It’s hard to believe that Mint Chip Studios is nearly two years old already. How time flies. Here are a few highlights of the past year:
Counseling a client throughout the launch of a performance management system
Completing a 4-day Team Coaching course
Launching the Saroga 360
Deepening my involvement with the Boston Facilitator’s Roundtable
Working with a variety of clients on small coaching projects
Do not wait for strength before setting out, for immobility will weaken you further. Do not wait to see clearly before starting; one has to walk toward the light. When you take the first step and accomplish that tiny little act, the necessity of which may be apparent only to you, you will be astonished to feel that the effort, rather than exhausting your strength, has doubled it—and that you already see more clearly what you have to do next.
Philippe Vernier
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT
I had great fun last year helping a client launch a new performance management system. Over about 12 months, we designed a suite of goal-setting tools and processes, defined key competencies for senior staff, trained the team to give and receive feedback, and linked compensation to results. I also coached the CEO around longer-term strategic questions regarding growth and succession planning. I was thrilled to hear that they successfully completed their second annual review process while I was on maternity leave last fall. I know I've done my job when a client does a new process without me.
TEAM COACHING
Completing a 4-day Team Coaching training course taught by Georgetown faculty Alexander Caillet and Chris Wahl was a big accomplishment personally. Team coaching is a specialized approach to working with teams that helps team members not only develop an awareness of their collective performance but also improve their overall effectiveness by adopting proven tools and methods for collaboration. Because team coaching takes place within regular meetings and during real work time, I find it a much more effective approach for developing new skills and habits than offsite team building or coursework. I am excited to bring this coaching to my clients as it is an elegant method for increasing a group's capacity for achieving real and sustainable results.
SAROGA - THE NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP FORUM
With my Saroga colleagues, we developed and launched an online leadership assessment tool last summer: the Saroga 360. Based on Saroga's leadership model, this 360 helps nonprofit leaders identify and develop essential skills. We are also in the midst of creating nonprofit coaching and performance management products, which will be introduced later this year.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Deepening my involvement with the Boston Facilitator’s Roundtable, a local professional development network, was another high point. In addition to attending monthly meetings prior to my son’s birth, I helped to moderate the listserv (with more than 500 members) and hope to be developing future programs for BFR members this coming year. As a solo practitioner, this is one way I attempt to keep honing my skills.
COACHING
The bulk of my work continues to be working with a variety of clients on coaching projects. While the specifics of each engagement differ, we tend to focus on issues of recruiting and developing talent within small and rapidly growing organizations. Among others, I worked with an immigration lawyer, an entrepreneur, and a real estate agent this year. It is fascinating to see how people working in such diverse fields face similar challenges.