403: Why are the best leaders becoming coaches?

After decades of developing leaders and building workforce capability at some of the world's largest organizations, former CLO Brandon Carson discovered something that challenged his own assumptions about leadership: the most powerful way to develop someone is to stop providing the answers.

 

His journey to becoming an ICF-credentialed executive coach has reshaped how he thinks about leadership, learning, and the responsibility leaders have to develop the people they lead.

 

As AI transforms work, the ability to provide answers is no longer enough. Leaders need to develop people to think critically, navigate uncertainty, exercise judgment, and take ownership of their decisions. That requires a different leadership mindset — one grounded in curiosity, deep listening, trust, and the willingness to let others discover what they're capable of.

 

But what does it actually mean to lead as a coach? How does coaching differ from managing, mentoring, or simply giving advice? When should leaders step in with an answer, and when should they step back? And what might learning leaders need to rethink about how we develop leadership capability?

 

Join Brandon for an open, candid Ask Me Anything conversation exploring how his coaching journey has challenged his own leadership practice, what it takes to develop a coaching mindset, and why coaching may be one of the most consequential capabilities leaders can develop in an AI-powered workplace.