Testimonials

We have found that the majority of client challenges and concerns live in these four domains:

• Relationships
• Development of Self and Others
• Performance
• Organizational and Change Leadership

Clients benefit from our coaching in these areas delivers specific outcomes in the context of the greater good, such as:

Read what our clients say about the specific coaching benefits they have experienced:


Performance

“Praemia challenged us to play a significantly bigger game and to confront, engage with and go beyond our current worldview. The real value of their work with us has been their ability to really push us to think with more clarity and boldness about the difference we can make in the world.”

Relationship

“Our coach helped us lead from a new perspective: instead of simply advancing the industry with our work, we were building a satellite to create a breakthrough in connecting humankind so that events like Tiananmen Square would never go unseen again. That made all the difference in terms of linking our vision to what was important to our people and to humanity."

Development

“As CEO of a rapidly growing company, my coach held a grander vision for myself and my organization. He helped us take a deep hard look at how we could communicate more genuinely as a team to impact the greater good. This enabled our company to reinvent the way we contribute to the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, and created the solid foundation for our current success and ongoing prosperity.”

Organizational Change

“Praemia helped us confront a significant game change in our industry in a way that gave us the ability to generate a whole new way of thinking about innovation and leadership—as individuals and as a company.  We are shifting our whole business model toward breakthroughs in the education of our youth—breakthroughs that go beyond traditional methods of delivering curriculum to offer real-time customization that meets the unique learning needs of every child. With their coaching, we have been able to develop transformational initiatives and new priorities that nurture innovative ideas, develop people at all levels of the organization as leaders, and promote partnership.

• Don Arnoudse
• David Butlein
• Mark Cappellino
• Marie Case
• Vincent DiBianca
• Jim Selman
• Steve Stulck
• Miles Kierson

Don Arnoudse

"This coaching experience was clearly a journey—one that I welcomed as I stepped back and looked at changes I wanted to make. I'm very grateful that I had Don on this journey. He has great insight and experience, a warm and supportive manner and is not judgmental. We all have room to grow—and Don has been an important part of my growth the past year." 
—Sue Schade
Chief Information Officer, Brigham and Women's Hospital (Boston)

"From the start, Don was extremely helpful in reframing my approach to leading and managing the organization. He helped me look squarely at areas where communication and trust had broken down and regard those dynamics as growth opportunities for myself, for other employees and for the organization. Don was a key catalyst to fundamental changes in my performance as a leader which have led to some important and very positive developments in my organization." 
—Phil Warburg
President, Conservation Law Foundation (Boston, MA)

"Don counseled me on matters related to the Board, the Chairman/Founder and my business and personal priorities in a pressing, low tolerance environment. He demonstrated a remarkable ability to listen effectively and play back what he heard in insightful ways that helped me think through each challenge and reach a resolution. By describing an issue from different perspectives, he would open up unseen courses of action. The way he works creates a 'bias to action' and accountability for what I declare that I am going to do." 
—Peter Hay
Partner, TPP Global Services, LLC and 
Former CEO, Weddings to Go

"Don would always push me to find the next level and he did it in a positive way. He consistently urged me to get out of my comfort area and find ways to be bold. This was not some academic exercise—it was a real life process targeting real life goals. Don Arnoudse has had an enormous impact on me and in my ability to go after and live out my dreams."
—John Heller
Former CEO, Heller Seasonings

Vincent DiBianca

"Observing a significant shift in the educational publishing industry from print to digital and dealing with a recent realignment of our business, we engaged Praemia to assist us in envisioning and realizing our new future in digital education. They coached us through a process that allowed us to look at our company and the world differently and which delivered unprecedented quantifiable results. We were able to establish projects and priorities in innovation, communication and teamwork that are absolutely critical in our current business environment. Working together, Vince, Dave and Don are delivering a customized approach that develops our leadership team, nurtures innovative ideas and promotes partnership. Their flexibility, cooperativeness and adaptability to our needs goes beyond a standard coaching engagement: they have helped us create relationships with individuals and companies outside of our normal network that support our key transformational initiatives and have provided valuable coaching to us as individuals and as a team tp significantly improve the way we educate and learn.”
—Mark Mooney
Senior VP and CIO, Global Technology Systems
McGraw Hill Education

“Vince helped us lead from a new perspective: instead of simply advancing the satellite communications industry with our work, we were building a satellite to create a breakthrough in connecting humankind so that events like Tiananmen Square would never go unseen again.... that made all the difference in terms of linking our vision to what was important to our people and to humanity."

—Tony Iorillo 
Vice Chairman
Hughes Space and Communications Group

 "A year after I took over the leadership of St. Joseph's, we received the lowest rating in the province in terms of patient satisfaction. Having previously led an award-winning hospital, I was extremely frustrated that none of our strategies to transform the organization had worked. Vince effectively shifted my perspective by pointing out that an organizational culture can transform when the leader does. I started coming from the place that this was my hospital, my standard of care, my reality. Even in an environment hostile to consultants, they helped us achieve breakthrough results within six months—a full 4 years ahead of what provincial authorities had claimed was possible. Within two years, we were at the top of our peer hospitals within the Greater Toronto area and staff were talking about how they had 'done it themselves', a true sign of success. We all learned how to build a sustainable culture, one that continues to this day—even though I left the organization 5 years ago."
—Marilyn Emery
President and CEO, Women's College Hospital and
Former President and CEO, St. Joseph's Health Centre (Toronto)

"I think Vince is an amazing coach: he helped me take a deep hard look at myself and how I acted as both a leader and a person and truly changed my life. While our business had been very successful over the years, our management team had stalled (me, too). Vince helped me reconnect and communicate with my team on an entirely different level. More importantly, he permanently changed the way I communicate and work with my partner. This enabled me and our company to weather a very challenging time in our business and come out on top. I definitely could not have done it without his coaching and I could not recommend him more highly to anyone looking to re-energize their business or their life."
—Richard Reitknecht
President, Asia Pacific Land Co.

Marie Case

"Marie effectively coached our senior executive teams in the delivery of their business imperatives—and was invaluable not only when they were dealing with performance gaps, but also when new opportunities arose that required a new level of thinking, leadership and behavior to make them happen." 
—June Boyle
Group OD Director, British Telecom

"Marie's ability to help executives and individual contributors uncover the unspoken issues within a welcoming, productive setting could be considered an art form. She is very talented and a master at enriching leaders to lead with integrity, collaboration and success." 
—Natalie Kloss
Director of Business Development, Vytek

"Marie worked with me from the beginning of the merger in Europe of two oil majors, one American and one British multinational. Our unit was responsible for supply trading and logistics operations within and across the countries of Europe. The new entity was challenged to establish safe, effective and efficient operations across Europe and the rationalization of two workforces within a novel organizational model, while reaping all the rewards of the merger. Despite differing corporate and national cultures, we had a blast developing a team that was hugely successful in addressing the immediate two-year challenges. Simultaneously, through coaching and leadership development, we enabled the team to invent and realize the best of aspirational futures for itself and the company." 
—Harry Rowson
Group VP, Supply and Distribution, British Petroleum

Jim Selman

"Jim Selman is more than a coach for me and my team—he has been my partner running the business in a turnaround challenge."
—Gustavo Valle
CEO, DANONE Brazil

David Butlein

"At Liberty & Justice, we are committed to giving women victims of war and poverty access to life-transforming experiences. The kind of experiences that help them, against the odds, rebuild their lives—emotionally, financially, and also in terms of their relationship with work. As you can imagine, training is everything—and we've been blessed to have David Butlein on our side through every step, from course design to implementation and follow-up. Our trainings have yielded unprecedented results in the lives of our workers and for our company, and we know that would not be true if not for David's high degree of sensitivity and inclusive approach to creating amazing courses that inspire real change."
—Chid Liberty
CEO, Liberty & Justice

“David has the unique ability to sense how people are perceiving the current situation and then recommend a course of action that will produce results with that particular group. He is able to execute work with a minimum of guidance, offers solutions once issues are identified, and ask questions that provoke useful insights. His perspective frequently adds a dimension to addressing problems that would have been missed except for his input. Overall, David has provided both hard business results as well as developing people as leaders to produce those results.”
—David Engle
Senior Consultant, JMJ Associates  

Mark Cappellino

“Mark Cappellino worked with our senior management team during a time of difficult culture change. He is a fabulous listener. He creates a non-threatening learning environment that helps to peel away the layers of emotion and fear to get right to the heart of the issue facing the executive. My senior management team was neither prepared nor able to handle difficult conversations that were important to building trust and helping us to navigate this transition. After working with Mark, each of us is a better, more open communicator.”
—Michael Rosen
Kroll Background America

“Mark has a unique way of making me feel comfortable. Talking through decisions is not easy for me as I don’t always discuss my decisions with others, so working with Mark was great. His unique style made me comfortable discussing my leadership decisions and how I prioritized my work.”
—Dr. Bennie L. Harris
Vice President, Development, Lipscomb University

“Since working with Mark, I now approach situations from a very different vantage point. Being able to cut through the external emotions associated with interpersonal conflict and get to the heart of the matter has enabled me to initiate productive conversations that work towards solving the issues at hand. I came away from each of my discussions with Mark with a new tool, idea or concept that I could immediately put to use—and they work! In the end, I feel much more confident in my ability to deal with issues in a manner that is advantageous to all parties.”
—David Elleman
Director of Operations, Ingram Content Group

Steve Stulck

 "I am deeply indebted to Steve for his calm, direct and keenly insightful coaching support.  Steve's genuine commitment to nurturing personal and professional growth has helped me to realize greater self-awareness and intentionality in my interactions with staff —and, in the process, to renew and greatly strengthen working relationships."
—Peter Frumhoff
Director of Science and Policy, Union of Concerned Scientists

 "The opportunity to work with Steve advanced my leadership skills in several areas. In particular, his coaching and support helped me refine my communication style to leverage humor —allowing me to still be respected as a strong leader without being intimidating."
—Marilyn A. Daly, RN MPH
Chief Information Officer, Neighborhood Health Plan

"Steve Stulck worked with our organization during a very stressful time. We were emerging from the economic impact of the recession and all the attendant organizational stresses. Steve brought a great deal of experience and insight to bear and provided many useful organizational frameworks. Most of all he brought a finely tuned listening ear and an open mind. Steve truly helped our organization regroup and move forward with confidence."
— Sean J Kavanagh
Chief Executive Officer, The Ariel Group

Miles Kierson

“A critical element of any improving organization is a leadership team that is fully committed and aligned to the game plan. This is true of a sports team or an executive team. Miles brings an outside perspective and the right tools to the table, with a forthright and open style, that helps a team achieve and maintain commitment and alignment. His ability to bring out the best in the individual players and to bring out the best in the team is as good as it gets. He is truly 'world class' at clearly seeing what needs to be done at the leadership table then following through with crisp and comprehensive execution. As an organization, we are becoming best in class. Our plants are running extremely well and we are on schedule to be in the top quartile in our industry in production costs. We are 94% capacity factor, the best quartile in our industry. With 2700 employees, we are among the leaders in industrial safety.”
—Gary R. Leidich
President and Chief Nuclear Officer, FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co (Akron)

“Miles worked with our leadership team since its inception following the merger of two companies. In a very short period of time, Miles was able to skillfully transform a group of individuals into a team, without in any way compromising individual accountability. Through application of his techniques, he enables people to discover answers to pressing performance issues for themselves, and to powerfully convert those answers into immediate and impactful business solutions. Miles' work is always directed towards actions that have meaningful and measurable impacts on value creation. He equips people with tools to achieve breakthrough performance and more importantly, with the will to make it happen.”
—Henry Sykes
Former President, ConocoPhillips (Canada)

“Miles has an extraordinary ability to combine disciplined method with open dialogue that reliably stewards an organization and its people to clear and meaningful understanding of what it takes to be a high-performance team. What distinguishes Miles from other practitioners, with whom I have worked over the years through, is his skill at stimulating conversion of this clear understanding into decisive action. We are a better company, a better team, better people directly as a result of Miles' work with us—bring on our future!”
—Robert Nicolay
CEO of a Canadian Energy Company

“Miles has the ability to get a frank discussion going, get the tough issues on the table and move things forward. He gets insight quickly to what's at the heart of what's going on. He does a tremendous job. He isn't shy about calling people on things—diplomatically. He is very appropriate in the way he interacts-quick to recognize issues, and intercede and he's often silent when that's best. I have a high regard for Miles. If I hadn't experienced working with him while part of the executive team at a utility, I would never have considered working with an outside consultant on executive team alignment and strategy. I would definitely work with Miles again. He is a tremendous listener and is skilled at working with complex group dynamics.”
—Rob Schaefer
Chief Financial Officer, RS Technologies;  Former VP, Business Development for a Utility