Who is this for?

If making you more effective at your job as a leader will help preserve democracy, and you do not have the budget to hire a coach, this is for you! Your org must be able to accept in-kind contributions.

What is executive coaching?

Executive coaching is a professional development strategy that helps high-potential employees or executives improve their performance, achieve goals, and unlock their potential. It's a client-driven process that involves a close and confidential relationship between coach and client. These are some of the things executive coaches typically work on: making time for strategic thinking, acting as a sounding board, role playing difficult conversations, handling competing demands, creating alignment, resolving difficulties with staff, giving feedback, and maintaining one’s resilience. Executive coaching has long been used in the for-profit sector to help leaders take on audacious projects, step up into new roles, and manage hectic situations. Sound familiar?

If I sign up to work with a coach, what is my expected time commitment?

You can work with your coach for just a single session or two to focus on a specific issue, or set up meetings every few weeks from now until the election. You will set the cadence with your coach that works for both of you. If you get great value from working with your coach in the first 20 minutes of the session, and you want to go implement what you talked about right away, you don’t need to use the entire session. We want to create the best value for you in the shortest possible time - we know you’re busy.

Many coaches meet with their clients for an hour every week or two, by phone or video; if that is something you want, we’re here for it. If there is something you think would work better for you, feel free to suggest it.

How will I be matched with a coach?

An experienced coach will read your LinkedIn &/or website, a coach’s LinkedIn &/or website, the comments you both made about matching, and use all of that data & our intuition to make the best match we can.

How long until I get matched with a coach?

If we have volunteer coach capacity, you can expect to be matched within a few days. We are doing everything we can to activate coaches to work with us to help you succeed. We’re doing this project in addition to our existing day jobs, so please be patient.

Is this confidential? My work is sensitive!

One of the cornerstones of coaching work is complete confidentiality. Because your relationship with your coach is confidential, you can share things that you may not want to share with a colleague.

How do I get started in our first session?

Your coach does not need to have a complete history, know your CV, or know everything about your org. Spend a few minutes getting acquainted, and then dig into something that will really move the needle for you and your org. Your coach will ask clarifying questions about context if they need to.

How will my coach help with me if I’m not normally the type of client they work with?

Leadership challenges are not terribly dissimilar across different domains. Coaches usually work with a wide variety of clients, and while they may develop specialized knowledge of an industry or business, they are constantly learning. There will be elements of your organization or challenges that may be unfamiliar to your coach, and they’ll ask you to clarify when it’s necessary.

What if my organization has an in-kind contribution limit?

You are responsible for communicating the in-kind contribution limit to your coach, working with them to make sure the value of their work does not exceed the limit, and handling any reporting required by your org.

What if I don’t love working with the coach I’m matched with?

We believe that most great coaches can be very effective with most clients. Occasionally there’s a mismatch. If you REALLY don’t like the coach you’re matched with, or feel like they’re not a good fit for your needs, email us at info@coachfordemocracy.org, and ask for a rematch. We’ll do our best.

Leader Signup