1.
Services to support leaders
one at a time, or more.
© 2010 Impact Consulting Group

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“Great leaders build companies.
Poor leaders unwittingly dismantle.
It’s possible to become a great leader.”
Nancy Lewis and Aleta Norris, Living As A Leader co-founders

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About this e-Guide.
As we talk with leaders within organizations about the topic of leadership,
we are very often asked to paint a picture of a variety of things. And,
it’s different for everyone. It may be related to our philosophy on
leadership, the ROI of leadership, the services we offer, exactly HOW
we help leaders and companies, or what others have to say about us.
So, in response, we’ve created this e-Guide as a reference.
Now…here’s the thing! We do not intend for you to read this whole
thing. Instead, take a look at the table of contents, and simply click
on what you’d like to learn more about. Throughout the e-Guide, you
will find links to additional detail...where you would like more.
ENJOY!

4.
Contents
Part 1 Part 4
In Search of Great Leadership Learn More About Living As A Leader
Leadership is a Developed Skill Our clients
The Need to Lead Our team
Testimonials
Part 2
What We Do Part 5
History Getting started
Part 3
How We Can Help
Leadership Development Series
Customized Services

5.
Part 1
In Search of Great Leadership
Leadership is a Developed Skill
The Need to Lead
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In Search of Great Leadership
Every day, a star employee is promoted into a leadership role.
An assumption is made that this high-performing individual
contributor will naturally be a great leader. Quite the contrary.
Most star employees have difficulty leading others, because they
don’t understand why others can’t just do it….the way they have
always done it! Doing and leading are very different skills.
The results also differ. Only 51 percent
of employees are
Conversely, many organizations have employees who have spent satisfied with their
a long time in leadership roles. They are established leaders. And, boss, according to
yet, just like the newly-promoted leader, they often struggle in the the Conference
leadership aspects of their jobs. Board, 2010.
When the star performer or the long-time leader is unable to lead
others effectively, what can a company do about it?
Increasingly, organizations are searching for answers to this
question because they recognize the collateral damage—negative
culture, reduced morale and productivity, loss of good employees—
caused by ineffective leadership.
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Ultimately, a leader is judged on results. Yet, too often, results
are lacking. A year-end 2009 Drake International study showed
that only 45 percent of American workers are satisfied on the
job . . . and there is a direct link between a leader’s effectiveness
and the satisfaction of employees he or she leads, as well as a
direct association between satisfaction and results.
To achieve the results desired by an organization,
a leader must know how to effectively balance workforce
accountability with workforce inspiration. Accountability
involves managing employee performance. Inspiration involves
listening, providing encouragement and facilitating interaction
among employees.
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To be effective at inspiring others and making them
accountable, leaders must possess a certain skill set grounded
in proven principles of people leadership. This pertains to
leaders at all levels: team leaders, supervisors, managers,
senior leaders and executives. Most leaders inherently are
better with accountability or inspiration; few are able to
achieve the right balance without further skill development.
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Leadership is a Developed Skill
We are not born to lead. We’re born with the ability to lead, and
the level of this ability is not the same for everyone (as you have
probably noticed). When you see a strong leader in action, you’re
likely witnessing a person who has developed and honed skills
over time.
“True leadership is
Developing and coaching leaders to effect positive changes not something you
within an organization begins with helping them understand basic learn once; it is an
human behavior. Leaders need to be aware of the predictable ever-evolving pattern
challenges they face as they work with people. of skills, talents and
abilities that you craft
We believe in equipping established leaders and high and seek to perfect
achievers promoted into leadership roles with the skill set to lead over a lifetime. Your
intentionally or to “lead by design.” When your leaders are given leadership journey
time and support to design the type of leader they want to be will never be finished.
(and the type of leadership they want to provide), they position You are a wondrous
work in progress.”
themselves—and your company—for success.
Sheila Murray Bethel,
Ph.D, from ‘A New Breed
of Leader’
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Over the past 20 years, we’ve worked with thousands of leaders
across varied industries and have observed firsthand the impact
of strong and weak leadership on employees and organizational
results. Unfortunately, in our experience, truly great leaders are
in short supply. Many executives have told us that their
experiences mirror ours: When asked to name some great leaders
in their own careers, most can produce only one or two names.
Don’t assume people will just naturally 69% of human
resources directors
grow into their roles as leaders. have claimed finding
people with the right
What can you do to improve your leaders? As you look to hire
leadership skills as
and promote your stars for leadership roles, we encourage you their major concern
to assess leadership potential. Don’t assume people will just
naturally grow into their roles as leaders. The risk in collateral Richmond Events
damage caused by ineffective leadership is not worth it. Also,
invest in your leaders. Help your rising stars recognize what
skills are needed to take the reins of leadership, and give your
established leaders the opportunity to hone their skill sets.
The positive change in employees, culture and productivity
can be dramatic.
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The Need to Lead
The Need to Lead, a Living As A Leader position paper, highlights
the leadership void in companies today and the ramifications of not
having strong leaders.
Are you aware of the leadership crisis in our country? We’ve
all read the shocking headlines on the demise of once-revered
companies driven into the ground through dramatic lapses in
leadership. On a less visible front, and at a level where leaders
interact with employees one to one every day, the news is also not
good. It is here that ineffective leadership is sending significant
negative repercussions throughout departments and organizations,
and having the kind of negative effect on corporate bottom lines
that may surprise you.
You can read more on this topic in The Need to Lead.
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Part 2
What We Do
History
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What We Do
Using a unique combination of training and coaching, we develop
people into effective, productive leaders. Whatever level your
leaders are at—from the rising star just promoted into a leadership
role to the long-time leader—we offer services and support to help
leaders become confident and intentional as they work with others.
To achieve the results you seek, we employ either a progressive
development approach or customized services to fit any situation.
Companies invite us to work with them because we develop leaders
whose impact is noticeable, positive and lifelong. Our talented team
of facilitators and coaches focuses on making a positive impact on
others, one leader at a time.
Living As A Leader services:
• Skill-building workshops
• Leadership coaching
• Leadership team development
• Company-specific leadership project work
• Professional speaking services
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Leadership Philosophies
Much of what we do in our work begins with an understanding
of fundamental human behavior. We help leaders recognize what
inherently challenges them in their overall effectiveness. Observing
leaders who struggle repeatedly with a number of basic bad habits,
we see over and over again that these poor habits are, pure and
simple, not intentional. For this reason, we strongly advocate
“intentional” leadership.
In all of the work we do with leaders, we encourage them to:
• Be Kind
• Be Humble
• Be Tolerant
• Be Productive
• Be Accountable
• ....and Serve Others
These principles form the cornerstone of our philosophy on
supporting leaders.
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To become familiar with more of our beliefs on leadership
development, please read Beliefs and Philosophies on
Leadership. It offers our take on:
• How to define a leader
• The traits of effective leadership
• Rarity of great leadership
• Whether leaders are natural-born
• The importance of leadership development
Please download Beliefs and Philosophies on Leadership
at our website by clicking here.
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History
Aleta Norris and Nancy Lewis founded Impact Consulting
Group in 1996 as a broad-services training and consulting
firm. Their objective: Make a positive difference in the lives
of people within organizations and positively impact the
bottom lines of organizations served. Impact Consulting
Group supported:
• Leaders
• Front-line work teams
• Sales professionals
• Cross-functional team effectiveness
• trategic planning and focusing, testing
S
and assessment
• Customer service professionals
In 2002, Aleta and Nancy decided to narrow their focus on
leadership and co-founded the Living As A Leader division.
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Part 3
How We Can Help
• Leadership Development Series
• Customized Services
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How We Can Help
Welcome to leadership development. It’s a rewarding process.
We can help leaders at all levels – from the rising star promoted
into a leadership role to the long-time leader. To achieve the
results you seek, we employ 1) our comprehensive leadership
development series or 2) customized leadership development
services designed to fit any situation.
Leadership Development Series
Our signature service, the Leadership Development Series,
covers a 12-month period of progressive development.
This comprehensive, steady- progress-over-time approach
equips leaders with depth and breadth of skill and
knowledge, through monthly workshops and coaching
sessions. Participants include supervisors, managers and
some senior leaders.
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We also offer a six-month series for informal leaders who do
not have the same authority as 12-month participants, yet also
need to effectively influence the actions of others. Participants
include team leaders, group leaders, project leaders,
employees with high potential and technical professionals.
Leaders who successfully complete either development series
will be workplace-ready—intentional and confident with the
leadership choices they make, instinctively knowing what to
say and what to do. “The two most
common refrains
You can take advantage of the 12-month series and the we hear from leaders
6-month series in two ways. are ‘I don’t know
what to say’ and
1) We come into your organization and deliver the series ‘I don’t know what
to your intact team of leaders. to do.’”
2) You enroll one or more of your leaders in our Aleta Norris,
Living As A Leader
open-enrollment option.
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Key Features of the Leadership Development Series:
• onthly workshops combined with one-on-one or
M
small-group coaching, a unique approach that maximizes
both education and application.
• n up-front feedback opportunity, involving the participant
A
and his or her boss. This helps us prepare a personal
development plan for each participant.
• he opportunity for participants to work with their own
T
leadership coach. This is a favorite part of the series!
• 60-degree feedback on each participant’s strengths and
3
opportunities for improvement.
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Does the Series sound right for your leaders?
To help you determine whether the Series is a good fit, we’ve
created a Leadership Development Series Fact Sheet. It will
give you the entire story on our unique approach to leadership
development, which includes:
• he principles that form the foundation of the Leadership
T
Development Series
• he process for skill development and coaching
T
• n overview of the monthly skill-building workshops
A
(for both the 6-month and 12-month series)
• The role of the boss
• Options for in-house or open enrollment
You can learn more by reading our
Leadership Development Series Fact Sheet.
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Customized Services
Do you have a unique leadership challenge? Consider a
customized approach to solving the problem. We can create
a solution—for any challenge—at all levels of leadership within
your organization. If you’re unsure of the best way to approach
a leadership issue, let’s talk about it. “If you’re unsure
of the best way to
The breadth and depth of customized services are as wide approach a leadership
and deep as you need them to be and typically fall into one issue, let’s talk
of four categories: about it.”
• One-on-one Leadership Coaching
Nancy Lewis and
• Leadership Team Development Aleta Norris, Living As
- Executive A Leader co-founders
- Middle Management
- Supervisory Teams
• Company-Specific Leadership Project Work
• Professional Speaking Services
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One-on-One Leadership Coaching
Coaching sessions are designed for individual professional
development. Among its many benefits, one-on-one
leadership coaching provides:
• Targeted support
• Support customized to the individual
• A fresh, objective point of view with brutal honesty
• focus on helping leaders design what to do and what to say
A
Leadership Team Development
Most leaders have two primary roles: 1) a leader of their
employees, and 2) a member of their leadership team. Often,
we are asked to support the ‘team effectiveness’ of a leadership
team. Below are some examples of the types of support we offer:
• Team assessment
• Team map
- A process for leadership teams to establish alignment
around many critical elements for team effectiveness.
• Team conflict resolution
• Team goals, priorities and actions
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Company-Specific Leadership Project Work
Every company is different. Ask us how we can design
leadership support specific to your company in the
areas of:
• Performance management systems
• Custom-designed workshops
• Large-scale leadership development initiatives
• Accountability systems
• Strategic alignment
Professional Speaking Services
• Company quarterly and annual meetings
• Professional associations
• Keynote address
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Part 4
Learn More About Living As A Leader
Our clients
Our team
Testimonials
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Learn More About Living As A Leader
Our clients.
We have been blessed over the years with the privilege of helping
leaders learn the skills necessary for effective leadership. Their
willingness to improve, and their impact on those they lead, has
a positive effect on company productivity and personal growth.
Companies of all sizes and across industries have turned to us
for help in developing their leaders. Some of those companies
are listed here:
Advanced Waste Services, Inc. | American Transmission Control | Badger Meter, Inc.
Batzner Pest Management | Bostik, Inc. | Bradley Corporation | Brady Corporation
Cars.com | Cerac, Inc. | Eppstein Uhen Architects | Harley Davidson, Inc.
Helwig Carbon | InPro Corporation | InSinkErator, Inc. | Kenall Manufacturing
Ladish Corporation | Linden Grove | Maysteel Corporation
Medical College of Wisconsin | Milwaukee Center for Independence | Monster, Inc.
North Shore Bank | Opus CMC | RW Baird | Rexnord | Steel King Industries
Storage Solutions | Stratford Homes | The Novo Group | TJ Hale | Town Bank
Veolia Environmental Services | We Energies | WEM Automation | WICPA
Wisconsin Health Fund
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Our team
When you hire Living As A Leader, you’re getting seasoned
professional development coaches every time. We invite you to
view our credentials.
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Testimonials
On the classic scale of 1 to 10, our program participants graded YTD training a
9.2 (implementable value).
William Christel
Vice President of Human Resources/ESH
Advanced Waste Services, Inc.
“…Many times we managed without thinking, as though through our experience
we surely would be doing the right thing. Through Impact’s thoughtful guidance
and coaching, we started really thinking about what we were doing and how we
were managing, and we realized we weren’t as wonderful as we thought.
Through their assessment, my own reflection and your thoughtful training,
I rediscovered how critical my communication with others could and should
be. It is far too important for me to not give critical thought to purposeful
communication.… The Impact coaching process supported a replicable,
thoughtful approach to evaluating my action and addressing next steps.
Where else can a leader open themselves to find that support and not lose
the necessary confidence that leadership requires?”
Gary Mohn, CEO
Alexian Village of Milwaukee
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“I completed the professional development series back in 2005 and
based on my overwhelmingly positive experience, I have been referring
the Living As A Leader series as well as the Leadership Breakfasts to my
staff and colleagues ever since. Living As A Leader provides tailored training
and coaching for leaders with varying skill sets and strengths. Leadership
is a critical component to our firm’s success - it impacts all levels of our
organization – Living As A Leader is a good investment in the future talent
of our business.”
Lori Lorenz, Human Resources Director
Robert W. Baird & Co.
“Only two sessions in and the Living As A Leader series has provided me with
some really valuable tools for improvements in my daily operations. Thank you
for offering such a useful training series!”
April Haverty
Medical College of Wisconsin
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“In 2007, I hired Impact Consulting to work with my senior leadership team
for a number of reasons. These included to:
1) Strengthen their visibility and practices as leaders at large
in the organization
2) Improve their peer collaborations during critical meetings, as well
as in their day-to-day work
3) Lead their functional areas more intentionally.
“This was not so much about techniques as it was the practice of leadership.
Over time, as this team became more aligned and effective in their roles, the
line outside my door diminished. This enabled me to be more effective in my
role as CEO, with measurable time spent focusing on strategy and vision. I am
very pleased with the value Impact Consulting contributed. “
Mike Draver, President
Tempt In-Store Productions, Inc.
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“…Starting with our facilitation needs, building to program design and
implementation and now consulting with our Executive staff and Board of
Directors, Impact Consulting has consistently provided superior service.
A major reason Impact Consulting is able to provide superior service is
because they have the ability to clearly identify opportunities for improvement
and, perhaps more importantly, clearly and consciously communicate the best
way to address that opportunity. We will continue our relationship because
Impact Consulting has set itself apart by applying its collective experience
and expertise to our unique situations.”
steve Mueller
InSinkErator Corporation
“Impact Consulting Group has been very beneficial in providing training,
along with customized coaching, to our first-time managers and high
potentials as they move into management roles. Impact facilitators capture
the room, and our employees feel is it a huge benefit to be picked to attend
the Living As A Leader training series.”
cindy lu
President and Co-Founder
The Novo Group
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Part 5
Getting started
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Getting started!
We welcome the opportunity to know more about you and the
leadership development needs of your organization. Please contact
us by phone at 262-821-8178 or by email.
You can gain an understanding of our style and unique way
of developing leaders by joining us at one of our regularly- True leadership is not
scheduled breakfast meetings. Leaders frequently tell us that something you learn
attending a breakfast helps them become comfortable with our once; it is an ever
approach. If you’re attending for the first time, please come evolving pattern of
as our guest. When registering online, be sure to mark the skills, talents, and
abilities that you craft
first-time attendee box. To find out about the next leadership
and seek to perfect
breakfast, visit our Breakfast Series schedule.
over a lifetime. Your
leadership journey
Schedule a conversation. will never be finished.
Do you have questions? Let’s discuss your leadership You are a wondrous
development priorities and share some ideas. Please call work in progress!
us to set up a time to meet. A New Breed of Leader, by
Sheila Murray Bethel, Ph.D.
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Invite us in to conduct a leadership assessment.
To assess the effectiveness of leadership at your company, we
have processes in place to look at individuals or groups at any
level, as well as the overall leadership culture.
Sign up for our monthly one-page book summary.
We believe an essential ingredient to growing in leadership
effectiveness is consistent reading of ideas and best practices.
Once a month, we summarize a book in a quick-read, one-page The fundamental task
format. Sign up here to receive this great leadership tool. of leaders is to prime
good feeling in those
they lead. That occurs
Talk to some of our clients. when a leader creates
If you’re interested in speaking with any of our clients, please resonance – a reservoir
contact us. Let’s discuss the types of clients in which you’re of positivity that frees
interested. Call 262-821-8178 or send us an email here. the best in people.
At its root, then, the
primal job of leadership
is emotional.
Daniel Goleman,
Primal Leadership
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35.
Thank you.
We appreciate your taking the time to learn
more about the Living As A Leader™ services.

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125 N. Executive Drive
Brookfield, Wisconsin 53005
p 262.821.8178
www.livingasaleader.com
info@livingasaleader.com
Living As A Leader is a service of Impact Consulting Group, LLC.
© 2010 Impact Consulting Group, LLC. All rights reserved. For more
information, contact Living As A Leader, 125 N. Executive Drive,
Brookfield, Wisconsin 53005.