A refrain emerged during my third session with the EVP of a fast growing middle market company: “Our president, Mary, does not know what she is doing!” As the conversation developed over the next few sessions, my client presented reasoned, explicit examples and expressed clear frustration. Imagine my surprise when I interviewed Mary in the course of a verbal 360 assessment and discovered she was an insightful, experienced manager with her own concerns about executive team dynamics.

This discussion deals explicitly with the relationship between two members of an executive team.  The title VP represents the client (second in command) who reports to the Chief Executive or CEO. 

Am I coaching the wrong person?

While working with the CEO may cross your mind, focus on your client. If an opportunity to work with the team surfaces, it will come from a successful engagement with the VP. Five steps frame an effective coaching plan.

Allow time to understand complex situations

Coaching engagements are seldom simple and linear. Relationships between members of the executive team tend to be complex, reflecting differences in experience, education and often generational perspectives. Maintain perspective and avoid taking sides. 

Allow time to understand the situation before locking into a coaching plan. As appropriate, use a Verbal 360 Assessment to interview stakeholders both above/below and at the same level in the organization. Remember to ask your client to reference people outside the organization, including consultants, vendors and if appropriate, board members.    

Sometimes information uncovered during a 360 stimulates insights about topics not covered in earlier interviews.  Asking permission to come back opens the door to building a more comprehensive understanding of our client’s ecosystem.

Perceptions Drive Actions

Unspoken assumptions about motivation, behavior, style and conceptual patterns frequently emerge in coaching conversations with VPs. 

Technically trained executives often model reality, using their models to “fill in blanks”. Their colleagues trained in more classical settings look for guidance in the logic of language supported by examples (data). A VP may look for solutions in a different way than their CEO and the dissonance can be a barrier to effective communication. These differences are seldom articulated.

Recognition of how perceptions drive action opens the door to explore opportunities to communicate clearly and use differences in approach as an asset to the CEO and leadership team. Focus on specific examples to uncover ways people talk past each other. Look for bias and perceived links between motivation and behavior.

Hidden Drivers

A VP sometimes shares specific “private” information about circumstances outside the office that influence CEO behaviors. This is tricky ground for the coach and may raise ethical or legal considerations. The best way to handle darker situations is always to refer to other professionals or walk away. However, in most cases hidden drivers are simply another constraint to identify, discuss and handle.  Ask but do not dwell on hidden drivers.

It is Always about Communication

Building successful executive teams is always about communication. Unspoken assumptions and failure to identify and share information appropriately are more normal than exceptional. Encourage clients to recognize the natural thinking and decision processes of the CEO and other executive team members. Work through specific dialog examples to resolve issues that develop around “talking past” each other.

Beyond their operational and strategic scope, a VP owns the special challenge of reporting to the CEO. Senior executives typically adopt or develop “lean” processes focused on moving efficiently through their daily activities. Styles vary considerably, ranging from “ivory tower” to “walk around” conceptual patterns. CEOs tend to adopt specific practices of communicating with other executives that offer both openings and block open communication. 

Encourage the VP to identify information gaps and ways to fill them with the CEO. For some, this may be a semi-formal document, for others a quick briefing or even a clear, short update at the executive “standup meeting”. There will always be a way to communicate key information to the CEO and other members of the team. 

Assert viewpoints, support decisions

Roles in an organization establish guide-wires on activities and accountability. The VP has responsibility for managing specific functions and coordinating with others to run an effective business. As leaders, every VP brings strategic and tactical viewpoints about people and processes that connect the business to its ecosystem of customers, suppliers and other stakeholders. To be an effective leader, the VP must join and help drive effective conversations.

The coaching plan focuses on four concepts:

• Openly express thoughts and ideas in a positive way
• Focus on key issues
• Engage in dialogs that lead to the best outcomes
• Support decisions and move forward

A successful coaching engagement comes when the VP effectively asserts viewpoints, engages in positive discussions and supports the CEO – even when not aligned with personal perspectives.