Mark Lyman
Helping you elevate your impact
Studied at Brigham Young University
Works at LinkedIn
Available tomorrow at 1:30 PM UTC
Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.
Mark's Coaching Offerings
Custom hourly · $175/hr
Get help with Strategic Planning, AI Fundamentals, and .
Mark’s Executive Coaching Qualifications
Coaches professionally
Experience level: Executive
I'm a coach with extensive experience as Chief of Staff to senior Executives. I specialize in turning strategic visions into actionable results. My role has involved leading high-impact initiatives, streamlining operations, and fostering a culture of trust and data-driven decision-making. I have a proven track record of coaching leaders, driving AI fluency, and managing complex projects to success. Whether you're looking to enhance your leadership skills or navigate organizational challenges, I'm here to help you achieve your goals. Let's connect and explore how I can support your executive journey!
Mark can help with:
Strategic Planning
AI Fundamentals
Decision Making
Succession Planning
AI Strategy
Strategy
Leadership Development
Communication Skills
Team Management
About Mark
I'm a coach, an operator, and a builder. Most of my professional life has been spent as a Chief of Staff to senior executives (currently at LinkedIn) where my job is to turn ambiguity into action and help leaders move bigger ideas through complicated organizations. The work has taught me how to think clearly when things are messy, how to read a room, and how to give honest feedback in a way that actually lands. I work with people who need help bringing structure to problems that feel tangled. I'm calm when the stakes are high. I ask the questions people are circling but haven't quite said out loud. And I'll tell you what I actually think, kindly but without dressing it up. I care more about you leaving our conversations clearer and more confident than I do about sounding smart. I also help professionals trying to figure out how to use AI in ways that actually matter as well as those looking to take the next step in their careers. Outside of work I'm a husband and dad, guitar player, sports fan, adventure seeker, and cancer survivor 💪🏻
Why do I coach?
My first job out of school was at the leadership coaching firm, Zenger Folkman, where I helped companies run leadership development and executive coaching programs. I got certified as a coach early, mostly because I was curious, and I ended up spending a lot of time around people whose job was to help other people think better. What I noticed was simple but it stuck with me: the leaders who had someone good in their corner moved faster, made cleaner decisions, and second-guessed themselves less. The ones who didn't tended to spin. I've spent the years since in different seats. I'm currently Chief of Staff to a C-level executive at LinkedIn, and before that I held a handful of other Chief of Staff and operations roles. From this seat you see how strategy actually gets made, how the best leaders operate, and how much of someone's impact comes down to things that have nothing to do with their resume but skills and abilities like driving clarity under pressure, judgment when things are ambiguous, and the willingness to make a call and own it. You also see how demanding those roles can be. People at this often need a thinking partner who understands both the strategic side and the human side of what they're carrying. That's why I coach. I want to be the person you can think out loud with, someone who's been in the room, knows the demands, and can help you get to clearer answers faster. Not from a framework I read in a book, but from years of doing the work alongside leaders who were facing these challenges in real time.
Work Experience
Chief of Staff to the Chief People Officer
July 2025 - Present
I am currently Chief of Staff to LinkedIn’s Chief People Officer, turning big ideas into tangible value for LinkedIn’s employees and our Global Talent Organization (GTO). My role is centered on driving clarity, alignment, and execution across a dynamic, global HR function. I partner closely with the CPO and as a member of the GTO Leadership Team, I help translate vision into action, lead strategic initiatives, and ensure operational excellence at every level. What I do: • Run the operating rhythm: Lead GTO Leadership Team meetings, business reviews, and OKR cycles that spotlight progress and surface risk • Translate vision into action: Shape talent strategy with the CPO and stand up programs and initiatives that come with clear success metrics and resource plans • Streamline operations: Partner with Talent Acquisition, HRBPs, and Finance on GTO headcount, budgets, and planning so the right resources meet the right work • Amplify the CPO’s reach: Help craft narratives, manage All-Hands and offsites, and stand in as proxy for the CPO in key forums to keep teams aligned and informed • Orchestrate high-impact initiatives: Connect cross-functional partners, remove blockers, and drive execution for priority projects • Build cohesion: Foster a culture of trust, transparency, and data-driven decision-making across the leadership team and beyond Some initial focus areas: • Harness AI technology and capabilities to reimagine how we work in GTO and at LinkedIn • Design operating models and processes that flex with evolving business needs • Embed clear, measurable OKRs that tie every initiative back to our talent strategy • Create tools that turn portfolio data into real-time insights that drive decisions
Director of Operations
August 2022 - July 2025
I partner with LinkedIn’s Chief People Officer to turn ideas into results for the Global Talent Organization. My remit stretches from crafting strategy to building tools, guiding leaders, and teaching our org how to get the most out of AI. I aspire to connect vision, data, and people so momentum never stalls and success is measured, celebrated, and repeated. What I do: • Shape talent strategy: Turn the CPO’s priorities into programs and initiatives with clear success metrics and resource plans • Run business rhythms: Lead monthly business reviews, steer quarterly OKR cycles, and maintain live dashboards that flag progress and risk • Coach leaders: Serve as a sounding board, ask hard questions, and turn ambiguity into action • Build scale: Create tools, knowledge hubs, and process improvements that cut friction and drive value • Lead task forces: Rally cross-functional teams on urgent initiatives and land results on schedule and within budget • Advance AI fluency: Drive AI enablement within our Talent org to increase tool usage and idea sharing, and turn artificial intelligence tech into daily productivity gains Examples of my impact: • Generative AI Learning Series: Independently launched and ran monthly AI sessions for my global org; 89 NPS, 30-point jump in tool familiarity, called “the most practical training at LinkedIn.” • GTO Portfolio Manager: Built a PowerApps hub for project updates, then migrated to a scalable platform now used as our single source of portfolio truth - zero budget impact by leveraging existing tools • Strategy and budget planning: Ran the FY planning cycle, met finance targets, and drove clarity for our strategy and talent plans • OKR discipline: Introduced OKR tech and coaching, and embedded OKR reviews into the operating cadence • Executive communications: Crafted All Hands, Director+ leader forums, keynotes, and monthly newsletters that keep our org aligned I thrive where vision needs structure, data needs story, and teams need lift. Strategic Planning, Portfolio Management and +10 skills
Chief of Staff
October 2019 - August 2022
Acted as Chief of Staff to LinkedIn's VP of HRBPs. During this time, I also had a stint as the Chief of Staff to the Chief People Officer. I focused on driving communications, operations, and strategy for a high-performing global team.
Project & Program Management
June 2017 - October 2019
Held various program and project management roles driving global and enterprise-wide initiatives.
HR Consultant
Microsoft
January 2017 - April 2017
Spent a semester during my MBA program researching how to make remote work... work. Identified best practices and shared recommendations with senior Microsoft HR executives.
Client Project Manager
Zenger Folkman
December 2013 - August 2015
Managed deliverables for over 300 leadership development programs across 45 different organizations resulting in over $X million in revenue • Developed internal tools resulting in increased productivity while eliminating errors • Created a training manual and on-boarding program for new team members • Certified Coach: The Extraordinary Leader 360 Assessment • Certified Facilitator: The Extraordinary Coach Workshop
Education
Brigham Young University
Master of Business Administration (MBA), Strategic HR
Activities and societies: BYU Org Behavior Student Association • Stephen & Carol Hansen Scholarship • Wayne M. Minor Scholarship
Utah Valley University
Bachelor's Degree, International Business
International Business Major with a Minor in Foreign Languages (Russian and German)