Leadership Coaching at Academic Medical Center

Case Study

Role: Senior Consultant (Leadership Coach)
Timeline: February 2024 – September 2025 (19 months)
Organization Size: ~50-person marketing department within academic medical center
Team: Coached 8 leaders from manager to director level

Challenge

A leading academic medical center’s marketing department was transitioning to agile ways of working while simultaneously facing significant organizational upheaval. Leaders struggled to maintain effectiveness amid cascading challenges:

Leadership Issues:

• Leaders transitioning from peer to manager roles without clear frameworks
• Managers operating reactively rather than strategically
• Weak delegation practices creating bottlenecks and burnout
• Imposter syndrome and low confidence limiting leadership presence

Organizational Dysfunction:

• Teams not consistently delivering high-value, high-priority work
• Infighting and distrust between team members
• Poor cross-functional alignment and communication
• Organizational reduction in force creating anxiety and uncertainty

Mandate: The AVP of Marketing brought CMG Consulting in to develop leaders who could champion agile practices and effectively lead their teams through transformation and uncertainty.

Approach

Phase 1: Foundation Building (Months 1-6)

Individual Leadership Development

Established coaching relationships with 8 leaders, focusing on self-awareness, leadership identity, and core management practices.

Key Interventions:

• Built confidence addressing imposter syndrome and peer-to-manager transitions
• Strengthened 1:1 meeting structure and effectiveness
• Developed vulnerability-based leadership approaches
• Increased assertiveness and executive presence

Outcomes:

• Leaders gained clarity on leadership identity and role expectations
• Improved delegation while maintaining high standards
• Stronger tools for coaching direct reports through uncertainty

Phase 2: Strategic Leadership (Months 7-13)

Leading Through Complex Change

Coached leaders through a reduction in force and multiple high-stakes organizational changes while maintaining team morale and performance.

Change Management Challenge:

• Organizational layoffs created fear and distrust across teams
• Leaders needed to maintain steadiness while processing their own uncertainty
• Website governance initiative required 9-month change management approach
• Multiple competing priorities (Legacy Integration, PWR, Brand Refresh) demanded clear strategic focus

Implementation:

• Developed people-first communication strategies for difficult announcements
• Built frameworks for strategic planning vs. reactive problem-solving
• Coached leaders to create and communicate clear vision through ambiguity
• Established tools for advocacy and impact reporting

Results: Leaders maintained team stability and performance through significant upheaval, with one director successfully launching a governance initiative that gained senior leadership support.

Phase 3: Organizational Impact (Months 14-19)

Building Capability and Influence

Focused on expanding leaders’ organizational influence while developing their teams’ capabilities.

Key Developments:

• Implemented GROW goals and OKRs to drive team alignment
• Strengthened cross-functional partnerships and communication
• Improved performance documentation and accountability practices
• Developed coaching skills for addressing performance and interpersonal issues

Results: Leaders demonstrated measurable growth in strategic thinking, team development, and organizational influence.

Results

Leadership Capability

• 8 leaders developed from reactive managers to strategic leaders
• Improved delegation practices freeing up 20-30% of leader time
• Enhanced coaching skills for developing direct reports
• Increased confidence and executive presence across leadership team

Team Performance

• Better alignment to high-priority work through OKR implementation
• Reduced infighting through improved communication and role clarity
• Stronger onboarding and role definition processes
• More effective performance management and accountability

Organizational Impact

• Successfully navigated reduction in force with minimal team disruption
• Launched governance initiative with executive support
• Strengthened cross-functional partnerships across university
• Leaders contributing visibly to university-wide problem-solving

Cultural Shift

• Moved from crisis management to strategic planning mindset
• Built vulnerability-based leadership culture
• Increased resilience and emotional intelligence across leadership team
• Established people-first management practices

Constraints and Context

Organizational Turbulence: The coaching occurred during a period of significant uncertainty, including layoffs, reorganization, and merger of marketing with communications. This required constant adaptation of coaching priorities to immediate organizational needs.

Competing Priorities: Leaders managed multiple high-stakes initiatives simultaneously (Legacy Integration, PWR, Brand Refresh, website governance), making sustained focus on development challenging.

Agile Transition: The organization was learning agile practices while leaders were developing their leadership capabilities, requiring coaching on both fronts simultaneously.

Successful Transition: Engagement concluded as planned in September 2025 with leaders operating independently and organization entering sustainment phase.

Key Lessons

Leadership Identity First: Leaders couldn’t effectively adopt agile practices until they developed confidence in their core leadership identity. Addressing imposter syndrome and peer-to-manager transitions was essential groundwork for organizational transformation.

People-First Leadership in Crisis: Leaders who maintained empathy and steadiness during the reduction in force preserved team trust and performance. Vulnerability-based leadership proved more effective than traditional command-and-control approaches during upheaval.

Strategic Clarity Through Chaos: The most effective leaders created and repeatedly communicated clear vision, even when circumstances were uncertain. This practice anchored teams and reduced reactive behavior.

Delegation as Development: Teaching leaders to delegate intentionally both freed their time for strategic work and developed their direct reports’ capabilities. High standards and delegation aren’t mutually exclusive when approached thoughtfully.