“We have found Harley Consulting & Coaching (HCC) to be an extremely valuable resource in assisting our mid-level and executive leaders with leadership development coaching. HCC’s approach involves identifying the passions and strengths of the leader and using those core values as a catalyst for change. For individuals at this level of the organization, every hour is precious. Unlike most classroom training, HCC’s coaching services are individualized and deliver the development results these leaders desire for the time investment. The program has been so well received that it is considered a reward by participants.”

Karen Kurt, Human Resources Manager

City of Eden Prairie

Eden Prairie, Minnesota

“Northwire just experienced its best year in our 34 year history, improving in every one of the sixteen performance areas we measure. More importantly, each member of the operational management team improved in his/her performance as well. This performance didn’t “just happen”, Bill. It was the culmination of several years of work on systems improvement, reorganization into cellular manufacturing, training, performance management, recognition and reward. But tied to all of this was the work that you did with each manager, coaching our management team members to become the best they’ve ever been. The individual sessions that focused on personal values and life balance seemed to set the stage for most of us to realign ourselves and I have a number of observations to confirm that. Communications between managers improved, including their communications with me. Goal setting and measurements became a standard part of the managers’ work processes. Recognition and reinforcement was much more prevalent. And the management team became “charged” and excited about the progress we made every month. As we now begin to groom new managers for our future growth, I look forward to your working with them as well as being available for occasional “fine tuning” of the rest of us. Thanks, Bill, for being such a great resource to us.”

Linc Duncanson, COO

Northwire, Inc.

Osceola, Wisconsin

“I just wanted to thank you, Bill, for the effect you have had on the Business Development Team here at The Colman Group, San Jamar Division. Since we have retained you for the coaching of our top managers, the disrupting human dynamics toward entitlement or even worse forms of insecurity have been dramatically reduced. This has allowed the team and me to become more productive, giving us the freedom to worry about the competition instead of worrying about keeping everyone happy internally. The area that is most noticeable on the surface is that people are interacting in support of one another as we deal with issues. I feel for the first time in my 14 years of managing managers, I now have a tool which helps people at their core. You’re worth every penny! Thanks again!”

Paul Omdoll, Executive Vice President

The Colman Group, Inc.

Elkhorn, Wisconsin

“Bill Harley is the “coach’s coach”. We brought Bill into our organization to teach our employee development staff members to be more effective coaches. He received very high marks. His approach was practical and he gave us tools we could use immediately. Since then, Bill has coached within our organization at the executive level with positive results. Bill’s approach to values-based coaching helps bring the client to new levels of awareness and effectiveness. Whenever I’m asked to refer a top-notch coach, Bill is the first person who comes to mind. I highly recommend him.”

Cathryne M. Walz, Director of Training

Minnesota Department of Transportation

St. Paul, Minnesota

“I wanted to express my appreciation and tell you how impressed I am with the improvement I’ve seen in the executive level manager you finished coaching recently. The changes are evident in how he approaches his job, in his work with his supervisors, and in the fact that he is noticeably more content with his work. I am just as impressed with the cooperative attitude that the other executive level manager you coached has shown and what is now, I believe, a very genuine effort on his part to work toward our knowing each other better so that we can support each other better. The work we are doing together now would have been unthinkable last year. You mentioned that coaching was just bringing out the best in people. Well, you’ve certainly accomplished that with your work with both of these members of my executive management team. I look forward to the impact you will have with other members of that team in the future.”

Chief Operating Officer (Specific reference available on request)

Fast Growing Custom Manufacturer

Wisconsin

“Our relationship as business partners was in deep trouble. We were unsure if we were going to be able to continue the relationship, despite the promise of our budding business. We hired Bill Harley as a relationship coach to help us sort through our issues, although we were skeptical about our ability to rebuild trust. Bill brought us back to the basics of our relationship- values. He helped us to name the dysfunction that was occurring and gave us practical tools for dealing with our differences. We developed several behavioral plans to use when the dysfunction arose. Through the process we uncovered the deep underlying issue that was at the core of our recurring disputes and developed a plan to deal with that as well. Bill’s process does not promise complete bliss post coaching, but he does help the partners develop the tools to use when problems arise in the future. It is a very practical and realistic approach. We are grateful for his help. It saved our business!”

Male & Female Business Co-Owners

“My coaching experience with Bill Harley has been a highly rewarding process. We have formed a partnership in exploring personal purpose, power, and possibilities, and Bill has provided the tools to help shed light along the path to achieving all of the above. As executive director of a fast-growing business, I have benefited from Bill’s support in refining my vision for the business, as well as, further defining and developing my strengths as a leader and manager.

There are great bestsellers today that describe the process of unleashing human potential, but rarely do they lead us there. It is another thing entirely to have a personal guide who is familiar with the literature and research, has experienced the process himself, and can, therefore, ask the right questions, point out the heretofore hidden realities, help us remove one by one the obstacles we’ve allowed to clutter our way, and identify our own and others’ gifts, passions, and power. Bill brings to this work a rare sincerity and commitment to his clients’ goals, along with the necessary insights and skills to help them achieve those goals.”

Female Executive Director—Educational Sector

“My six months of coaching with Bill Harley were extremely useful. It was one of the best exercises I have done for my future! Bill helped me to put my work life and personal life in perspective, to articulate what is really important to me, and to realize what I need to do to be really happy in life. The exercises we did in defining Key Values, Life Purpose and Future Self Vision were critical for me to understand and accept who I am and what I need to do to be happy. I am now much more comfortable putting my personal life as a priority in balance with my professional life. If my professional life does not complement my personal life needs, then I will know I need to make a change. I never would have been comfortable articulating and acting upon those feelings in the past without feeling guilty about sacrificing professional objectives for personal objectives. I would recommend coaching with Bill Harley for every professional who seeks balance and inner peace in his or her life.”

Marketing Director in Corporate Manufacturing Sector-Female

“It has been a great experience for me to have you as my life coach the last few months. As I reflect back on our very first meeting, I recall becoming very comfortable with you instantly. The feeling grew quickly to one of the highest trust in you and your ability to work with me. I now regard you as a great confidant and friend. Through your expertise, you helped me tremendously with the issue I was facing. I was very impressed with your professionalism, confidentiality, deep convictions, morals, and sincere kindness. You are a very talented listener and communicator, quickly assessing how to best coach me. I can only imagine you are very skilled at doing whatever is necessary for the particular individual you are coaching and their needs. The experience was so rewarding, I look forward to employing you in the future for myself, as needed, family members, and employees.”

Corporate Officer-Male-Manufacturing Sector

“Your coaching has been critically helpful to me, Bill. I was ready to search for a completely new occupation prior to meeting with you, but after you helped me learn more about myself and develop better coping methods, I now have a new lease on life in my current role. Now, when I’m having a rough day, I refer to our notes and the stress quickly goes away. I think the fact that you are very bright and a strong generalist has made you much more effective than the average coach.”

Male Corporation President—Manufacturing Sector

“I am excited to share with you an update on our Team Guiding Principles in the aftermath of the group and individual coaching you did with us. I hired a new product manager recently and she started on Monday. Yesterday, the team met with her to indoctrinate her on our Guiding Principles. We went through each one and as we did so, there were many comments to the effect of, “Oh, we don’t need that one any more, we operate really well with that”. Of course we still need our Guiding Principles, but I think what it means is that we have truly moved beyond the event and are operating at a wonderfully functional level as a work team.

I’ve continued to manage the up-down-across communication flows, my task time and priorities, and my availability to my people. In addition, I’ve continued to acknowledge the good things that others do with my silly little blue ribbons. As evidence to what you had said about how silly things like that can mean a lot, yesterday one of our team members repeatedly described an achievement he had accomplished until another team member said, “Geez, man, what are you bucking for, employee of the month or something?” He responded, “No, I want one of those blue ribbons!” I happened to have one with me so I held an immediate mini-ceremony while everyone laughed and had a great time with it. He adhered the blue ribbon to his shirt pocket and wore it for the day. Hmmm, I thought, just like Bill said it would work.

I love that we have our Guiding Principles, I love that my team is so highly functioning and I am happy that my silly little blue ribbons are making a difference to people. Most of all, I am thankful for you when you told me, “We just need to get more of the real Julie to come out at work”. That was a wonderful assessment, and one that I am very happy with. Thanks, Bill, for having had a profound and forever lasting influence on my life. You have indeed made a difference in my life.”

Julia Heck, Director of Product Marketing

Skyline Exhibits

Eagan, Minnesota

“Bill Harley is a man of deep integrity and compassionate power. He is a seasoned and skilled coach. He is a facilitator of change in a most gentle and effective manner. He asks questions that go to the core. He takes calculated and efficacious risks. He has been very, very helpful to me.”

Male Making Major Change In Career Direction

“Bill’s coaching has been an invaluable asset to me during a recent career challenge. His abilities to help me diagnose the issues, understand the root cause and then formulate a game plan have allowed me to expertly navigate the challenge. The net result of my time with Bill is a renewed focus on the things that will ultimately help my colleagues and me (and my company) become the most effective we can be in our professional and personal lives.”

Male Executive Facing Career Challenge, Manufacturing Sector

“Bill is more than a coach – he’s one of my mentors. A trusted friend, counselor, and teacher, Bill has expertly guided me through career advancement and a major career shift. His process of inquiry, analysis, contemplation, and resolution has been enlightening, as well as gratifying. His focused development of me as a leader has significantly broadened my influence on others inside and outside the business world.”

Male Executive in Transition From Manufacturing Sector to Service Sector

“This coaching experience provided insights to enhance my development as I faced greater obstacles in achieving organizational goals. Bill led me through a journey of self-discovery and self-analysis that helped me implement and sustain behaviors to produce outcomes I desire to achieve long-term excellence. Coaching helped me create a sense of balance in my life, both professionally and personally. Bill guided me to greater self-awareness and gave me tools to act from my strengths while remaining centered on my values and purpose. The benefits of coaching are in direct proportion to how much effort one is willing to put into creating and sustaining these changes. The challenge now is to continue to be centered on my values and life purpose, utilizing the tools from our sessions and applying the coaching principles every day. If one is ready to fully engage, the benefits of coaching are endless.”

Director-Level Executive in State Government Sector-Female

“Bill’s coaching helped me clear away the distractions of the pressing issues of here and now, and made it possible for me to bring into focus fundamental characteristics like the person I want to be, the values that define me as a person, and the primary skills I use to be effective on the job.

This really clarified for me how I can use those skills, in the framework of those values, to provide effective leadership. This is so effective, I believe, because the people who look to me for direction have more willingness to follow my leadership and are more motivated because they see and feel the sincerity of my actions. It establishes a level of trust that allows people to become more fully engaged. The result is a more focused and productive work team and more intrinsic rewards from our daily efforts.

Then, when we come back to the urgent issues of the day, Bill employs several effective tools to sort through the relevant facts and forces at work and identify the best approach for addressing immediate problems. Again, his approach is to strip away my emotional reactions and those of others involved to bring the focus to the essence of the issues and the outcomes I am trying to accomplish. This is very effective.

I have the products of these sessions and a couple of the tools posted on the note board behind my computer monitor. When the issues at work start to swirl out of control, I revisit those themes and re-set my perspective so I’m focused again on what I need to do to maximize the impact of my efforts and those of my team.”

Director Level Executive—Government Sector

“Life planning and coaching services provided by Bill Harley have become a valuable resource for both me personally and, as a management development tool, for the corporate management team. From the personal side, Bill coached me through identifying key internal navigational tools such as personal key values and how they relate to my work environment and my reactions to daily management issues. We worked through interpersonal situations within our management group with goals of meeting both company and personal values and objectives. My role within the company also provided me with the opportunity to involve Bill in several employee and organizational interventions. Bill’s skills in facilitation and personal coaching enabled a cross-functional group of managers and employees to establish open communication systems and enabled the corporation to identify and address needed organizational structure improvements.”

Female Director of Human Resources—Manufacturing Sector

“Thank you for the excellent coaching services you provided to me for the past several months. This has been a very helpful experience in framing the navigational tools for a happy life. I look forward with great enthusiasm to the future now knowing much more about myself. The timing of your coaching was perfect as I plan for the next ten years…and beyond. Again, thanks for your help.”

Corporation President-Male

“After selling the business I founded twenty years ago, I began working under a non-compete agreement for the new owner. The American dream of building and selling a multi-million dollar business became a nightmare. With new management teams coming and going, throwing out the old and bringing in the new for the sake of change, and profits plunging, my nerves frayed and my spirits sank. I started to ask questions about my own self-worth and sanity. Would I be able to adapt to my new corporate world, or should I move on? I felt a tremendous obligation to make good on my commitment to the new owner, but at what personal cost? Then a friend recommended I see executive coach, Bill Harley. I knew I needed to do something to get my career and personal life back on track. I was pleasantly surprised when I started working with Bill and began to learn more about my True Self. Through my work with Bill, I got clear about my Life Purpose and Key Values and gained a better understanding of both others and myself. As a result, I regained my sanity and self-worth, found new ways to make a real difference in the enterprise, and became more effective at work and at home. Harley Consulting & Coaching can truly give you a road map for your career and personal life. What happens next is up to you.”

Male Executive Learning to Play a New Role in the Business He Sold

“I am really appreciating working with you as a coach. Here is what I am noticing. With a coach I push myself to answer tough questions like where am I headed, what do I want for my life, and what are my key values? Without a coach I would have never forced myself to take the time to commit to the answers to such questions. I am finding my coach to be a truly impartial voice. All the people that care about me bring with them expectations and history that can cloud what I want to achieve. I don’t have to spend any time worrying about that with my coach. My coach helps me commit to the actions I want to take and then holds me accountable to those actions. Working with a coach has been very valuable to me in creating change in my life, both personally and professionally.”

Business Owner-Female

“Working with Bill Harley as a professional Coach has been very beneficial to me both professionally and personally. Bill has a great knack for finding issues that are relevant and need to be dealt with in order to progress. I would highly recommend Bill to anyone who wants to challenge themselves and grow.”

Male Executive—Service Sector

“As I was entering a new phase in my life, retirement, I’m very grateful for the thought-provoking, supportive, and creative process direction and friendship that I obtained from my coach, Bill Harley. Bill helped me identify and appreciate my key values, my transferable skills, and my strengths. In addition, I learned to understand and navigate my transition from career-focused interests to a new vision of my future self.”

Male Executive Transitioning To Retirement—Manufacturing Sector

“Middle age brings many changes. Children grow up. One starts to take physical exams more seriously. Questioning one’s suitability to one’s professional vocation can be a source of unrest. Time passes more quickly than ever, and seems more precious. Is one making the best use of it? These are the types of issues that caused me to seek the coaching services of Bill Harley. I wanted an assessment of my skills and my application of them. Am I well-suited to what I’m doing, or am I missing something? Am I well-suited to my organization? Do I have a purpose there? What else should one know about oneself to help to understand if time is being spent wisely or if change is needed to increase life fulfillment?

Bill Harley leads one through a series of self-examinations. He leads one to recognize strengths and weaknesses along with areas of joy and sorrow. These realizations then get applied to relationships, job suitability, organizational dynamics, and any other area of curiosity. It is a tremendously powerful exercise, one that won’t be shelved or forgotten. It is something that one would wish on one’s best friends and loved ones.”

Male National Sales Manager—Manufacturing Sector

“I have found Bill Harley to be an exceptional professional coach. He helped me to identify the roadblocks to my success and empowered me to demolish the roadblocks and use the bricks from the roadblocks to build bridges to my dreams.”

Corporate President-Male

“Bill Harley has been my personal coach for 6 years. As a trained coach and consultant myself, I wanted a coach to help me set larger and more rewarding professional goals. In addition, I wanted more from my life and I knew a coach would be a key companion for the journey. Bill has been just that person! His coaching has given me the challenge I needed to get clear about my values and he has provided the energy, motivation, and commitment to both my professional and personal growth. By asking poignant questions, he has been a guide and a source for helping me take charge of my life in the following areas: assisting me in making difficult decisions; helping me discover balance in my personal and professional lives; challenging me to live in harmony in all aspects of life including family, spiritual, health, etc.; and identifying beliefs that keep me stuck in mediocrity. I hold Bill’s ability as a coach in the highest regard. His questions get to the core of the issue, and his requests move me into action or reflection for self-understanding and awareness. As I experience Bill’s coaching skills, I can confidently say he has reached a level of mastery that goes beyond the intellectual into the real spirit of coaching. He is able to develop a profound connection with another human being, he has been a powerful witness to my journey, and he honors my values and goals with the dedication of a resourceful and masterful coach.”

Business Owner-Female

“With Bill’s coaching and guidance, I have been able to achieve balance in both my professional and personal life. Bill has assisted me in building my confidence, and reaching my maximum potential. I am now living a successful, happy life, doing what I love.”

Female Marketing Executive Transitioning To New Career Focus

“Greetings, Bill. I think of you and our coaching conversations often. I continue to be gratified that I was provided with the opportunity to work with you. I’ve benefitted both at work and in my personal life as a direct result of the coaching sessions we enjoyed. In addition, the tools to which I was exposed have allowed me to provide insight through transitional times and share knowledge with many others in the company on an informal basis. Thanks again!”

Male Executive—Service Sector

“Bill Harley has helped me clarify my purpose in both my personal and professional arenas, and he has gently challenged me to truly see myself for who I really am. For that I’m very grateful. Having deeper understanding of my strengths and weakness, and developing them with specific tools and coaching from Bill, I have been able to turn many frustrations into energizing moments of success. I must confess that achieving positive and lasting change is hard work and often very painful, but it is doable. Having an understanding coach like Bill in my corner has accelerated this process. My life has forever changed for the better.”

Male Plant Manager—Manufacturing Sector

“Bill Harley’s coaching work with me has focused on values-based leadership, which is a fit with my leadership beliefs. Working with Bill has helped me more clearly articulate those values, resulting in a greater level of focus and confidence, and, ultimately, in stronger leadership.”

Female CEO—Financial Services Sector

“I am really happy in my new job and the resume you so patiently guided me to create worked very well. I am working with people who share my values and appreciate my involvement. I can’t tell you, Bill, how much of an impact your coaching has had on my life, and the way in which I conduct myself in the business world. Thank you very much.”

General Manager in Corporate Manufacturing Sector-Male

“Thanks for all the work you’ve done with our organization. I think you have made a difference in how we see each other and ourselves. I’d especially like to say thank you for what you’ve done for me. The work we’ve done together and the coaching discussions we had have made a difference in my management style and my relationships with co-workers. In many respects the things I know now I’ve known in my gut for a long time, but the recent work we’ve done has given me permission to exercise that knowledge.”

Manager in Government Sector

“The work you did with me, Bill, was the beginning of a series of revelations about my life. We started our work together just prior to my 40th year. I was married with two bright and healthy children, my suburban home was paid off, I was completely debt-free, and I had also recently completed a Masters degree. Despite all these successes, I was pretty miserable and I was a pretty miserable person to be around. Your work with me helped me begin to see that I still had much work to do. I am now enjoying learning what other people in my life (at work and at home) need from me and I am beginning to understand how my service and attentiveness to their needs makes me feel more alive than ever. I still have a long way to go, but I’m bringing my mind, body and spirit together to solve the problems as you taught me. And even in my darkest moments, the work we did together helps me persevere and know who I am and who I want to become.”

Male Executive Going Through Life Transitions—Government Sector

“If you look at coaching as a tool to assist in your evolution as an individual the sky is the limit. The sole purpose was to allow myself to explore more of myself. There was nothing revealed or discovered during this journey that did not exist within myself, yet everyone needs help in unlocking those “internal” doors that sometimes make it impossible to look at yourself objectively. Self-discovery is a long-term process (hopefully one that will never end) and my experience with allowing the coaching process to assist me in this process has been a very positive one. I was able to re-energize myself spending time thinking about how I fit into both my work and personal environments, and even more importantly, how I fit into society in general. If one can allow oneself to be vulnerable and willing to open up, this can be an enlightening (as well as frightening) experience.”

Marketing Director-Male