National Non-Profit Headquartered in San Francisco
Leading Through Change: Building Leadership Alignment at a National Workforce Development Non-Profit
Background
Organizational transition places added demands on leaders. As priorities, structures, and decision-making processes evolve, Directors must continue delivering results while helping their teams interpret change, coordinate across functions, and remain accountable for shared goals.
Research from The Bridgespan Group emphasizes that maintaining organizational alignment requires leaders to communicate priorities consistently and monitor progress over time. For mission-driven organizations, these leadership practices are especially important when teams are navigating change while continuing to deliver essential programs and services.
During a significant period of organizational and leadership transition, a national workforce development nonprofit partnered with Reimagine Talent to help a cross-functional cohort of Directors establish clearer leadership practices, navigate shared challenges, and work more consistently across functions.
“I’ve become more effective at advocating for my team and myself.”
“I started asking for feedback directly instead of waiting for cyclical moments.”
The Business Need
The leadership team identified capability growth areas including: leadership alignment, shared accountability, communication, and feedback as critical priorities during its transition. Directors were responsible for guiding their teams through change while responding to evolving priorities, managing competing demands, and coordinating work across the organization.
Stakeholder conversations and leadership intake findings revealed recurring challenges involving unclear ownership, communication overload, inconsistent follow-through, and uncertainty about how to provide feedback or influence decisions beyond a leader’s direct authority. Participants also wanted practical ways to navigate competing priorities and improve coordination across functions.
The organization needed more than a traditional leadership workshop. It sought a sustained development experience that would give leaders space to examine real challenges, receive individualized support, learn from their peers, and establish shared practices they could apply across the organization.
Our Solution
Reimagine Talent designed and delivered a six-month leadership coaching experience for a cross-functional cohort of 10 Directors and senior managers. The engagement combined individualized coaching, peer learning, and practical application through the following multi-step process:
Conducting stakeholder discovery conversations and administering a leadership intake assessment to identify shared challenges, development goals, and organizational priorities
Establishing personalized leadership goals through individual coaching sessions at the beginning and conclusion of the engagement
Facilitating five group coaching sessions focused on accountability, communication, feedback, leadership influence, and cross-functional collaboration
Designing customized leadership scenarios and peer coaching activities grounded in real organizational challenges
Reinforcing learning through between-session reflection and application activities that connected the coaching to participants’ daily work
Co-creating a Communication & Collaboration Playbook with shared practices and sample language for navigating common leadership challenges
Delivering an executive impact summary and leadership debrief outlining participant outcomes, organizational themes, and recommendations for sustaining the progress
Our Results
The engagement produced measurable learning, practical behavior shifts, stronger peer connection, and a shared framework for continued application.
10 leaders
participated in the six-month coaching experience
4.8/6 average rating
for the contribution of group coaching to participants’ leadership development
Cross-team collaboration
increased from 3.2 to 4.0 out of 5 representing the strongest directional improvement across the repeated leadership measures
Confidence giving direct feedback
increased from 3.5 to 4.2 out of 5
100% of final-session respondents
rated their confidence applying the learning and the usefulness of the Communication & Collaboration Playbook at four or higher
4.8/6 average rating
for participants’ intent to continue using practices from the Playbook
4.6/5 facilitator rating
for coaching delivery and engagement
9/10
Client Net Promoter Score
“Communicating my perspective with greater confidence, particularly when advocating for my team, setting boundaries, or navigating competing priorities.”
— PARTICIPANT QUALITATIVE FEEDBACK
What Our Partners are Saying
“Thank you to the Reimagine Talent team for all of the work you put into supporting our leaders through this experience.
From the conversations I’ve had, I know our Directors took a lot from being part of the cohort. They’ve shared how much they valued the space, the coaching, and the opportunity to strengthen how they lead.
I’ve also been able to see some of that show up in real time, especially in how they are stepping into opportunities and challenges with more ownership, confidence, and a problem-solving mindset. It has been really great to see that empowerment in action.
I really appreciate the partnership and the investment you made in our leaders. I’m looking forward to digging into the summary and continuing the conversation about how we carry this work forward.
Thank you again for everything.” - Managing Director of Program Delivery
“It was so refreshing to be able to work with a fully staffed team on a group coaching scope that typically is managed by a singular facilitator. Reimagine not only provides high quality, relevant work, but also makes you feel fully supported by end-to-end operations and a tight feedback loop. This made it easy to partner and feel secure that the work was informed by a variety of experts.”
