BUILDING MOMENTUM IS KEY TO SUCCESS
Over the years, one of the more rewarding parts of my executive coaching offering has been in the group coaching of underrepresented groups. I have had the privilege of working with some amazing talent, coaching their managers, skip-level managers or sponsors on how best they can work with the talent to progress their careers.
I have worked with companies and organisations across the finance, tech, law and media industries. The one thing they all had in common was a relatively homogenous leadership bench and a willingness to want to rectify that effectively.
One of the apparent challenges of coaching an underrepresented group is the whataboutery of the staff that fall outside these groups. Ignoring the systems, apparent or otherwise, that slow or prevent progression for underrepresented groups (the clue’s in the name. No?). Still, we work with clients brave enough to recognise that there is no one-size-fits-all for reaching and empowering specific cohorts in their talent pool.
Most recently, Madeline and I have been working in partnership with a few firms around how they can help with the progression of Black and Black Mixed talent. Coaching talent and their leaders on some of the shared challenges for this group and how to navigate them effectively, such as power dynamics in the office, tapping into sponsorship opportunities, stakeholder management, effective communication and self-worth.
With our Momentum Executive Coaching programme, we demonstrate to our clients the opportunities around talent development, customer success and the bottom line that can and does occur when empowering and giving agency to such colleagues.
The Workplace is a Chess Game
The Momentum Executive Coaching programme has also been applied to working with high-performing talent who are often overlooked because leaders don’t know how to navigate across cultures, men who are ill-equipped to support women in leadership, individuals who hold themselves back because of narratives they have built around class or the intersectionality of them all.
The idea of meritocracy in the workplace is a noble one but flawed. Apparently, if you keep your head down and work hard, people will notice your talent and reward you with promotions and positions matching that output. The reality is that the workplace is a chess game. Certain moves have to be made if you want serious career progression. By all means, work hard, but you also have to work smart. Build a solid network of people who will vouch for you, learn power dynamics and how to read the room. This is how you build the momentum that drives you towards that next step on your career path.
In our work, we have identified many individuals who don’t know how to play this game and don’t want to because they believe in this notion of meritocracy. Brilliant ideas and innovations have been trampled or stolen. Cases of harassment and bullying often end with the victim having to leave instead of the perpetrator. Individuals stagnate at certain levels while watching others progress through nepotism. Pay rises, and discretionary bonuses appear from nowhere because organisations thrive on a lack of transparency. Now tell me again how meritocracy works…
As coaches, we are very aware of the organisational dance many have to do and the lack of awareness that many from underrepresented backgrounds have around this. The only tool many have in their bag is one of hard work and the endless quest for qualifications. There must be more than a relentless work ethic to aspire to professional excellence in the modern-day workforce. Our coaching explores how those who don’t know this system can leverage it without losing their integrity and values.
From thought leadership to sponsorship, leading up to career mapping, strategic thinking to conflict management techniques. We draw on several tools and strategies to help our clients bridge the gap between where they are and where they want to be.
Most of our executive coaching targets senior executives and managers in the C suite and V level of large to medium-sized organisations. What we have come to realise over the years is that, within these organisations, there is an untapped talent pipeline of senior leaders from underrepresented backgrounds just below this level who need to know how to navigate senior leadership.
We take pride in Momentum being a solution for people who are too often overlooked and undervalued. We see you, and we see your value; let’s make them see it too.
The Momentum Executive Coaching programme is the opportunity to invest in yourself and your people. Take the first step toward more rewarding and equitable leadership. Get in touch with my team today.
