Certified Executive Coach for Leaders & HR-Sponsored Talent
ICF PCC • EMCC EIA/ITCA • NBC-HWC — evidence-based executive coaching that strengthens decision quality, stakeholder influence, and leadership capacity under sustained complexity.
4,500+ coaching sessions • 1,000+ hours of advanced coach training • 30+ industries
TRUSTED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR YOUR SENIOR LEADERSHIP
TRUSTED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR YOUR SENIOR LEADERSHIP
If you’re searching for a certified executive coach, you’re likely optimizing for trust: professional standards, ethical rigor, and coaching competence that can stand up to senior-level stakes. My coaching is grounded in internationally recognized credentialing bodies (ICF, NBHWC, and EMCC) and built for leaders who must make high-quality decisions, influence across complex systems, and sustain performance without burning out.
Quick Answer: What is a Certified Executive Coach?
A certified executive coach has completed formal coach training and demonstrated competence through an independent credentialing or accreditation process. In practice, the most trusted signals are recognized professional credentials (e.g., ICF credentials such as PCC, EMCC accreditation such as EIA, etc.), documented coaching hours, commitment to ethical standards, and ongoing professional development.
How to Verify a Certified Executive Coach
Because “certified coach” isn’t a protected title in many markets, the fastest way to evaluate credibility is to verify (1) credentialing body, (2) competency standards, and (3) practice hours. Use this checklist:
ICF credential (ACC/PCC/MCC): indicates assessed competence against ICF core competencies and ethics (PCC is an experienced credential).
EMCC accreditation: indicates assessed competence plus professional development requirements across defined levels.
NBHWC accreditation: indicates deep expertise and ethical standards in health and wellness coaching (e.g., burnout, mental fitness).
Proof of training + coaching hours: look for evidence, not just claims.
Credentials Snapshot
What My Coaching Credentials Mean in Practice
International Coaching Federation PCC coach (ICF PCC): advanced competency standards + ethics; assessed coaching skill, not just attendance
National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC): behavior change and sustainable performance science (especially relevant when stress/burnout is a factor)
European Mentoring and Coaching Council EIA & ITCA Practitioner: internationally recognized accreditation; demonstrates applied competence in individual and team coaching and professional coaching development.
Kellogg Executive Scholar in Leadership (Northwestern U.): deep expertise in business and organizational leadership theory and practice
List of Professional Coaching Certifications
Over 1,000 hours of coach-specific advanced training and 4,500+ ICF-level one-on-one coaching sessions completed.
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Team Effectiveness Survey Certified Practitioner with AIIR Consulting
Certified Practitioner in Systemic Team Coaching® with Prof. Peter Hawkins
Certified Corporate Sponsored Coach (ICF Levels 1, 2, and 3) with Bryan Hart, MCC
Core Competency, Advanced Coaching Tools and Coaching Practicum with Linda Bark, Ph.D., RN, MCC, the Wisdom of the Whole Coaching Academy
Certified BetterUp Conscious Business Coach, Premier Fellow Coach, and Career Growth Specialist with BetterUp
Become a Transformative Presence (I), The Art of Developmental Coaching (II), The Power of Embodied Transformation (III), The Neuroscience of Change (IV) by Coaches Rising
Understanding Stage Theory and Adult Development Stages, by Barbara Braham, Ph.D., MCC, and Chris Wahl, M.A. Ed., MCC
Certified Polarity Thinking Practitioner: PACT™ Foundations & Professional Applications by Polarity Partnerships and George Mason University
Comprehensive Practitioners Training for Adult Sensory Processing from Sensory Intelligence® Consulting
Certified Emotional Intelligence EIQ-2 and Motivators Practitioner
ACE Coach Accelerator™ Enhanced Practitioner
Certified Basadur Profile (Creative Problem Solving Style) Administrator
PrinciplesYou Certified Coach
Chopra Center Certified Instructor in Primordial Sound Meditation
Introduction to Giftedness Profiling for Therapists and Coaches with Jennifer Harvey Sallin
Healthy Lifestyle Basics with the Wisdom of the Whole Coaching Academy
Transformational Energy Tools for Group Coaching with the Wisdom of the Whole Coaching Academy
SPEED: Facilitating Innovation to Drive Organic Growth by BASF in collaboration with Getto Group, LLC
GYM Innovation & Creative Problem Solving Facilitator Training by P&G
Coaching For Success by P&G
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Kellogg Executive Scholar in Leadership, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
Executive Compensation: Strategies and Frameworks, The Wharton School of Business
Generative AI: Executive Strategies to Unlock Enterprise Value, Kellogg School of Business
Leadership: Inventing The Future, Vanto Group & George Mason University Executive Education School of Management
Presenting with Impact, Courageous Communication Partnership
Leading Managers, The Cradlerock Group
Accelerating Leadership Transitions: The First 90 Days, Genesis Advisers
Leadership and the Business of Thinking by Ned Herrmann Group for P&G
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Doctor of Philosophy in Materials Science and Engineering, Drexel University
Postgraduate Diploma in Digital Business, MIT Sloan & Columbia Business School Executive Education via EMERITUS Institute for Management
Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, University of Novi Sad
My Coaching Impact
4,500+
Coaching Sessions
750+
Coaching Clients
30+
Industries
90%
Amazing/Life-Changing
Beyond Credentials: How I Work
My Edge as a Certified Executive Coach
My coaching is evidence-based, systemic, and integrative. Alongside formal credentials, I bring an unusual blend of scientific training, business leadership experience, and systems thinking. I help leaders spot patterns early, separate signal from noise, and make high-quality decisions when conventional playbooks don’t fit.
Pattern intelligence: noticing the subtle dynamics shaping outcomes—before they escalate into costly friction.
Systems thinking: working with the leader and the stakeholder environment (decision flows, trust, cross-functional interfaces).
Timing & leverage: identifying the right move at the right moment—so effort creates impact, not exhaustion.
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My approach to coaching is evidence-based, integral, and holistic. For my clients, I bridge the seen and the unseen, discipline and perspectives, audacity and pragmatism, the logical and the intuitive.
I see the unseen. And I bring what’s relevant to focus. As an experimental materials scientist, I spent much of my early professional days in the microscopy lab—a perfect place to practice being an attentive observer who notices and discerns what’s significant amid all that is showing up. Uncovering early signals of an unfolding change requires sensitivity, patience, and an adjustable lens. As a coach, I offer the same devotion and discipline to helping clients illuminate the hidden dimensions of their potential, enabling them to uncover new insights and opportunities for strategic, transformative growth.
I sense and think systemically. My engineering and global business leadership experience have allowed me to master structural and dynamic systems thinking. As a team coach, I also practice systemic team coaching. In chaos and noise, I discern nuanced patterns, trends, interdependencies, and dynamics within systems. One of the most underappreciated powers is the power of timing. As a coach, I help leaders tune into the opportune moments of synchronicity and impactful leverage. I also help leaders sharpen their strategic intuition and expand their capacity for situational intelligence to make the right move at the right time or overcome challenges with clarity and creativity.
I trust in resilience. Having grown up in the former Yugoslavia during the civil war and the extreme socio-economic uncertainty, I witnessed the fragility and strength of the human spirit. These experiences shaped my faith in the regenerative power of hope, curiosity, and courage. In coaching, I provide an environment of trust and radical acceptance, empowering clients to navigate disruptions, embrace complexity, and uncover the generative possibilities in any situation.
I am one with transcendence. I have always been innately aware of and connected to the infinite nature of existence, giving me the inner freedom to sense and think widely, rise above everyday concerns, embrace a broader perspective, and exist contemplatively and joyfully with peace. When stakes are high and conventional wisdom is not enough to create the desired shift, I support my clients in developing exceptional self-awareness so they can separate the essence from the noise and focus on insights that matter.
FAQs
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A certified executive coach has completed formal coach training and earned a credential or accreditation that assesses coaching competence and ethical practice—often through bodies like ICF, NBHWC, or EMCC.
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ICF PCC is a professional coaching credential issued by the International Coaching Federation. It signals assessed competence in ICF core coaching competencies and ethical standards.
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Look for public verification: an ICF directory listing or Credly badge, and EMCC accreditation profiles. Legit coaches make verification easy.
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Experience matters—but certification/credentialing adds independent standards, ethics, and assessed coaching skill. For HR-sponsored engagements, credentials often reduce procurement and reputational risk.
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Decision quality under ambiguity, stakeholder influence, executive presence, leadership transitions, and sustainable performance under pressure.
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We define boundaries at the start. Sponsors receive goals, progress themes, and observable shifts—not private coaching content.
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A focused coaching “tune-up” can be 1–3 sessions. Development coaching often runs 3–6 months. Deeper transformation work is commonly 6–12 months.
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We align on success indicators (decision velocity, stakeholder outcomes, team alignment, retention risk, readiness) and review progress through structured sponsor touchpoints.
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I combine credentialed coaching with systems thinking and strategic fluency—so we improve not only what you do, but how you think, decide, and lead when conditions stay complex.
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Yes. I’m based in the Washington, DC region and work with leaders locally (DC/MD/VA) and nationally via virtual and hybrid coaching.
Certified Executive Coach in Washington, DC (and worldwide)
I’m an ICF-credentialed and EMCC-accredited certified executive coach based in the Washington, DC region (Arlington, VA), serving leaders locally and worldwide through virtual and hybrid coaching.
Dharma Growth, LLC
6404 30th St N, Arlington, VA | Phone: +1 (747) 221-4769
Hours: Mon-Thu 9 am–6 pm | Fri 9 am - 5 pm | Sat 10 am–2 pm
Locations: Washington DC | Arlington VA | Alexandria VA | Fairfax VA