Young Leader Coaching Program
Frank Granek works with talented and ambitious young leaders to accelerate their growth at university and in their first years in the workforce. These consultative coaching collaborations enable emerging leaders to embrace the challenges and opportunities of the world of work, and to begin the process of differentiation from their peers at an early stage.
These young leaders range in age from 17 to 25. Since the core of Frank’s coaching clients are the C-Suite and other advanced high potential leaders, he coaches only a small number of clients in this age range. This is a select group – already distinguished from their peers by their accomplishments and aspirations, and highly motivated to change and grow.
Frank’s coaching of young leaders focuses on these five areas of leadership development.
I. Building Leadership Presence
Developing a compelling leadership presence begins with core self-awareness and fulsome understanding of the difference between who you are (identity) and how others perceive you (image). It continues with development of a personal leadership/communication style that is at once authentic, mature, and charismatic. Leadership presence greatly helps young leaders both fit and stand out: fit in to diverse to diverse organizational cultures, stand out as well ahead of their years in capacity to lead others. Leadership presence is about projecting the elusive quality of “high potential” to influential stakeholders at school, at work, and beyond.
II. Positive Leadership Mindset
Frank’s coaching helps young leaders explore and develop the inner game of leadership. For many young leaders that means strengthening emotional regulation and developing strong stress management skills. It also means developing the mental qualities and attitudes that enable them to effectively face challenge and change. Frank applies a highly pragmatic coaching process for the development of GRIT, which is a mixture of perseverance and resiliency. This process includes developing an open and creative rapport with VUCA – the volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity of the modern world.
III. Kick-starting Leadership Competency Development
From early adulthood on young leaders will be evaluated and promoted largely based on competencies – their current level, their gaps, their perceived potential. Frank’s coaching of young leaders accelerates their competency growth on the interpersonal and intrapersonal dimensions critical to the first decade of leadership. The interpersonal competencies include communicating with impact, influence without authority, conflict management, and negotiation prowess. The intrapersonal competencies include decision making, focused creativity and analytical prowess.
IV. Peak Learning and Mental Focus
Even talented emerging professionals may be challenged by the demands of and competition within today’s top universities. As graduates from top programs, they can also expect steep learning curves and intense competition in their first professional roles. Frank’s accelerated learning coaching helps the young leader optimize knowledge acquisition on multiple levels: selection, absorption, retention, integration, and application. A foundational component of this program are his proprietary coaching processes to help young leaders dramatically improve their mental focus and mental stamina.
V. Leadership Brand Development
Frank works with young leaders to help them take control of and systematically develop their brands. He helps them strategically shape their intellectual capital and plan their organizational impact. He helps them craft differentiated personal brand marketing materials, such as resumes, portfolios, and interview talking points. A centerpiece of his coaching process is the development of a comprehensive Leadership Brand Plan spanning three to seven years. The Leadership Brand plan integrates multiple areas of growth, from career selection and educational planning to accomplishment targeting and networking strategy.
