Coaching Skills for Consultants
An accredited program of the International Coaching Federation
What do you do when your Client isn’t responding to your advice?
A few years ago I was hired to work with a CEO who made my head spin. Outwardly, he was very successful. He ran a growing organization that was well-respected. But as we worked together, I realized his success seemed to be in spite of himself.
Our calls started to become low points in my week. In fact, just seeing them coming up in my calendar would evoke a sense of dread. It felt like I just wasn’t the right person to move him forward, like I wasn’t doing enough to help him—or worse, like I wasn’t good enough to help him.
I had been a consultant for over two decades and had built a thriving coaching practice, but this CEO made me question everything I had learned in that time and many assumptions I’d made while getting my masters in organizational leadership development.
In a Hail Mary effort, I decided to dismantle all those assumptions and everything I thought I knew about consulting and leadership and rebuild from the ground up.
My dread turned into drive as my client began to respond—first, in little ways and then through deep transformation that culminated in a most unexpected victory: By year’s end, he had led his organization to a 35% increase in revenue.
All of us consultants get those clients who just won’t help themselves (at best) or totally get in their own way (at worst).
And it’s tricky because we’re in the unique position of being neither B2B nor B2C. We’re way down the alphabet at H2H—pure human to human. And human beings can be unpredictable, uncooperative, unwilling, and susceptible to all kinds of inertial forces that create conundrums for us. “Why won’t they just do the work?” we think. “They keep making excuses! I can’t help them unless they commit to change and what it takes to be better!”
So it all boils down to this:
We can bring all the right tools in our toolkit,
but if the client won’t pick them up, none of it matters.
Client transformation is built on application and motivation
We can’t wait around for our clients to feel motivated to apply the tools we’ve given them. We need a rigorously tested system to get leaders unstuck that is rooted in human psychology and a deep understanding of the specific needs of organizational leaders.
That system is the Quadrant 3 Leadership Framework, a leadership development coaching program so strong it’s accredited by the International Coaching Federation.
This is a time-tested set of strategies and practices forged in the fire of real-world application with thousands of leaders and team members across hundreds of corporations, nonprofits, organizations, and government agencies in 14 different countries. And in the heart of a CEO who showed me that tools aren’t enough.
- This is the system that will equip you with multiple ways to help each client you work with get motivated to get back into action.
- This is the certification program that will give you the framework to know just what strategy, practice, or tool is most appropriate to unleash your client’s productivity.
- These are the strategies and practices that will give you the confidence you’ve been wanting to feel with every client.
This is Quadrant 3 Leadership
Applications now open for the September 2026 Cohort
“I’m thrilled to add the Quadrant 3 Leadership coaching certification to my consulting practice. Not only has the training been helpful in improving my current work with clients but it’s opened up another line of services that I can offer to new and existing clients.
“This has created a wonderful opportunity to go back to previous clients and work with them again. I’m also able to add these services to prospective clients as a value-add, making proposals even more successful.
“If you’re currently consulting and want to improve your practice or add a highly in-demand revenue stream, this certification is an absolute must. I’m on track to get a 200% return on investment from this training alone in the next year!”
The Certification Overview
The Quadrant 3 Leadership Coach Certification is an ICF-accredited program specifically designed to give you the tools to help your clients stop spinning their wheels.
In each module you’ll take a deep dive into select strategies, discuss them with the other participants, take real-world action on that tool or strategy, and share what you’re discovering as you adapt the framework into your existing practice.
In this program you’ll learn why coaching is different from consulting or managing — and why coaching is an essential skill for leading. You’ll discover why all high performers get stuck and how to get them moving again. You’ll experience over a dozen real-world, time-tested ways to help your clients move forward, giving you confidence for every call. And you’ll learn to market your coaching and grow your practice during the course itself.
Applications now open for the September 2026 Cohort
What You’ll Learn
In this ICF-accredited program, you’ll master:
Coaching and Leading — Learn how coaching fits in your leadership toolkit and business plan, and how to position it in your work with those you coach
The Leadership Journey Framework — Discover the four stages every leader goes through and learn the keys to identifying where those you coach currently are
Hardwiring Impact on Leading — Discover how personality assessments create a 3-level “hardwiring stack” and learn how this framework helps you navigate clients through doubt and inertia
How Story Helps and Self-Sabotages — Understand the four ways to help those you coach expose their unconscious stories, and how those stories may be unknowingly sabotaging their current efforts
Goal Setting for the Entire Person — Examine why traditional goal setting falls short and learn a method to help your clients rediscover deeply buried goals and set goals that lead to right action
The Compass-Like Impact of Mission and Values — Learn how to help those you coach clearly identify their values and use them to make better, faster decisions in the midst of busy schedules
Helping Clients Organize Their Days and Weeks — Learn a method of daily focus that helps even your most distracted clients, and see the power of weekly planning for taking action on what matters most
Exactly How to Use All These Tools with Clients — Understand the power in the Quadrant 3 non-linear system, allowing you to meet those you coach where they are, and identify which tool is right for each client
How to Effectively Market Your Coaching — Explore ways to make it easier for high performers to choose to work with you, discover set-it-and-forget-it marketing strategies, and learn to speak the dialect of your perfect prospects
Applications now open for the September 2026 Cohort
What You’ll Leave With
- An official Quadrant 3 Leadership Coach Certification you can list on your website and LinkedIn profile
- Professional license to use the Q3LC framework with your clients
- The actual slides for the Surprising Gift of Doubt keynote that you can start offering immediately
- Workbooks for each of the sessions
- Your own copy of both The Surprising Gift of Doubt and Coaching for Performance
- 3 months of follow-up coaching with the growing Q3LC community to help you grow your practice
- 36 International Coaching Federation CCE hours
Is Quadrant 3 Leadership Coach Certification right for you?
It also works best for those who have known failure. This isn’t an academic exercise. It’s grounded in research but built for the real world. Consultants who have navigated client disappointment and setback tend to absorb what we teach more quickly — because they know what’s at stake when the tools don’t land.
The size of each cohort is limited to ensure personalized attention.
“Beware the faint of heart: this program is not your average educational experience. This process – in conjunction with my own journey as a coachee – has been transformative. Not only did I add a whole bunch of tools to my toolbox, but I’ve really reframed and clarified the way I think about how best to support my clients in a way that honors and supports their inner awesomeness.
“Sure, I could have read the books on my own (and often I do). But there’s no way I would have come out feeling like I could actually do the thing. The difference for me was in Marc’s thoughtful design, masterful facilitation, and intentional community-building.”
Program Details
Upcoming Cohorts
September 2026 (10 weeks)
January 2027 (10 weeks)
Format
- 10-week intensive program (standard)
- 5-week accelerated program (available on request)
- Live, interactive sessions on Zoom — no travel required
- Practical application between sessions
- 3 months of ongoing group coaching follow-up
Investment
$9,995
(or three installments of $3,500)
36 hours
Partial Scholarships
A central goal of this certification is to provide a diverse experience for all participants and deep exposure to various perspectives and backgrounds. To help make that a reality, a limited number of partial scholarships are available. If you’re interested in being considered for a partial scholarship, please answer the scholarship question on the application
NO-RISK GUARANTEE
This program comes with a no-risk guarantee. If within 7 days you realize this isn’t the right fit, just ask for your money back.
Applications now open for the September 2026 Cohort
Your Instructors
Marc A. Pitman, CFCC, CSP
The CEO in that opening story wasn’t Marc’s last difficult client. But the rebuilding that followed became the foundation for the Q3LC. A Certified FranklinCovey Coach since 2003 with a Master’s in Organizational Leadership, Marc has spent more than two decades working with coaches and consultants across three continents who had everything they needed — except a framework to make it work consistently with every client.
He’s the author of eight books including The Surprising Gift of Doubt, a member of the International Coach Federation, the International Enneagram Association, and the National Speakers Association, and serves as past-president of the ICF South Carolina chapter.
Emily J. Pitman, CPCC, ACC
Emily is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) and Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with the International Coaching Federation. She brings 30 years of leadership experience across business, civic, and faith-based organizations — and a genuine ability to meet a leader exactly where they are.
At ejpitman.com, Emily works with leaders on paths of self-discovery, through seasons of feeling stuck, and during times of transition. She draws on strategic thinking, clear communication, and — yes — a pair of knitting needles to spark momentum and meaningful growth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this an accredited coaching certification?
How much does this certification program cost?
When are the next sessions?
How much time will the course take?
This certification is accredited for 36 ICF continuing education credits, so it does require class time and work outside of sessions. In addition to ten 90-minute live sessions, you’ll be reading both The Surprising Gift of Doubt and Coaching for Performance (both sent to you upon acceptance). The rest of the program is designed to be done in the context of your existing client work — which means you’re applying what you learn in real time.
Where is the class?
What happens if I miss a class?
Is this program 5 weeks or 10 weeks?
Are there scholarship options?
I'm not a coach or consultant. Is this the right program for me?
I love this but I'm not sure if the timing is right.
Applications now open for the 2026 Cohorts
Don’t just take our word for it
Mindy Jones, Amy Jones Group
Chris Baiocchi, Resolute Philanthropy
A central goal of this certification is to provide a diverse experience for all participants and deep exposure to various perspectives and backgrounds. To help make that a reality, a limited number of partial scholarships are available. If you’re interested in being considered for a partial scholarship, please answer the scholarship question on the application.
