From SSL’s start, coaching has been at the heart of our work. As with all services that SSL offers, coaching is individualized from the start. Each partner has the flexibility to design the work as best meets the needs of the client, since some clients are brand-new, first-time heads and others are veterans. New heads have a chance to look at a “curriculum” that we developed to help a head through that dizzying first year. In that way the work may be weighted a bit toward mentoring. But all our work aims at the goal of true thought partnership. Because our clients set the agenda for each of our biweekly meetings, every session is different. The goal, however, remains constant: how can we help the school leader thrive in the work.
To make our coaching as effective as possible, SSL offers three signature features:
School Visit – We offer a day-long school visit as part of all our coaching engagements. Early in the consultancy, the coach spends a day on the client’s campus, holding meetings with senior administrators and, if so desired, with the board chair. These meetings are exploratory, not evaluative, asking each person or small group to define the central issues facing the school both in the current academic year and into the future. A full confidential report without attribution is shared following the visit. This visit ensures a greater depth of shared knowledge about school culture, values, and leadership than can be gained otherwise.
Topics – As mentioned above, as a starting point for new heads, SSL offers a curriculum of sorts: a list of 24 topics for the client’s consideration for the year ahead. These include such items as the board/head relationship, school finance, habits of leadership, working with the Board chair and values-based strategic decision making. The client prioritizes the topics according to interest and need, so that the coach can set aside time for focused work on each of the selected topics.
ROC – The third SSL signature feature is available for clients who are ready to take their next step in advanced leadership development. The Return on Character Leadership Assessment incorporates coaching in a year-long process, with detailed analysis of the head’s leadership along four parameters of character: Integrity, Responsibility, Compassion, and Forgiveness. In a recent meeting of ISAS Heads of School, one of our clients cited his Return on Character work as the single most effective and significant professional development experience of his career.
The foundational purpose of SSL coaching is to use our extensive experience to build and extend leadership skills – one client at a time – designed with and specifically for each client. It’s tailored, personal, and distinctive every time.