The Executive Advisor™
Why Use Eric Herrenkohl As Your Executive Coach?
Every executive can benefit from an independent coach who asks great questions, helps you to think through issues, provides guidance & expertise and offers appropriate accountability. I have been working with executive coaching clients since 2002 in organizations such as Bank of America, Edward Jones, Ernst & Young, Northwestern Mutual Life, and agencies in the Omnicom Group. In that time and drawing upon those experiences I have developed the Executive Advisor™ Program. This program captures the coaching strategies that work well and leaves behind those strategies that may get a lot of press but unfortunately don’t work.
Results From The Executive’s Advisor Program
Your goals and your results from coaching are unique to you. My current and past clients have made significant improvements in areas including:
1. Improving your effectiveness as a leader.
2. Improving your effectiveness as a manager.
3. Developing confidence to pursue a new direction and new goals.
4. Sharpening your thinking about your business and your life.
5. Learning to surround yourself with talented, effective people.
6. Overcoming difficult team dynamics.
7. Improving personal organization skills.
8. Improving communication.
9. Working effectively with difficult individuals.
10. Improving trust on your team and within your organization.
11. Creating a culture of accountability within your company.
12. Leading people to focus on results that matter.
13. Improving business development skills.
14. Creating a results oriented company culture.
15. Leading leaders.
16. Delegating more effectively.
17. Hiring A-players.
How The Process Works
Most coaching engagements have an initial intake period and then a coaching program. During the initial intake section of the program we use anywhere from 1-3 sessions to clarify your goals and uncover the issues that have to be addressed to allow you to improve your results. During this intake period I use assessments and interviews to gather intelligence we need to create a coaching roadmap below (see You Can’t Get Good Results Without Good Information, below). Depending upon the program, I may spend 1-3 days with you initially to observe you in action and get face-to-face feedback from your associates.
During the coaching section of the program, we work together via face-to-face sessions, phone sessions, or a combination of the two. Typically, my clients and I meet 1-2 times per month (occasionally this is extended to 3 monthly sessions for a period of time when warranted).
Program Duration
The program lasts anywhere from 3 to 12 months. You have the option to renew the program if we both agree it will be valuable to do so. Fees are determined based on the results we are seeking to achieve, and all fees are payable at the beginning of the program.
Access
Every client can choose a version of the program that provides unlimited access to me via email and brief phone conversations between sessions.
You Can’t Get Good results Without Good Data
The best coaching starts with the most accurate understanding of you, those with whom you work, and the environment and culture in which you work. As an executive coaching client, your coach should help you to understand both the actual and perceived challenges you must overcome. I say actual and perceived because in organizations, it is not enough to be good – you must be perceived to be good.
Therefore, as part of our coaching work together, I put a big emphasis on helping you to get unbiased, actionable data to use in making yourself better. This data comes through leadership and management assessments that you complete and we interpret together. It comes through my in-person observations of your actions. I also use phone interviews, in-person interviews, and 360 degree assessments to gather intelligence that we use to shape our coaching strategy.
The most dangerous problems are the ones that you don’t uncover until it is too late. I help my coaching clients get clear on both their opportunities and their challenges, and then put a plan in place to capitalize on the former and eliminate the latter. The result is terrific executives who are able to take themselves and their organizations to the next level. There is nothing I love to do more than help a terrific person win in their career and in their life. That is what coaching is to me.
A Good Coach Provides Both Questions and Answers
I have found that strong executives benefit most from a coach who asks great questions but is willing to provide specific direction as well. You will get a lot of benefit from my questions – we will think together about the strategy and tactics you will use to improve your results. But I will not hesitate to give you my opinion, and I know that executives want to learn lessons and best practices from all the other individuals and organizations with which I work. If I don’t know the answer to a question, I will tell you so and we will work together to find the right answer.
Are We A Fit?
If you have a serious interest in improving your effectiveness as a leader and manager, you and I will hold a no-fee conversation in which I can learn about your goals and you can learn about my track record and approach. We can see if we are a good fit for one another. If the conversation goes well, I will provide you with a list of coaching references that you can contact prior to engaging me as your coach.
What Clients Have To Say
“What impresses me with Eric is his ability to quickly grasp the issues that are of most importance to me and my business. Whether it is in his work with me individually or leading a vision and strategy session for my management team, he knows how to uncover and clarify issues that are vital to our success. And, he follows up to make sure that we turn these insights into results."
Mel Bilbo
CEO
Herschend Family Entertainment
‘‘As a sales executive, my responsibilities start with initiating and developing strong client relationships. I also have a responsibility to be an effective leader and coach for my internal team. I found Eric to be a great resource for growing as an internal leader. His approach to coaching is strategic, in that he understands the larger business and organizational issues that affect my team. Eric is personal and practical. He cares that his clients succeed in their careers and in their lives, and this genuine interest comes through in his coaching. Most importantly, he knows how to get results when it comes to people and organizations. I view my work with him as an investment that benefited me and the Bank as a whole.’’
Marilyn Bush
Senior Vice President
Middle Market Banking
Bank of America
‘‘Eric has the unique ability to diagnose problems quickly and accurately. He truly listens to understand and gets to the core issues. He challenges where appropriate and always adds value. Eric helps me be a better thinker.’’
Todd Chandler
Divisional Vice President, Learning and Performance
Helzberg Diamonds
"Eric, I want to thank you for taking me through your personal vision setting process. I found the process to be an invaluable piece of the puzzle in helping me to make an effective transition into my new career. I gained clarity and insight into the kind of work that truly ties to my motivations and abilities. It has been over a year since I completed the process, and I continue to appreciate the valuable role the process played in my current success. Thank you for your help, and I recommend this process to other executives in work and life transition."
Greg Hutchings
Principal
Mills Properties, Inc.
"I have realized that everyone can benefit from a strong, experienced outside person to provide insight, perspective, and accountability. Eric has a very strong and broad business background, and I have been able to benefit from the lessons he has learned working with other strong executives. I know that I have been able to use Eric to develop my knowledge and discipline in areas like leadership, time management, sales psychology, and personal focus. He is a strong person, but is enjoyable to speak with. I highly recommend him.”
Mark Neumann
Managing Director
Northwestern Mutual Financial Network
‘‘Eric, you did a great job of helping me to simultaneously achieve my business and personal goals. You were honest and challenging but encouraging. I appreciate the fact that you started our work by working to understand me – my strengths, my goals, and my weaknesses. You are highly professional in that you worked quickly and effectively to enable me to achieve my goals – I never felt that you were dragging the process out in order to extend the amount of time that I worked with you. Most importantly, even after our coaching has ended I am operating at a higher level of effectiveness than I was when I started working with you.’’
Tim Salzman
Investment Representative
Edward Jones
"The personal vision setting process that Eric guided me through far exceeded my expectations. Working with Eric helped me to not only identify my true motivators and talents, but also enabled me to understand the role that a person’s attributes play in business. With this knowledge I will easily be able to communicate a clear and accurate picture of the business and personal value I bring to any organization."
Jeffrey Topel
Territory Services Leader
IBM