Becoming Presidential – Not Just in Title but Also in Substance

Challenge

Annie worked in a publicly traded global technology company and earned a great promotion to the CXO level. But soon after her executive appointment, she was delicately informed that her overall presence was not communicating a distinctly CXO demeanor. The board wanted her to work with a coach to cultivate a powerful presence that would allow her to make tough decisions with ease and authoritatively navigate her teams through challenging situations. They also wanted her coach to provide practical ideas to maximize effectiveness, impact, and legacy.

Solution

Diagnosis: We applied a 3-step holistic approach to evaluate Annie’s readiness and identify potential barriers to her success as a CXO: stakeholder insights, assessment, and gameplan Flow. During the insight session, the stakeholders shared that Annie needs to inspire others to take action even under pressure. Guided by Coach Vikram’s proprietary research-based Executive Presence Index (EPI) assessment, we measured the behaviors that would enable her to command with ease. The EPI showed that Annie needed to build her ability to see the big picture and take decisions with greater conviction. Finally, during the game plan design we determined priorities for coaching goals, milestones toward achieving her leadership goals. and measurements of success.

Mindset Shift: As part of her coaching conversations, Annie confided in Coach Vikram that she was intimidated by the unprecedented challenges from the board and regulators. Coach Vikram helped Annie overcome  her internal obstacles and eliminate blind spots that hindered her senior leadership performance. Through coaching, Annie was able to realize how she was letting her own beliefs contribute to a clouded vision of reality. With customized daily micro-rituals Annie was able to shift her mind and get ready to take decisive action and make hard, strategic choices. 

Behavioral Shift: Using techniques from improv, method acting, and role play, Annie learned how to appreciate her own contribution to the organization and how to reach a higher level of performance. Through daily touch-points with CoachVikram she practiced her practical actions to come across as a credible authority These tiny yet powerful creative steps inspired Annie with the priceless intangible qualities that stakeholders specifically look for in a CXO.

Results

Annie’s 12-month coaching journey had a huge impact on her thinking and decision-making. She learned to adapt her behaviors and use practical tools to connect more powerfully with key stakeholders and senior management. This led to stronger support and buy-in than she had initially believed possible. Today, Annie displays strong leadership gravitas while dealing with ambiguity and complexity, she stays calm under pressure, and she brings out the best from each of her varied teams. Most importantly, she drove strategic transformation initiatives to successful completion and delivered on the bottom-line growth to position the company for the next era of growth and innovation.