Become a more effective executive
Succeeding as an executive does not mean doing more of what previously made you successful in your career. It requires a completely different mindset.
Early in your career
You are rewarded for working harder and independently solving problems.
You earn more credibility by knowing more and building domain expertise.
You get more scope (and promoted!) by taking on more with a “can-do” attitude.
But that all changes as an executive:
You build and lead teams and systems to solve problems rather than do the work yourself.
You ask questions of the experts to manage trade offs across different domains.
You decide on the top strategic priorities to address, and deliver results through others by mobilizing and coordinating people across different functions and perspectives.
What’s particularly difficult about this transition is that nobody prepares you to be effective at this level; they expect you to just figure it out. I’ve had many clients come to me in frustration that they are no longer exceeding expectations as they once were, and I’m the first person to tell them that their job has changed. I’ve also had clients who feel stuck and can’t figure out what is keeping them from reaching their next level of leadership. This offering is designed to share the secrets of this transition with a wider audience.
To learn more about the executive mindset, check out the 30-minute webinar I did with Maven where I shared 3 specific transitions: Results not Effort, Risk then Reward, Clarity then Focus.
This masterclass is for you if you want to:
Increase your confidence and executive presence.
Gain influence across the leadership team.
Develop a path for continued career growth without working unsustainable hours.
Deliver on complex projects through influence and persuasion rather than control.
Better handle difficult conversations, including political conflict, while remaining calm.
Become more strategic, rather than fighting urgent fires on less-important issues.
Set the culture by role modeling the principles and values you want others to follow.
Note that when I say “executive”, I’m not talking about a specific title. These skills apply to C-level leaders in an early-stage startup, VPs at a later-stage startup, or directors at a bigger company. They can be relevant even if you don’t have a team reporting to you, as they allow you to create greater impact beyond what you can do as an individual contributor, as I learned when I was a Chief of Staff.
What I expect of you
The willingness to try new things, even if they are uncomfortable. The only thing you control is your next action, so we will be focused on the changes you can make in your own behavior to get different results.
Vulnerably exploring the ways in which that behavior has worked for you in the past,
The courage to experiment with a different response to find a new path forward.
What you will have when you finish
The presence to walk into board meetings and be heard.
The skills to effectively influence a broader range of stakeholders by speaking to their interests.
A roadmap towards your ideal job rather than just climbing a ladder that others define.
A vision of what needs to happen so you can ask for the help you need to create it.
Greater trust in your own resilient capacity to handle difficult situations.
Clarity about what really matters so you can say no to the things that don’t (this is the essence of strategic thinking).
An articulation of the values and principles that guide your decision making, and ideas of the structures and incentives you can enact to reinforce those principles.
I will help you become a more effective executive.
I have coached dozens of executives, from startup CxOs to directors and VPs at big tech companies, to shift their mindsets and become more effective in their roles. You can read how I have helped them in their own words on LinkedIn.
I have 25 years of experience in the tech world, including ten years working at various startups as an engineer and product manager, and ten years at Google, including six years leading business strategy and operations for the Search Ads team as Chief of Staff. This broad and deep experience means I know what it takes to be effective at every level of the organization and how those requirements shift as you advance.
I have distilled the executive mindset down to a few principles that you can start implementing immediately in your day-to-day work. Here are two examples: do the most important thing first and influence means presenting information in a way that people will receive it.
What you get as part of this masterclass
6 hour-long online interactive sessions, where I and guest speakers will describe a set of executive skills, and answer questions from the class. Then we will break into small groups to discuss how you can apply those skills in your current situation. I will also coach people around real-life situations that they share. These workshops will be recorded for your future reference.
Schedule: 9-10am Pacific (12-1pm Eastern, 6-7pm CET) on Fridays starting Sept. 27th through Nov. 8th (skipping the week of Oct. 18th)
1 hour-long individual coaching session with me (normally valued at over $1,000) to help you apply the workshop ideas to your situation.
A cohort of fellow executives who will be learning and practicing these skills with you. You will discover you are not alone in the challenges of developing these mindsets.
A private Slack group to connect with your cohort and share insights between sessions and after the workshop completes.
The fee for this workshop will be $2,500. There will be 2 pay-what-you-can scholarships available for those that need financial assistance - please contact me for details if you’d like to apply for those.