Executive Coaching & Consulting

The one you want
in the room when
the stakes are high.

I am a force multiplier for senior executives. Partnerships often begin at a critical moment, when you are facing a transformational challenge, launching into a new role, or needing clarity on the path forward. If that is where you are, reach out to schedule a free Yellow Pad Session.

Book a Yellow Pad Session Four ways I can help you →

Illuminate forward.

"Billy's value exceeded all expectations." "Billy's ability to synthesize diverse viewpoints and guide executive teams to consensus is rare." "Billy became the most sought-after resource on our team within the first week." "What felt like a complex leadership challenge became clearer as we talked it through." "Billy's value exceeded all expectations." "Billy's ability to synthesize diverse viewpoints and guide executive teams to consensus is rare." "Billy became the most sought-after resource on our team within the first week." "What felt like a complex leadership challenge became clearer as we talked it through."
"Billy is a force multiplier for senior leaders, ensuring the right voices are included at the right times and that vision is translated into meaningful, executable plans. He is the kind of partner you want in the room when the stakes are high and the path forward is unclear."
SVP, Total Rewards  ·  Fortune 500 Technology Organization
The Northlyght difference

The best solution is not brought in.
It is discovered within.

Northlyght begins with a question. What is within? The most effective path forward is within you and your team. The work is to discover it, align everyone around it, and bring it to life.

In a world where AI is making knowledge a commodity, the wisdom to unearth what is uniquely human within you and your organization is what will create a competitive difference. Human-centered design defines the Northlyght difference.

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Rigorous Discovery

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Rigorous Discovery

Discovery unlike anything you have experienced. The gold within you and your team shapes the path forward. Trust is established. Culture strengthened. Leaders learn to lead through listening.

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Ownership Urgency

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Ownership Urgency

From the moment we meet, I am actively listening, synthesizing, solving, and serving as a force multiplier for you. My focus is relentlessly on you winning, now.

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Sustainable Activation

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Sustainable Activation

My background is as an operator. I partner with you and your team to bring the change to life, ensuring it is encoded in the DNA of the culture and embraced by stakeholders at every level.

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Courageous Wisdom

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Courageous Wisdom

Leaders take wise risks. The biggest opportunities lie in the unseen. I help you and your team shift from independent to interdependent thinking, unlocking potential you did not imagine possible.

What sets Northlyght Executive Coaching apart

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I engage like a consultant, solving alongside you every session
I am a force multiplier moving you forward, now
We design strategies, stories, and slides together
PDF sent after every session with our in-session work
Analysis and actionable recommendations sent after every session

What sets Northlyght Consulting & Transformation apart

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Northlyght
Typical Firm
Senior partner on every engagement
Rotating junior and mid-level teams
Tailored to your culture because your people helped design it
One-size-fits-all
Embraced before implementation begins because they own it
Prescribed, not designed with them
Leaders are developed
Leaders are dictated to
Culture is strengthened
Culture is strained
Senior expertise at a fraction of the cost
Teams of 4 to 8 or more
Invested in your success like it is my own
Hand off a deck and leave
"My firm quickly followed our first engagement with Billy with a request for help on a second project because his value in both qualitative and quantitative measures exceeded all expectations."
EVP & Chief Community Banking Officer  ·  Fortune 1000 Financial Institution
In practice

A force multiplier for senior executives.

A real engagement. Details generalized to protect confidentiality.

The situation

An SVP at a Fortune 1000 company was asked to expand his team's services into a new state. He knew he needed to move but was struggling to navigate the politics, gain traction on the ground, and lead a vision that did not yet feel like his own.

The reframe

Through discovery, one thing became clear: the real opportunity was not to respond to the ask. It was to reshape it. Rather than trying to satisfy competing voices, the question became: what would actually be best for his team and the entire organization?

The vision

Instead of a plan for one state, we built a three-year vision for expanding across the east coast, beginning with the requested location. We built the case around a clear insight: this SVP's team was uniquely positioned to fuel organizational growth. That reframe elevated him above the politics, gave him a vision he owned, and gave his team a shared purpose they could rally around.

The path forward

We built the roadmap together — the vision, the rationale, the phased plan. He took it to the executive leadership team, including the CEO. They did not just approve it. They funded it and called it a key growth initiative for the organization.

The outcome

A bold vision, funded mandate, clear roadmap, and a team aligned around a direction they believed in.

What I do

Four ways I can help you.

Whether you are navigating a high-stakes initiative, stepping into a pivotal role, or trying to unlock potential, I help you discover and navigate the path forward.

This is not typical executive coaching. I engage like a consultant, actively listening, synthesizing, solving, and shaping strategic next steps. Whether we need to rewire your thinking, design a presentation, navigate political challenges, or build a roadmap, we are continually driving towards your success.

  • Retained executive advisory
  • Career clarity and direction
  • Launching into a new role
  • Launching into retirement
  • Discovering your superpower

When the organization needs to change and you have to get it right, I lead the work end-to-end. I align key stakeholders above, beside, and below you, one level at a time, building buy-in and momentum. Deep discovery informs a roadmap that is tailored to your culture and embraced by your people before implementation begins. I guide everyone through activation until the change becomes business as usual.

  • Framing the opportunity
  • Strategic planning
  • Transformation leadership
  • Organizational change management
  • Organizational design
  • Operating model design

A single well-designed session can move a leadership team further than months of meetings, but only if the design is right. I spend time aligning individually with every key stakeholder before we enter the room, building trust and informing session design. Every workshop is interactive, brainstorming on walls, designing solutions, and committing to next steps.

  • Leadership team alignment
  • Navigating high-stakes decisions
  • Learning to lead through discovery and collaboration
  • Aligning around North Star, purpose, vision, and mission

These are not talks that inspire and fade. I help leaders think introspectively, innovatively, and interdependently. The result is a leadership team that wants to solve together, find shared purpose, and become a force multiplier for each other, your partners, and your clients.

  • The 8 Wisdom Questions
  • Unlocking Organizational Potential
  • Human Strategy in the Age of AI
  • Start with Identity
"What sets Billy apart is his deep expertise in change management combined with a pragmatic and outcome-oriented approach, to not only address fundamental change issues, but more importantly, deep dives into underlying business processes to truly understand the challenges."
Executive Director, Global Systems Transformation  ·  PE-backed Life Sciences Organization
The Northlyght approach

How the work unfolds.

Whether coaching or consulting: wisdom brings alignment, and alignment unlocks potential.

Where it begins

Yellow Pad

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A focused conversation where I help you step back, see clearly, and find the path forward.

Phase one

Alignment

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Before discovery begins, you and your team align on the purpose and approach — so the work is owned before it starts.

Phase two

Discovery

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Every voice at every level, invited in — transforming minds before the transformation begins.

Phase three

Design

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The roadmap is built with you and pressure-tested with your people — tailored, grounded, and embraced.

Phase four

Activation

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The work is not done until it lives in your organization and becomes part of your DNA.

"Billy has a distinctive ability to help leaders step back from day-to-day complexity and reconnect to what truly drives alignment, momentum, and impact inside their organizations. What I appreciated most is how Billy translates big-picture leadership challenges into clear, practical next steps."
Global Communications Leader  ·  Fortune 100 Beverage Company
The impact, in their words.

The impact, in their words.

01Executive Coaching

"In a world where coaches so often sell out-of-the-box solutions, Billy's approach solves issues specific to my circumstance. He provides tangible takeaways that have changed the way I manage and work with my team."

Executive Director, M&A Fortune 1000 Financial Organization

"Engaging Billy as a coach was exactly what I didn't know I needed. What felt like a complex leadership challenge became clearer as we worked through it in a simple, structured way."

General Manager, Product Management Fortune 100 Airline

"Through sharp questions and simple, effective frameworks, Billy maps clear roadmaps and concrete next steps. Billy has a unique ability to cut through noise and get to the heart of purpose, vision, and mission. If you get a chance to engage Billy as a coach, do it. It's time very well spent."

CTO / SVP, Head of IT Transformation Fortune 500 Technology Company

"A key differentiator for me was Billy's use of visuals, specifically his Yellow Pad, to break down topics to the atomic level, then focus only on strategies and tactics that can be managed and move the dial. He followed up with detailed notes and a clear path to action."

SVP, Head of Community Banking Technology Fortune 200 Financial Organization

02Consulting & Transformation

"I've had the privilege of working closely with Billy on one of the most complex and high-stakes initiatives we've undertaken, and I can say without hesitation that he is one of the most strategic, thoughtful, and effective partners I've encountered."

SVP, Total Rewards Fortune 500 Technology Organization

"Billy builds alignment and advances complex initiatives with clarity and purpose. He turns strategic intent into structured execution, creating momentum even in challenging, politically charged environments. His presence brings confidence and calm."

Executive Director, Global Systems Transformation PE-backed Life Sciences Organization

"Billy's guidance enabled our project team to chart a clear course for project objectives, decision mapping, action plans and communication. Steered by Billy's recommended roadmap, our project planning time was reduced, the impacted team members remain engaged and supportive, and our project objectives were thus met ahead of budgeted time and cost objectives."

EVP & Chief Community Banking Officer Fortune 1000 Financial Institution

"Billy's ability to distill complex information into clear, actionable plans helped drive engagement and adoption across multiple teams. He builds trust quickly, listens actively, and adapts with agility in fast-moving environments. His professionalism and calm demeanor made him a steady presence during a time of significant change."

Director, Product and Technology Change Enablement $23B Privately Held Conglomerate
Billy Leonard

Illuminate forward.

About Billy Leonard

Force multiplier
for senior executives.

I am a force multiplier for senior executives. As an executive coach and consultant, I work with C-suite leaders and senior executives at Fortune 1000 companies and high-growth organizations at the moments that matter most — when they are facing a transformational challenge, launching into a new role, or needing clarity on the path forward.

I ask the right questions, align the right people, and design a roadmap tailored to your culture and embraced by your people. My belief is that wisdom brings alignment, and alignment unlocks the potential within you and within organizations.

Before launching Northlyght, I led teams, owned P&Ls, and navigated real operational complexity. I know what it takes to not just design a path forward, but to walk it.

My work is also shaped by The Institute for Wisdom and Wonder, an exploration of how companies can leverage what is uniquely human in a world where knowledge and execution are becoming commodities.

I hold an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. I currently serve as President of the Kellogg Alumni Club of Atlanta and Co-Chair of The Atlanta Speaker Series.

My wife, Yen Ling, and I have three daughters. I love a good discussion with you about you, 1950s baseball cards, fall at the beach or in the mountains, and watching my daughters shine.

Connect on LinkedIn →
Common questions

Your questions,
answered.

When is the right time to bring in Northlyght?
The right moment is when the stakes are high and the path forward needs to be right. Common entry points include stepping into a new executive role, leading a high-stakes transformation or reorganization, navigating a team that is misaligned or underperforming, facing a major strategic decision, or needing a thought partner to unlock clarity. If something significant is in motion and you want to get it right, that is when we should talk. Many leaders retain me as an ongoing thought partner and force multiplier long after the critical moment passes.
What is a Yellow Pad Session and how does it work?
A Yellow Pad Session is a free, focused 45-minute conversation. You bring whatever challenge, decision, or transition you are navigating. I listen, ask the right questions, and synthesize quickly. By the end, most people have more clarity than they have had in months. You receive detailed follow-up notes and a clear path to action within 24 hours. No pitch. No obligation. Just time very well spent.
What specific services do you offer?
Northlyght works across four areas:
  • Executive Coaching — individual consulting for leaders navigating critical moments in leadership or career
  • Consulting — problem framing, strategic planning and roadmap creation, organizational design, operating model design, transformation leadership, and organizational change management (OCM)
  • Workshops — leadership team alignment, high-stakes decision making, identity and purpose design, and learning to lead through discovery and collaboration
  • Keynotes — human strategy in the age of AI, unlocking organizational potential, and identity-driven leadership
How are you different from a typical executive coach?
Most coaching is passive, allowing you to find your own answers over time. I approach coaching like a consultant. In every session, I am actively listening, synthesizing, designing solutions, and driving you forward with an actionable roadmap. After each session you receive the yellow pages and detailed analysis with recommended strategies. I am a force multiplier who solves alongside you so that you win, now.
How is this different from a typical consulting firm?
Most firms arrive with frameworks built for someone else, delivered by teams that rotate in and out. Northlyght begins with rigorous discovery and builds the solution from within your organization. Every voice is engaged. Trust is established before strategy is designed. I stay through activation rather than handing off a deck. The result is a path forward that is tailored to who you are and embraced before implementation begins.
Where does Northlyght fit in the budget?
  • Executive Coaching sessions are often funded through a leadership development budget or directly by the leader.
  • Consulting typically sits within a project budget alongside or in place of a larger firm.
  • Workshops and Keynotes typically funded by the function's L&D or similar budget.
What is my first step?
Book a Yellow Pad Session. It is free and all about moving you towards greater clarity. Reach out directly at billy@northlyght.com, connect on LinkedIn, or fill out the form below. Even if you are not sure what you need or when you need support, a Yellow Pad Session is a no-strings-attached, 45-minute session focused on your success, wherever you are at.
Let's talk

If you are at a
critical moment,
let's find the path forward.

Most conversations start with a Yellow Pad Session. This is a free, focused 45-minute conversation with no agenda other than helping you get clarity around whatever challenge you are facing.

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Email directly

billy@northlyght.com

 in

Connect on LinkedIn

linkedin.com/in/bileonard

Start a conversation

Tell me a little about where you are and what you are navigating.