Leadership Coaching
I have been fortunate to work with Lynne Brown as my executive coach for more than seven years. Lynne’s professional excellence and personal warmth has allowed me to learn and grow as a CEO. She shows a keen insight to complex business and individual situations and communicates in a direct but kind manner. Lynne has also done exceptional work in training our executive leaders in the art of change management as well as improving our group and individual communication flow.
We hired Lynne to help our management group learn to work better together to benefit from the many skills and talents that we collectively represent. In the end, this group exercise was astonishingly successful and our performance and ability to work together has improved exponentially. As part of this process Lynne worked with each of us individually. I have had some experience with executive coaches and industrial psychologists in the past and I have found all of these experiences beneficial. My experiences and work with Lynne was of more value than my past work due to her style and methodology. Lynne spent time and energy understanding me in and out of the context of my work. She did interview the people I work with but also asked me a number of very probing questions that gave me an opportunity to stand in a different place and view the subjects at hand from a different perspective. I suspect that Lynne’s style and effectiveness comes from a combination of formal training, life experiences and the courage to look life “in the eye.” Lynne has a great sense of humor, a true interest in helping her clients “voices be heard” and a unique ability to help people understand their value and opportunity to make a difference in their work and life. I am better for my work with Lynne. Although I still occasionally joust with windmills, I do it less……. I am more focused on what is important. I am more effective at my work and ultimately more appreciative of the life I am living and the many wonderful fellow travelers on this journey. Lynne helped me see a different way to use my abilities, skills and beliefs and I am grateful to have worked with her. I would recommend Lynne Brown to any individual or group that has a serious interest in looking at themselves with the goal of understanding their value. My work with Lynne has shown me that this is the real foundation of improvement in the traditional and non- traditional things we want to change/improve in our lives.
I have known Lynne Brown for more than 10 years when she first joined our board. She quickly became an integral part of our agency as she worked with us to create a cohesive, strong team that had a true passion for the mission. I stayed in contact with Lynne after I left the agency and she worked with me as an executive coach. She taught me to trust myself and to believe in my abilities as a leader. When I first considered applying for the position of CEO, Lynne was one of the first people I called for advice. She helped me to see all sides and gave me the confidence I needed to throw my hat in the ring. I owe so much to Lynne for the direction my career has taken and I know I wouldn’t be where I am today if it were not for her friendship and support.
Lynne Brown has been helping our organization for the past year. She was referred to us by a very large organization who praised her approach and results. Over this past year, I’m happy to state that Lynne has lived up to and exceeded our expectations by a wide margin. She has given our professional and production staff a voice which has helped educate and modify our executive teams’ behavior and thinking. Before her last visit Lynne asked me what I hoped to accomplish during this trip, I told her, “I didn’t know for sure, but that we are a better company every time you come and visit.” I highly recommend Lynne Brown. She has helped me recognize where my weaknesses are, and she has guided me on a path which allows me to grow around these areas instead of being limited by them.
Lynne has a way of putting her clients at ease and helping them to realize that she is there to help them improve and achieve their goals. Although she has an approachable and comfortable demeanor, she has no problem asking tough questions and getting to the root of a problem – she can be tenacious when needed, but always with a smile. Working with Lynne helped several members of our team have a greater self-awareness and understand how to better communicate with the rest of the team.
What makes Lynne unique from others I have worked with is that she doesn’t tell you what to do, she leads you to identify the opportunities. She challenges you to get out of your comfort zone and truly see other perspectives – uncovering unconscious biases and the stories in our own heads. Lynne provides tools, insights and exercises that reinforce what you as a leader are working to develop. Her approach meets you where you are and provides the support, tools and reflection to create growth. Because I have utilized Lynne through these roles, I believe I have:
- Strengthened my ability to self-reflect, increasing my own self-awareness greatly
- Learned to navigate difficult situations with tremendous skill
- Cultivate a culture that builds high performing teams
- Developed my skills in a thoughtful way that has allowed me to be more effective in delivering measurable results
- Allowed me to help others develop and grow
- Helped me be a visionary and take my team on a journey to be all we can be
- Learn the most through change and increase my own resiliency
My nickname for Lynne is Yoda, because she has the unique ability and seasoned expertise to allow you to reach your full potential as a leader and to utilize that force for good to help your team develop and help an organization achieve its’ vision. The ripple effect of Lynne’s work is immeasurable.
I have had the pleasure of having Lynne as a personal coach a few years ago. Lynne provided me insight and tools which affectively assisted me in my day to day role as well with tools to assist me with group dynamics. Working with Lynne is like working with a friend. She tells you what you need to hear and helps you identify areas for improvement and a path forward. Lynne is a fantastic coach which I would highly recommend to any organization.
Lynne was a phenomenal coach to me as a member of a senior management team! She really helped me focus on my strengths as well as focus on my needs, fundamentally helping me succeed during a major transformation of the organization’s senior team! She, through her coaching, helped me set the stage for my department’s phenomenal success and brought a great many resources to light. Resources and information I continue to use today! I consider her coaching to be an incredible asset to any individual and organization!
Organization Development
Lynne has been instrumental in helping us to navigate through two re-organizations. She quickly builds rapport and gains the trust of employees at all levels so is able to get to the heart of issues. She is also able to package the issues in a non-threatening way in order to drive effective resolution. Being an international location with 43 nationalities, it’s essential to understand the cultural dynamics that come to play organizationally. Lynne is exceptional at understanding the cultural drivers, sifting through the root issues, then packaging them in a way that is amenable to all parties.
Working with Lynne requires having a strong character which can handle the feedback she will collect. She is able to get to the root of employee concerns and frustrations better than anyone we have worked with in 30 years. This honest broker feedback and guidance is often hard to hear, but after a day or two of reflection you realize she is spot on and that is when real organizational change has an opportunity to happen.
Lynne is highly regarded in Oxy for her excellent facilitation and coaching skills. From the many leadership and team building programs she has conducted over the past 12 years, she has developed strong relationships with many of the Oxy leaders. She develops a trusting relationship with people, and as a result, many have contacted her for follow-up coaching. She also provided team coaching for the teams to continue their work – she does not see her work as an event, but a process of continuous development. And she is very strategic and results oriented, connecting the development process to the strategic direction of the group. She truly lives out her mission of “every voice is heard”, and any work she does, she engages people to ensure that all voices are heard. Because of this, she gets groups to a much deeper level, dealing with difficult issues that are often suppressed and people are afraid to discuss. She creates that kind of climate first where people understand and value each other and their differences, and then facilitates dialogue where people truly listen to each other to work out difficult issues. Regarding self-knowledge and self-reflection, she operates under the principle of “self as instrument”. She is excellent at debriefing every intervention to examine what worked, what she could do differently to improve, and is open to feedback from others. She is a ferocious reader and is great at integrating examples into her work. Besides getting her Masters in Organization Development, she continually takes advantage of development opportunities to stretch her in the field of OD. Some of these include NTL programs, Franklin Covey certifications, and spiritual retreats. Her work in the Middle East and Latin America created great cultural learning opportunities. Development is a passion of hers. When she facilitates, she shares this passion by role modeling the process that leaders can use working with their teams. One of Lynne’s greatest strength is to be in the moment with a group (or individual). She deals with the “here-and-now”, what’s happening in the room, vs. wedding herself to a structured agenda. Her understanding of group dynamics and the trust that she creates with a group allows this kind of exploration of deeper issues.
We knew there were good people in our company. But, the group of us didn’t work as a well-functioning team and the group’s morale was lower than what we wanted. Lynne interviewed all of us, listened carefully to understand, used her experience and skills to help us see how we might improve and importantly asked tough questions which helped us see the steps we should take more clearly. In the process, at my request, Lynne also coached me individually. The result is that the group of us is a much better functioning team, the group has much stronger morale and I am a better leader. We couldn’t be happier with the results. I strongly recommend Lynne to other managers and companies.
Lynne has helped work with my teams several times, both in the U.S. and overseas. One of her best attributes is her enthusiasm and energy which helps to ensure that all the participants in her seminar/workshop remain engaged (or become engaged if they are reluctant to do so in the beginning). This energy has worked in both U.S. and international locations: a good testament of her ability to get people involved and still maintain cultural sensitivities. She is willing to challenge individuals to make commitments to change and does a great job in following up to make sure the agreed-upon changes occur.
Lynne Brown was instrumental in our success following a complicated merger. She worked with organization leaders to help them through the change management journey and provided individual and group coaching. Lynne also worked with the senior leadership team, clarifying roles and strengthening our communication processes.
As CEO, I rely on Lynne’s objective insights to help me lead and guide the organization through change and growth. She takes the time to understand our business and offers practical steps to address challenges and leverage opportunities. She is knowledgeable and experienced in organizational change and truly cares about the individuals she works with.
Lynne does amazing work with people and teams. She has helped me save struggling individuals and fix broken teams. She has also helped good teams become great teams and helped many of our people – from staff level to the C-Suite – achieve their potential. She is brutally frank in a positive way, both disarming and empowering. We always feel better after Lynne has been in the room!
Lynne and I began working together about 15 years ago when she led our dysfunctional, siloed team through an extensive program on Courageous Conversations. From that day forward she has been a trusted ally and an important member of our family. Lynne balances tough feedback with heart and compassion. She is honest and never afraid to call a person on their “stuff;” yet she always provides the tools, motivation and coaching to help people grow. She is curious and cares deeply about the people she works with and the results she delivers. Over the years she has led us through multiple strategic planning processes, including one that followed a major reorganization resulting in the birth of a new company. She has facilitated retreats and planning sessions, and she has coached members of our team. In sum she has made us a better, more successful enterprise. She is a wise, generous mentor and I would not be where I am today without her. When I grow up I want to be like Lynne.
I have had the pleasure to engage with Lynne Brown on multiple separate occasions to provide contract organizational development services. These OD engagements have varied from team forming/team development, teambuilding, establishing organizational mission and vision statements, establishing norms, roles and responsibilities and, recently, professional/executive coaching. During the nearly 20 years I have contracted and worked with Lynne (for three different companies) I have developed respect and appreciation for Lynne’s style and approach to each project, the participants and the scope of the engagement. She is a very quick study, is intuitive, is exceptionally respectful of the stakeholders and has consistently delivered the results I have expected (and was hoping to achieve). Most recently, I engaged Lynne to assist one of my senior directors who was struggling to work effectively with his subordinates. This effort involved conducting a deep dive (individual interviews, group work and individual/personal coaching). This effort was a complete success and has remarkably improved the operational performance of the group while reducing employee turnover. In each engagement, Lynne has employed a variety of personality and behavioral assessment tools (Myers Briggs, FIRO-B, etc.) as well as practical group exercises (square rope, personal shields, etc.) to help participants better understand how their personality styles and behaviors affect outcomes and success.
Lynne Brown was instrumental in our success following a complicated merger. She worked with organization leaders to help them through the change management journey and provided individual and group coaching. Lynne also worked with the senior leadership team, clarifying roles and strengthening our communication processes.
As CEO, I rely on Lynne’s objective insights to help me lead and guide the organization through change and growth. She takes the time to understand our business and offers practical steps to address challenges and leverage opportunities. She is knowledgeable and experienced in organizational change and truly cares about the individuals she works with.
“For our organization, there was before Lynne Brown and after. Her work with me and my team was integral to seeing an 150% increase in our annual income, just months after starting work together. Her ability to see to the core of both your challenges and your opportunity at once is unique and powerful.”
Lynne, is a fantastic resource! She has been a part of our team’s success… she is very knowledgeable and adapts to the needs of the organization. She is the real deal!
For our organization, there was before Lynne Brown and after. Her work with me and my team was integral to seeing an 150% increase in our annual income, just months after starting work together. Her ability to see to the core of both your challenges and your opportunity at once is unique and powerful.
“Lynne, is a fantastic resource! She has been a part of our team’s success… she is very knowledgeable and adapts to the needs of the organization. She is the real deal!”
“Working with Lynne requires having a strong character which can handle the feedback she will collect. She is able to get to the root of employee concerns and frustrations better than anyone we have worked with in 30 years. This honest broker feedback and guidance is often hard to hear, but after a day or two of reflection you realize she is spot on and that is when real organizational change has an opportunity to happen.”
Training and Development
Lynne is very open and transparent about her self-knowledge and is vulnerable in discussing her own path in learning and development. She brings forth ideas and insight gained from her own reading, discovery and experiences and shares new information and thoughts each time we have a discussion. Lynne is very receptive to feedback and each time our interaction relates to her serving our needs as a client she earnestly requests constructive criticism in order to better her performance. As stated earlier, Lynne is constantly reading, studying, networking with other professionals as a lifelong learner and to ensure her own growth and development. She frequently shares ideas from a book she is reading, she offers suggestions based on new material she has studied and offers her own experiences from trying methods she has learned from her own development research. Lynne is very committed to development and growth of others. Last year she conducted training courses for a few groups of employees at my company. She went beyond the scope of the assignment and met afterward with key management to share insights she gained from the participants that were an indicator of ongoing development needs. From that initial training work Lynne is helping us to form a leadership development core team to promote growth and advancement across functional silos. In addition, a few participants in Lynne’s “Making Great Leaders” Covey Workshop that she performed appeared to need additional counsel and advice on their development plans. Lynne was not paid to perform any additional consulting with these individuals, but she offered her time in follow-up teleconferences to help them fine-tune their individual development plans.
I have worked with Lynne Brown for over 15 years as a customer and a personal coach and mentor throughout my career. Lynne has provided training, development, design and facilitation resources to our company. She’s extremely knowledgeable, trustworthy and one of the most highly skilled Organization Development experts I’ve worked with in my 18 years of Human Resources experience. She is a rare resource in the field. Additionally, Lynne is organized, efficient, and extremely competent and has an excellent rapport with people at all levels of the organization. In past years, I have used Lynne Brown and Associates as an extension to my HR Team. I highly recommend Lynne for any endeavor that she may seek to pursue. She will be a valuable asset for any organization. Lastly, those who work with Lynne will find an extra benefit as having her as a personal coach during the times you work with her on projects.
Lynne is an incredible resource and facilitator to work with. Although she has completed her commitment to our team, she still continues to be a great support system, which clearly demonstrates her ability to connect and build valuable relationships with her clients. She ensured great care and attention to understand individual team member needs, and provide appropriate tools to empower us to bring forth positive change. Her ability to navigate the team to awareness, while building mutual respect and appreciation for one another is admirable. Leveraging Lynne’s incredible knowledge and leadership skills was one of the best investments that our team has made. Our team dynamics have improved significantly based on Lynne’s ability to provide insight and coaching to build a high-performing, cohesive team. Lynne’s facilitation abilities are impeccable.