Individual Coaching

We firmly believe that individuals bring their wealth of knowledge and experience to any coaching engagement. We are aligned with the definition of coaching as “a collaborative, solution-focussed, results oriented and systematic process” **.

Our focus is client centred, partnering with clients (and client organisations) to encourage them to discover and clarify the agenda, aligning with what they want to achieve, encouraging and challenging their self-discovery, eliciting client generated solutions and strategies, and holding them responsible and accountable for outcomes.

Words that clients have used to describe our coaching style would be empathic, pragmatic, non-judgemental, insightful, thought-provoking, and authentic.

Our clients have said that our coaching approach was appropriately challenging and supportive of them in reflecting, identifying and implementing their vision, values and objectives – focussed on helping them to make a difference through their leadership of situations for now and into the future.

Coaching packages are tailor-made to suit the needs of different clients and would normally include:

  • Initial discussion to begin to establish relationship and cover
    • goals for coaching assignment,
    • number of meeting, frequency and location,
    • type of contact (face to face, telephone, Facetime/Skype),
    • arrangements for contact outside of diarised sessions
    • use of any diagnostic tools (if appropriate)
    • how we will review/assess success of the coaching engagement
  • a number of one-to-one sessions (usually lasting an hour to 90 minutes)
  • consideration and use of appropriate feedback tools
  • post session reflection and final feedback/evaluation

** Grant (1999)

CONTACT THE TEAM

  • I wanted to thank you sincerely for the sessions, I got far more out of it than I expected, you've given me much food for thought, some great ideas and brilliant tips for keeping myself strong through this transition.

    Career Transition Senior Manager from Public Sector after Career Transition Coaching

  • The impact of your involvement has been evidenced by a refreshed take on my professional role and a re-vitalisation of purpose and aim in my perceived role as a professional educator. My horizons have been broadened by an increased awareness of the strategic importance of the headteacher role and the opportunity it presents to 'make a difference' to so many people's lives.

    Jim McCrory Headteacher at St Anthony's Primary School Armadale and Fellow of the Scottish College for Educational Leadership

  • “Lesley has proved to be a valuable source of independent advice and expertise across the whole range of issues associated with job sizing and organisational structure. Her rapid appreciation of the emerging roles and their place in our structure is impressive and I have appreciated the level of support and challenge she is able to provide me with in this crucial area. My managers have indicated that in their dealing with her, Lesley is well informed, experienced and able to offer her expertise in a confident and helpful manner”.  

    Elaine Tait Chief Executive, Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

  • “Feedback from our participants about their experience of being coached and engaging with Lesley has been consistently positive. She brings a wealth of experience as well as a flexible approach to coaching (offering challenge and support) that allows her to effectively work across the differing needs and contexts of our participants.”

    Lesley Whelan Depute CEO and Director of Programmes at SCEL

  • As an experienced head teacher I found the coaching sessions delivered by Lesley to be 'time well spent' as they resulted in high quality personal and professional development.  Lesley had the coaching experience to rapidly develop a strong connection with me based on confidentiality, trust and mutual respect. Through well-structured dialogue these coaching sessions facilitated self-reflection and generation of new insights. In addition they were productive with clear outcomes action points and time scales. Lesley was supportive and empathetic but also offered open and honest challenge.

    SCEL Fellow

  • Lesley's coaching sessions increased my ability to perform and made me a more effective as a leader; in my school, across the authority and in the wider context of educational leadership.

    SCEL Fellow

Team Coaching

We recognise that teams and team working are the energy that power most organisations. We have experience in working with organisations to develop team coaching approaches to ensure that it is clear:

  • What kind of team(s) people are working in, and the implications of this for them (and we can link this to our understanding of job and organisation design)
  • What are the dimensions that are most powerful in predicting the potential effectiveness of teams? And what do they look and feel like in your context?
  • If the teams have in place the foundations for developing into high performing teams
  • How to help the team members to work better with each other. How to reduce conflict, relate to one another, communicate effectively as a team (with each other and with others), improve working relationships, and, drive more effective performance.

Career Transition Coaching

REACH:REAlise and Change are also experienced in providing mentoring and outplacement/career transition coaching and support.

CONTACT THE TEAM

DIAGNOSTIC TOOLS

Find out what tools might be appropriate to support any stage of your realisation and change.

REALISE

DESIGN AND EVALUATION

Effective job and organisation design or structure, or, evaluating and sizing roles to support performance.

CHANGE

PEOPLE DEVELOPMENT

Personal and leadership development at an individual or team/leadership cohort level.

CHANGE

  • I wanted to thank you sincerely for the sessions, I got far more out of it than I expected, you've given me much food for thought, some great ideas and brilliant tips for keeping myself strong through this transition.

    Career Transition Senior Manager from Public Sector after Career Transition Coaching

  • As an experienced head teacher I found the coaching sessions delivered by Lesley to be 'time well spent' as they resulted in high quality personal and professional development.  Lesley had the coaching experience to rapidly develop a strong connection with me based on confidentiality, trust and mutual respect. Through well-structured dialogue these coaching sessions facilitated self-reflection and generation of new insights. In addition they were productive with clear outcomes action points and time scales. Lesley was supportive and empathetic but also offered open and honest challenge.

    SCEL Fellow

  • Lesley's coaching sessions increased my ability to perform and made me a more effective as a leader; in my school, across the authority and in the wider context of educational leadership.

    SCEL Fellow

  • “Lesley has proved to be a valuable source of independent advice and expertise across the whole range of issues associated with job sizing and organisational structure. Her rapid appreciation of the emerging roles and their place in our structure is impressive and I have appreciated the level of support and challenge she is able to provide me with in this crucial area. My managers have indicated that in their dealing with her, Lesley is well informed, experienced and able to offer her expertise in a confident and helpful manner”.  

    Elaine Tait Chief Executive, Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

  • “Feedback from our participants about their experience of being coached and engaging with Lesley has been consistently positive. She brings a wealth of experience as well as a flexible approach to coaching (offering challenge and support) that allows her to effectively work across the differing needs and contexts of our participants.”

    Lesley Whelan Depute CEO and Director of Programmes at SCEL

  • The impact of your involvement has been evidenced by a refreshed take on my professional role and a re-vitalisation of purpose and aim in my perceived role as a professional educator. My horizons have been broadened by an increased awareness of the strategic importance of the headteacher role and the opportunity it presents to 'make a difference' to so many people's lives.

    Jim McCrory Headteacher at St Anthony's Primary School Armadale and Fellow of the Scottish College for Educational Leadership
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