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Johanne Bouchard

"The Leadership Whisperer" : Fostering healthy individuals and healthy organizations.

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johanne bouchard boards

Amazing things happen when Boards are in sync. So how do they get to be in sync?

Every Board member needs to be carefully — and thoughtfully — selected so that the Board composition is as strong as it can possibly be. That composition cannot ignore diversity and the rewards that a mosaic of Board members brings. While there are nomination processes and governance regulations that need to be followed, Boards have a duty to revisit its composition at key inflection points of the organization’s growth. It’s important that all Board members are current on the strategy, are aligned, and that the right players are seated around the table. Dynamics cannot be ignored: between the CEO and the Chair, between the Board and the CEO, between the Chair and the Board members and amongst the Board members themselves.

When a Board is in sync, they have a united vision. This doesn’t mean that the members have lost their independence, in fact the opposite is true. It means they’re able to share in the strategic vision, which they’ve developed using core values.

Boards are more involved than ever before in the activities of the companies they oversee. This means that closer attention needs to be paid to governance as well as the overall effectiveness and performance of the Board.

10272014-draft_200x212For Board members, the workload is substantial. Committee work has significantly increased in intensity, in part as a result of the compliance requirements of public companies post-Sarbanes Oxley. Johanne Bouchard supports Boards as a strong and objective advisor, supplementing the strength of the Board members and offering new perspectives on important issues. As well, she works with Boards to increase Board effectiveness, alignment and dynamics. When the Board is aligned on its strategy, with its CEO and with the Executive Team, even the tougher decisions become easier to make.

With Board dynamics, Johanne Bouchard helps Boards review their composition and the expectations of each of the members, so everyone understands each other’s roles and what impact those roles have on the Board (onboarding). Board bonding is critical: when commonalities are discovered, a higher spirit of cooperation can be achieved.

Regardless of where your organization is today — thriving, confronting crisis, or considering a merger or split — Johanne’s services for Boards address core business leadership essentials.

  • Boards require utmost trust and confidence in the CEO and the company’s leadership to be effective. Johanne will show you how to regain that trust — or how to revisit the entire proposition.
  • The CEO, with distinctive roles as both director and CEO, needs to understand both roles and the responsibilities associated with each.
  • The CEO must not just feel supported by the Board but be supported by the board, and needs to display good discernment, maturity and leadership when representing the Board internally.
  • The Board and CEO must be cognizant of each other’s leadership strengths and shortcomings, and work co-operatively to optimize the overall Board effectiveness and lead their companies well.

For a complete list of services, please click here. 

Read my article “Executive Leadership Coach 101” here.

To download a complimentary eBook, please click here.

Explore the BonneFire Community

BonneFire is a yearly subscription with 12 monthly offerings inspiring self-mastery and transparent leadership in service of both the individual and the collective, for healthier individuals and healthier organizations.

Members also receive two half-hours of one-on-one coaching with Johanne. 

Each month has a unique theme that guides the focus of each month’s inspiring guidance and teaching. Members receive one email the first week of each month consisting of:

bonnefire iconPulse Check

 

bonnefire iconReflection

 

bonnefire iconPractice

 

Each month, Johanne chooses a theme and determines the focus for that month’s inspiring guidance and teaching pulse check, reflection and practice.

Click here to learn more!

What I Write About…

  • Blogs in French
  • Boards
  • BonneFire Inspiring Guidance & Teaching Excerpts
  • BonneFire Intimate Chat Excerpts
  • Business Column for Explore Big Sky
  • Diversity
  • Newsletters
  • The full blog

Sign up to receive emails from Johanne:

The meeting was fantastic. It was an undisputable success. The interaction was superior and beyond what anyone could have thought was possible. Everyone embraced you and your skills in ways that I have never seen before. I learned a lot about the process and it has been very meaningful. It illuminated me into focused actions. It galvanized the entire executive team across the five business units. Really exciting…

- Audit Chair

Johanne, the offsite was terrific and you did a fabulous job leading us through some very challenging tasks. I have great faith in our leadership team. I’m glad the learning and collaboration will continue.

Excellent meeting.

Amazing meeting. Loved it.

- GMs of Business Units

You did a very good job. I like the process, like the rigor, like the completeness and the sensitivity with which you presented tough issues. I like the individual profiles and how they lead to both learning for me as well as opportunity for team building.

- Independent Director

I recommended you for this task because I felt that the depth of inquiry and the thoroughness of your approach are important to bring the Board to a new level of quality and interaction. I found your work very complete and am glad that you brought to the surface a number of issues that have to be addressed to improve our effectiveness as a Board. Your observations and recommendations go to the heart of what makes a Board a team (and what gets in the way).

- Governance Chair

Johanne has an innate ability to bring out the best in all whom she touches. She practices what she preaches – patience, courage, generosity, wisdom and humility. Her contributions have positively impacted our Company and working environment and will result in increased profitability and shareholder value.

- CEO

Johanne is truly exceptional at what she does. I've worked with many consultants over the years, and what sets her apart is the combination of her right- and left-brain skills. She knows how to listen, catch unspoken cues, instill trust and openness, while also being focused on the substance of the issues, the complexities of the situation and challenges, and the business issues that have to get solved. She is direct and candid while also unusually sensitive. By applying these skills, she helped us analyze what was going on in our business, shed light on the core management and governance issues, and facilitated our discussions among the decision makers about the next steps to take. I would work with her again in a heartbeat.

- Independent Director, Governance Committee

I have seen Johanne's skilled handling of important executive interfaces and her ability to quickly get to the heart of the issues and lead to results. That certainly happened here. I found that even in cases where the participants thought they had good communication we reached new levels of connection and candor, all helping us be most efficient at a time when that is most important in our company.

- Senior Vice President

Johanne has provided a mirror into myself. Helping me to step back and view my actions and true feelings. By her perceptive and insightful questioning she enabled me to look within. Just being able to speak openly about myself was most helpful. Without question this awareness is leading to positive change both personally and professionally. I find myself a more effective participant with both my direct reports, peers and my Board.

- CEO

I thank Johanne for her clarity and quick ability to cut through the clutter. She made a huge difference. I have grown a lot. Johanne’s exceptional wisdom for defining and supporting the needs of clients were a real asset to us. Johanne is exceptionally gifted at understanding how to balance and focus for success. I highly recommend her to any company looking to grow.

- CEO

Thank you so very much for the day of focus for our team. We really needed it and I do not believe we could have done it without you. You are such a wonderful friend of ours. I personally left feeling inspired and clear. You are a beautiful person to facilitate those connections.

- CEO

Thank you for such a productive session. It was wonderful to have your support and focus in connecting the team. Your constant guidance in finding clarity is a true gift for our organization.

- CEO

The time spent was of tremendous help to me personally as it gave me a chance to review all aspects of our operations. Johanne's attentiveness and level of support was remarkable. Her sense for the big picture will keep us all focused on the right priorities.

I can't thank Johanne enough.

- CEO

Johanne Bouchard is a pioneer and a leader who brings to the process of executive coaching and strategic planning a focused, high-energy and highly- effective approach. In a short time and in a seemingly effortless manner, she leads an individual or a team to a crystal-clear understanding of their core values, their goals and a path to achieving them.

- CEO

Johanne has a remarkable ability to inspire others to share with perfect honesty, overcome their own barriers, and find greater clarity for their purpose. Her dedication to her work comes from a sincere passion for guiding others in their quest for successful leadership and life skills. Johanne's encouraging style supports rather than leads, promotes as opposed to advises.

- REMIA participant

Thank you very much for your kindness, warmth and thoughtfulness for our team. Your team building session was beautifully on point, and done very constructively.

- CEO

Johanne is an outstanding professional with exceptional coaching skills. She is insightful and a very effective communicator.

- Ken Coleman- Board Chairman, Saama Technologies and special advisor to Andreessen Horowitz Venture Capital firm

Johanne worked with our board at Accelrys to enhance our effectiveness. She provided tremendous value and insight in a very collegial manner.

- Jeff Rodek - Former Chair and CEO of Hyperion, Former President and COO Ingram Micro 

Johanne Bouchard is a unique consultant and advisor who brings clarity to high urgency situations in short order. She has served several of the companies I am involved with as a Board member in various assignments including Board 360, Executive Team assessment, leading and facilitating strategic planning sessions, and CEO coaching. In all these assignments she has displayed dedication, creativity, depth, and an unerring focus on reflecting the reality of the situation and presenting it as such to the client, with concrete suggestions for improvement and increased efficiency. I highly recommend Johanne.

- Ricardo Levy  - Lecturer at Stanford, former Chair, former Chairman and CEO of Catalytica  

If you have an organizational leadership problem to solve (the bigger the better) and need a tireless, objective collaborator to assist, challenge and drive you (and she WILL drive you), work with Johanne. And if you welcome the friendship that will grow from that experience, you couldn't do better.

- Steve Snyder - Former EVP/GM CBS Interactive Games, Music and Sports

Johanne's work is, in a word, spectacular. She digs in on a project like no one I know, she is thorough, thoughtful, and does superb "inquiry" work early in a project. She brings a wealth of experience to her projects, including marketing expertise, consumer research, management and leadership insights, and insightful summaries of the issues. Her work is honest, clear, clean, and useful. She is a truth-finder and a truth-teller. Johanne is an intense, yet calm and measured expert - she knows where to look, what to ask, and how to propose key points and plans of action. Her logistics and organizational skills are world class, and her follow up is superb. As you can read, my professional opinion of Johanne is of the highest level. I believe she can excel at virtually any assignment or challenge presented.

- John Hamm - Strategy and Leadership Advisor, Former VC, Former TCG - The Chasm Group Advisors and Former CEO

I have known Johanne since the times she was building BOSS when helping high-tech executives and companies with globalization and International market development. She was a pioneer in her field helping American companies not treating International as an afterthought. She was an invaluable trusted advisor to senior executives and CEOs in need to succeed in Europe and in need to adjust their leadership style to grow their organizations overseas. I recommend Johanne to CEOs and Executives as a partner when significantly challenged to take their organizations to new levels. She has broad operating, marketing and leadership experience and a proven track record to continually deliver results. Her dynamism is infectious/inspirational.

- Philippe D’Argent - Former Senior VP Dell Europe, Former Senior VP Toshiba Europe

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