Still North

Leader as Coach program uplifts charity leader capability

Introduction

A 14-month investment from a national children’s charity to help its leaders become better coaches delivered a positive and profound ripple effect. Described as “life-changing” and “inspirational” by some of the 60 leaders who took part, the Leader as Coach program has transformed leader attitudes, behaviours and results – at work, at home and at heart. The comprehensive program has also improved team-to-leader connection and contributed to better outcomes for the young people served by the charity.

When a national charity was seeking to strengthen the coaching capability of its leaders to ultimately drive better outcomes for children, they chose to partner with Still North.

The client need

The Australian non-profit organisation was seeking to adopt and embed a coaching leadership style across a team of leaders.

A Coaching leadership style (CLS) is a way of being that develops transformational leaders to guide their teams to achieve personal and business goals through empowerment and collaboration. Beginning with a focus on their own growth and development, coaching leaders learn to increase self-responsibility, accountability, and self-belief. From this foundation, they inspire greater communication, creativity, cross-team mentoring and results.

Having previously noticed a direct correlation between the team members with strong coaching capability and positive outcomes for young people, the organisation was keen to uplift this capability more broadly and deeply across its national network of leaders.

The non-profit was looking for a coaching provider to deliver the following:

Still North delivered

This Leader as Coach program was memorable and unique because it was co-designed by the very leaders who took part in it.

Still North worked with the program participants to ideate and co-create a bespoke program using the Define > Discover > Dream > Design > Deliver process of Appreciative Inquiry.

The result was a practical, thought-provoking, and personalised CLS program that had maximum resonance with the group’s specific professional and personal development needs.

Beginning in February 2022 and lasting for 14 months, the Leader as Coach program included a total of 60 leaders.

A core team of six Still North coaches guided the group through a comprehensive program that featured a mix of one-on-one coaching sessions, group coaching circles and self-paced online learning through an online Masterclass Series. Participants could access this online space whenever convenient, to further explore the extensive range of study materials and reinforce their learning on leadership and coaching.

Leaders were allocated a coach to support them throughout the program, with leaders taking part in eight individual coaching sessions as well as four group coaching circles.

Topics and theories explored included: neuroscience, emotional intelligence, psychological safety, motivation theory, trust, active listening, compassionate directness, giving and receiving feedback, self-leadership, mindsets and beliefs, self-confidence, appreciative inquiry, and goal setting.

Together, we achieved

The power of the Leader as Coach program lies in its ability to ‘sink’ in with people for the long-term. Or, to put it another way, the ‘longevity of its absorbability’ – at work, at home and at heart.

Unlike a brief seminar, a fleeting keynote speech or a one-off event, this program delivers long-lasting and life-changing benefits for individuals, teams and organisations. We know this because participants told us, the data told us, and we love that it’s made such a positive and profound difference to the lives of these leaders and those they work with.

Still North facilitated a debrief session with the leaders at the conclusion of the program in February 2023 to talk about its impact and what worked well.

Still North and the client have worked together to create two new phases for the LaC program, aimed at maintaining momentum and deepening learning absorption, thus extending the program to a three-year duration. Such success has led to the program now entering its third cohort of leaders.

Feedback on what worked well

“We had input and owned the process. The time was all about us – it was ‘protected’ time.”

“Building relationships with the Still North coaches was great. I felt respected, they brought a fresh perspective, with no bias or judgement. They met leaders where they were – in their situation and were like an external sounding board.”

Feedback on the impact of Leader as Coach program

“This has created a common and shared language as a leadership team.”

“There is a practical application to the program that has changed and improved elements of how we coach our teams.”

“It has added positivity and strength to the culture of the organisation.”

“It supports the wellbeing of leaders and teams and gives me more confidence to approach challenging situations and to be myself … to be vulnerable.”

“It’s been a life changing experience for me… the best development program I’ve seen and been involved in over my 30-year career.”

“This program allowed our people to reflect on who they are and how they respond to situations; because ultimately, who you are is how you lead. So, having that self-knowledge and that reflection, is certainly going to get the best outcomes for individuals and also for the teams that they lead.” – Head of Operations

“This journey has been such an inspiration to me. Discovering who I am as a leader – and why I am as a leader – has been inspirational; not only at work, but with family and friends. Using the tools, and diving into the extra tools that the coaches provide, has really changed who I am as a leader and a coach, as a mum and as a nanny. It’s been life-changing.” – Team Leader

“The Leader as Coach program created the opportunity for intentional reflection and practice at a nuanced and deep level. Creating a leadership program that had the individual at the core whilst driving a shared understanding and common language across the organisation over a sustained period of time provided incredible results individually and collectively.

“It’s been an absolute joy to create and work on this program and to see the lasting change as a result of it!”

Elise Morris, Still North Founder

Fast facts at a glance

The non-profit was looking for a coaching provider to deliver the following:

If you’d like to hear more about the Leader as Coach program and how it could work in your organisation contact Elise Morris at elise.morris@stillnorth.com.au or +61 418 345 578.
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