Sherpa Executive Coaching Conference 2011

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The sixth annual Sherpa Coaching conference saw record attendance again this year. Over 65 Certified Sherpa Coaches from twenty two US states and Mexico gathered in Cincinnati for continuing education and community-building. Conference Manager Jan Smith brought the show to Cincinnati’s riverfront, in a brand new venue.

PHOTO GALLERIES
presentations | candid shots | group work | awards | portraits | sunday | saturday

Sunday saw ‘bonus’ sessions on sales and promotion. Paul Nelson, CSC 2011 from Orr Corporation in Louisville, took a well-received 90-minute slot to present: "How to Make the Phone Start Ringing". His experience as a speaker and trainer were quite evident.

Pat Gardner, Sherpa Director of Executive Programs started off these back-to-back sessions with "Effective Sales Skills", a must for coaches starting a new business.

The evening reception was a time for class reunions and coaching conversation. Dave Stewart, keyboardist for Midnight Star, headed a jazz trio of exceptional talent. The scenic view of downtown Cincinnati was another highlight, as Sherpas gazed over the Ohio River and watched the city light up at night.

Our theme this year was "Taking Care of Business".

Awards this year were a big event, as the Sherpa community made the nominations and decided the awards by secret ballot for the first time. (Visit the Sherpa Hall of Fame)

Our 2010 Trailblazer of the Year, Alex Marquez, took the stage to announce this year's winner: Larry Clements, Vice President of Human Resources at Orr Corporation in Louisville. Larry was the driving force behind an internal Executive Coaching Certification at Orr.

Larry's hot innovation was a library of Sherpa Coaching notes for the IPhone. This 'app' stores all his notes from the Sherpa Executive Coaching Certification and several book excerpts. This allows every Sherpa Coach to keep a personal copy of the library, along with their own personal client and engagement notes.

Click here for download instructions.

2010 Sherpa of the Year, Mary Burness, was on hand to present the 2011 award. Brian McConnell of SuperMedia earned the award through his exhaustive efforts to create a coaching culture at SuperMedia.

Brian has traveled like a true road warrior, as part of his tireless efforts to present 'Coaching Skills" programs across the country. His one-on-one coaching, nationwide, is distinguished by his fierce loyalty to Sherpa process and philosophy.

Brian McConnell is a Certified Sherpa Coach who graduated Penn State in 2007. He was also the Trailblazer of the Year in 2008.

Monday morning. First stop, ‘Are You Smarter Than a Sherpa?’ Lisa Earnest, Operations Manager, led an opening activity, and several more throughout the conference. The output? Critical thinking and lots of laughs.

Managing Partner Karl Corbett took us to our second stop: IOB... After six years of research, the Sherpa team has concluded that client companies can’t calculate a return on investment for coaching. Our sixth annual executive coaching survey shows that the number of companies who 'do not have a formal process to measure ROI for coaching' is at an all time high. The Sherpa concept that replaces ROI? IOB... Impact On Business.

Positive Skills plus Positive Behavior = Positive Impact on Business (IOB). This formula, a recent Sherpa trademark, tells clients exactly what coaches work on: behavior. It also shows how coaching goes to the bottom line: impact on business. Brenda Corbett, Judy Colemon Kinebrew and Rubi Ho shared the stage to elaborate.

Each of the three authors led a breakout. Monday's version arched over the lunch hour, offering extended time with a topic of choice:
- Success Factors,
- DiSC and Coaching Tools, or
- The Business of Me.

The afternoon highlight was an interview with a CEO, one who had been both a coaching client and an executive contact. Initially skeptical, our CEO shared several things a coach might to do lose credibility, and ways to win the battle for a coaching culture. A special edition video of this interview will be available shortly.

Day's end: CSC's paired up as business partners, and developed a plan for mutual support, lasting until next year's conference.

Tuesday begins: The value of the Sherpa brand is demonstrated as Alex Marquez of Sherpa Mexico is featured on the cover of Mexico's largest HR magazine and in a seven-page feature article. We had a 'release party' to celebrate the accomplishment.

Morning: the Sherpa Leadership Institute (SLI) is unveiled: an integrated set of coaching-based programs for leaders and teams. SLI is designed for the Sherpa coach to expand their range beyond coaching. The end results: CSC's become leadership experts and business partners for client organizations, or become an indispensable part of their own organization. Another client CEO shared the positive effects that SLI programs had, as she assumed a new position.

SLI was followed by short versions of the breakout sessions, so everyone got to see two of the three. Another great lunch in the atrium, fantastic conversations all around

As is our custom, the day wrapped with class photos, presentation of recertification and a last chance to be together until next year.

Save the date for the 7th annual Sherpa Coaching conference; June 3, 4 and 5, 2012. It's the world's longest-running event for executive coaches. Be there.

Click here for more about the benefits of earning and maintaining
your Sherpa Executive Coaching Certification.