Introducing Coaching at Refactoring! 🪴
The first announcement of our packed end of the year!
Hey there! Over the last three months we have been working on many exciting things at Refactoring, and we will announce them between here and the end of the year.
Let’s start with the first one, which is coaching!
Joel Chippindale and Melinda Seckington, who are both experienced professional coaches, are joining Refactoring as coaches-in-residence!
What does it mean? Two things:
💬 Community — they will supercharge the community by regularly hanging out and supporting people in threads and Mastermind sessions.
👯♀️ 1:1s — they will be available for 1:1 coaching programs, at exclusive discounted rates for Refactoring members.
So let me tell you more about this, how it works, and why we do it 👇
🪴 Why coaching
Refactoring is about professional growth.
The tricky thing I learned about growth is that people need different kinds of support based on where they are on their journey.
For many people, the weekly newsletter is enough: short(-ish) & serendipitous.
Some need more immediate help, and seek out past articles in the Library, as opposed to waiting for the perfect article to drop by chance.
For others, this is still not enough: they may have a specific challenge I have never written about, so the community is the best place to look for support — either in threads or in Mastermind sessions.
These are like increasing levels of commitment, and the good thing is that each level prepares you for what comes next: if you like newsletter articles, you are going to like the library; if you like the library’s body of work, chances are you will find like-minded people in the community.
Today, we are going to add one level on top of the pyramid: coaching.
I am a big advocate for professional 1:1 coaching for engineering leaders. A good coach supports your introspection and helps you figure out what the problem really is. They might provide solutions, but more often challenge and encourage you to find your own, while keeping you accountable.
It’s a fantastic human and professional experience, and the ROI is typically outstanding.
💬 Coaching + Community
Coaching at Refactoring sits directly on top of the community.
Coaches hang in the community—in threads and masterminds—so you get a preview of their opinions and what it’s like to work with them, before you commit to 1:1 sessions.
Also, the Refactoring content acts as supporting material: for any challenge you discuss during the sessions, the coach may point you to specific articles—or community threads—to learn more.
Finally, as a paid member you get discounted rates. Refactoring doesn’t make any money out of this program: I am happy to redirect any revenue sharing potential in the form of a discount for the community.
2️⃣ Two coaches, two programs
Different people have different needs, so there is no one-size-fits-all in coaching. For this reason, we are introducing two coaches, who will run different programs, with transparent rates:
👑 Coaching for CTOs — this is run by Joel. Joel is a professional CTO coach (more in the bio below) and a long-time member of the community. Joel’s programs are flexible and designed specifically for the needs of each of his clients. It costs $740/session for Refactoring members, for a minimum of 6 sessions.
💂 Coaching for Senior Engineers and Managers — this is run by Melinda. Melinda is a coach, trainer, and consultant who works with engineering teams and leaders to improve their communication, management, and leadership skills. Single sessions with Melinda start at $325/session for Refactoring members, and more extended programs are available at a discount.
To get started, or simply learn more, you can reach out to Joel or Melinda anytime via the community DMs.
More about our awesome coaches below! 👇
🙋♂️ About Joel
Joel Chippindale is a CTO Coach. He has worked with more than 100 talented senior engineering leaders in recent years. He also has decades of experience building, scaling and leading software development teams, mainly in start-ups and scale-ups, including CTO and COO roles at FutureLearn and CTO roles at Econsultancy and Unmade.
Whether you’re a seasoned CTO or someone new to leading a software engineering team, your role in the ever-changing environment of a start-up or scale-up is complex. As your career advances, you are expected to take more responsibility for how you spend your time, set your goals and define and develop your role. While this is often exciting and rewarding, it can also be stressful and lonely. Knowing who to turn to for advice and support might be hard.
Joel’s coaching programs support you to successfully navigate the challenges that you face and accelerate your development as a leader.
🙋♀️ About Melinda
Melinda Seckington is a coach, trainer, and consultant who works with engineering teams and leaders to improve their communication, management, and leadership skills.
She has over a decade of experience as an engineering manager at companies such as the Wikimedia Foundation and FutureLearn, where she focused on creating great engineering cultures and building outreach & learning initiatives to get teams teaching each other and sharing what they know within the company and the broader tech community. She’s an international speaker and has spoken at over 50 conferences, covering topics from good management practices to becoming a better speaker.
She provides 1:1 coaching to engineers and leaders who want to feel confident speaking up, communicate more effectively, and handle leadership challenges without second-guessing themselves. As a former engineer turned leader, Melinda understands the challenges of stepping into new roles, whether it's taking on management responsibilities or speaking in front of an audience. She works with new and aspiring managers on essential leadership skills, such as giving feedback with empathy, building trust, and advocating for their teams. She helps new and experienced speakers improve their presenting skills, from storytelling to stage presence, to craft more impactful presentations.
📌 Bottom line
That’s it for today!
The mission of Refactoring is to support your professional growth as an engineer or manager in tech. I am excited to do this in a variety of ways, based on the kind of support you need: articles, community, and now coaching.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments 👇 or by replying to this email!
I wish you happy holidays and see you next week!
Sincerely
Luca