Fran Reddan | Executive Leadership Coach and Strategic Adviser
I work with capable leaders who want to think clearly and lead with confidence as responsibility grows.
My approach draws on senior leadership experience and professional coaching, supported by evidence-informed thinking about how adults grow into more complex roles.
Leadership experience
My career has taken me through executive leadership in education, Principalship of a K to 12 independent school, governance, consulting and executive coaching.
I know what it means to set strategy, make difficult decisions, communicate when the message may not be welcome and still provide direction to a school community. I also know the pressure of working closely with a Board when there is no obvious answer.
Today, I use that experience in my work with senior and emerging leaders.
Independent schools are a particular area of expertise. I also work with selected leaders in business, government and purpose-driven organisations when I know my experience can add value. I am based in Melbourne, work with clients in Australia and internationally, and speak French fluently.
How I came to Owning the Leadership Role
Over time, I noticed the same pattern in leaders I worked with and in my own experience of leadership.
People often move into senior roles because others trust their judgement and know they can deliver. As responsibility grows, their decisions affect more people and the consequences reach further.
What helped them succeed before does not always prepare them for what the new role asks of them.
They need to become clear about which decisions are theirs to make and how to use their authority. They also need to know where to focus their attention and when to let others take responsibility.
I saw capable leaders hesitate over decisions they were ready to make or consult more widely than they needed to. Others stayed involved in work that should now belong to someone else. These patterns made leadership harder and more tiring.
Research on adult development, leadership identity and role transition has helped me make sense of what I observed in practice. The work of Herminia Ibarra and Robert Kegan has been particularly useful in shaping my thinking.
Research and coaching experience helped me turn those observations into Owning the Leadership Role.
For me, owning the role means understanding what your position now asks of you and becoming more confident in providing that leadership. This idea guides how I see leadership and how I coach.
How I help
Senior leaders often have plenty of people around them, but few people with whom they can think openly.
You may be dealing with a difficult staff issue, Board tension, an escalating community concern, a critical appointment or a decision you cannot seem to settle. Sometimes you need to question how you are approaching the role itself. Those conversations can be hard to have with the people who work for you, alongside you or on your Board.
Coaching gives you a confidential place to think.
I listen carefully and ask questions that help you see what is really going on. I will challenge your thinking when it will help. Together, we can look beyond the immediate problem and consider what the role now requires from you.
The aim is practical: clearer judgement and greater confidence in your decisions, with your attention going where it is most useful.
I also believe good leadership should bring satisfaction and enjoyment. When you become clearer about your role, leadership can feel less consuming. You can do important work well and still have energy for the rest of your life.
The decisions remain yours. My role is to help you think well enough to make them.
“Working with Fran as an executive coach brought greater clarity and a sharper awareness of where my leadership energy has the most impact.”
Benjamin Clapp
Director of Teaching and Learning, United World College South East Asia, Singapore
Expertise in independent school leadership
I know the particular demands of leading an independent school.
As a Principal or senior school leader, you lead an educational community and a complex organisation at the same time. You work with a Board, lead staff and respond to families. Your decisions can quickly attract attention across the school community.
Educational purpose stays central, while staffing, enrolment and financial realities, governance, parent expectations and reputation can all shape the choices you make.
Having led a K to 12 independent school myself, I understand those pressures from inside the role. Today, I coach Principals, Heads of School, Deputy Principals and other senior school leaders in Australia and internationally.
Governance and strategic experience
I am a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and have more than a decade of Board experience across government and not-for-profit settings.
Board experience has shown me what Boards need from executives and how governance relationships can affect an organisation. It has also sharpened my understanding of the judgement complex decisions require.
I bring that perspective to my executive coaching and strategic advisory work.
Professional credentials
Beyond the office
Some of what I have learned about leadership and high performance has come from well beyond the workplace.
Years of studying flamenco dance have taught me a great deal about high performance. Technique and preparation create the foundation, but performance also demands creativity and the confidence to improvise. You have to respond to what happens in the moment.
Performance also makes you visible. People see the choices you make and how you respond when something does not go to plan. Leadership can feel much the same.
Learning golf more recently has put me back in the position of a beginner. It has reminded me how uncomfortable learning can feel and how valuable good feedback can be. Progress rarely follows a straight line.
Both experiences keep me curious about how people learn and perform. They also remind me that serious development can still be creative and enjoyable.
Thinking about your own leadership?
You may be taking on greater responsibility, adjusting to a new role or wondering why leadership is taking more time and energy than you want it to.
You do not need to have a clearly defined coaching goal before we talk.
A discovery call gives us a chance to talk about what is happening in your leadership, what you would like to change and whether I am the right coach to help.