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[00:01:24] Thinking about her career move, or perhaps you wanna shift now or later from generalist to specialist or the other way around, listen to this discussion to spark your thinking. My guest is Caitlin Beatie. Caitlin is an established human resources leader specializing as a certified training and development professional and certified coach.
[00:01:49] She also happens to be mom to three year. Triplets. Caitlin is currently the head of people and culture at Fusion Homes, a customer first home builder with a deep devotion to outstanding employee experience. She is also the founder of Caitlin BD Coaching, where she offers bespoke one-to-one coaching programs for millennial women.
[00:02:09] It was a true pleasure chatting with Caitlin here, and I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did having it. Thanks for listening. Hello and welcome back to Talent Management there. I'm your host, Lisa Mitchell, and today my guest is Caitlin Beadie. Caitlin is the Senior Director of People and Culture at Fusion Homes. She's also a certified coach, and we have a lot to talk about today. Welcome to the show, Caitlin.
[00:02:37] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Thanks so much, Lisa. Excited to chat with you today.
[00:02:40] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Well s let's begin as, as I always do with with hearing a little bit about you, who you are, who is Caitlin Beadie.
[00:02:48] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Absolutely. I'm someone who's worked in this space in OD and HR for my whole career. I love this work. It's my passion. It's what brings me. Brings me to work every day. Gets me up in the morning every day. I've had the pleasure of working for a variety of different companies in different industries, different sizes along the way.
[00:03:07] My, my home base is more on the adult learning and development side of things over the course of my years. Great experiences at fantastic Canadian organizations. Most recently, I, I left my role at Indigo that I was, I was in love with for the last six
[00:03:21] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Oh, and you gave up your wonderful discount I bet. I love
[00:03:25] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: I did, I did. But you know what uh, so many great books still on my shelf love to read. I'm one of those people that, that buys a lot and then needs the time to, to go in and dig into them. But but yeah, I had an amazing experience there and, really shift. Did lately as I'm, as you mentioned, as the new leader of people and culture at Fusion Homes.
[00:03:42] So took a bit of a career pivot getting the opportunity to wrap my arms around the full HR function in a really new and exciting way, and I'm just loving my time there as well. So that's a little bit about me.
[00:03:53] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah, so you've, so you're moving kind of, I liked how you called learning an od your home base cuz it's, it's always been for me, although I have done the HR side of, of things as well. So now, Moving from that, you know, more specialized role, center of excellence into the broader HR people portfolio is fascinating transition.
[00:04:11] So who are you personally? What's, what's, what's going on when you're not at work?
[00:04:17] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Well, when I'm not at work I'm a busy mom, so I like to call it, you know, my, my, my first shift in the morning is mom mode. Then I'm full blown career mode, and then I'm back to mom mode. So, I have the pleasure of being a mom to three year old triplets, so they keep me definitely busy and, and passionate and excited.
[00:04:33] And so full, full throttle, I'd say 24 7
[00:04:37] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Triplets people. Are you hearing this? That's just an amazing, So good for you. So you've got a full time job, moming to triplets, and then we're gonna hear about your side hustle too shortly. So, really, really interesting. So, you know, one of the things that that stands out you know, we were just touching on it, was this fact that you've been in these really big companies.
[00:04:57] I mean, there's indigo there, Tellis, you, you, you were Ryerson now Toronto Metropolitan University, Target, Toronto Hydro McMaster. So you, you know, some really interesting experience. So you've gone from these massive organizations into one that is smaller, little more kind of niche if you will.
[00:05:16] And you had told me earlier when we were chatting in the green room that this was very intentional. Could you speak to that a little?
[00:05:22] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Absolutely. And I'd say I would, I would be curious if most HR practitioners kind of find themselves along the way in that home base or in that niche space. And I think there's tremendous opportunity to really focus in that one home base for the duration of your career. And. To be honest, that's what I thought I was going to do.
[00:05:39] I thought I was just going to stick in the learning and development world and the leadership development world and just progress from there. But there was a moment in my career where I realized what if I, what if I did wanna do more? What if I did want to take up more space within the HR world?
[00:05:54] And I think what I, I love about big companies is that you get exposure, you get a big team, you get connected with lots and lots of people, but. Sometimes that can also mean you are focused in one particular angle or one particular area of a, of let's say, an HR function. And I knew that if I were to stay in, in that bigger organization, I might not have the opportunity to do the full scope of HR in the way that I.
[00:06:17] Wanted to. So, I, I had applied to one job and it was this one here at Fusion Homes because there was something about it that really inspired me. I met with the leadership team. I just, I knew it was the right next calling for me to try and see what I was really capable of outside of my comfort zone and to be a more holistic HR practitioner, which was maybe not the original plan, but as the path.
[00:06:41] Self. It was definitely what I knew was next for me. So the shifts that do come with that, of course I'm still learning and growing in an exciting new way. And just the shifts, again from big corporations to a more mid-size team. What I love is there's a whole lot less, you know, clunkiness that can happen, the friction that can happen when you need all the approvals in the red tape.
[00:07:03] You really do get white space to kind of do things in a way that's a bit more organic. Sometimes it's more structured, sometimes it's less structured. But overall I, I'm really excited about the change that I need for my own career and just the, the new opportunities that come with. More space within a smaller organization than I think Telus was probably the biggest one.
[00:07:25] You know, 45,000 people. So you only get to know so many people when you're working at that big company.
[00:07:31] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. Well, and it is, it is interesting cause I know some listeners and some of my, my clients, you know, depending on where people started, some people are moving from small or mid-size organizations to big for you it's been the other way around. So I think it's just really depends on where people are at in their particular journey.
[00:07:47] What was it that signaled to you that, you know, there. You know, a shift would be a good thing at this point in your.
[00:07:55] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Yeah, for sure. I mean, I was at Indigo for several years, I think, almost six years in total. And you know, when you get that feeling, that itch for what's next for me. And again, I think I could have, I could have continued to do amazing work with my team at Indigo, but I I, if it was also in the middle of Covid.
[00:08:13] Hybrid, lots of people kind of rustling up the new idea of shifting gears and change. And so I've, I'm also someone who's very intuitive and I trust my kind of internal compass of leading me into what's next. And there was just that bit of that calling where I sat there and I thought, Where do I want to go?
[00:08:29] Where do I want to grow? Is it more in the learning space? Is it something completely different? And I think this was an example of just trusting my. And really questioning assumptions maybe, or fixed mindsets that I might have had along the way to say, There's no way you could do this. There's, there's no way you could lead an HR function because you don't know anything about X, Y, Z.
[00:08:51] But it just spoke to me as the right next challenge. And what really drove me to the decision was just that opportu. The opportunity to really make my mark and really establish myself and my vision for progressive people and culture in a brand new space with tremendous leaders. I really clicked with the leadership team there and I, I like to say, you know, I could work in HR at a lot of different places, but it's, it has to also be the right fit for you.
[00:09:17] And just that opportunity to kind of take up that more space and, and kind of influence. What people and culture can truly look like in a new space. So it's, it's been a fabulous ride so far.
[00:09:29] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: It is so wonderful because, you know, a lot of, a lot of folks kind of coast along and just, you know, it depends on who taps 'em on the shoulder or kind of what, what comes up. So, so seeing you take such intentional steps and being very clear about what you're seeking and why you're seeking it is, is.
[00:09:45] Really great to hear. You know, you, you've got some really deep expertise in a couple of key areas, particularly instructional design and continuous improvement. And you and I were chatting, I share that background as well, and you know, how do you feel that that specialist expertise shows up in your current more generalist
[00:10:04] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Mm-hmm. . Mm-hmm. , it's such a great question because I think if we were to talk about instructional design in my career, I know there's lots of folks who just. Truly niche and specialize in that space. And that's their passion and they're incredibly talented. And I was fortunate enough to get that background and that experience.
[00:10:22] And I spent some time at Target in the instructional designer role. And I, I can't speak more highly about the power of having that, that back pocket skill set, whether you are in learning and development proper or as a general. At the end of the day we're, we're constantly storytelling, presenting, creating experiences for people, facilitating workshops and that power of id, and not just the look and the feel and the aesthetics of what your beautiful slides look like, but, but I think what instructional design gave me and how it shows up is, Knowing how to create an experience for that learner or for that meeting, or for that facilitated session that's going to be value added and impactful.
[00:11:05] You get that through instructional design expertise. So I think even though I'm not necessarily creating e-learnings these days I think instructional design is, is so much more than that and it's really powerful as a, as a business person in general.
[00:11:19] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: I, I really wanna underscore your point there, that the, that instructional design isn't just You know, a lot of people would think, Well, that's just for the learning people, for the, you know, the, the folks in learning development. And yet I agree with you, it is a, a business skill.
[00:11:32] It really translates because it's project management, you know, it's, it's moving from that sort of initial, almost feasibility study needs assessment into your high level design and then development and so on, and figuring out the evaluation strategy. So, I agree. I think there's so much in there.
[00:11:50] Makes us better when it comes to planning out meetings and creating those experiences that are, that are linked back to, you know, what are the outcomes we're trying to get at, and the, the values the, the values that we want people have out of the experience.
[00:12:03] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Couldn't agree more. And I think I love what you also mentioned around the consulting and the project management, and it's fascinating. When I think back to my career, I think I just naturally have, I've just gotten those kind of project management consulting skills, but I could trace that back to instructional design.
[00:12:18] At the end of the day, you're. If you're working with a client or business partner and they need something crafted and created, you have to have those chops in order to also deliver something that's value added, impactful, and meets their needs. So there's so much power behind, behind that skill set that still translates to this day without a doubt.
[00:12:37] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. And what, so what's your take on, you know, some companies, this, particularly large ones like you and I've worked in because of scale, because of geographical distribution of people they have to have, you know, separate teams of instructional designers, for instance, and then another team of roving facilitators that are either virtual or in person and so on.
[00:12:57] And you. There's that kinda model, and then there's the other model for smaller, mid-size companies where it's more of that end-to-end learning consultant where they, they kind of live with a project from start to finish, including delivery. What's your kind of, I don't know, experience with that? Take on that?
[00:13:14] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: You bet. I've, I've, in my past, I've seen it be done in both ways, and I think there's usages for both, but to me, if given the chance and it made the most sense, I love the one learning consultant model, and the reason being is, you know, whereas in the, in the other model where maybe there's a. Facilitation team and an instructional design team, there's still translation that needs to happen.
[00:13:39] The designer, you get so intimate with the content and with the, the, the vision behind it and the experience that you're crafting, which then has to be translated over to a facilitator where they might not have been there every step of the way. And, and I think it can work. , but I, I love the approach where, let's just say it's one individual that's really starting the consulting conversation, doing the thorough needs analysis, working with that business partner to truly uncover what are you looking for, What's the objective here, what does success look like?
[00:14:09] And then taking that away and crafting that beautiful experience that then they can with whole heart deliver and and see that impact all the way through to evaluation. So I think there's more power and value in that approach if that was. If I had the option to choose,
[00:14:24] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: if you have the option, cuz it, cuz you and I have both lived in, in, in large organizations, retail where you simply couldn't. So I, you know, I remember for myself, what, what I ended up doing was ensuring that the facilitators that they had, the instructional designer would sit in the first, you know, couple of pilot runs of you know, a delivery and so on, because there needed to be that.
[00:14:46] Greater depth of appreciation for where'd this come from, what's driving this? What are the main things we gotta make sure we get across here? Cause cuz it can get lost in translation if it's simply a baton being passed from one team to the other.
[00:14:59] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: And I, I would add to that point too, I love that and I think the best facilitators have a, have an understanding of instructional design, and the best instructional designers would've had some experience in facilitation because once you're up there and you're actually delivering it, that facilitator will have great feedback and insight into the actual mechanics.
[00:15:19] Logistics and operationalization of a great learning experience. So I think that's, that would be ideal for me. is, is you have a little bit of taste of both of the worlds that that intersect.
[00:15:28] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah, it's so interesting cuz I find sometimes when I, I do leadership development facilitation of my own work and then for a couple partner companies. And so sometimes when I'm teaching other people's stuff that's more off the shelf, I love being able to. As a Mae. I was gonna say, but you know, bring it to life.
[00:15:44] And at the same time, some of the stuff, the way it's designed, I find it kind of clunky and it's not the way I would've de designed it. And so I find myself, Oh, I wanna get back to my own things, you know, where I know how to really make it shine live. It's so fascinating. Okay. Well look, the other thing I was gonna touch on is you mentioned.
[00:16:01] The slides as part of, you know, the design and having beautiful, beautiful slide deck. And we had a bit of a conversation earlier about this too. What's your take on the slide deck and how it's used currently in presentations and in in learning?
[00:16:16] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: It's funny, I feel, I feel sometimes people put so much emphasis on the deck and all the content and, and making sure the slides are jam packed with all the things that they need to say. And my preference and where I see the, the strongest facilitators really shine is when. The slide wear is more of a visual aid, more of an asset behind them.
[00:16:35] I mean, I've done workshops with three slides and they're you know, key points on the slide, but it's really your presence in the room, your knowledge of the content, how you bring your points to life, and how you speak to them. So, I love working with folks who are, are also open to that because I think it can be a little scary.
[00:16:50] We look at PowerPoint decks as a bit of a crutch to deliver our message, but I'm more on the camp of PowerPoints good, but let's not overuse them or overthink them. They, they can really be just a value added piece in the background very minimal information. I think less is more as well.
[00:17:05] I don't, I don't feel like we need to necessarily jam pack them, and maybe for some reason there seems to be a mindset that that's what, that's how you do PowerPoints is pack them in with info and rely on them too heavily. I think stripped down and more of a, of a tool to support the facilitator in that room is, is ideal state for me.
[00:17:25] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah, I, I agree wholeheartedly. Check. Beautiful. All right, . Well, you know, and there's, there's people that I know really fundamentally feel like, Okay, no. The slides are a key thing, and that's how we develop them. We create a deck, that's the design. I'm a little more old school in terms of, I start with my, my over our arching kind of facilitator guide, and then I develop the slides to, to go where I think I need them.
[00:17:48] And I think there's, there's arguments for both. I think it's partly style as well. I do think. We all need to say, Do we have enough slides or too many, you know, and just ask ourselves that, depending on where you kind of land. Right. On which side of the fence. All right. Let's maybe shift our conversation into some of the work you're doing currently at Fusion major projects.
[00:18:09] I know you've got some really interesting art coming up.
[00:18:11] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: in my time here, it's been an amazing onboarding experience. I joined in May and just getting familiar with the company and meeting my amazing team. And something I'm really thrilled to start wrapping my arms around is, Is a bit of a leadership development program. I, when I look at the internal talent, I think we have an elite team who has worked there for a while and have found themselves in great positions of leadership and making an impact each and every day.
[00:18:35] But I'm having plenty of conversations where folks are coming to me saying, I wanna learn more. How do I do this better? I, I think I know what I'm doing, but how can I improve in my leadership capabilities? When I think about next year, that's a personal and, and professional goal of mine is to really create an exciting, enriching but right sized learning leadership development program for the organization.
[00:18:59] I'm gonna be bold here and say I'm not a fan of the, the dusty binder that sits on your shelf after attending a three day, eight hour a day workshop. I think those days overall might be done. And so my goal and my quest here is to think. Where are, where are people at? We have a senior leadership team and then more of.
[00:19:18] The manager group where they're either new to leadership or coming into leadership, or want leadership to be part of their own personal growth. And what could two streams or two cohorts really look like to meet the needs of each audience in a more fresh way in a more relevant way, infusing more coaching principles and helping leaders become leaders of 20, 22 and beyond, rather than relying too heavily on, you know, Training 1 0 1 which I think everyone's, everyone has that baseline for.
[00:19:47] So it's going to be an incredible experience to kind of enter the space and really figure out where, where are we at as an organization, What will be the most value added new program to really launch for the first time at the company? So really excited about it.
[00:20:02] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Oh, and I really appreciate how you, how you talked about making it right sized.
[00:20:08] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Yes.
[00:20:08] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: you tell us a little bit about what right size means to you?
[00:20:11] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Absolutely. When I think, again, back to my experience working for larger organizations the models would've been different there. You would've had plenty of e-learnings and topics and workshops, and you could, I mean, I've had roles where I, myself as a facilitator, what was traveling across the globe to deliver in person sessions because we had team members really worked everywhere.
[00:20:30] It was just a different model, whereas, Here at Fusion Homes, we have around 90 people. And what I'm excited about and when I say right sized is the opportunity to really craft this in a more intimate way. I know everybody that works at the company. I know them very well. I know them. As leaders.
[00:20:48] I'm working with them each and every day, and I have a great sense of who they are as people and as leaders. And so right sizing it for my team, for our current. But also to build their skill set for the future and create something that's sustainable. So as new leadership comes in, they'll still benefit it.
[00:21:04] But I will not be wasting my time kind of creating 10 e learnings to then deliver and, and hand out to folks across the, across the company. So it will really be a really exciting opportunity for me to do it differently, but have more more influence in crafting something that's going to. Be meaningful to the team of, of a company this size.
[00:21:26] So I'm very
[00:21:27] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: it fresh and relevant to where you are. You know, I, I did a talent talk this month, actually a couple weeks ago, monthly talks that, that I host for people in the space to come. And, and so there's different topics that we talk about. And this last one was pure learning models, leveraging the power of them because I think that that's, you know, people.
[00:21:48] Often deep down know what they want to do and how they wanna show up. They just need space to, you know, reflect, share, where they're getting stuck, where they've made progress to get ideas and hear stories. You mentioned storytelling earlier and, and facilitated. Peer learning models go a really long way to tapping into.
[00:22:07] What people already know. So right there you get automatic buy-in and your sustainability, the stickability of what they learn is, is exponentially higher.
[00:22:17] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: I couldn't agree more. And I think, I think back to, let's say companies like Indigo, where we had our core learning content and we had our e-learnings, and then for select cohorts we would invest in, in, in a whole group, group coaching program for them and stuff. And I, I feel like I can kind of skip the line a little bit and, and like you said, Do these peer cohort based coaching circles and infuse that in a, maybe in a curriculum that's a bit of facilitated content, but then really making the heartbeat of the experience more of that group coaching like environment.
[00:22:50] There's so much deep expertise out of my, my peers but my, you know, I see my role really facilitating and uncovering that and creating that trusted space where everyone. Share the, the tales from the trenches and what they're dealing with every day and, and support them in that, in that way. So I get the luxury of kind of crafting it because of the size of our company and the size of our team.
[00:23:10] And I think do it in, in a, in a more, like we said, fresh and relevant way as we're in leadership today.
[00:23:17] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: So lucky. I just think that's such a beautiful place to be in, right? To get to craft something that really, really works and that you're excited about and that really marries all of your depth and breadth to date. And then your, your love of. Coaching and bringing a coach-like approach. So, so let's kind of segue, see how I did that? segue into the fact that you are a certified coach and, and have a coaching business on the side. Tell
[00:23:46] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Yes, absolutely. So, I think just throughout my years in this space, you pick up on all kinds of stuff and I think, you know, we become natural coaches along the way, but I really realized that there was a. Special magic to, to coaching and becoming certified coach was a bit of a, a purposeful decision again, for my career, just to say, I'm constantly learning.
[00:24:06] I'm learning on my own time, a big podcast listener. But what, but what other skills can I really sharpen to become an even better leader? A better HR partner. And so making the decision to become a certified coach was amazing. And just picked up on so many more skills that I, I really do use each and every day in every conversation that I have.
[00:24:26] I think when I think about the workplace and folks that I work with every day, and where I could also see influencing is around that coaching capability of managers. I don't think everyone necessarily needs to become professional certified. But I think leadership today is so much more around being a coach-like leader, less managing, less telling what to do.
[00:24:51] I mean, there's, there's a blend in my eyes of needing to be that leader, that coach-like leader, and also knowing when to deliver feedback and managing on the day to day. But I think a lot of people think they're coaching, but they're not. Or they're, they think they're coaching or, you know,
[00:25:06] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: do a lot of, well, a lot of what, what, you know, I'm an executive coach myself and a lot of what coaching is is educating people on what it means, right?
[00:25:14] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Exactly,
[00:25:15] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: lot people coming in and thinking I'm gonna tell them what to do. So, so there's a lot of misunderstanding around that. So I, I love that you are, You know, making an impact and deciding to kind of help people.
[00:25:27] You just, you just said something, We don't need all leaders to be professional coaches, and I agree. And at the same time I had this thought fly through my head. What if they
[00:25:36] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Wouldn't that, Wouldn't that be great?
[00:25:38] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: because wasn't the, wasn't the process of certification humbling.
[00:25:44] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Yes. There's so much underneath it that I, again, back to that point, I think people think, Oh, I'm a coach-like leader. I, I know how to coach people, but there's so much in terms of the technique and the quality of those coaching conversations and how to come up. With no agenda and be blank and really not tell people what to do and not give, not give the advice and hold back and let people self-discover and come to those pieces all on their own with your, with your guidance.
[00:26:12] It's a, I think an uncomfortable shift for many leader, I would imagine it would be an uncomfortable place to,
[00:26:17] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: it's also a much higher level skill set, right? Like it's, it's, it's one of the hardest, I mean, I'm lifelong learner, like you always, always learning new things and that it was one of the biggest challenges in my life because there's also so much inner work that has to happen. And, and not to sound fluffy for some people that might revile, or recoil with the word inner work.
[00:26:38] But what it, what it means is that there's this, there's this heightened, You might think you're self aware until you go through this
[00:26:43] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Oh yes. That's so true. Absolutely. And I think in the workplace not everyone gets the exposure or the experience of being coached unless they're lucky enough to work with a coach like leader or to have an executive, a coach. But that was another gap I was noticing everywhere I worked was that, you know, it felt, it felt.
[00:27:02] Oh, coaching is reserved for the exec team. Coaching is not for you, or coaching is going through a coaching program or an experience is just for high potentials. And I don't agree with that. I feel like maybe that's part of the gap is people, people can't people might not know how to be natural coaches because how often are they really being coached?
[00:27:21] How, how much exposure have they had to it? And I think about. My own journey and I think about other women in, in leadership and just, just the power of coaching and how that could help those in that space, whether they're in a new leader role or in a, in a seasoned leader role, How do we bring coaching down to the masses and really support people in that way, which was.
[00:27:43] Really what inspired my side business is becoming a leadership coach for millennial women leaders. The amount of people I would talk to to say I'm just doing this thing called leadership. I don't really know what I'm doing. I feel like an imposter. I feel like I'm just figuring it out, but I don't have a leader who's helping me get better and I don't know where to go.
[00:28:00] And exec coaching is not really for me. There's just, there's nothing. That kind of fits that group, and that's what's really inspired me to start up my, my own side business to support that particular audience in the workplace that I work with each and every day. Yeah.
[00:28:14] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: I wanna acknowledge that you're working to fill that gap because it is, it is changing. I mean, more and more you see some of the big coaching companies starting to try to, you know, their word is democratize coaching and, and you know, through platform coaching and so on. So they have these big platforms and people can pick their coach and pick their time and, and meet online.
[00:28:31] So I think that's accelerated particularly through covid. There's good news in that more and more organizations are seeing the value. You hear about it all the time. Geez, When I started out in my career many, many years ago way before you started I had some great mentors and some great models, thank goodness, but.
[00:28:48] Some crappy ones too. Coaching though was not part of the language. Even e even in in talent, in learning in hr, it wasn't there to the same degree. It was like only the highest executives might have an executive coach. It was really reserved for the highest power, so to
[00:29:06] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: sure, and I think it comes back to, again, that education piece piece that you mentioned that I completely agree with. It's educating folks on what is coaching, what's the difference between coaching and feedback. Coaching and performance management for those who might be need, need be needing that.
[00:29:22] But helping distill that down and really showcasing the power of it is such an exciting place to be at as well right now in my own career. So it's been, it's been a great journey. Yeah.
[00:29:32] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yes, I love it. And that you're trying to sort of dovetail the two pieces. I, you know, I think one, one program that I, that I deliver to my own clients is around, you know, it's, it's the coach-like experience. You know, really trying to bring that into leadership to that as part of the skill set.
[00:29:48] What's fascinating is we can expect leaders. To be full on coaches, cuz they still need to, There is that element of management. we want leaders, not managers, but they still need to manage the day to day and their own work. Cuz leaders today do not just stand over people watching them get stuff done.
[00:30:05] They're, they're, they have their own deliverables and things that they have to do. So it's figuring out, you know, how can I, that's why I like the term coach. Like, how do I use. Coach-like approach as often as possible and still be clear and kind when I have to deliver feedback about performance, you know, that needs to be improved, for
[00:30:25] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Completely agree. It's fascinating what you just said because my CEO yesterday actually mentioned this, where in his eyes, great, great leaders know how to lead. How to manage and how to perform and I couldn't agree more. It's, you really do need that trifecta of skill set to know when to use, to use what.
[00:30:44] And it really comes into we have our own work to do. We also need to manage our team, but we also need to lead our team. So very, very paralleled to what you just
[00:30:52] mentioned.
[00:30:53] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: layered, isn't it? Yes. Yes. It's, you know, I think leadership's a. It's a tough gig at times, and it's very re rewarding from a personal perspective, not just professional. There's so much growth embedded in, in becoming the best leader you can. Well, you know, I wanna wish you much success as you develop this fresh and relevant leadership development program at Fusion and, and continue in your role there.
[00:31:17] Maybe we'll, we'll end our, discussion today. I'd just love to know what, you know, when you look at your career, you've been in several organizations, you've not even dabbled, you've gone deep in several different areas of expertise. What's been your biggest learning overall
[00:31:34] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Mm,
[00:31:35] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: wise?
[00:31:35] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Wow. What comes to mind first is around just openness. and trusting your own path and trusting your own gut. I think I've worked with folks who might be a bit more, I wanna do this and then I need to be here and I need to achieve this, and stuff like that. And I think I've, I've never approached my career actually that way.
[00:31:55] My, my own mindset has always been, do great work. Make great relationships, stay humble along the way, and great things will happen. And I'm glad, you know, my biggest learning has been to be more open and open to change and resiliency and just letting life kind of unfold. I mean, all of us, I think, have experienced that tremendously over the last several years.
[00:32:17] When I found out I was becoming a mother of triplets, I think my whole, my whole world shifted. And so I think I've had many experiences in my life. That letting go process and just aligning myself to my values, to what inspires me to the work that is meaningful to me. I mean, it's the, the best way to kind of build a career that you are connected to and you're passionate about, and that you feel like you're making a difference in the world each and every day.
[00:32:41] So, it's been a great lesson from my past that I continue to show up with and, and bring, bring to the workplace and in my personal life, each and every.
[00:32:49] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Mm. Be open, open to, to change, Open to not knowing. I, I love it.
[00:32:54] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Yes.
[00:32:55] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Well, thank you so much for sharing your time and your wisdom with, with me, and with the listeners today. I really, really appreciate it. Thank you very much.
[00:33:04] caitlyn-beattie_recording-1_2022-09-29--t02-17-22pm--guest554582--caitlyn-beattie: Thank you, Lisa. It was a pleasure. Thank you.
