Alexis Stern Coaching & Consulting

This week, I had the privilege of facilitating a workshop with the executive team of SPM Communications, a top woman-owned, women-led PR firm in Dallas. Guided by their longstanding “no jerks” policy, these thoughtful and engaged leaders are one of the only things that could bring me back to the Texas heat in August!

Together, we:
✔️Strengthened trust and positive relationships
✔️Built deeper self- and team-awareness, including our default reactivity styles
✔️Learned and practiced techniques for easier, more effective collaboration, including engaging in productive conflict and giving direct, compassionate feedback
✔️Gave lots of love to the sweetest office dogs that came in and out all day

The energy, candor, and commitment in the room were remarkable and a testament to what can happen when high-performing leaders create intentional space to reflect, learn, and grow together.

Strong leadership teams don’t happen by chance. They continuously and intentionally invest in themselves, in each other, and in the practices that make collaboration more effective and fulfilling, leading to healthier cultures for all employees. Everything comes from the top, after all.

If your team is ready to strengthen trust, navigate challenges with confidence and care, and elevate how you work together, let’s chat.

✨ Exciting milestone: I’ve officially earned my Professional Certified Coach (PCC) Credential from the International Coaching Federation (ICF)!

The PCC requires more than 125 hours of coach-specific training, 500+ hours of coaching experience, and a rigorous assessment process focused on the ICF Core Competencies and Code of Ethics.

What it means to me:
🔹 Over 50 leaders coached 1:1
🔹 Small groups and teams supported through deep, intentional coaching
🔹 Nearly 200 hours of training, including mentor coaching and leadership specialization
🔹 And successfully passing the most challenging situational judgment exam I’ve taken (and I genuinely love tests!)

This milestone is a reflection of the trust my clients place in me and my commitment to continued growth and learning. I’m excited to keep supporting leaders and teams as they navigate change, deepen self-awareness, and lead with purpose.

Just wrapped up an inspiring few days leading the Malone Schools Online Network annual cohorts summer workshop with 10 outstanding educational leaders from independent schools across the nation. ✨

This marks the third year of bringing leaders together for this unique experience, and what makes it especially meaningful is how this community continues to grow. Nearly every participant this year joined because someone who experienced it before personally encouraged them to be part of it by sharing how transformational the opportunity had been for their own leadership and development.

These leaders came together to prepare for a yearlong small group cohort where they will meet monthly to grow, reflect, and support one another. They had to get to know each other and get comfortable being authentic and vulnerable - and in under three days, it’s at lightning speed!

Throughout our time together, they:
✅ Strengthened self-awareness
✅ Cultivated curiosity and thoughtful questioning
✅ Learned to identify and challenge assumptions, interpretations, and limiting beliefs
✅ Established group norms and conversation protocols

Most importantly, they laid the foundation for a trusted, supportive community. By the end, it was hard to believe they had only just met—they left as colleagues, collaborators, and with what one could call their own new personal board of directors.

There is something remarkable about watching leaders connect, challenge themselves, and commit to growing together. Excited to see how this new cohort will continue that journey in the year ahead.

And the beauty provided by the beautiful grounds and Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture, as well as the unparalleled hospitality provided by the folks at The Johnson Foundation at Wingspread made the experience even more memorable!

An enormous shout out to Reanna Ursin whose forward-thinking brought us here three years ago, and whose dedication (and insanely impressive organization) brings enables these amazing experiences each year. 👏

What an awesome few days in Nashville meeting with some of my amazing school leadership clients, former colleagues, and my fellow consultants in the LeadTeam Partners group at NAIS.

(And of course, some time listening to good live music on Broadway and visiting the Country Music Hall of fame to honor my Dallas roots.)

The International Coaching Federation released the 2024 coaching return on investment report. And the results of working with an effective coach are incredible.

More here: https://coachingfederation.org/blog/coaching-roi-2024

Had the privilege of working with these educational leaders from eight different independent schools across the country last week.

While they came to the workshop as strangers, they quickly built trusting relationships, heightened their collaborative and discussion skills, and are prepared to be part of a yearlong intentional mastermind group that will meet monthly and serve as members of each other’s personal board of directors.

Thanks to Malone Schools Online Network for trusting me to do this work again. And doing it in beautiful Palos Verdes wasn’t the worst!

Why leadership development programs fail - and the fixes! - https://mailchi.mp/alexisstern.com/why-leadership-development-programs-fail-and-the-fixes

With billions of dollars spent annually on leadership development, why do nearly half of leaders fail within their first 18 months?

Common pitfalls and a plan to address them!

By 11 AM, one of the leaders said, “I want more workshops like this.”

Such a fun group to work with last week. The CEO, COO, VP, and other senior leaders and store managers came together to do a 2024 kickoff leadership workshop. Leaders learned: reactivity patterns and fixes in self and others, emotional intelligence and how to acknowledge emotions of others, as well as some basic leadership and coaching skills to apply immediately. Hassett Hardware is a longstanding Bay Area company that has seen immense growth recently, and their success can be explained in part because they focus on culture first. They also work hard to develop employees into leaders internally and have a community-first approach. What a blast!

It’s December 31, 2024. You’ve had a year of growth - a journey to fulfillment, including achieving more balance through setting boundaries and managing others’ expectations, prioritizing your wants and learning to best meet your needs, and you’ve led with intention. You’ve done so with the support of an active ally - your coach. Time flies by - let’s start this year off with resolutions that can impact the rest of your life and put your personal and professional development at the center. It’s not a gym membership or a diet, but it will strengthen your true core.

Super exciting to meet one of my first virtual leadership workshop participants when I was in the Bay Area last week. Love that the cohorts keep in touch with each other and with me.

There’s so much added value and growth and joy when a team engages in sustained learning and development over time and especially with multiple components - be it a needs-driven combo of workshops, 1:1 coaching, consulting, and more. Just finished a second workshop with this fantastic leadership team. Looking forward to continuing this work in 2024.

The November newsletter is out! What's plaguing your team - and what's the cure?

Plus: a resource spotlight on managing employee disability disclosures, self-awareness awareness assessments, and more!

Visit: https://mailchi.mp/4c116a9fd681/asnov2023?