Professional Expertise
John is an executive coach, CEO mentor, author, and teacher of coaching. He is sought by senior executives at Fortune 500 corporations, government organizations, nonprofits, and entrepreneurs for his leadership expertise and knowledge. John has coached for over 25 years, and his clients say that he is a creative, practical coach who helps them achieve breakthroughs in their ability to lead teams and organizations effectively, as well as to deepen and clarify their personal aspirations for current and future leadership roles.
John works with his clients to explore how they understand and leverage their experiences in order to become better leaders. He helps clients look at opportunities and problems to stimulate their creative thinking on how to lead more effectively through challenge and change. His style is to encourage leaders to take stock of and build upon their strengths. He works particularly well with leaders who need to deepen their emotional intelligence skills, and he helps them to translate these skills into actions, leading to improved results for their organizations.
In addition to his coaching practice, John serves as a faculty member for the coaching certification programs at both Columbia University and the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara. He is also an adjunct faculty for the M.B.A. Leadership program at Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri.
John is the author of several books as well as a freelance writer of over 70 articles for publications such as the Washington Post and Training magazine. John pioneered ‘open-book’ management practices and their tie to balanced scorecards. He previously served as a Chairman for The Executive Committee (Vistage), a peer-learning group for CEOs, in both Kansas City and Cincinnati.
Recent Coaching Assignments
- COO at a insurance brokerage firm to modify his ‘go fast’ work style in order to successfully engage team members in his new business initiatives
- President of $1 billion division of a Fortune 300 firm to choose the right priorities for strategic growth, as well as to address his feelings about his expanded leadership role and to clarify his future career goals
- Newly-appointed CEO of a manufacturing company to ensure his successful transition into the role
- CFO of a large telecommunications company who, while operationally effective and technically brilliant, needed to learn to manage his leadership team more effectively
- Executive Director of a non-profit to adapt her drive for perfection and wide-ranging goals in order to accomplish the most important priorities with the support of her team
- Treasurer of a Fortune 100 company to maintain the organization’s morale amid significant change and business re-structuring
- Head of Innovation for a large animal products company to design and execute an innovation program to maximize customer benefit, and simultaneously create a company culture of innovation
- CEO of a construction company to help manage conflict between senior executives
- CFO at a Fortune 40 company to help navigate the CEO’s expectations of his team and organization
- Attorney in a Senior Counsel role to improve his communication skills, because his strong opinions and domineering communication style exhausted his partners and team members
Education and Professional Affiliations
- B.A. and M.A. in English, summa cum laude, Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH
- Certified Coach and Faculty Member, Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara
- PCC Certification, International Coach Federation