Over the past few months, I’ve been fortunate to coach 17 people at a financial services organization on their CliftonStrengths.
Many of you likely know that I spent nearly two decades in educational leadership, committed to fostering positive, growth-based cultures.
When I started this work with finance professionals, I was confident that my study and practice in leadership, combined with my training in executive coaching, would enable me to add value.
Still, I wondered: would it matter to my clients that my background was different from theirs?
What Matters Most in Coaching?
There’s compelling evidence that industry expertise isn’t a key factor in coaching—and may even get in the way.
Sir John Whitmore, a key figure in developing coaching as a discipline, emphasized that, when coaches are experts in their clients’ industry, they’re often tempted to tell people what to do rather than help them discover solutions themselves. That telling, Whitmore argued, “negates choice, disempowers, limits potential and demotivates”—all working against coaching’s core goals of building self-awareness, responsibility, and sustained performance.
Further, a 2024 study in Coaching: An International Journal of Theory, Research and Practice explored this question and found that what mattered wasn’t industry expertise—it was having experience at a similar organizational level.
That finding resonated with me because it captured what I believed I could offer as a coach across industries: study and practice in senior leadership, combined with my particular strengths and approach.
In my case, I had the privilege of working with outstanding individuals at the financial services organization, and I was grateful to receive positive feedback about the sessions.
“The experience was exceptional. Katie’s ability to not only explain the CliftonStrengths framework but also apply it in meaningful, everyday ways made a lasting impact on our team. I highly recommend Katie to any organization looking to deepen self-awareness, enhance team dynamics, and cultivate a strengths-based culture.” – HR Business Partner
At the Core of My Work
I really enjoy coaching educational leaders (and I’m also conscious of Whitmore’s emphasis of the importance of helping my clients discover solutions themselves). And I also enjoy—and believe I can add real value—working with leaders across industries. My practice is currently about evenly split between the education and corporate sectors, and that diversity enriches my work in both.
I focus on building strengths-based cultures ✨—working with accomplished leaders to amplify their strengths for greater success and fulfillment.
My particular combination of CliftonStrengths is also well-suited to working with a diverse set of leaders. My Individualization means I’m genuinely curious about what makes each person and organizational culture unique. My Strategic thinking helps me spot patterns across different contexts—I can see what’s universal even when the vocabulary differs. And my Relator theme builds the trust that’s essential for any coaching relationship.
These strengths enable me to help leaders at two levels: understanding and amplifying their own natural gifts, and then extending that strengths-based approach to build cultures where their entire teams can flourish.
New Program! Building Strengths-Based Teams
This latter is precisely why my colleague Yom Fox and I created Leading as One, a program for division leaders and their teams in independent schools.
Division leaders face challenges that are not dissimilar to those I see in corporate settings, compounded by the unique pressures of the school environment. They’re leading at a senior level, navigating competing priorities across stakeholders, building culture while managing operations—with colleagues whose strengths and styles may differ quite a bit from their own.
Leading as One helps leadership teams align vision, streamline decision-making, build trust and communication, and lead coordinated change by building on each division’s unique strengths rather than forcing uniformity.
Building a strengths-based culture—whether in education or a corporation—starts with leaders who understand their own strengths and can recognize and develop others’ unique contributions.
Curious about how this program could work for your school’s leadership team? Click on the image below to learn more!
What I Keep Learning
The more I coach across settings, the more apparent this becomes: excellent coaching is not about industry expertise.
It’s about helping people see what they naturally do well and creating conditions for them to do more of it.
That work matters everywhere. ✨
P.S. Curious about how to empower your team to lead from their strengths? As a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, I help leaders and teams do more of what they do well each day. I’d love to connect.
P.P.S. Educational leaders: Want to learn more about how Leading as One could help your school’s leadership team? Please reach out!