturally. From an organisational standpoint, this can mean growing business revenue, managing and cultivating trust within senior leadership teams, cultivating higher employee trust and engagement, ensuring higher customer satisfaction and the creation of lasting and sustainable change that sets your organisation in the right direction and apart.How will conscious leadership training help me?
On a personal level, it also means using your gut instincts and self-awareness to make more conscious choices, setting clear healthy boundaries, and slowing down enough to manage and accelerate your priorities efficiently and effectively. Furthermore, perceiving key situations and key decisions that need to be made in different ways sets senior executives apart. The conscious leadership techniques we cultivate as part of the GAIA Executive Coaching program will allow you to maintain balance in every area of your life by regularly checking in with yourself, building sustainable and productive routines, deeply examining biases and limiting beliefs for superior clarity on issues, while being intentional about the way time is allocated between constantly shifting priorities.“Becoming a leader is synonymous with becoming yourself. It is precisely that simple and it is also that difficult.”
Warren Bennis, author of ‘On becoming a Leader’
How do you know if executive coaching is for you?
Senior business leaders come to require coaching for a wide variety of situations.
Senior business leaders come to require coaching for a wide variety of situations, professional and life transitions – and no two executives will have the exact same reasons for enlisting the support of an executive coach.5 good reasons for you to choose executive coaching, right now.
Even though the reasons to choose executive coaching for yourself are very personal here are some common reasons why you might turn to an independent executive coach:- To prepare for a leading-edge business case idea you can’t or don’t want to soundboard with your peers
- If you know change is necessary in your organisation – but you need an improved strategy, mindset and approach to make it a true success
- To make authentic decisions with the help of a senior executive level coach who understands your challenges – without any potential political influence or consequences
- To prepare for your next career step that requires a different approach, mindset or different ideas
- If there are specific behavioural or performance feedback points you want to and need to address
How will executive coaching help me?
Through a highly personalised program, your potential is developed through improving your personal leadership and management skills.
This includes working on better goal setting with clarity, better decision making with self-awareness, and improved communications and meaningful relationships. Outstanding business cases and cases for change can be brainstormed and formed from idea conception to execution planning to successfully influence board members and key stakeholders. Influencing skills are key and will also be developed and sharpened, with opportunities to create a unique value proposition of self to help you achieve the next career step you have been working towards. Outstanding business cases and cases for change can be brainstormed and formed from idea conception to execution planning to successfully influence board members and key stakeholders. Influencing skills are key and will also be developed and sharpened, with opportunities to create a unique value proposition of self to help you achieve the next career step you have been working towards.Work with the right Executive Coach and be prepared for accelerated impactful results.
When you work with the right executive coach, you will find your performance, your impact and sense of fulfilment improves dramatically. This is often due to the deep exploration of limiting beliefs and behaviours; often not touched upon through work-based coaching. The result? Your success is accelerated in ways you may not have anticipated. At GAIA Coaching, we have seen time and time again that awareness of these limiting beliefs and behaviours makes all the difference. It creates an ideal space for conscious behaviour change and the formation of new thought patterns and behaviours to replace the old ones. Other benefits from a personal standpoint include but are not limited to:- Better preparation for role/career changes and joining the board
- More effective methods of managing times of high demands, stress, change, conflict or crisis
- Enhanced personal impact and performance
- Identifying effective solutions to specific work-related issues
- Increased openness to personal and professional learning and development
“Work takes on new meaning when you feel you are pointed in the right direction. Otherwise, it’s just a job, and life is too short for that.”
Tim Cook, CEO at Apple
How will executive coaching benefit my organisation?
Organisations need to be productive at every level.
Leaders and executives can use coaching to ensure their time is being well spent and that they are delivering the biggest impact for customers and therefore, to the bottom line of their organisation. Coaching helps to keep executives in alignment with the bigger organisational vision, goals and targets while staying aligned with who they authentically are as a leader. This can be really important especially for technical executives where their day-to-day may be very detail and task orientated. Stepping back and looking at the broader vision, goals and targets can ensure personal development targets as well as the wider team KPI’s and organisational targets are united.5 benefits of executive coaching for your organisation?
Other benefits from an organisational standpoint are include but are not limited to:- Greater commitment and buy-in from directors, stakeholders and senior managers
- Retaining talent and keeping staff engaged
- More creative outlook in leading-edge business planning
- Improved management and growth of high-performing teams
- Building positive relationships between people and across departments
- Facilitating the adoption of a new or high-performing team culture in your business
What Return On Investment (ROI) can I expect from executive coaching?
Executive coaching can initially feel like a significant investment. However, there’s a solid body of research showing a high return on investment for individuals and organisations who enlist the expert guidance of a good executive coach.
Research by the International Coach Federation and PwC shows a median return of 7 times the initial investment, with 1 in 5 executives bringing an ROI of at least 5,000%. It also showed that 8 in 10 companies surveyed made their investment back from executive coaching. Further research shows that investment in select individuals in senior leadership positions can have a profound transformational effect across the whole organisation, with the impact on changed behaviour nearly 4 times greater when combined with formal leadership training too. The highly personalised nature of every coaching program is key and is what makes returns like this possible. Executive coaching programs also generate ROI through integrating the personal development of the executive with key KPIs for the organisation – and are able to deliver a profound impact on the organisation’s culture as well as the executive.What is your personal Return On Investment (pROI) from your executive coaching?
At GAIA Coaching we believe executive coaching is a necessary investment in the self and the organisation you lead. Our methods are designed around your specific needs, based on a deep understanding of leadership challenges commonly faced in the consulting, IT, engineering and finance industries. Your bespoke program will track tangible goals specific to your own personal ROI (pROI) in areas identified as being important for your own personal and professional development as a well-rounded, conscious senior leader.“ If you want to be original, be prepared to be copied.”
Coco Chanel, Chief Designer & business woman ahead of her time
Is it better to use an independent executive coach or one through my company?
Coaching exists in many different forms across the management consulting, IT, engineering and finance industries.
For emerging professionals, enlisting the help of coaching or leadership training through your organisation is a solid option to help build the skills necessary to succeed in your early- and middle-stage professional career. However, for emerging and seasoned executives, external coaching through an experienced, certified executive coach is the better option. Coaches that work within organisations exist to facilitate superior results for the organisation they work within – and where personal development may be considered, this is normally within a wider scope of the commercial objectives of the organisation. Coaching programs facilitated by HR departments will, therefore, place more focus on developing the skills needed for the organisation to prosper, and may place less focus on behaviour and skills that need updating or makes you stand out, but are less relevant to the wider goals of the business. When working with an external, independent, private coach, the objectives are built entirely around your specific needs – but always in a way that benefits your organisation as well as your own personal development. The GAIA Executive Coaching program is built to engage your personal and professional development in a way that creates a tangible ROI for your organisation while putting your own personal development at the heart of the program.How do I know if I’ve found the best coach for me?
There are a few things to consider when choosing the best executive coach for yourself.
Most coaches will have captured in writing how they work. If not, they should be able to easily explain it to you during an introductory consultation. Below are just some of the things to look out for when choosing an executive coach.
5 tips for choosing the best executive coach
1. Facilitates clarity about the results you will achieve together with you.
The background, training and track record of all inform the specific type of results they are specialised in helping others to achieve. Most coaches offer a free, short consultation, so it’s best to have a discussion about their own background and make sure their certifications and experience align with the outcome you are seeking.
2. Aligns their communication style with yours.
A common barrier to coaching effectiveness is when communication styles do not align. Many times we can hear something – but it only ‘lands’ when said in a particular way, or by a particular person.
During an initial consultation it’s wise to assess whether the communication style and approach of the coach align with what you need to create the best results for yourself. You may want to think about whether you feel any resistance in speaking openly and honestly with them? Are they warm and supportive, or critical and direct? Are they focused on the big picture and vision, or more detail orientated and pragmatic?
3. Draws upon a vast variety of methods and approaches, applicable to your needs.
A good coach will intuitively and effortlessly combine different approaches, methods, theoretical and practical frameworks to suit the needs of their clients and their perspective. They should also be happy to talk about the theoretical traditions they refer to in their work and how they draw from these to create a bespoke program for their clients.
4. Is a livelong-learner and has a range of relevant training.
The study of psychology, development and performance is advancing rapidly. Coaching is a constantly evolving discipline, and staying up-to-date with the latest thinking in their areas of expertise is a must for executive coaches to be able to deal effectively with the challenges their clients are facing. Therefore, a good coach will be committed to their continuing professional development in a number of different ways in order to bring new insights and ideas directly to their clients and through the way they work. This can involve formal training, attending conferences, or being a member of professional bodies directly related to their field of expertise.
5. Has a deep understanding of the context you are working in.
While an executive coach does not need to have experience in the industry you are in, they should have knowledge and experience at a similar organisation or aligned industry and be able to understand the nature of the challenges you face in your senior leadership or executive role.
These are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to finding an executive coach. There are certain traits and practices that should be avoided if you are looking for the best results.
Download our quick guide to finding the best executive coach for your needs to find out more here.
What qualifications should I look for in an executive coach?
Executive coaches can come from all walks of life, all with different approaches, experience, skillsets and career backgrounds.
As coaching is still an unregulated industry, it is important to ask what qualifications and training a prospective coach has undertaken. The nature of qualifications undertaken by a coach will give you a solid indication of the level of expertise possessed by them. When assessing the qualifications of a coach, it’s important to look for an indication that they are:- A member of an established professional coaching body
- Accredited by at least one professional coaching body
- Able to provide references and testimonials
- Sufficiently experienced as an executive as well as an executive coach
How can I get the most out of executive coaching?
Executive leadership coaching works best when it is driven by the needs of the client.
It is about assisting people to achieve their full potential, with a focus on what they want to achieve now and in the future. But this doesn’t happen without work and commitment on both sides of the coaching relationship. On the GAIA Executive Coaching program, we have often seen that the success of our executives often comes down to 3 key factors:
3 keys to make your executive coaching a success
1. Executive coaching demands honesty?
Being honest means coming to each session ready to communicate about what challenges you are facing, both externally and internally, in work or personal life. It means fully embracing the coaching relationship as a safe space for open communication without fear of judgement, so that a plan can be put in place that achieves the optimum outcome based on your challenges in both work and personal life.
2. Executive coaching equals growth mindset?
Having a growth mindset means being ready to receive feedback with an open mind, and understanding that only you have the power to create lasting change in your life. It means taking full responsibility for your results.
It means listening actively, but also being open to explore new thought patterns, strategies and ideas and doing things in a different way.
It means understanding that while a coach can be a transformative element in your life, they cannot provide you with answers or tell you what to do. They can facilitate a deeper understanding and awareness of the self, but they cannot make decisions for you.
3. Executive coaching is an active experience?
Taking action means being able to reflect on limiting beliefs and behaviours and to take action necessary to step into your new identity as a highly competent, impactful and deeply conscious leader.
We understand that it is not always easy, as it often means moving past deep-seated fears and unresourceful, limiting beliefs and behviours that may have developed over a lifetime. But it is only once you take action that true change occurs.
“Growth and comfort do not coexist.”
Ginni Rometty, CEO IBM
What does it take to lead a fast-developing organisation?
Leading a fast-developing organisation calls for a highly evolved, integrated and conscious worldview – and at GAIA Coaching, this is what we are all about and will help you foster.
At the intersection of consciousness-raising methods and deep behaviour change techniques, the GAIA Executive Coaching program deep-dives into your specific areas of improvement to unlock your most authentic and effective leadership style. Integrity, conscious self-awareness and strategic, future-based thinking take centre stage – and through the construction of a highly personalised action plan, unproductive thought patterns and behaviours are replaced with a highly effective yet deeply authentic approach to work and personal life.Step into your humble power as a dynamic, emotionally intelligent leader
Within weeks, you’ll be empowered to step into your humble power as a dynamic, emotionally intelligent leader who:- Makes difficult decisions easily and intuitively
- Steers complex change with deep understanding and smooth, structured processes
- Manages large, diverse or international teams strategically and sensitively
- Governs time and priorities productively and flexibly
- Feels more fulfilled in work and personal life, without jeopardising one or the other
Helping you to succeed is her passion
From executive to executive
An ex-senior executive of over 25 years with over 13 business and executive coaching-related certifications, Susanne first experienced the deeply transformational effects of executive coaching several years ago.
Within weeks her entire outlook on life changed. With it swiftly followed a new, holistic approach to matters of work and personal relationships. Decisions were no longer reactive or fearful – but instead made from a place of authenticity, clarity and empowerment.
Now as a master executive coach and executive coach trainer, for over 6 years Susanne has used her extensive training, sharp business acumen, conscious leadership and intuitive coaching skills to guide committed senior business leaders and top-tier executives towards holistic success in both business and personal lives.
Conscious decision making is the key
The aim? To raise deep consciousness one leader at a time, to empower them to make resourceful, conscious decisions from a place of calm and clarity.
And with specialisms in implementing complex processes, managing organisational change and running large, diverse teams across varied P&Ls in management consulting, IT, finance and engineering industries, Susanne guides senior leaders in these organisations to become world-class professionals who lead with integrity and authenticity.
Every executive leaves a session with Susanne with a bespoke and smart plan of action that allows them to rise to every challenge – long after any coaching takes place.
Using authentic and conscious decision-making as a springboard for success, Susanne works in the heart of Sydney’s Barangaroo with individual clients who are highly driven, and ready to commit to a maximum-accountability executive coaching program to accelerate their careers to new levels.
“The secret of leadership is simple: Do what you believe in. Paint a picture of the future. Go there. People will follow.”
Seth Godin, author and entrepreneur
Is the GAIA Executive Coaching program for me?
The Sydney-based GAIA Executive Coaching program is for driven executives who have a proven track record of success in their fields, and have already decided that the next level of success is theirs.
All they need now is the accountability, process and structure to achieve the results they already know they are capable of. For executives of that calibre, our signature coaching program will achieve the desired results through a combination of:1. Set clear strategic objectives
Exploring and setting professional and personal strategic objectives, and creating a practical execution plan to achieve them.2. Align your personal and professional vision
What success looks like for you and your company, and how to make both happen in congruence with each other.3. Align your professional and company values
Understanding your own key values, and aligning these to company values so that decision-making feels authentic and aligned to personal values.4. Create a personal action plan
Exploring and becoming deeply conscious of the beliefs and motivations that truly drive your behaviour, and creating a personal strategy to apply conscious leadership skills to every aspect of your thinking and decision-making.5. Create a practical success plan to execute on your strategic objectives (AKA the 90 Day Game Plan)
Identifying meaningful business and personal goals and outcomes as well as creating a detailed plan to achieve these, taking into account the full suite of conscious leadership tools at hand.6. Executive Coaching Sessions (for senior executives only)
Monthly coaching sessions as a safe space for executives to communicate openly and frankly, work through any blocks limiting current success, soundboard ideas and brainstorm actions required to secure the next successful outcome either at work, in their personal life, or both.7. Ongoing email and messenger support
Real-time support with day-to-day challenges, so you have the guidance you need when and where you need it. The GAIA Executive Coaching program is a high accountability, high transformation experience combining conscious leadership skills with strategic and industry-specific frameworks for success.Thank you
Thank you for spending this time with us. We appreciate your interest and trust that this extensive executive coaching guide was of value to you. Please feel free to reach out in case you would have any further questions, feedback or ideas. GAIA Coaching prides itself on providing highly personalised executive coaching experiences for conscious, results-driven leaders in Sydney. We respect and cater for the specific circumstances for each of our valued clients. If you value integrity, excellence and results then we might be just the right executive coaching partner for you; let’s talk.You have made your decision to excel as a conscious leader. Reach out today to explore that the GAIA Executive Coaching program is for you.
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