Executive Coaching, Events, and Resources

As an experienced executive coach and strategic HR leader, I specialize in helping high achievers unlock their full potential and navigate complex challenges. My career spans diverse industries and roles, including serving as a trusted advisor to start-up CEOs and Fortune 500 leaders, recruiting top leadership talent to drive IPO success, and implementing people-focused strategies that deliver measurable results. Combining expertise in executive coaching, management consulting, psychology, recruiting, and HR, I support clients in mastering leadership skills, communicating clearly and confidently, transitioning into new roles, and building high-performing teams. My approach is both rigorous and supportive, providing actionable insights, practical tools, and personalized strategies to help you expand self-awareness, push beyond limitations, and achieve your goals with confidence. My professional background includes leadership roles at Coinbase (Pre- to Post-IPO), Deloitte, and Hidden Road (Series A) with industry experience in tech, fintech, financial services, and healthcare. My HR expertise spans leadership development, executive coaching, IPO people strategies, strategic communications, recruiting, talent management, organizational design, employee engagement and retention, change management, performance management, succession planning, employee relations, conflict resolution in high-stakes situations, compensation & benefits, and M&A integration. I am a Certified Executive Coach through the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and the Berkeley Executive Coaching Institute.

Built a career in strategy, marketing, and growth. From management consulting to leading brand at IBM and eBay, I now bring that corporate rigor to my clients so they stop subsidizing their growth with burnout and missed family time. The founders, executives, and small business owners I work with are smart and capable, but overloaded with generic advice, half-fit playbooks, and a sea of competitors that all sound the same. Meanwhile, spaghetti systems steal weekends from their families and leave growth unpredictable. My approach is direct and analytical. I ask the uncomfortable questions that expose fuzzy assumptions. I strip out busywork and keep you accountable to what you said matters. Higher take-home pay. No more stealing weekends from family.

Whether you're looking to scale your business, enhance your leadership skills, or navigate complex strategic challenges, I'm here to help you succeed. Let's connect and chart a path to your success!

A seasoned Executive, Advisor, and Coach with over 25 years of experience—including 17+ years at Alphabet—driving strategic partnerships, business development, and operational excellence. As a coach, I specialize in guiding individuals through pivotal moments of change and growth, empowering leaders to unlock their full potential and take purposeful, high-impact action.

Are you one of these 3 types of employees? 1. An up-and-comer, go-getter in their mid-30s-to-early 40s, and not necessarily in a career transition, but want to learn how to optimize what they have in terms of knowledge, skills, and abilities. I’m teaching things you can’t find on Google. 2. A 40-50-year-old ambitious leader or executive still on a strong growth track for succession. 3. A 50-60-year-old accomplished leader or executive who may have just got the rug pulled out from their career and needs to recalibrate. If so, are you feeling one of these pains? Building Relationships With Key Stakeholders: Professionals face the challenge of building trust and meaningful connections quickly with stakeholders during onboarding. They seek guidance on how to show up thoughtfully and intentionally to become effective faster. Improving Influence Skills: Professionals, especially in remote work settings, need to improve their influence to make decisions and drive change within and across organizational boundaries. They seek coaching on effective influence strategies. Finding Mental Space And Slowing Down: Professionals struggle with the overwhelming demands of meetings and communication channels. They want to slow down and create mental space for productive work. Communicating Through Active Listening: Professionals need to improve active listening, empathy, and client-focused communication. This is crucial in situations where trust-building conversations are limited or rely on digital channels. We also focus on effective communication within hybrid environments and with tech-reliant employees. Navigating A Virtual Landscape: Professionals grapple with leading overwhelmed teams across global time zones, lack of calendar control, and maintaining work-life balance in a virtual world. Focusing On Long-Term Value: Professionals seek guidance on nurturing authentic connections, fostering loyalty, and emphasizing long-term value over quick gains. Following Through On Goals: Professionals struggle with maintaining consistency and motivation to achieve their goals. They need support to stay on track. Overcoming Imposter Syndrome: Professionals often doubt their abilities and struggle with self-view and possible imposter syndrome. Coaching involves using evidence, peer support, and mentorship to recalibrate their perspective. Worrying About ‘Being Cut Out’ For Corporate Careers: Many Professionals face exhaustion and burnout from pandemic-related challenges. Balancing work flexibility and non-inclusive office environments adds to their stress. Managing Intentional Transitions: Professionals seek clarity on their values and intentional alignment as they heal from economic uncertainty, DEI challenges, and remote work experiences. Delineating Clear Boundaries: Struggling to set boundaries between professional and personal lives leads to burnout. Structured routines and clear work hours help combat this and achieve work-life balance, for both on-site and remote Professionals. Establishing Personal Leadership Visions And Strategies: Professionals need to define their purpose, mindset, and accountability for results. Personal leadership visions and strategies guide their growth. Being Afraid Of Falling Short: Overcommitment and the fear of not meeting expectations due to societal norms leads to stress. Focusing on true contentment and impact is essential. Understanding Who They Are And What They Want: Clients benefit from understanding themselves and their career choices. Aligning with their true desires motivates them to pursue meaningful opportunities. Balancing Empathy With Accountability: Market volatility prompts Professionals to balance empathy with accountability. Goals must be met for a thriving company. Bridging The Gap From Employee To Entrepreneur: Job candidates struggle with packaging, positioning, and selling their skills and expertise to create a salable business offering. They need guidance on transforming their talents into a full-time business. Did you also know that I am a LEADERSHIP COACH and EMPLOYEE CAREER DEVELOPMENT COACH focusing on leadership development? According to Gallup, the cost of replacing an employee can be up to 200% of his or her annual salary, not to mention the loss of productivity, institutional knowledge, and impact on morale and company culture when an employee leaves. But here’s the catch: it’s not always about pay or poor management—it’s often the lack of opportunities for career advancement that drives talent away. Leadership coaching and employee career development can be a game-changer for individuals stepping into succession planning or leadership roles. Here’s why… 1. Skills Enhancement – Leadership doesn’t always come naturally, and stepping into a leadership position without guidance can be daunting. Coaching equips you with the skills necessary to be an effective leader. Whether it’s communication, decision-making, or team management, I can help you thrive in your role. 2. Personalized Approach – As your coach, I’ll help you understand your strengths, weaknesses, and blind spots. We’ll tailor strategies to your unique leadership style, ensuring you lead with confidence and impact. 3. Empathy and Connection – A strong relationship between leaders and their teams is crucial. I’ll guide you in empathizing with your employees’ needs, helping you create a positive work culture. 4. Maximizing Potential – For executives, a career coach provides valuable feedback on high-stakes decisions that impact the entire organization. Let’s maximize your leadership potential together. 5. Heightened Self-Awareness – Coaching fosters self-reflection and self-awareness, leading to better decision-making and improved performance. We connect employees with learning programs directly related to in-demand career tracks at their organizations, offering a structured approach to skill development. It’s imperative to focus on up-skilling and internal mobility, and recognize the shifting job expectations accelerated by generative AI. You have to keep up! Would you be open to a quick introductory chat to explore how we can work together to improve employee morale, productivity, and retention?

I spent 12 years at McKinsey & Company, leaving as an Associate Partner focused on the energy sector. In that role I advised C-suite and senior leaders through exactly the situations most executives seek coaching for: stepping into bigger roles, leading through ambiguity, managing boards and difficult stakeholders, and making high-stakes calls with incomplete information. I've sat in the room where those decisions get made and I've coached and developed dozens of consultants and client leaders along the way, from first-time managers to partners. I'm now building an independent coaching and advisory practice, training with the Co-Active Training Institute (CTI), the world's largest ICF-accredited coach training program. My coaching blends that rigorous, whole-person methodology with a strategist's pragmatism: we work on who you're becoming as a leader and the concrete moves in front of you. I work in English and Portuguese, with particular depth in energy, professional services, and Iberian/lusophone markets.

I'm Gia Lacqua, a Leadership Behavior Strategist who helps high-performing leaders uncover the invisible strategies driving their decisions, leadership, and success — and redesign the ones that no longer serve them. A former Fortune 100 Vice President with more than 20 years in the pharmaceutical industry, including 12 in leadership, I combine real-world executive experience with a neuroscience-informed understanding of behavior. That combination is what lets me find the unconscious patterns shaping how clients think, lead, communicate, and decide under pressure — patterns most coaching never reaches. My work is grounded in one belief: every successful person is running a personal strategy, whether they designed it or inherited it. The behaviors that once fueled achievement often become the exact liabilities driving burnout, overfunctioning, and indecision. I help leaders see the strategy underneath the symptom, then rebuild it intentionally — aligned with who they are now, not who they had to be to get here. I'm a Forbes Coaches Council member, award-winning author of PowerShift, and host of the What The Shift podcast — known for translating complex human behavior into practical strategy that produces measurable change in leadership, performance, and life.

The jump from high performer to people manager is one of the least-prepared-for transitions in someone's career. I coach Millennial and Gen Z leaders at all points in their leadership arc, from new managers finding their footing to senior leaders who want sharper self-awareness and a clearer read on how they're showing up to their teams. My background is in People and HR leadership across high-growth companies, which means I understand the organizational dynamics at play alongside the personal ones. I've built leadership development programs, run performance processes, coached leaders on delivering difficult feedback, and worked alongside the executives whose expectations you're now being held to. I'm an ICF-certified coach (ACC), Hogan-certified practitioner, and NYU Stern MBA. I coach the way I'd want to be coached: direct, honest, and grounded in your actual situation.

Welcome to my profile! Following an extensive career as a technical Senior Executive and with over a decade of experience in executive coaching, I have had the privilege of guiding over 700 professionals to reach their highest potential. My journey includes impactful roles at BetterUp, Coachello Coaching, and Louden Coaching and Consulting Inc., where I have delivered over 3,500 coaching sessions consistently achieving a high satisfaction score of 4.6 out of 5.0. My expertise spans leadership development, strategic planning, team dynamics, and conflict resolution, tailored to diverse industries including healthcare, tech, government, and finance. Let's work together to unlock your leadership potential and set the groundwork to achieve your vision. Reach out today!

Welcome to my profile! With over 23 years of leadership experience in the health and non-profit sectors, I am passionate about empowering executives to reach their full potential. As a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) and Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with the International Coaching Federation, I have successfully guided over 100 managers and C-level executives across various industries. My coaching approach is enriched by my background in social work and expertise in tools like CliftonStrengths and DiSC, which I use to foster leadership development and navigate complex professional challenges. Let's connect and explore how I can support your journey to achieving your goals!