Celebrated Arizona Coach Earns Important New Credentials

(PRWEB) November 21, 2007 -- Certified Leadership Coaches are not all that easy to find. Arizona has been home base for Change Agents, Inc. for several years. Gayla Hodges, President and Principal Coach, has just made Arizona home to one of the few Certified Leadership and Change Leadership Coaches working with businesses throughout the Southwest.

Hodges says she pursued certification as a Professional Certified Coach "in an effort to bring more quality and value" to clients. The distinction in her specialty as a Leadership Coach is very important because there are very few coaches in the nation with this specialty. Hodges is clear that she is not a Life Coach or a Business Coach.

Through the years, Hodges has used traditional coaching processes in non-traditional ways. The key to the leadership coaching provided by her company is the Natural Effectiveness Coaching? techniques she developed. "Many people feel," she says, "that traditional coaching and training makes them feel as if coaches are trying to fix something that is wrong with them. Natural Effectiveness Coaching? implies that people have talents and abilities that they need to learn to use more effectively."

So, what difference does this certification actually make? According to the International Coach Federation (ICF), this certification tells people that "the coach: has received professional training from a program specifically designed to teach coaching skills in alignment with core competencies and the Federation's code of ethics; has demonstrated a proficient understanding and use of the coaching competencies; and is accountable to the ethics and standards set forth by the ICF."

The ICF states, further, "Since coaching is a new profession (about 10 years formally) and certification and licensure are not yet required in most states in the U.S. or in other countries, there are many individuals who are calling themselves coaches today. Many who call themselves coaches have not been formally trained in specific coaching skills and are transferring skill sets from other professions into their coaching. Often this results in an inadequate or ineffective coaching experience for clients."

Hodges and all of the associates at Change Agents are deeply committed to providing the very best possible coaching experience for all of their clients. All Change Agents Associates have also attained or are pursuing certification. Hodges says she sought the additional coaching certification to ensure that her coaching and training skills are the best they can be and seeks other certified professionals as Associates for the same reason. This demonstrate her profound commitment to her own as well as her team's continuing professional growth

Hodges served as project manager for an award-winning system-wide change effort at Arizona Public Service Company and has served as consultant for on-going union/management collaboration in a key area of that company for the past several years.

She holds a BA in Psychology, an MA in HR Management, and certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) from the Society of HR Management. In addition, Gayla is certified as a DynaMetrics Professional, providing expert knowledge and ability in assessing individuals and group dynamics using some of the most technologically advanced assessment tools available. She is also certified as a Level 1 Equine Assisted Learning Facilitator, which she uses to run Renewal Ranch, a division of Change Agents, Inc.

Her company, Change Agents, Inc. is certified by the City of Phoenix as a Woman Owned Business. She is a charter member of the Arizona Organization Development Network, a member of the International Coach Federation, the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), Shared Vision Network, and a graduate of Phoenix Valley Leadership Academy. She has received the APS Excellence Award for Breakthrough Project Management.

About Gayla Hodges and Change Agents, Inc.

Gayla Hodges is the President and Principal Consultant of Change Agents, Inc., a company that specializes in energizing workforces to achieve strategic goals. She has extensive experience in instituting corporate transformational change. In addition, she coaches executives and managers in Natural Effectiveness? leadership skills and team building. For more information, visit www.changeagentsinc.com or call 623-362-3876. For more information on the International Coach Federation, their certification standards and requirements and their code of ethics, visit http://www.coachfederation.org/ICF

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