Letters

Letters / November 2002

Thanks for this news [ Integral Leadership Review, October 2002]. I’ve had a number of opportunities to interact with Mike Jay and he has a first class mind, with a depth of understanding of the dynamics of leadership. I strongly recommend that others read this interview.

Also, the November 11, 2002 issue of BusinessWeek has an excellent feature story on CEO Coaches. It begins with the following: “Few chief executives will talk about it. But more and more, they’re turning to counselors for help in navigating the current corporate turmoil. Here’s a look inside the inner sanctum.”

The piece identifies the “many faces of the dysfunctional CEO” and is quite supportive of the entire coaching movement. Here is another passage: “As an organizational agnostic with no agenda, a coach can move up and down the ranks, sleuthing out the shadow culture–all the subtextual undercurrents driving the company that are never talked about.” One more: “When CEOs fail, and most do…it’s because they misread the culture and the politics. And in the process, they don’t manage themselves or their emotions very well.” Don Beck

And thank you, Don. I am a fan and student of Mike Jay. He is initiating some very interesting applications of integral perspectives to the world of coaching and organizational change.