The more senior a person becomes, the harder it is to get honest feedback and challenge. The impact of this can be wide-ranging and felt throughout the organisation. I interview stakeholders – from the board to teams and customers – to get this honest view and then support and challenge the individual to maximise their performance.

The typical reasons for working with a coach are:

• No time to think – they are too busy reacting and doing
• Need independent analysis of their performance as an executive leader
• No ‘safe place’ to talk issues through
• About to – or have just taken on – a new challenge and want to hit the ground running
• Want to help their team perform better
• Preparing for, or going through, a significant period of change