The Real Work of Leading an Inherited Team (Part 1 of 3): The Briefing You Were Given Isn't the Whole Story

Most advice about inheriting a team starts with day one. This series starts earlier — with what new executives are actually walking into, why the picture they were handed is only part of the story, and what it really takes to lead an inherited team that performs.You...

Principal Executive Career Coach Job Opportunity

Are you a seasoned leader with deep experience in corporate and tech environments?Is developing team members a favorite part of your job? Do colleagues consistently seek your mentorship? Are you ready to transition out of a corporate role and leverage your...

We're building the data that doesn't exist yet

Question: Is LinkedIn still working for job search? The real story, how roles are actually being found, and which moves actually made the difference — rarely gets told.So we're telling it.How Senior Leaders Actually Get Hired - 2026 Data Project takes...

Stop Avoiding the Hard Conversations: Why Radical Candor is the Essential Read for Every Leader

By Daria Lojko Executive Coach, Close Cohen Career Consulting & HR Director, Expedia. Kim Scott’s Radical Candor is arare leadership book that speaks to the heart and the intellect. The newly revised and updated edition sharpens the author’s original premise—care...

What Starbucks' Restructuring and Layoffs Taught Me About the Power of Networks

By Nancy Poznoff is a former VP at Starbucks, now Executive Coach, Close Cohen Career Consulting & CEO, Mother Bear.I’m a former VP at Starbucks and like many, the news hit hard for me in late September: Starbucks announced the closure of hundreds of stores...

Ebook out now! "7 Game-Changing AI Apps for Senior Level Candidates: Close Cohen's Job Search Playbook"

Hello readers, our team at Close Cohen Career Consulting has tackled the AI mandate - locate 7 AI apps to recreated our tested, highing achieving 7 stage roadmap for senior level candidates.Here are the results, see the Ebook: "7 Game-Changing AI Apps for...

Leadership Actions to Boost Productivity at Work for Senior Management, Directors, and VPs

Why Most Teams Are Trucking Along — and Why That's the ProblemEver wondered what makes a great team truly click? It's not magic. High-performing teams are carefully built, brick by brick, through intentional leadership.When your people feel safe to speak up,...

Big Tech Career Firm Expands to Raleigh-Durham Amid Six-Figure Layoffs (May 13, 2025)

-Triangle pros to get Big-Tech career tactics as job cuts continue(Raleigh-Durham, NC, May 13, 2025) As RTI International cuts 340 roles amid federal funding shortfalls and IBM refocuses its Research Triangle Park workforce, even six-figure earners in one of America's...

Your Next Big Thing: Approaching your Job Search with a Founder’s Mindset

Alright, let's dive into a mindset shift that can truly revolutionize your senior-level job search. As someone who's navigated the startup world twice - first with founding Close Cohen Career Consulting and then with Included, our AI-powered people analytics platform...

Close Cohen 2024 Year in Review

As we sat down to review 2024, one thing became crystal clear —we have worked with some incredible leaders.No matter the challenge our clients have faced: from navigating AI transformation, leading through RTO shifts, or stepping into bigger roles — you all...

Recent blog posts

Close Cohen Careers: Executive Career Coaching & Job Search ph6

The Day I Knew I Was Quitting and Moving to Portugal

Cheyanne Johnson is contributing author for Close Cohen Career Consulting and ex-AWS leader who moved with her family to Portugal for a […]

18 Oct 2023

Brag Better book review for leaders — Close Cohen blog.

Proud, Loud, and Strategic: Brag Better Book Review

The One Big Thing: Attention, praise, and opportunities come to those who strategically talk about their accomplishments. If you’re not […]

14 Aug 2023

Smart Brevity book review — Close Cohen blog.

You’re Oversharing: Smart Brevity Book Review

The One Big Thing: Most people share too much information and focus on extraneous details when writing and speaking. Just […]

20 Jul 2023

2022 Year in Review

Transparency continues to be a key value and differentiator for CloseCohen. For the fourth year in a row, we have […]

9 Jan 2023

Benefits and costs of career coaching — Close Cohen blog.

Worth It: The Benefits and Costs of Career Coaching

Career coaching has never been hotter, and as a thriving global career coaching firm, we’ve never been busier! This makes […]

4 Jan 2023

Competing with internal candidates — Close Cohen blog.

“Aren’t they going to take internal candidates first?”

Last week an executive in her 40’s with a history of leading global teams rolled her eyes at me in our session. “Come […]

13 Dec 2022

How to compete in today's job market — Close Cohen blog.

How do I compete now?

A recent client stared off into the distance past the camera on his laptop while I watched him think “My question […]

28 Nov 2022

Big Feelings book review — Close Cohen blog.

How to Be Okay When Things Are Not Okay: Book Review of Big Feelings

Throughout the week that Roe v. Wade was overturned, our executive coaching clients shared that they were angry, sad, overwhelmed, […]

1 Aug 2022

Impact Player book review — Close Cohen blog.

How to Become an Impact Player – New Book Review

At CloseCohen we like to see our senior-level clients to create value for those around them. When you are creating […]

6 Apr 2022

Inner worklife and motivation — Close Cohen blog.

Your Inner Worklife Needs Work

I’m crazy busy. I’m tired. I’m burnt out. Sometimes even senior-level clients come to us with these very natural, human experiences at […]

28 Feb 2022

2021 Year in Review

Transparency is a key theme and differentiator for us at CloseCohen—for our third year in a row, we have analyzed […]

20 Jan 2022

5 steps to land your first VP role — Close Cohen blog.

Business Insider interview with Alisa Cohen on 5 steps to help you land your first VP role

Read the full article here. The article is premium Business Insider content so we want to make sure readers without […]

15 Dec 2021