When Shelley Pierce
Stronczer left a large,
national law firm to start her own enterprise, she
knew it wasn’t going to be easy.
Yes, she was gaining autonomy,
but she was also losing access
to the innumerable resources
available at the corporate behemoth.
“The challenge was to provide employers the kind of
quality legal services they
received from me while I was
at the large firm,” she says. Or,
to put it more succinctly, “to
make more out of less.”
To do that, Stronczer enlisted
the help of an executive coach.
“I have a long-standing client
who has used an executive
coach for years, and I was
impressed with the results that,
that client got,” she says. “I
wanted to achieve those results
in my own new business … so I
sought out executive coaching.”
Executive coaches are facilitators who work with senior-level executives to foster
growth and development.
Although the duration of training varies depending on the
client, most coaches spend six
months helping executives
become more self-aware and
implement constructive habits
into their daily management
practices.
Before you turn inward to
analyze your own behavior,
though, Stronczer says you
should first turn outward to vet
potential coaching candidates.
“When you look for an executive coach, you’re going to need
to look for someone who’s got
experience, not only as an
executive coach but also in the
world,” she says. “My executive
coach had experience in law
firms and in corporations.
That’s really valuable in an
executive coach — someone
who can understand your
structure and those folks who
you’re trying to serve.”
You should also determine
what you want out of the experience before going into it.
Stronczer, for example, wanted
to better identify her strengths
and the strengths of her fellow
attorneys to run a more efficient firm.
It wasn’t simply her way or
the highway, though. When you
first begin working with your
coach, she says, you must also
discuss what the process can
actually do for you. Goals that
were unrealistic when you
began may evolve into more
realistic goals as you and your
coach identify your strengths
and weakness as an executive.
Once your goals are set,
coaches will typically spend
the first three months helping
you become more aware of your communication style,
learning style and strengths
through regular correspondence. During the last three
months, sessions become far
less frequent as you begin to
apply what you’ve learned.
To make the most out of the
experience no matter what
stage of the training process
you’re in, Stronczer says to
make it a priority.
“You’ve got to be committed,”
she says. “If you just spend a
little session with your coach
and you say, ‘I’m done for the
week on that,’ it’s not going to
help. You’ve got to exercise it.”
At the same time, the experience should never become
overwhelming. The process
doesn’t require a huge extracurricular commitment of time,
Stronczer says. Instead, it’s
something you incorporate into
your daily routine and thus is
“surprisingly not as much outof-pocket time as you’d think.”
When it’s all said and done,
executive coaching is less a
measure of time and more a
measure of progress. By diligently implementing the lessons you’ve learned, the benefits you reap should far exceed
the hours you sacrifice.
“Through coaching, I’ve been
more effective at understanding my strengths and how my
staff and I can both effectively
interact with each other to
provide that kind of quality
legal advice and litigation
defense to our clients in the
way they deserve and want,”
Stronczer says.
“It really doesn’t matter
what your industry is.
Executive coaching is very
valuable tool to give you the
advantage to be the best at
whatever you are.”
HOW TO REACH: Pierce Stronczer Law LLC, (440) 526-2211 or www.discoverpslaw.com
Coaching candidates
In order to succeed, a relationship with an executive coach
must be built on trust.
So when Shelley Pierce
Stronczer, founding member,
Pierce Stronczer Law LLC, was
looking for someone to guide
her experience, she turned to
Vivian Kist, chief learning officer
and senior executive coach at
Baker & Daboll LLC, an executive coaching firm.
This was not the first time the
pair had teamed up; they had
worked together years ago at
another firm and had already
established a healthy rapport.
Not everyone will be fortunate
enough to have that established
relationship to draw on. So to
help choose the coach that best
complements you and your
goals, Kist says you need to
speak with a number of candidates and not just settle on the
first option you come across.
To find an executive coach
who meets your needs:
- Look for experience. “The
coach should have had some
experience or expertise in supporting and helping others,” Kist
says. - Make sure the potential
coach understands your goals.
“There should be some discussion around what you’re trying
to achieve,” Kist says. “Does the
coach appear to understand that
to a level that you feel you can
work with them?” - Go with your gut. “The third
thing is just really a personality
connection,” she says. “When
we interview people, usually
they and we know fairly quickly
— I’d say within the first half
hour of talking to them —
whether this is really going to
work or not.”
HOW TO REACH: Baker & Daboll LLC,
(513) 339-1007 or www.bakerdaboll.com
