| Sponsor Concordia University Irvine-Townsend Institute: Michelle Thompson & The Coaching Academy: Sharon Lawton |
Michelle Thompson holds a Professional Certified Coach credential and Advanced Certification in Team Coaching through the International Coaching Federation. She serves as the Townsend Institute’s Executive Coaching and Consulting Program Senior Director at Concordia University Irvine, CA. She has extensive experience helping individuals and organizations reach their full potential through coaching and leadership development, which is evident in her professional journey in the non-profit and for-profit sectors. As a lifelong learner, Michelle is a doctoral candidate pursuing a Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership. Her research aligns with her passion for developing coaches who are self-aware scholars and practitioners through coach education. She is honored to serve on the ICF Coaching Education Accreditation Advising Committee and as an active institutional member of the Graduate School Alliance for Education in Coaching (GSAEC).
Sharon Lawton is a PCC-credentialed Executive Coach with the ICF (The International Coaching Federation). She has an ILM Level 7 post-grad qualification in Executive Coaching and Mentoring and is a DISC Master Trainer and Practitioner. Some of her areas of specialism are Leadership Development, team culture, DISC profiling, and coaching within both the private and public sectors.
Clients include International Airlines Group/IAG Transform, Chanel, VISA University, Trinny London, HCRG Care Group, The Metropolitan Police, Camelot, Shell UK, Aviva Insurance, Harper & Keele University and Hertfordshire County Council.
She is a highly sought-after speaker, trainer, and Head of Coach Education, Training, and Business Development for The Coaching Academy.
Sharon has a professional background in learning and development and has vast experience in coaching, qualifying as a coach in 2009. Sharon has an impressive reputation as a leadership coach, trainer and DISC practitioner. As a master trainer, she brings her unique and interactive training style, ensuring the sessions come alive, leaving you and your team with numerous “lightbulb” moments.
Sharon works closely with clients within her sessions to ensure they understand how to build, maintain, and motivate powerful, high-performing teams, helping leaders and teams develop self-awareness and emotional intelligence to become Masters of Communication and effective team collaboration. Years of immersion in people development have given Sharon a remarkable perspective on understanding people and how teams interact. Sharon prides herself on adhering to the International Coaching Federation, Association for Coaching, and the Association of Business Mentors Coaching Code of Ethics.