026: Kati Livingston: Metaphors as Vehicles of Transformation in Team Coaching

Join Dr. Krister Lowe and leading organizational coach Kati Livingston for this week's episode of The Team Coaching Zone Podcast.  Kati Livingston is a Managing Partner at Creative Management Systems, a consulting firm that helps organizations and teams adapt to changing conditions and re-engineer how they work together.  She holds a Master’s in Adult Development and Psychology from Harvard University and is certified in Executive Coaching from Columbia University. Her coaching interest is in partnering with professionals to build effective relationships. Even in a world of increasing globalization and reliance on technology, Kati sees human interaction as a core competency to lead, motivate, connect and build trust with clients and colleagues.  She teaches two courses in Harvard Extension School’s Master’s in Management program, titled “Creating and Leading Team Dynamics” and “Leading Through Change.” She also designs and delivers executive education programs for financial advisors on the Harvard campus.  Prior to her work in organizational development Kati earned a Master’s in Art History and often brings works of art into business presentations to spark thought and reflection.  Kati has been a Big Sister volunteer since 2000 and still regularly sees her Little Sister Felicia, now a 23-yr old college graduate.  

In this episode Kati shares insights from her research, teaching and practice in using "metaphor" as a vehicle to foster understanding and transformation in leadership and team coaching.  Themes covered in the interview include: metaphors as devices for framing, fostering awareness and facilitating behavior change; techniques for using metaphor in leadership and team coaching; some metaphors that often surface in coaching; resources to further study team coaching and more.  Kati also shares two stories from her own coaching practice that illuminate how she leverages metaphor in her work.  One is a story from her leadership coaching practice and another from her team coaching practice.

This episode is inspiring and provides both new and experienced team coaches with some super practical tips and techniques that will help them take their team coaching practices to the next level!