Coaching Teams and their Leaders

I create developmental programs that help organizations in moments of uncertainty and transition, and the core ethos of that work is strong relationships. It’s crucial for me to understand who you are, what is your unique situation, and what change you want to effect by working together.

If you’re curious about what I offer, I highly recommend booking a call. The rest of this page provides clarity on what to expect if you engage with me.

What is coaching?

There are a few different definitions in circulation. Here are mine:

An advisor primarily offers their expertise, earned through their own life experience to help a leader make decisions and see different perspectives.

A mentor has personally gone through a past experience that is relevant to a leader’s current one, and advises from their own journey and relatability.

A coach creates a context in which a leader builds trust in their unique insight and wisdom, especially in the face of unexpected situations or a broad range of stimulus.

A facilitator works with a leader to create an experience that develops their team in any way, i.e. coming to terms with a change, cultivating creativity, surfacing supportive feedback, resolving conflict, generating buy-in.

You can think of me as roughly 95% coach & facilitator, and 5% advisor. In rare occasions it may be relevant for me to provide mentorship, but I have a strong conviction that coaching / facilitation are the most effective tools for enacting and sustaining system-wide change.

I say this because I hold you as the expert for your preferences and skills, the context of your day-to-day, and the background on your situation. It won’t be me that enacts the change, it’ll be you and perhaps your team.

In my experience, the wrong advice can actually set back a change process back. Instead of giving advice, I see my role as:

When working with a team, I help each individual have this experience of support while graciously being witnessed and held accountable by the team at large.

Sometimes I work with multiple leaders on the same team. Some examples: co-founders, board members, a collectively led organization.

In this environment I will likely offer 1:1 support to each leader while also coaching the relationship. That is, I offer support to the unique dynamics and genius of the collaboration.

Why Rishi?

Everything I offer is informed by the breadth of career and learning experiences I’ve had thus far:

I will put above everything else your evolution as it aligns with your own vision for your work and life, even when this vision isn’t entirely clear. I commit to being someone who can mirror you back to yourself without judgement, expectation, or pressure.

At times I might challenge you to look at your own assumptions, unconscious patterns, and feedback loops that keep you from growing. I believe that our personal lives, professional output, and leadership competence all influence each other in a dynamic system, and I will encourage you to see where you are not meeting yourself fully.

I’m no stranger to difficulty, having been in recovery from alcoholism since 2021. I believe that when faced with the right orientation, unexpected challenges, uncertainty, and even our wounds can be material that helps us become who we are meant to be.

All that’s needed is a bit of trust in the process and self-love through it all.