Leadership coaching
Leadership coaching for business owners and the managers you rely on
If you’re the bottleneck in your own business, give him a call.
James Merrix, owner, Appoly Group£200K to £1M+ in revenue, and one business to four.
Matthew Weston, owner, Vantage 365 Group
You promoted good people, and the decisions still come back to you. Most leadership coaching is built for managers in big companies. Mine is for owner-run businesses: the owner, and the managers who need to lead without the owner stepping in. From someone who leads teams in businesses he owns today.
5.0· 23 Google reviewsFrom £800 a month plus VAT. Every price, with what to compare it to.
Not just one session a month: wrap-around support all month, my private number for when you need me, and the backing of the senior leaders in the businesses I own, who are living the skills your business needs, plus MentorBusiness.com. You’re not going it alone. A partner to call on, with entire organisations behind me to support you, so when times are tough you sleep easier knowing someone’s in your corner, and someone to celebrate with when you break through.
Most owners choose weekly mentoring, with training for their team included. Want something different? Request a tailored quote.
Book a virtual coffeeWhatsAppFor owners of established businesses from about £250k turnover, and their managers and leadership team.
The short answer
What is leadership coaching?
Leadership coaching is one-to-one or team coaching on how someone leads people: how they decide, delegate, give feedback and hold people to account. In an owner-run business it covers two people at once: the owner, whose habits set the limits, and the managers who have to lead without the owner stepping in. Done well, decisions stop queueing at the owner’s desk.
How I coach leadership
Business leadership coaching: systems first, then people.
Nobody is above the system
“The systems run this business. The people run those systems. Nobody is above the system.” Before an owner blames the team, the first question is: “Have you put the right systems in place before you start blaming the people?”
Don’t undermine your managers
The fastest way to stop a manager leading is for the owner to step over them. I’ve done it myself: “As soon as I picked that phone up, game over. I’d undermined the manager.” Part of leadership coaching is coaching the owner to stay out of the way.
Delegate the outcome, not the method
“Build the dance floor and let them dance in it.” Agree the result and the boundaries, then let the manager decide how. And pay for that result: “You pay for the outcome, not the person on the seat.”
Be direct, from a place of care
“Being candid, being direct is only ever okay as long as it comes from a place of care.” No feedback sandwiches. Clear, honest conversations, early, before a small problem becomes a resignation.
Put your values in on purpose
“If you don’t put core values in, accidental core values will start to happen.” A leadership team that agrees what it stands for can make decisions the owner would make, without asking.
What got you here won’t get you there
The habits that built the business, doing it all and deciding everything, are the ones that stop it growing. Leadership coaching is changing those habits, because “the only thing that correlates to results is behaviour.” More in the leadership qualities that matter and how to build a high performing team.
What you get · leadership coaching
- Decisions that stop coming back to you.
- Managers who run their area, and know what they own.
- Meetings that end with names against actions.
- Direct feedback, from a place of care, before small problems become resignations.
- Me in every session, from someone leading teams in businesses he owns today.
For your managers
Leadership development coaching for the managers you’ve promoted.
Most managers in owner-run businesses were promoted because they were the best at the job, not because anyone taught them to lead. So they keep doing the job, check every piece of work, and bring every hard decision back to the owner. It isn’t a people problem. It’s a skill nobody taught them.
Leadership development coaching gives them that skill on their real team: running a meeting that ends in decisions, setting the numbers each person owns, having the difficult conversation, and handing work over instead of doing it. Owners can listen to how to coach your employees for the approach.
For the owner
Leadership coaching for the owner.
The owner’s leadership sets the ceiling for everyone else. If every decision needs you, the team learns to wait. I coach owners on the decisions only they should make, how they hold their managers to account, and where their week goes. “Stop thinking operator and start thinking architect.”
For you and your senior team together, with leadership team sessions in your business, see business and executive coaching.
Leadership coaching results
What owners and their leaders say
Matthew WestonOwner, Vantage 365 Group · Vantage 365 Group£200K to £1M+ in revenue, and one business to four. That’s where Vantage 365 has gone since I started working with Lewis. We’re now a group made up of Vantage 365 Group plus dedicated Consultancy, Training and Support businesses. Lewis has helped foster my entrepreneurial spirit and, just as importantly, helped me see the wood for the trees. He’s someone I can share ideas with, talk problems through with, and occasionally just vent to. And it’s not only me he’s supported; he’s worked with members of my team too, which has made a real difference across the business. If you’re an owner who knows there’s more in you and your business, I’d highly recommend him.
I worked with Lewis in a previous role and his coaching made a real difference, both professionally and personally. He helped us set clear business goals, challenge the way we operated and focus on what would genuinely move the business forward. His approach pushed us to think bigger, make better decisions and turn ideas into results rather than just talking about them. On a personal level, Lewis helped build my confidence, challenged my mindset and pushed me outside my comfort zone. He’s honest, straightforward and genuinely invested in seeing both the business and the people behind it succeed. I’d highly recommend working with him.
David GatenbyOperations ManagerLewis’s profound knowledge and forward-thinking, positive attitude has not only had a big impact on myself but also the company as a whole, helping us push forward and grow to achieve our goals. If you are looking to build or improve any aspect within your company, Lewis comes highly recommended.
Fig. · What you’re left with
What changes when your managers lead.
- Decisions get made without you.
- Problems arrive with a solution attached.
- The good managers stay, because they get to lead.
- Your week goes on the few things that really need the owner.
- The business moves faster than you can answer.
In person
Business leadership coaching in Birmingham
For owners in Birmingham and across the West Midlands, UK, leadership coaching happens face to face. I’m at 71 Vyse Street in the Jewellery Quarter, and I’ll come to your business when your managers need to be in the room. We work on your numbers, who owns which result, and how you hold people to it without taking the job back yourself. For you and your senior team coached together, see executive coaching in Birmingham.
Leadership and management training in Birmingham
I’m based in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter. For businesses in Birmingham and the West Midlands, leadership and management training can happen in your business, with your managers in the room: one set of numbers, who owns what, how meetings run, and how decisions get made. Then the monthly coaching keeps it in place, so it doesn’t fade after the training day. More on business mentoring in Birmingham.
Leadership coaching in London
For London owners and their leadership teams, sessions run on Zoom or in person in your business. More on working with me in London.
Price
How much does leadership coaching cost?
One-to-one leadership coaching with me is from £800 a month plus VAT, month to month, with no fixed-term contract. Coaching for your leadership team together is a higher tier, with team training included. Every price is published, so you know before we talk.
Not just one session a month: wrap-around support all month, my private number for when you need me, and the backing of the senior leaders in the businesses I own, who are living the skills your business needs, plus MentorBusiness.com. You’re not going it alone. A partner to call on, with entire organisations behind me to support you, so when times are tough you sleep easier knowing someone’s in your corner, and someone to celebrate with when you break through.
Most owners choose weekly mentoring, with training for their team included. Want something different? Request a tailored quote.
The real cost
What is being the bottleneck costing your business?
Every decision that comes back to you is one your managers didn’t learn to make. The good ones get frustrated and leave; the rest learn to wait. You stay the busiest person in the business, and the business only moves as fast as you can answer.
The owner whose managers lead runs a different business. Decisions get made without them, problems arrive with a solution attached, and the owner’s week goes on the few things that really need the owner.
First steps
First steps with me
- This week, write down every decision that came back to you that a manager could have made. That list is where coaching starts.
- Take the free owner time audit to see how much of your week goes on other people’s work.
- Bring it to a virtual coffee, 30 minutes on Zoom, no charge, or WhatsApp me.
Questions
Leadership coaching FAQs
What is the difference between leadership coaching and executive coaching?
Leadership coaching works on how someone leads people: delegating, holding people to account, giving feedback, making decisions. Executive coaching usually means the person at the top and their senior team, working on the business as a whole. For the owner and the senior team together, see business and executive coaching; for the CEO alone, CEO coaching.
What is the difference between leadership coaching and leadership training?
Training teaches a method, usually to a group, in a day. Coaching stays with the leader while they use it, on their own team and their own problems, and checks they did what they said. Training without coaching tends to fade within weeks.
Can you coach my managers, not just me?
Yes. Owners bring me in for themselves, for a manager they’ve promoted, or for the leadership team together. The best results come when the owner is coached too, because the owner’s habits set what the managers can do.
Do you coach managers in large corporates?
No. I coach in owner-run businesses, where the owner and the business are closely tied. If you’re a manager in a large company, a corporate leadership coach or your HR team’s programme will suit you better.
How long does leadership coaching take to work?
Most owners notice the change in their own week within the first quarter: fewer decisions coming back to them, and meetings that end with names against actions. Making it stick takes longer, because it’s a habit for the whole team, not a course.
Is leadership coaching online or in person?
Both. One-to-one sessions run on Zoom or in person. Leadership team sessions work best in your business, in person, anywhere in the UK.
How I compare
See how I compare to coaches, coaching franchise companies, and consultants.
Sixteen things owners care about, scored green, amber or red, with the reason for every score, including where someone else is the better choice.
See the full comparisonNext step
Ready for a business that pays off for you, and grows without you?
Bring your biggest question about scaling the business to a 30-minute virtual coffee, and leave with a straight answer.
Not sure I’m the right fit? Compare me with other coaches and mentors, honestly, including where others are the better choice. Want something built around your business? Request a tailored quote and I’ll call you to go through it.