Coach's Perspective

Mary Jane Reed

For The Leader's Edge/Leaders By Design Washington D.C. Regional Vice President Mary Jane Reed, executive coaching was in her nature. Mary Jane had a thriving career in Human Resources at large firms such as Verizon (Bell Atlantic) and Nevada Energy. It was during her tenure as an HR professional that she realized her passion and talent for encouraging and developing executives as they faced various roadblocks in their career as they consistently sought her out for counsel. As Mary Jane says, "when I was the Head of HR, I found that the role I played to the CEO and other officers was that of a sounding board and a confidant"

Now that Mary Jane has more than 25 years of executive coaching under her belt, she shares some of her experiences and tips for leadership development:

How do you view your role as a coach?

I believe my role as a coach is to provide honest feedback about people's effectiveness -- what is working well for them and what might not be working so well for them. I'm also a sounding board to help executives explore other options and to encourage strategic thinking such as "is there another way of doing this?" or "what are the long-term or unintended consequences of taking this action?".

Most importantly, I am seeing with more and more clients that coaching helps them find the time to think. Executives are so busy -- doing work, responding to emails, going to meetings, putting out fires, etc. and they have no time for thinking. Coaching forces individuals to stop and take the time to think -- asking themselves how they impact the organization or questions such as "where do I want to be in a year?", "where do I want to the organization to be in a year?", or "what could be working better?".

What is the business culture in Washington DC like for executives? Are their certain skills that are more sought after in this region?

One aspect that is unique about the Washington D.C. region is that it is so centered around government. The defense industry and government contractors (like Lockheed Martin and Northrup Grumman) make up a large part of the job sector. Some of the skills that these industries value are project management, relationship and network building. However, we are now seeing other industries, such as hospitality with companies like Hilton and Marriott, establishing a strong presence in the region. As for the women leaders in Washington D.C., through my coaching work and associations I have found that they experience the same issues as women in other parts of country -- finding time, balance, self-promotion, and strategic networking to their own benefit.

Can you elaborate on what you mean when you say strategic networking?

There is a book titled ‘Never Have Lunch Alone', which I highly recommend reading, whose premise is that the lunch hour is a great time to network with others -- either inside your organization or outside of it -- who might be a beneficial contact to you. More and more I see executives holing up in their offices and using their lunch hour to catch up on email and other work. Ideally executives should try to network 1-2 times a week. You should look for opportunities, like lunch or even early morning coffee, to reach out to colleagues you have worked with in past, individuals in your own organization whom you don't know well but who are in collaborating departments or individuals in a similar role in a different company who might be helpful to you in sharing how they work to provide you with another viewpoint. If you are an introverted person, prepare a couple of ‘opening lines' to use to start the conversation such as, "I have admired how you manage your team. I would enjoy the opportunity to discuss with you the ways you create collaboration on your team".

Being that you are in the nation's capital during an economic downturn, how is leadership development being addressed, or is it?

Washington D.C. has a cushion to downturns due to the large government presence I spoke about earlier. The region is not recession proof, but the dips are not quite as deep as in other parts of the country. During this particular economic downturn, we are experiencing the normal belt-tightening. Unfortunately, some organizations see development as something that can be put off and this causes executives even more pressure. Using coaching shows an appreciation for the hard work of leaders during these stressful times and should be utilized to maintain an individual's performance as well as a retention tool.

Any advice for developing yourself in this current economic climate?

Just ask! We are sometimes reluctant to ask for development opportunities during tough times, but really you should never stop asking especially if you are able to demonstrate and articulate how the development can help you be more effective at your job. When you ask, make a case for it. Tie the development opportunity to the organization's goals or to a direct impact on your performance. For example, "executive coaching could help me lead my team more effectively through the changes occurring in our organization." When you ask for development, have a plan in mind. Don't just ask for training.