Hear from clients who have benefited from AWC's coaching and workshop services...
"What was so valuable about the PTC program was being able to benefit from Michelle's experience of seeing many women go through maternity leave/return, talking through specific challenges/considerations I was facing, and reframing perspectives on what was important at various stages of my maternity leave prep, actual leave, and return.
Michelle gave my managers useful guidance on how to navigate my leave. I found them to be very supportive of my time off and transition back."
Parental Transition Coaching Participant
Apax Partners
"There were a few “aha moments”, including learning the way others perceived me vs. how I perceived myself and prioritization. I feel like my perspective has shifted to think of myself as more of a leader than I did before the program. I feel more confident in myself.
I enjoyed the personalized approach with coaches working individually with participants, the group sessions where we get to learn about peers’ similar struggles and share ideas, and networking opportunities and great
presentations."
Sponsorship Program Participant
StepStone Group
"I’ve learned how to better delegate work so that junior members of the team feel empowered and are able to grow while at the same giving myself more availability to focus on more complex areas and engage in more strategic activities. Coaching has helped me understand other people's views/feedback related to my work and where I need to improve. My manager will be able to trust my junior teammates with more work as they gain experience from the work that I've delegated to them.
Valerie was a great coach and I really appreciated her guidance and feedback!"
1-1 Executive Coaching Participant
New Mountain Capital
“Having an independent voice that also knows the other parties involved at BSP on a personal/professional level was massively helpful in crafting effective strategies and implementing them. I feel much more engaged in my role and, due to the coaching, have a clearly defined set of attainable goals to help develop as a professional and grow as a senior leader at the firm. The coaching provides valuable insight and perspective that gets lost in personal bias or opinions; it is invaluable in assessing situations in a rational manner, understanding the different elements and determining the best path forward to help further your career. Valerie is fantastic to work with!”
Executive Coaching Participant
Benefit Street Partners
“Alex had very helpful frameworks to use, and practical, tactical advice. It was the right combination of the philosophical / top-down and the tactical / bottoms up. I need both and it was very good as a result. The Parental Transition Coaching program helps make important conversations happen, and make big changes in your life acceptable to talk about in the work setting.”
PTC Participant
Apax Partners
“The most valuable aspects were setting out goals in the beginning (based on my feedback as well as feedback from my direct manager) and continually tracking progress against those goals. I believe my company and manager benefits from the fact that I have grown professionally over the last 18 months, am more confident in making recommendations / decisions and have the skill set to better manage my team and face challenges. AWC Executive Coaching has significantly helped me build more confidence and uncover growth opportunities that I may not have been able to identify myself.”
Executive Coaching Participant
Morgan Stanley
“Valerie was quick to understand my personality and situation. She had very thoughtful, and situation-appropriate feedback. I feel overall more effective, collaborative, and productive. My experience with the coach was outstanding.”
Executive Coaching Participant
K2 Advisors
“I think the 360 feedback was really helpful for [coachee] as he just wasn't as self aware on some things that we all thought were obvious. Once he became aware, he tried really hard to address his behavior which several people noticed. Valerie has been really great getting to know individuals, both professional behavior as well as how personal life impacts work and vice versa.”
Manager
Benefit Street Partners
“People really responded to the suggestions around structure, shifting their mindset to thinking of themselves as coaches / advocates not just advisors, and ideas of how to increase trust.”
Mentorship Mastery Program
Global Private Equity Firm
“Michelle was thoughtful and engaging - this session is especially helpful to younger women starting careers. Inspiring content focused on women is incredibly helpful when beginning a career.”
Early Career Navigation Workshop
Financial Services Firm
"Michelle has partnered with me at Columbia University where she has guest lectured in our Social-Organizational Psychology program. My MA and PhD students raved about Michelle’s ability to translate theory and research on teams and organization change into practical applications they can use at work immediately. Michelle is an expert on working with teams and organizations using relevant science and practical application."
Sarah Brazaitis, Associate Professor of Practice
Columbia University
"I found my conversations with Michelle to be enlightening, inspiring, and without judgement. Through the research of so many like herself, Michelle gives women tangible data to demonstrate what we as individuals can control. Armed with this information, I feel empowered to seek my own path. I genuinely appreciate the work Michelle does both inside the classroom and out. I feel there is real work to be done and I pledge I will “pay it forward” as she has done for me."
Carrie Ward, Vice President of Operations
Major Brands Inc.
“Michelle Friedman is a skilled executive education instructor and dynamic workshop facilitator. We have worked with Michelle to develop a session in Olin Business School’s certificate program, the Women’s Leadership Forum. Michelle’s experience as both coach and facilitator enables her to provide a unique view of thoughtful career progression to program participants and the challenges they may face. The result is a workshop in which program participants not only set meaningful career goals for themselves, but also define the steps necessary to achieve those goals and develop a plan for accountability to keep themselves on track. Michelle is among our top-rated instructors in the program.”
Michele Ralston, Associate Director of Open Programs, Executive Education Programs
Washington University in St. Louis
"Michelle Friedman is a superb resource for professional coaching. She served as an invaluable source of objective support and advice in the navigation of an application for a new role. She recommended specific tasks in order to help me successfully realize my goals. She is adept at fine tuning how I presented myself, encouraging me to let go of a self-deprecating style that wasn't serving me well in a more senior role. She's super bright, personable and experienced in assisting others set and achieve professional goals. I highly recommend her if you're serious about setting and achieving significant goals."
Elizabeth Sanders, Chief Counsel - Transactions/M&A
Panasonic Corporation of North America
“Michelle's passionate approach to coaching, mentoring, and guiding individuals and organizations to success is an inspiration. I had the pleasure of experiencing an unconscious bias session where Michelle captivated the audience with scientific evidence on how we think and the impact it has on business. Michelle is a transformational leader and is value added to any organization.”
Kate Migliaro, Director, Veterans & Diversity Initiatives
Apollo Global Management LLC
"Michelle has been part of the Wharton bench of coaches for a number of years, and has consistently received excellent feedback from the full-time MBAs that she has coached. And they have very high standards! In addition to being a skilled coach, Michelle has been a wonderful colleague: reliable, team player and a delight to work with."
Colleen Bracken, Founder, Bracken Leadership Consulting and Lead Coach
Wharton ECFP Program
"Michelle is an expert in women's advancement and work life issues. I really enjoyed working with her earlier this year when she developed a great webinar called "How to Keep Your Career on Track When Work and Life Collide" for Forte. In addition to thinking broadly about the webinar's goals and impact, she also helped identify panelists, prep the panelists for the session and moderated the discussion. The session was well attended and received great feedback. I look forward to working with Michelle again in the future. "
Denise Montana, VP, Partnerships and Programs
Forté Foundation
"You should know that I was apparently an outside chance for this going in to the process because of all the noise around me. But you prepped me so well that apparently I interviewed so well that I moved into front place. Also, there is general agreement that I have really turned the corner on getting along with people. They are seeing genuine improvement."
Managing Director
JP Morgan
"Michelle was fantastic to work with--we provided her a very general overview of what our organizations goals and objectives were for an interactive workshop and she delivered beyond our expectations. The programming and materials were information, interactive, and enjoyable and the feedback from attendees very positive. I'd highly recommend Michelle's skills and knowledge in developing workshops and events, and hope to work with her again in the future."
Mary Robinson, Policy Manager
Structured Finance Industry Group, Inc.
"Michelle recently presented a workshop on Strengths-Based Leadership to our Board. The workshop focused on how each member of the Board could use her individual strengths to work together as a Board during the upcoming year and to lead the organization. Michelle was articulate, insightful, extremely professional, prepared and motivating. Each member of the Board left the training feeling empowered and confident in their ability to lead. As a Board, we felt as if we had really learned about one another and how we can use our strengths to work together in the upcoming year. Her presentation far exceeded my expectations for the retreat. We look forward to welcoming Michelle this year to present a training to the entire membership of our organization."
Lynn Marvin, Attorney
Jones Day & President of Junior League of Central Westchester
"Thank you for working with the Gerstein Fisher leadership team. The team found your techniques around communictation, organizational models, team formation, and goals and priority setting extremely useful. Your expertise and guidance at our offsite helped make the team feel comfortable enough to have an open and honest conversation and prioritize the work that needs to be done. Your technique of gathering data and classifying it into an organizational model was very helpful. Within just three weeks of the offsite, the Leadership Team rolled out a Sales Dashboard and developed a system to track referrals, both of which will impact sales. We are excited about the strides we have made and will continue to make organizationally with the help of your excellent coaching."
Gregg Fisher, CFA, CFP, Founder & Chief Investment Officer
Gerstein Fisher
"Michelle is amazing. By and large our sessions have helped me to identify personal goals and realize them. I find our sessions to be rewarding and stimulating and when I leave, I often find that what we discussed sparks real and lengthy conversations with other people in my life both inside Wharton and outside the bubble. She is an amazing listener and often reflects back issues or thoughts that I had not yet identified."
Participant
Wharton's "Executive Coaching & Feedback Program"
"I have been a working with Michelle for just under a year. She is been committed to understanding my organizational context, organizational goals and personal aspirations as she designed our coaching relationship. She challenged me to think deeply about myself, and to reflect on the areas where I am most successful to help me leverage these strengths to support areas where I could benefit from development. Additionally, Michelle has been an amazing thought partner. She creates time and space for me to share my professional challenges in order to co-construct solutions. I have found her coaching to be inspiring and thought-provoking."
Teimosa Martin, M.Ed., Executive Director
ANet | Achievement Network
"Your session with our Morgan Stanley Return to Work program was so beneficial. I have re-read my notes from our talk and they have been re-assuring and inspiring. Thank you for your valuable coaching and insight."
Participant
Morgan Stanley ReEntry Program
“In a short amount of time working with Michelle, I have acted on key career decisions that have enabled me to live with much more intention and control. As someone who constantly feels like life is on “fast forward” and trying to slow down, Michelle has coached me to reflect on my choices and identify what is most important at this time in my work and life. I now consciously seek out the professional work I want to be doing and am able to confidently say no when I need to, allowing me to be more present both in the office and with my family. As a result, life feels rich and full with a greater sense of balance.”
Canadian Public Sector Litigation Counsel
"Michelle leads our return-to-work coaching groups in NYC. I have been impressed with the depth and breadth of her knowledge, her insights with our individual clients, and her ideas for product improvement. I give her my highest recommendation for her excellent work and am happy to speak with companies or individuals who are considering engaging her."
Carol Fishman Cohen, Co-Founder
iRelaunch and Co-author of "Back on the Career Track"
"Michelle, You are a fabulous coach. I loved your focus, and expertise on mid-career women, dealing with all the anxieties, recognizing the need for support and camaraderie. What I also loved was the support from the other women. I must say I've belonged to other women's groups, and I dropped out of them because of the lack of support.
Keep up your tremendous work."
Kathleen Camilli, Founder and Principal
Camilli Economics, LLC
"Thanks so much for carving out time for us and giving those who attended a real moment to pause/reflect. We’ve received very positive and thoughtful feedback from the session and believe there’s appetite for more."
HR Professional
Private Equity Firm
"The best part of the program was Michelle Friedman. She is really good at getting everyone out of their shell and ensuring the group stays on track to achieve the goals of the circle while also understanding that the participants were at various levels of job search readiness."
Participant
Cohort Coaching Program
"Michelle is excellent at driving discussions and getting key elements out of them to make me think about how to improve and be proactive on critical items."
Participant
Wharton's "Executive Coaching & Feedback Program"
"Michelle Friedman was able to lay down my convoluted leadership experiences into themes and actionable items. I was able to apply our discussions' takeaways while managing junior interns during my summer internship and believe I've shifted my leadership style for the better."
Participant
Wharton's "Executive Coaching & Feedback Program"
"Michelle is excellent at analyzing and getting right to the points that need to be discussed. She is a pleasant person to interact with and her extensive experience has been very beneficial."
Participant
Wharton's "Executive Coaching & Feedback Program"
"I am so grateful to have debriefs with Michelle every couple of months. We have great discussions and I always leave enthused and challenged to work on my homework. I have found her to be really helpful in providing good feedback and perspective on my progression at Wharton."
Participant
Wharton's "Executive Coaching & Feedback Program"
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