Until we had all the research, it was too easy for bottom-linefocused businesspeople to dismiss what we teach as ‘touchyfeely’. However, not a week goes by without a new paper being published that unequivocally demonstrates that managers who create a psychologically safe environment attract and retain the best people and get the best from them. Did we need research to tell us that when people feel appreciated and respected they will work harder, take more appropriate risks, have more and better ideas and collaborate more effectively with their teammates? Apparently, we did. I could go on all day about this stuff. It makes me gleeful. Do you have any particular pieces of advice for less experienced coaches who may be able to learn from your success? Not all coach certification programs focus as much as I believe they should on what I think of as Personal Foundation. This means having a deep awareness of oneself — strengths, frailties, values and core psychological needs. I think the best coaches have such clarity on those things that they can better put their own agendas aside and be 100% present to serve the client. The most overlooked skill that is the hallmark of mastery is self-regulation. What does this award mean to you? I am tickled pink. I have spent the last 33 years working passionately on first making coaching a legitimate profession, then experimenting with the application of coaching to improve large, complex systems. Scott Blanchard and I created the very first Coaching Management System and it took me decades to understand how revolutionary that was. We were also the first to champion the idea of democratising coaching. I tend to be laser-focused on continual improvement and serving clients and tend to be oblivious to publicity and awards. I do not know how you found me, but it means a lot to me that you did. What can we expect to see from The Ken Blanchard Companies and your other ventures as we near the end of the year? As a company, we work tirelessly to make our exquisitely useful content available to a wider audience using all available technologies. We will continue to offer the finest leadership coaching while searching for and finding new ways to leverage technology. I am keenly aware that coaches are competing with artificial intelligence. I love technology, so I see my job as taking the best of what AI has to offer and making the highest and best use of rare and special human-to-human contact. About Madeleine Blanchard Madeleine Homan Blanchard is the Chief Coaching Architect of The Ken Blanchard Companies® and a co-founder of Blanchard Coaching Services. She is also a co-creator of the Coaching Management System, Blanchard’s proprietary software designed to help deliver coaching on a large scale in organisations. Blanchard strives to help companies all over the world take better care of their people with extraordinary leadership development content, consulting, training and coaching. Madeleine has 30 years of coaching experience, during which she has often worked with organisations to leverage professional coaching, teach coaching skills to leaders and create a coaching culture. Her areas of coaching expertise are numerous and include personal purpose work, leadership presence and effectiveness, strategic focus, self-awareness and impact with others. Madeleine is also a co-author of Blanchard’s programs Blanchard Management Essentials® and Coaching Essentials® and speaks frequently on the topics of coaching and neuroscience. Madeleine has long been a pioneer in the coaching profession, serving as a senior trainer and founding advisory board member of Coach University and a founding board member of The International Coach Federation, where she served for six years. She developed The Manager as Coach for The Ariel Group and spent two years with Bregman Partners as the director for a coaching program taught to 2,100 people at Goldman Sachs. She is a also Certified Mentor Coach, a Certified Master Coach, and a graduate of Coach University. Madeleine received her Bachelor’s degree in Theatre and Performance Studies from Georgetown University and her Master of Science degree in NeuroLeadership from the University of Middlesex CEO Today Executive Coaching Awards 2022 - USA - - 35 -
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