Coaching & Advising

Let me help you grow: professionally, creatively, authentically. You can trust me to tell it like it is, to be kind but not necessarily nice, and to ask the hard questions that get you where you actually want to go. If you’re a leader, let me help you grow your skills and build effective teams and organizations.

Get in touch at [email protected], or book an introductory call.

After an initial conversation, we’ll figure out what’s a good fit for you, your budget, and your ambitions.

Here are some things I can offer:

• A deep dive into your career and motivations. We’ll identify gaps and specific action items to start closing those gaps, and I’ll provide regular accountability for the actions we discuss. We’ll discuss how to build and use your “personal brand” — including via writing, social media, and public speaking — to get access to unique and interesting opportunities. You’ll gain confidence in your professional worth in a variety of contexts, and learn how to promote yourself in each.
• A retainer-style arrangement; two one-hour coaching sessions every month, plus on-demand-ish text/email support (e.g. to review comms, discuss specific urgent issues, etc.).
• Ad hoc career or leadership coaching, we meet at your pace, up to once a week.
• Support on leadership challenges such as performance management, hiring, stakeholder management, goal-setting, and more.
• The guidance of a seasoned platform engineering leader with extensive developer productivity experience and a strong product mindset. I’ve seen some things, and I can help you avoid, anticipate, or handle them.

Who are you? #

My most likely clients have a job associated with software development. You might be from a non-traditional background, and that’s not just OK, it’s your superpower. You’re early to mid career, with an eventual ambition for a director+ or staff+ role, or something equally satisfying. There’s evidence already that you could be high-trajectory with the right support, though you may be stuck in the wrong job. If you’re a woman in tech, I’m extra-interested in helping you out.

What people say #

“You create long term relationships. It’s clear and heartening that you are deeply authentic and truly want me to succeed. This is resonant in your coaching style - thoughtful and honest. Caring, but encouraging me to think about the hard stuff. You made me think differently about a decision that at the time seemed all-encompassing; you were able to help me zoom out and say ‘Hey, this is a 2 year decision. We’ll figure out what's next after that but for now, this is all we’re thinking about.’ You are wonderful at getting me to think about things differently by asking really great questions. I was really struggling with a decision and you helped me create tiered pros and cons for each and remained so neutral on something that you definitely could have been way more opinionated about — it made me trust you even more as a colleague and mentor.” — Technology Operations Program Manager, Nike

“You hold me to my goals because you actually want me to reach them. You ask hard questions that I haven’t had asked before, and I think it comes from the same place of actually caring and wanting to see me succeed. They’re the ‘tough love’ type of questions that aren’t even that tough but they’re the ones that for whatever reason other people I’ve talked to aren’t asking, but they push me. You offer your experience but go beyond it & tailor it, you’re not prescriptive but you are specific." — UX Research Manager, Uber

“You ask questions that get me thinking about my work and career growth, essentially kicking off introspection. When you do this I always get the sense that you’re thinking three steps ahead but trying to help me get there and tease out issues for myself which is massively helpful. You’re right a lot, about tech and product of course but also about people. You know how to work with people even when they’re being a pain.” — Senior Technical Product Manager, Indeed

“You consistently encourage me and give me prompts to think critically about my short- and long-term career goals. You’ve empowered me to approach career planning strategically, giving me the confidence to engage in meaningful conversations with my manager.” – Director, AI Platform Programs, Indeed

“I talked. She listened. Then she asked questions. Hard, good questions. Questions I wasn’t even aware existed. She surfaced entire areas I had missed. Over multiple iterations of engaging deep dives, data analysis, ideation, and anecdotes shared from past experience, she helped sharpen my thinking and define a new strategy. I felt like a ship that had been righted and saw how I would have floundered without her guidance.” – Tech solopreneur, former engineering leader