It’s lonely at the top. As a key decision-maker and influencer, so much of your success and effectiveness hinges on open and candid feedback from trusted sources. More often than not, your key team players will tell you what they think you want to know, not what you need to know.What if you had a trusted confidante and advisor, who you could hold private counsel with at any time about anything?

Getting your department heads to drop the infighting and come together as a true team.
Dealing with a problematic employee that’s too valuable to lose.
Rediscovering your life amidst the intense demands and pressures of a high-profile career.

Over the past twenty years, I have served as a trusted counsel to dozens of senior executives and CEOs, helping them resolve critical business as well as personal challenges similar to the above.

In the beginning of our work together, I like to spend several half-day sessions getting to know you better and tuning in deeply to your goals, your dreams, your aspirations and your challenges. Based on these initial meetings, I will work with you to develop a working arrangement that best matches your needs and situation.   Whether you are a small business owner, executive in an early-stage company or a Fortune 500, I can help you navigate major work and life transitions, bring about lasting change in your organization, and achieve a deeper sense of purpose and meaning in your life.

Please contact me to set-up a free, initial consultation to see if this service relationship is right for you

STEVE DEWART

I serve high-impact leaders and influential change-makers who are dedicated to embracing their authenticity, owning their presence as their power, and giving their gifts fully in service.In my coaching work with executives and groups, I create a container for deep transformational work that translates into real impact and lasting results. I believe in the power of visionary leaders and inspired teams to affect profound change, and as a trusted facilitator and guide have developed a process that supports organizations to realize this potential.

With a graduate degree in clinical and organizational psychology, a ten-year apprenticeship under a master coach, and over twenty years of real-world consulting experience, I have seen what’s possible when leaders recognize the power of authenticity and companies commit to transformation.

From tech giants such as Google and top research institutions like the University of California and Cornell University to dozens of small businesses, start-ups and nonprofits, my track record and accomplishments speak for themselves.

If you are willing to take a journey deeper into your truth, to fully embody your presence and gifts, and to commit to serving others from a place of true power, then let’s work together.

BIOGRAPHY

Steve Dewart is a highly sought after leadership coach, facilitator, and strategist who provides mentorship and guidance to high-impact leaders and change-makers from Fortune 100 companies, top-tier research universities, and social enterprise start-ups. His clients include Google, University of California, Cornell, Wisdom 2.0, University of Colorado, Hive, Software.com, as well as dozens of small business and non-profit clients.

Steve was a Co-Founder and Partner in Orion West, a consulting firm based in Santa Barbara, California. In his role with Orion West, Steve provided coaching, mentorship and guidance to the Presidents, CEOs and senior managers of key client organizations, including a major utility company, several software companies and a major public educational institution.

Over the past 20 years, Steve has led dozens of organizational change initiatives at UC Santa Barbara, and was lead architect and facilitator of a multi-year system transformation and operational efficiency initiative. In 2005, he was recognized as a “Mentor of Exceptional Service” by UCSB for his outstanding contributions to creating a positive work culture. He has also had dozens of strategic development and coaching engagements with UCOP units and key leaders, as well as at the UC Berkeley and UC Irvine campuses.

Before joining Orion West, Steve Dewart was head of Corporate Development for Star Telecom, a billion-dollar, international service company. In this position, Steve played a leading role in successfully managing the integration process of four acquisitions; developed and led a highly innovative leadership development program; served as an executive coach to senior-level personnel; as well as facilitated strategic planning and problem-solving sessions for department leaders.

Prior to his work with Star, Steve was a consultant with Pro-Change Behavior Systems, a firm specializing in helping large organizations manage major organizational change initiatives. He is co-author on several published articles dealing with strategies and techniques for managing large-scale change initiatives in institutional settings with James Prochaska, one of the most-cited researchers in the world.

Steve earned his M.A. in Organizational Psychology at the University of Rhode Island and holds a B.A. in Psychology from Duke University, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude.

Client

Mission Audio/Video

Challenge

The President & Owner of this premier, audio/video retailer was looking for support in shifting from operating as a founder/entrepreneur working ‘in the business’ to an effective leader and manager working ‘on the business’.

What I Did

Over the past 20 years, I have worked in close partnership with the President and his entire team to cultivate the deep skills and mindset to successfully and sustainably scale and manage a nationally-recognized custom audio/video operation. In the early years, I worked weekly with the team to develop and implement a management system and business processes focused on providing service excellence. In regular coaching sessions with the President, we developed his effectiveness as a leader to steward a growing, successful business. As the team has grown and matured, we stay on a rhythm of quarterly retreats to take stock of the operations and finances, as well as the health and well-being of the people and the culture.

Over the years, I’ve developed a proven methodology for taking new corporate initiatives or priorities, and providing a highly effective framework and process for moving from concept to results.

Whether you are looking to launch a new operational effectiveness initiative, implement a new business process, revitalize your strategic plan, or solve a complex challenge with your manufacturing or service delivery operations, I provide clients with a trusted advisor, strategist, and planning partner to develop a process and methodology for a successful implementation that delivers results.

While my approach is highly customized to each client situation, you can expect that our work together will result in the following:

A transparent process that engages staff from the ground up to ensure a high-degree of participation and buy-in
Alignment of the top leadership team around a common vision for success
Problem-solving the key challenges and roadblocks that may impact what we are setting out to accomplish
Strategic team development that fosters cooperative planning and focused action.

If you are about to launch a new initiative, and want to ensure your implementation pathway leads to success, please contact me to set up an initial consultation.

Cultivating leaders within your organization is the most valuable investment of time and resources you can make.

More often than not, executives and managers send key staff to an off-site program for a few days at a significant cost, only to wonder months later how much return on investment was actually gained.

What if you could offer your staff a skilled guide and coach who provided individualized mentorship over months, so that dramatic results in how they lead and managed was visibly seen and felt by you and their co-workers?

My approach to mentoring leaders is to create a highly customized and personalized development program for a small group of your rising stars. As part of the program, participants identify learning goals and stretch assignments, which are selected to affect real change and achieve real results on-the-job when put into action.

This cutting edge program typically lasts for 6-12 months, and consists of:

An extensive 360º assessment component
Intensive small-group learning labs in ½-day or full day formats
Regular one-on-one coaching
Unlimited email & phone support

I have a proven track record of transforming staff and managers into effective leaders that positively impact the organization on many levels. I invite you to let me demonstrate the value of this unique approach in your organization. Contact me for more information.

Companies spend countless dollars sending low-performing groups to off-site trainings to help them become a “team.” In these trainings, group members typically spend hours in a classroom learning concepts, participate in an outdoor ropes experience together, or do simulated survival exercises to figure out how to achieve that well-known synergy equation of 2 + 2 = 5.

While these methods can be valuable, my focus is on enabling your group to transform into a team while working together on their actual day-to-day problems and challenges. This program focuses on the “real stuff” that is causing group conflict, frustration, and turmoil, and uses it as a vehicle to help employees learn new ways of behaving and collaborating.

Put simply, this approach takes “team building” out of the classroom and puts it back in your company’s office suites and conference rooms, where effective teamwork must take place for your firm to achieve productivity and profitability.

Over the dozens of teams I’ve helped with this approach, I’ve developed a clear sense of what participants can expect out of our time together. Specifically, I will help you and your team:

Clarify the kinds of goals and results that are essential to accomplish.
Identify the principles and shared values to guide team interactions.
Monitor progress and get regular results against your goals.
Learn how to problem solve collaboratively.
Clarify individual and team responsibilities.
Make decisions that get implemented.
Operate in a cooperative and collaborative manner that transforms the group into a true team.

If these results sound exciting to you, I invite you to contact me to set-up a free, initial consultation to discuss your team development needs and objectives.

Client

University of California, Santa Barbara

Challenge

Back in 2000, this UC campus was growing in academic reputation and achieving international recognition; while it’s administrative and auxiliary operations lagged other peer institutions.

What I Did

Over the past 15 years, I have worked in close partnership with every member of the Chancellor’s cabinet and the directors of over a dozen campus departments on over 100 separate programs, initiatives, and coaching assignments. Many of these programs have evolved into flagship offerings that have graduated over 600 staff from every department and every level of this top-tier, internationally renowned, research institution. I continue to serve as a coach and advisor to campus leaders on a variety of strategic initiatives and programs.

Client

San Francisco State University

Challenge

The Vice President & CFO of the Administration & Finance division was looking to align his entire organization around a new long-range action plan that would modernize operations and support the President’s strategic objectives.

What I Did

In working in close partnership with the Vice President & CFO and his Cabinet, we established a strategic framework and quarterly review process that aligned his entire organization around a set of priority initiatives focused on infrastructural renewal, retaining staff, and business process modernization. These initiatives were linked to the President’s Strategic Plan and have served to successfully position SF state for the educational challenges of the 21st century.

Ron Cortez
Vice President & CFO of San Francisco State University
“I have worked with Steve both at University of California, Santa Barbara and San Francisco State University for over seven years. Steve gets my highest recommendation as a truly talented strategist and coach, particularly within the Higher Education sector. His ability to recognize, understand and provide guidance in all nuances of our business, with such confidence, insightfulness and versatility, makes him a true professional at his craft. Moreover, his ability to recognize and integrate strategic planning efforts in a pragmatic manner, has served to strengthen and renew the caliber of leadership and organizational planning in our organization. I highly recommend Steve Dewart for your organization.”

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