USDA - APHIS

Human Resources Division (HRD) - Executive Support and Leadership Services (ESLS) Branch - Executive Resources - Executive Coaching

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Executive Coaching
Being a leader requires a whole new mindset
Who’s a candidate for an executive coach? Who might benefit from this type of one-on-one development opportunity? The target audiences for executive coaching within the M&RP organizations are:
How does Executive Support and Leadership Services work?
How does coaching help?

Executive Coaching

The effectiveness of an executive is tied to their ability to lead and motivate employees. We all want to be proud of who we are - both in our own eyes and in the eyes of others. We all want to make a difference. So how do we go about developing the leader within us?

Jack Welch said,

Being a leader changes everything. Before you are a leader, success is all about you. It's about your performance, your contributions. It's about getting called upon and having the right answers. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others. Your success as a leader comes not from what you do but from the reflected glory of the people you lead.

Being a leader requires a whole new mindset

It’s easier to recognize performance gaps in others rather than finding those gaps in ourselves. But great leaders recognize the importance of continued improvement and support the concept of a learning organization. Recent studies reflect that the long-term success of individuals and organizations is directly linked to the quality of their leaders.

Leaders need to use various leadership and relational styles. These improve performance and enhance relationships. Through coaching the Executive Support and Leadership Services (ESLS) group will work with individuals to deepen an awareness of the vital traits that are required from them to be successful. With the support of ESLS, executives and managers learn how to identify and improve leadership gaps - and then create strategies to close them.

At the most basic level, coaches serve as suppliers of candor, providing leaders with the objective feedback they need to nourish their growth. Coaching gets executives to slow down, gain awareness, and notice the effects of their words and actions. It provides a disciplined way for the organization to deepen relationships with their most valued employees while also increasing their effectiveness. On a larger scale, strategic coaching can bring leaders into alignment with organizational aims, while fostering broad cultural change.

Who’s a candidate for an executive coach? Who might benefit from this type of one-on-one development opportunity? The target audiences for executive coaching within the M&RP organizations are:

Talented management who are candidates in succession planning but deficient in their leadership and communication skills.
Technically proficient individuals who lack the political will or savvy to both promote and gain acceptance for their ideas.
Inexperienced managers whose development is paramount to organizational success.
Established leaders who are approaching burnout and need assistance in balancing work/life or handling aged-related personal crisis.
Long-term employees who resist or who have not kept up with organizational change.
Strategic thinkers who want to plot new initiatives for their department or organization.

How does Executive Support and Leadership Services work?

ESLS will work with individuals to discover individual personality traits and preferred way of handling situations. We’ll explore work style and work environment; and review perceptions, attitudes and beliefs and leverage individual’s strengths. And we help examine obstacles and support the leader as they learn to work around areas of weakness, giving them the ability to find success on their own terms. We may suggest a series of assessments to give the individual a mirror to view their behavior and become aware of how they can improve. Understanding oneself and developing the ability to motivate others are the pillars of leadership.

ESLS will match leaders with coaches which will enable them to maximize the development opportunity. Coaches initially will come through contractual agreements established through ESLS branch. ESLS will be available to provide short term situational coaching as requested.

How does coaching help?

Those who benefit the most from coaching are those individuals who share their confidential issues and work with their coach to find solutions that work. The executive coach is a partner who learns who the leader is - not just at the surface but at a deep level - and understands and supports their goals. The objective is to help the leader achieve a new level of effectiveness. We talk about the things that matter to the individual so we can help them confidently develop your leadership skills and map out their road to success.