Latest / Executive Careers with Fexingo: VP, C-Suite, and Senior Leadership Career Strategy / How Senior Leaders Use Peer Coaching Groups for Growth
Transcript
- Lucas: You know, Luna, I've been reading a lot lately about how senior leaders are supplementing—or even replacing—their executive coaches with something less formal but arguably more effective: peer coaching groups. Luna: Peer coaching groups? You mean like a mastermind for executives? Lucas: Sort of, but with a specific structure. Think six to eight leaders at a similar level—VP and above—who meet monthly for a full day. No direct reports in the room, no competitors from the same industry. And they have a trained facilitator who keeps the conversation focused. Luna: That sounds expensive. Who's paying for it? Lucas: Usually the executives themselves, or their companies cover it as a development expense. Good groups cost anywhere from fifteen to thirty thousand dollars a year. And that price tag is actually part of the point—it ensures commitment. Luna: So you're paying thousands to sit in a room with people who aren't your colleagues? What's the return? Lucas: Harvard Business Review published a study a few years back—eighty percent of executives in peer coaching groups said it improved their decision-making. Not because they got advice, but because they had to articulate their thinking to people who understood the context but had no stake in the outcome. Luna: That's a big number. I can see how having a safe space to say 'I'm struggling with this board member' might be worth more than a coach who's never been in that seat. Lucas: Exactly. I talked to a former CFO of a Fortune 500 company—let's call her Sarah. She joined a peer group when she was transitioning from a divisional CFO role to the corporate CFO spot. She told me the group helped her see that her biggest challenge wasn't the numbers, it was managing the CEO's expectations about what she could deliver in the first ninety days. Luna: And her coach couldn't have helped with that? Luna: That's the difference between theory and lived experience. So how do you find a good group? I imagine there are plenty of bad ones. Lucas: Plenty. The bad ones are essentially networking groups dressed up as coaching. You've got fifteen people, each gets ten minutes to pitch their problem, and it's more about who you know than what you learn. A good group has a clear application process, a facilitator with real group dynamics training, and a commitment to confidentiality. Luna: Confidentiality is huge. At that level, you're sharing things that could affect stock prices or your own job security. Lucas: Exactly. In Sarah's group, they signed a formal confidentiality agreement. And the facilitator rotates the agenda so that every meeting, each member gets a dedicated hour for their 'case'—a real problem they're wrestling with. Luna: One hour per person. That's intense. How do they keep it from becoming a therapy session? Lucas: The facilitator's job is to keep it strategic. They use a structured protocol: the presenting executive lays out the situation, the group asks clarifying questions, then offers observations and suggestions—but only after the presenter has fully articulated the issue. No interrupting, no quick fixes. Luna: I love that. It forces you to think before you speak. So what's the catch? Why isn't every executive doing this? Lucas: Time, mostly. A full day once a month is a big commitment. And some executives worry that admitting they need help will be seen as a weakness. But the irony is, the most successful leaders are often the ones who seek out these groups early. Luna: Do you have a sense of what industries are ahead on this? Lucas: I'd say tech and financial services are early adopters. But I'm seeing more interest in healthcare and manufacturing too. There's a group called the Executive Leadership Council that runs peer forums for senior leaders of color. And there's Vistage, which is probably the largest—they have over twenty thousand members globally. Luna: Vistage is more for CEOs of midsize companies, right? What about someone who's a VP at a giant corporation? Lucas: Vistage has separate groups for corporate executives. But there are also boutique firms that form groups by function—like a peer group for chief marketing officers or chief human resource officers. The key is to find one where the members are at a similar level but not in the same company. Luna: So if I'm a VP of engineering at a large tech firm, I'd want to be with other VPs of engineering from different industries? Lucas: Exactly. The diversity of industry matters because you avoid competitive dynamics and you get fresh perspectives. A VP from healthcare might have solved a retention problem that a VP from tech hasn't even thought about. Luna: That makes sense. What about the facilitator? Do they need to be a coach or a therapist? Lucas: Ideally, they're trained in group facilitation—not necessarily a coach or therapist. The best facilitators I've seen are former executives who've been trained in things like the 'case method' used at Harvard Business School. They keep the group on track and ensure everyone gets equal airtime. Luna: And what if the group isn't working? Can you leave? Lucas: Most groups have a one-year commitment, but you can leave anytime. The good ones will have a 'check out' process where you give feedback. And if you're not getting value, you shouldn't stay. But the research shows that the biggest drop-off in value happens when members stop being vulnerable. Luna: Vulnerability is hard. Especially for executives who've spent their whole careers projecting confidence. Lucas: That's exactly why the group format works. When one person takes a risk and shares a real struggle, it gives everyone else permission to do the same. Sarah told me that the first meeting she attended, a retired CEO talked about a deal that almost bankrupted his company. After that, she felt safe enough to share her boardroom anxiety. Luna: And that's probably worth more than any single coaching session. Lucas: It is. And you know, this show is built on that same idea—that honest conversations among peers can be transformative. If you've found value in these episodes, a couple of dollars a month is genuinely what keeps them going. You can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It makes a real difference. Luna: Yeah, we keep the show ad-free because of listeners like that. It's a small way to give back if the content has helped you. Lucas: So back to peer groups. The takeaway isn't that you should rush out and join one tomorrow. But if you're feeling isolated in your role, or you're facing a decision that doesn't have an obvious answer, it's worth exploring. Start by asking two or three peers from other companies if they'd be open to forming a small group. Luna: Start small. Even a quarterly meeting with three trusted peers could be the seed of something bigger. Lucas: Exactly. And if you want to go deeper, there are organizations that can match you with a group. The investment of time and money is significant, but the return—better decisions, less isolation, accelerated growth—is hard to beat. Luna: I'm going to look into this for myself. Thanks, Lucas. Lucas: Always. And for everyone listening, if you have a story about how a peer group helped you, drop us a note. We might feature it in a future episode.