About Sam Isaacson

Thank you for finding this overview about the work of
Sam Isaacson. The purpose of this webpage is to provide you with a high-level of understanding, with the intention of facilitating a co-creative conversation.

About

A brief introduction

Sam is known nowadays as a thought leader on the intersections of leadership, coaching and technology. He initiated Grant Thornton’s EMCC Global Award-winning coaching services practice and chaired the trailblazer group that developed England’s biggest coaching qualification, the Coaching Professional apprenticeship.

Sam is an experienced executive coach and business adviser with a background in internal audit and consultancy, having worked within three of the world’s biggest professional services firms and leading the global consulting work for an award-winning unicorn tech startup.

His work has included leadership and governance, risk and compliance across several sectors, with a particular focus on digital and cutting-edge technology. His literary contributions to the coaching profession include having written a large number of practitioner and academic works. He regularly speaks at conferences and on podcasts on topics such as good practice use of coaching within organisations, and the future of coaching through the lens of technology.

Sam’s work includes leading Coachtech and AIcoach.chat, as well as working as a trustee for GivingTime. He regularly works with coaching professional bodies, and has contributed as part of advisory boards across a diverse range of sectors.

Find Sam on LinkedIn

Books

Sam's writing

Sam writes regular articles as part of his popular LinkedIn newsletter. He has written widely and contributed in various ways to the coaching literature, including (not exhaustive):

  • The Coaching Buyers’ Handbook, providing answers to the most common questions raised by organisational buyers of coaching, coachees and coachees’ line managers
  • The Digital and AI Coaches’ Handbook, establishing a framework of good practice associated with digital coaching
  • How to Thrive as a Coach in a Digital World, a principles-led textbook for coaching practitioners looking to get to grips with the topic of coaching with technology
  • Superhuman Coaching, a practical how-to guide for coaches to start using more technology in their practice
  • Internal Coaching, a chapter in The Complete Handbook of Coaching, providing an extensive analysis of good practice in internal coaching and organisational coaching strategy
  • Next Generation Leadership, an experiential and systemic leadership framework built around leader as ancestor, changemaker and human

Case studies

Sam's experience

Sam is a polymath, with experience covering many technical specialisms, sectors and geographies. Some recent highlights include:

  • 1:1 executive coaching for more than 100 executive MBA students through Cranfield Business School
  • Team coaching for the executive team of a Europe-wide consulting company, supporting the MD handing over leadership responsibility while transitioning to an external role
  • Designing and delivering training on press interviews and prompt engineering for civil servants, now rolled out across several Government departments
  • Facilitating workshops and masterclasses as part of a CMI-certified programme
  • Designing and managing a global development programme for the world’s biggest conference and engagement agency, including managing associates based in EMEA and APAC
  • Coaching supervision for the world’s biggest university press, including managing associates based in AMER and APAC
  • 1:1 coach mentoring and consultancy for independent coaches in developing their practice, including advanced deployment of technology
  • Governance and board effectiveness reviews for firms including a FTSE100-listed banking giant
  • Founding the Coachtech Collective, Coachtech Academy and the Digital and AI Coaches’ Conference

Public speaking

Sam as a speaker

Sam regularly delivers keynote sessions, both in-person and online, as well as participating in panels and in 1:1 interviews, and facilitating interactive workshops.

Recent experiences include:

  • Guest speaker for internal events at a wide range of organisations, including HSBC, Benefact Group, John Lewis Partnership, the NHS, Oxford University Press and an end-of-programme celebration for the accredited BPP coaching qualification
  • Keynote speaker, for coaching and leadership conferences around the world
  • Delivering training, including having lectured on technology in systemic coaching for the University of Cambridge
  • Panel chair and participant, including as part of the Chairs team for the Learning Technologies Conference
  • Webinars, including for the Coaching.com Summit, Coaches Rising, and various professional body conferences, including presenting in partnership with Professor David Clutterbuck
  • LinkedIn Live sessions, for example for the Institute of Coaching alongside Professor Jonathan Passmore and Dr Jeffrey Hull for the Institute of Coaching
  • Podcast guest for a wide range of around 200 different podcasts

Specialisms

Sam's focuses

Sam’s work orbits around the following two broad topic areas.

Coaching and technology
Sam has won awards for thought leadership on the subject of coaching with technology. He co-hosts the podcast The Future of Coaching with Technology, and is frequently invited to speak about subjects such as:

  • The evolution of leadership, tracking the relationship between technology and leadership models, catalysing future-fit leadership behaviours
  • The future of the coaching profession, looking particularly at the impact of generative AI on global coaching business models
  • Coaching for innovation, understanding the impacts of emergent technologies such as blockchain and VR/AR/XR on clients’ thoughts and working lives
  • Using technology in coaching delivery, increasing creativity within coaching conversations in a pragmatic way

Coaching in organisations
With his background having led the development of a coaching services practice in Grant Thornton and having worked in various governance, audit and assurance roles across a wide variety of organisations he has the authority to speak to:

  • Coaching as a strategic enabler, drawing on experiences having seen coaching deployed across hundreds of organisations
  • Internal coaching, recognising the emotional and systemic complexity of the role, with good practice models to support high-quality thinking
  • Coaching governance, supporting coaches in improving strategic alignment, quality assurance and impact monitoring

Mini CV

Sam's bullet bio

Managing Director  Coachtech
Providing a range of services  facilitating greater understanding and wisdom with relation to the intersection between coaching and technology.

Chief Executive Officer  AIcoach.chat
AIcoach.chat is one of the world’s first AI coaching platforms, making non-directive conversations available to those who don’t have access to a coach.

Global Director of Consulting  CoachHub
CoachHub is one of Europe’s most successful startups, raising $330M of funding in three years. This varied leadership role included leading a global team in delivery of internal and external consulting projects, and implementing governance tools.

Head of Coaching Services  Grant Thornton
I played roles across Leadership and Governance Advisory, Business Risk Services and Business Consulting streams, ultimately developing the most profitable offering in the Talent Solutions stream through a commercial partnership with BPP.

Technology Risk Consulting  KPMG, BDO

Chief Executive Officer  AIcoach.chat
AIcoach.chat is one of the world’s first AI coaching platforms, making non-directive conversations available to those who don’t have access to a coach.

Chief Executive Officer  AIcoach.chat
AIcoach.chat is one of the world’s first AI coaching platforms, making non-directive conversations available to those who don’t have access to a coach.

 

Mini catalogue

Sam's services

Sam offers bespoke advisory and consulting services in response to client needs, including access to a global pool of associates. With access to his own IP, extensive experience and recognised good practice he offers:

Organisational diagnostics and healthchecks

  • Subject matter expertise relating to coaching governance, planning, implementation, assurance and impact monitoring activities
  • Deep-dive consulting including designing policies and procedures, internal comms and 1:1 mentoring

Coach development:

  • Provider sourcing and selection covering end-to-end procurement processes, identifying providers and incorporating technology as an enabler for holistic benefit
  • Coach development from recruiting internal coaches, delivering an accredited coach development programme, specialist programmes, CPD events and coach supervision
  • Coaching skills workshops for leaders in organisations looking to develop a coaching style of leadership
  • Keynotes across a range of topics to inspire and challenge

Leadership development:

  • 1:1 coaching with individual contributors, managers, and leaders up to and including the C-suite
  • Team coaching and systemic coaching