Jessica Lightbourne used to be a wall flower. Now she is the chief executive officer of a new company, the International Coaching and Leadership Institute (ICLI).

"If that isn’t transformational, I don’t know what is,” said Ms Lightbourne, who has a background in law, sociology and anthropology and an interest in wellbeing.

She credits her success to partnering with great coaches over the years, in all areas of her life, from weight loss to career advancement.

Now a life and executive coach herself, she began to notice an increase in demand for properly trained coaches back in January. After a lot of self-reflection during the pandemic, many people wanted guidance to prepare for career advancement or career changes.

Concerned that there were not enough properly trained executive coaches in Bermuda, she launched ICLI in February, with two other executive coaches, Lorene Phillips and Sophia Casey.

"We are filling a gap,“ Ms Lightbourne said. “We are making sure there is a high level and a high standard of coaching. We are making sure people can be certified and that they have the relevant coaching skills and competencies and are adhering to at least minimal ethical standards.”

Ms Phillips said that their programmes could upscale existing coaches or train new ones. “The leadership in our name was critical for us,” Ms Phillips said. “It is not just for coaches, it is for leaders who want to tap into that impact coaching can provide as a leader.”

Ms Phillips said that a lot of people who call them say that they need help, but confuse mentoring and coaching.

“Coaching is more effective than mentoring,” she said. “Mentoring can only take you as far as the mentor has gone, whereas coaching can take you beyond. It is unlimited where you can go. It is more impactful and more sustainable. It allows the individual to self-lead.”

Ms Phillips previously worked as an underwriter for Lloyd’s of London. She returned to Bermuda in 2019 and switched careers, to start the executive coaching business Clarendon Wallace and the British School of Etiquette to help executives to work on the soft skills.

Ms Casey, a coach trainer for a number of years, has mentored more than 600 coaches with the goal of getting them certified.

“I am so grateful to now be doing that coach training in our organisation,” Ms Casey said.

The two were both on board as soon as Ms Lightbourne suggested the idea of the training school.

Ms Phillips said that people who know how to coach are better leaders. She said that many organisations promote staff because they have good technical skills, without making sure that they also have the leadership skills to manage a group of people.

“As you move up the corporate ladder, a lot of times the support is not there,” she said.

Coaching can help to fill that void.

“It is not as burdensome,” she said. “It really allows the people you lead and manage to be more accountable and more self-directed.”

Today, ICLI launches an intense 18-day expert coach immersion programme. It uses a curriculum from the International Coaching Federation.

Diversity, equality, inclusion, accessibility and belonging are deeply woven into the curriculum.

“We really believe that will be very supportive of a lot of experienced coaches and a lot of leaders in a lot of organisations in private and public sector companies,” Ms Casey said.

She said that the pandemic has really brought issues around racial and gender inequality to the forefront.

“It made sense to make sure that is woven through the curriculum,” she said.

The training is not just directed at executives but also towards people who want to be more effective leaders and coaches in the communities.

And the focus is not just on local clients but the Caribbean region and beyond.

“A lot of international companies are headquartered right here in Bermuda,” Ms Phillips said. “So we have access to a global landscape.”

Ms Lightbourne said that studies have found that businesses with happy employees are more successful and profitable.

The Expert Coach Immersion programme starts today and runs on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays for the next six weeks. The cost is $8,195.

For more information see www.iclitraining.com or e-mail enroll@iclitraining.com.