After a round of layoffs, Mary Ann and Chris helped diagnose key team issues and develop a clear plan for change in our company culture. Through our work together, I saw a real shift in the culture from one of fear to fearless engagement, and I was inspired to see folks throughout the company learn and help create the change they wanted.

Ann Kapoun, SVP, Translational Medicine

I sought coaching with Mary Ann because I wanted to clarify my purpose and a path of growth. She helped me to focus on the things that I can and do control. Through my work with her, I gained more confidence, resilience and self-compassion, which has made me a happier and better leader. I particularly like that I am much more forgiving with myself and others when mistakes happen.

Grace Chuang, Director, Medicinal Chemistry, Cytokinetics

Mary Ann helped me gain a clear understanding of the things that were holding me back at work and strengthen my leadership style.

Through her coaching, I learned to listen on a much deeper level — to dig deeper and glean unsaid truths. Not only did the experience increase my self-awareness, it improved my confidence and allowed me to proactively work on actions that made an impact on my organization’s business goals.

Sunita Shenoy, Technology Business Leader, Intel Corporation

My work with Mary Ann was nothing short of miraculous. She helped me to see the world completely differently. I was feeling burned out on a job that I had previously loved. Her coaching helped me to discover alternate viewpoints and take actions that shifted how I felt. Not only did my own perspectives shift, but my collaborations with colleagues also improved.

I am happier at work than I have been in years and my impact has increased without needing to work longer hours or harder.

Dan Schacher, Director of Global Training, Alexion Pharmaceuticals

Coaching from Mary Ann helped me develop my team management, strategic thinking and presentation skills. She didn’t just introduce me to new techniques, she worked closely with me to practice them and she prepared me for important meetings. It was so valuable to be able to have an open and honest conversation about my leadership challenges and receive non-judgemental, constructive and actionable feedback. I’m better able to present to different audiences, focus on the big picture and empower my team.

Additionally, Mary Ann's approach helped me to see situations from multiple lenses and respond in a more balanced way. This was a big and unexpected wow for me! Mary Ann’s coaching has helped me become a better, more confident, more grounded leader.

Nina Patel, Senior Director CS Tech, Global Customer Experience, eBay 

I began working with Mary Ann at a time when I had a lot of pressure to produce critical technical results while working with a relatively new executive team in a fast paced startup environment.

Through my work with Mary Ann, I was able to strengthen my skills around commitments and negotiations, having difficult conversations and listening, which has made me a better leader.

As a coach, Mary Ann demonstrated a complete mastery of the subject matter. The depth of knowledge and tools that she consistently and quickly accessed made the learning tangible and pertinent to my particular situation. I never got the feeling she was teaching from a fixed syllabus or a set of rote anecdotes to make a point.

My personal perception of the results and feedback from my colleagues has far surpassed what I expected to get out of my time with an executive coach.    

Andy Uchida, VP, Research and Development, Outset Medical

Working with Mary Ann was truly transformative. As a director at a large company, I wanted coaching to help develop my influence, big picture thinking and ability to retain a calm, meaningful presence.

I was surprised by the improvement not only to my leadership, but to my personal satisfaction and the sense of balance in my life. I appreciated that Mary Ann brought a wealth of different approaches and helped me determine what works best for me. I’m now a more centered leader and look forward to continued learning and growth.

Chad Svihel, Director Technology Planning and Operations at eBay

I had taken on a new and fairly unstructured role for a strategic project at my company when Mary Ann first began coaching me. It was incredibly stressful, and I felt that my confidence was working against me. My work with Mary Ann helped me to stay grounded and keep the big picture in mind. I learned how to step outside the stress and reflect more holistically.

Mary Ann pointed out patterns that were holding me back and offered new directions. For example, I avoided confrontation and when I couldn’t, I got overwhelmed and felt shaken long afterwards. Through Mary Ann’s coaching, I learned how to face conflict head on, remain present and move on quickly. Bottom line: coaching with Mary Ann was an awakening. I’m much more confident and aware of who I am and what I need to be the leader I want to be. 

Director of Product Management at a tech start up

Mary Ann is a great coach and did a very good job combining theoretical content with real-world practice and context. Throughout the coaching process I was able to apply techniques with positive results.

My colleagues have reported on my improved ability to really listen deeply to their needs and concerns and vice versa. This has resulted in improved execution on shared tasks and goals. My colleagues and I also feel a deeper connection and a stronger team spirit.

Mary Ann was invaluable helping me talk about where I am and where I want to be as a leader, which made it much easier for me to develop the appropriate skills.   

Joey Echeverria, Distributed Systems Developer, Rocana

Mary Ann is extremely committed and invested in the development of the people she coaches. She maintained a personable demeanor while simultaneously challenging my perceptions, constantly supporting my growth as a leader. 

Mary Ann was able to give me solid tools to address my development areas and tied scenarios I faced back to practices that we discussed which made their implementation easier. 

The biggest testament to the impact that Mary Ann had on me is the fact that I have shared her practices with so many of my team members.  

Dr. Gillian Duncan, Senior Director, Intuitive Surgical, Inc.

Working with Mary Ann has been one of the best experiences in my career. Her coaching has helped transform my professional demeanor, in a way that did not go unnoticed by colleagues and upper management.

I highly recommend Mary Ann to anyone who is interested in improving their business life, moving up the management ladder or dealing with difficult work situations.  

Renee Zuckerman, Senior Marketing Manager, Agilent Technologies

When I was given the opportunity to lead the PMO team at Grifols, I knew this would be an exciting change from my previous role as a Project Leader in the same group.

It would also be a challenge for the team to accept a peer now being their manager, and for me to represent my new team to the organization. On top of that, the timing coincided with the integration of two organizations following an acquisition. During the first six months of this transition I chose to work with Mary Ann as my coach to support me through these changes.

Mary Ann had wonderful way of blending my own goals with topics I did not even know existed. She combined more immediate goals of managing my team with more strategic goals of establishing myself as a leader in the organization. I was truly amazed how quickly she was able to connect with me.

Mary Ann helped me broaden my range and choose an appropriate style for any situation. I often go back to my notes of our sessions and will continue to do so in the future. I am very happy to say that Mary Ann has had a very positive and lasting impact on my career. I am very grateful for her help, her care, and her advice and wisdom that she was always willing to share.   

Chris Von Toerne, Head of Project Management, Grifols

Mary Ann was instrumental in my successful transition from an individual employee to a manager of employees. The models and information she shared with me fundamentally improved communication and trust with team members. Her coaching was tailored to my specific work situations – both in planning ahead as well as dissecting past situations. 

My management team recognized the significant, positive changes in my approach and promoted me to senior manager following my coaching series with Mary Ann.  

J.E., Senior Manager, Cisco

Mary Ann has helped me to develop a range of responses (not just on & off), how to relax in disagreements and be aware of my body language as well as my spoken words. My sessions with her have significantly improved my ability to receive and deliver difficult feedback. Her style was both nurturing and professional. I will do coaching sessions with her again in the future.  

A.P., VP Chemistry, specialty pharmaceuticals company

I struggled with the transition from Human Resources Professional to HR Executive. Mary Ann showed her unique gift by unearthing my areas of improvements and developing a customized development plan for me. Her focused, honest and compassionate implementation of the plan gave me new perspectives and propelled my professional development enormously.  

B.W., Chief HR Officer, MedAmerica

Working with Mary Ann was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had in my professional development.  I consider her insights, guidance, and ability to offer the “right work at the right time” invaluable. This work has helped me fully embrace my role as VP of HR and become a much more impactful and influential contributor in the organization.

 Denise Bray, Vice President of Human Resources, Archimedes

Working with Mary Ann opened my eyes to the many skills necessary to become a successful and effective leader. After working with her, I received positive feedback from other principal leaders in our organization that they could clearly see my improvement in my leadership skills. 

Even today, I still use the lessons and exercises I learned with Mary Ann and have been able to pass along some of these experiences to others.  

Cyndy Flores, PA-NP Director, CEP America

I have recently completed my second set of coaching sessions with Mary Ann Ireland. During this series Mary Ann taught me several techniques that have made a noticeable improvement in my ability to communicate, manage and negotiate solutions to complicated problems. 

For me, a key factor for improving all these skills were her lessons on how to be an effective listener.  Hearing what people have to say and looking at the dialog from their point of view has made a remarkable difference in my interpersonal skills.  

Again, Mary Ann has demonstrated her remarkable talent for providing clear and concise methods for resolving difficult issues.  I would recommend her services to anyone that wanted to improve their management, leadership, or communication skills regardless of how good they think those skill might be.   

Brent Larsen, Director, Protein Analytics and Pharmaceutics, Perseid TherapeuticsDirector

Working with Mary Ann was one of the most impactful experiences in my professional career. Mary Ann developed an individualized program to address areas where focused effort would have the most impact on my professional development and on my business.

After working with Mary Ann not only am I a better manager and leader, but I also understand more about myself. I apply the insights developed through my work with Mary Ann every day – the positive impact on my team and on my ability to be effective is profound. I wish I had done this 10 years earlier!    

Peter Christey, Vice President at Life Technologies

Mary Ann was engaged by SSE as a member of the Vision Team tasked with assessing our project working methods and making improvement recommendations.  

The individual coaching she gave made quite an impression on me and I am endeavoring to continue the initial progress made. I am totally convinced of the beneficial effects and am leading by example.  

Feedback from my management suggests that the more open attitude that she recommended has been registered by colleagues. She can be assured that her short time here has made a lasting difference.   

Ray Bartlett, IT Manager, SSE, Portsmouth, UK

Mary Ann was assigned to our organization in 2011 to implement a coaching program to improve the way we focus and engage with customers. The experience was rewarding on so many levels and the benefits delivered by Mary Ann far superseded the goals of the program.

Mary Ann is quite possibly the best listener I have ever worked with and her coaching ability is exceptional. Having read other recommendations for Mary Ann, one statement struck me as being the best description of how Mary Ann influenced our organization.

”It was quite simply the best working experience in my career” I can understand why someone would say that. If you have the opportunity to be coached by Mary Ann make the most of it, as you will be a better professional as a result of it!   

Mark Corney, Director of Sales, SSE Telecoms, Reading, UK  

“My coaching partnership with Mary Ann was invaluable.  Her thought-provoking questions, insight and ability to quickly build trust, provided a safe and open environment for me to explore different possibilities and shift my mindset. I have gained the poise to confidently and freely express my convictions, engage in problem solving with company leadership, and confront challenges more dynamically. These developments have helped me adapt to the continually changing environment, and seamlessly transition to becoming a founding member of a new senior management team.”

K.C., Senior Manager, Vituity