I’ve received several calls the last few months from companies and law firms seeking help for a high potential leader to cultivate “executive presence”. When I inquire into what they mean by executive presence I get a variety of responses.
I usually ask the HR person or actual potential executive coaching client to describe the leader’s current behavior and what having more executive presence would look like. The behaviors range from having more gravitas to talking less and listening more.
I’ve found that the term executive presence can be very elusive. Asking powerful questions to gain more clarity for both the client and executive coach informs the coaching agenda, and desired outcomes of the coaching engagement.
Someone in your company may have recently been promoted to a leadership position. This person successfully competed against other qualified candidates, some of whom were probably just as experienced and smart.
As often happens in judging one candidate over another, the decision most likely came down to degrees of “executive presence.”
Presence: Often referred to as “bearing,” presence incorporates a range of verbal and nonverbal patterns (one’s appearance, posture, vocal quality, subtle movements)—a whole collection of signals that others process into an evaluative impression of a person.
The concept of presence raises serious questions for anyone with ambitions of career advancement. If, as Malcolm Gladwell suggests in his book Blink, decisions are made intuitively, what do we need to know about “executive presence”?
As it turns out, everyone’s definition of the term seems to differ. But planning your career and determining your leadership development needs shouldn’t be left to guesswork.
Are you working in a professional services firm or other organization where executive coaches provide leadership development for emotionally intelligent leaders? Does your organization provide executive coaching to help leaders develop executive presence? Leaders with highly developed executive presence tap into their emotional intelligence and social intelligence skills to fully engage employees and customers.
One of the most powerful questions you can ask yourself is “Do I have executive presence?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent organizations provide executive coaching for collaborative leaders who create sustainable businesses.