First-time managers
You just got the promotion. Now you're responsible for the people who used to be your peers. The technical skills that got you here won't be enough. Let's build the leadership muscle.
Executive Coach · ICF-ACC Certified
Coaching for engineering leaders who are ready to lead differently.
I help senior ICs, new managers, and scaling founders navigate the leadership transition — with clarity, not chaos.
47 clients promoted to VP or Director · No long-term contract required
JS
ICF-ACC Certified
12 yrs engineering leadership
Clients from teams at
Stripe
Linear
Notion
Vercel
Figma
Who I work with
Are you in the right season for coaching?
The leadership transition is one of the hardest professional shifts you'll make. These are the people I work best with.
Scaling founders
You're past product-market fit and growing fast. The engineering team that worked at 10 people is breaking at 40. You need a different kind of leadership — and a different kind of you.
Senior ICs eyeing leadership
You're a Staff or Principal engineer wondering if the manager track is right for you. Let's explore it honestly — not everyone should, and that's a perfectly valid outcome.
Services & Packages
Choose the right entry point
Not sure which fits? Start with a free 30-minute call — I'll tell you honestly what I think will work.
Clarity Sprint
One focused session to diagnose what's actually holding you back.
$500 one-time
90-minute session + written summary
- Pre-session intake questionnaire
- 90-minute deep-dive video call
- Written summary with 3 concrete next actions
- One follow-up email within 2 weeks
Best for: Leaders at a crossroads who need clarity before committing to longer coaching.
Book a call →1:1 Coaching
Ongoing support as you grow into the leader your team needs.
From $1,200 per month
2 sessions/month, 60 min each
- 2 × 60-minute video sessions per month
- Unlimited async Q&A via Signal/email
- Session recordings + action summaries
- Access to the private resource library
- Introductions to relevant practitioners
Best for: New managers or principals ready for sustained, high-accountability growth.
Book a call →Group Cohort
Learn alongside 6–8 peers navigating the same transition.
From $800 per person
8 weeks, weekly 90-min sessions
- 8 × 90-minute live group sessions
- Private cohort Slack channel
- Weekly frameworks + reading
- Two 1:1 office-hour slots per person
- Lifetime access to cohort recordings
Best for: Engineering managers who want peer accountability alongside expert facilitation.
Book a call →Team Audit
A 30-day diagnostic of your org structure, comms, and engineering culture.
From $4,500 flat fee
30-day engagement
- Structured interviews with 6–10 team members
- Review of your team processes & rituals
- Comprehensive findings report (20–30 pages)
- Executive read-out presentation
- 60-day follow-up check-in
Best for: CTOs and EMs who suspect something is off but can't name it precisely.
Book a call →Client results
Real outcomes, not vague praise
I ask clients to share the specific thing that changed — not just that they liked working together.
"I went from dreading my weekly 1:1s to genuinely looking forward to them. Jordan gave me a framework for hard conversations that I now use every single week. Six months in, I have zero attrition on a team that was losing someone every quarter."
Result: Zero attrition after 6 months; two direct reports promoted.
"We were 28 people and I still had five directs. Jordan helped me see the org structure problem before it became a people problem. We restructured in a month, hired two EMs, and I got my calendar back. The $1.2M we raised the following quarter was partly because investors finally saw a scalable org."
Result: Raised $1.2M; hired 2 EMs; CEO confidence rating up 40pts on next board survey.
"I spent two years debating whether I wanted to go into management. One 90-minute Clarity Sprint with Jordan gave me more clarity than those two years combined. The answer was yes — but with specific conditions I had never articulated. Three months after that call I accepted the VP role."
Result: Promoted to VP of Engineering within 3 months of the Clarity Sprint.
"Jordan does not tell you what you want to hear. They ask the exact question that makes you realize what you already know but have been avoiding. After 8 months I'm a significantly better listener, my team trust scores are up 28 points, and I finally enjoy the parts of the job that used to exhaust me."
Result: Team trust score +28 points; reduced meeting load by 40%.
By the numbers
Outcomes that speak for themselves
47
Promoted to VP or Director
91%
Clients renew beyond 6 months
$2.4M
Raised by founder clients
5.0
Avg rating across 200+ sessions
About Jordan
I've been where you are. Twice.
I spent 12 years building and leading engineering teams — first as a Staff Engineer at Fieldwork Systems, then as Director of Engineering at Luma Labs through their Series B. I made every mistake you're probably making: promoted my best individual contributor into management too quickly, held too many direct reports for too long, and confused being busy with making progress.
When Fieldwork was acquired in 2019 and I had time to reflect, I realized the work I loved most wasn't the architecture reviews or the incident retrospectives — it was the 1:1s where someone figured something out they'd been stuck on for months. I trained, got certified, and started coaching full-time in 2021.
My coaching isn't therapy, and it isn't a course. It's a working relationship between two people who take the problem seriously. I'll push back. I'll tell you when I think you're wrong. And I'll celebrate the specific, concrete progress — not the vague intention.
"Leadership is not a personality type. It's a practice. And practice can be learned."
Credentials
- ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC)
- Reboot.io Certified Coach
- MBTI Certified Practitioner
- Former Director of Engineering, Luma Labs (Series B)
- Former Staff Engineer, Fieldwork Systems (acq. 2019)
- Author: "The Reluctant Leader" (2023)
Podcast appearances
- Engineering Leadership Podcast
Ep. 214 — Making the IC-to-Manager Jump
- Rocketship.fm
Ep. 389 — Coaching Your Way to Scale
- Software Misadventures
Ep. 88 — The Framework Problem
- LeadDev Podcast
Ep. 57 — Psychological Safety in Practice
Writing & press
-
"How to run a first 1:1 that actually matters"
LeadDev
-
"Scaling teams without scaling chaos"
InfoQ
-
"The uncomfortable truth about engineering management"
First Round Review
Book a call
What to expect on your free 30-min call
No pitch deck. No prepared slides. Just an honest conversation about where you are and whether I can help.
-
We talk about your situation
A free 30-minute call with no sales pressure. You tell me what's not working and what you're hoping to change.
-
I share a tailored framework
Based on what I hear, I'll suggest a specific approach — not a generic package, but a path that fits your actual context.
-
You decide if it's a fit
No pitch, no deadline, no pressure. If the work makes sense, we set up a pilot session and go from there.
Schedule your free call
Connect your Cal.com, Calendly, or SavvyCal embed here. The slot below is a placeholder.
Open booking calendar →Free · 30 minutes · No obligation
FAQ
Common questions
- The Clarity Sprint is a flat $500 one-time session. Monthly 1:1 coaching starts at $1,200/month (billed monthly, no contract — cancel anytime with 30 days notice). Group Cohort seats start at $800/person for the full 8-week program. Team Audits are priced at $4,500 flat for up to 10 interviews + the report. No hidden fees, no upsell at the end of every call.
- Most 1:1 clients work with me for 6–12 months. The first 90 days are the hardest and most intensive — we're building new habits and rewiring how you show up. After that, many clients drop to a lighter maintenance cadence (1 session/month) or graduate. I don't have a minimum commitment, but I'll tell you honestly if I think 3 months won't be enough for what you're working on.
- Primarily, yes. My background is engineering leadership — Staff, Principal, Director, VP levels, and technical co-founders. That specificity is the value. I'm not a generalist executive coach trying to work with everyone; I'm a specialist who has lived the exact transitions you're navigating. That said, I occasionally work with product leaders whose work is deeply intertwined with engineering culture.
- Yes — all sessions are remote via Zoom or Google Meet. I have clients in the UK, the EU, Singapore, and Canada. I schedule to accommodate a range of time zones, with most sessions available between 7am–7pm PT. If you're in APAC, we'll find a window that works.
- Monthly 1:1 coaching is cancel-anytime with 30 days notice — no penalty, no pressure. The Clarity Sprint and Group Cohort are non-refundable once completed, but if you feel the session didn't deliver value, send me an email and we'll work it out. I've never left a client feeling like they paid for nothing.
- You're ready if you're willing to be honest about what's not working, open to feedback that might be uncomfortable, and prepared to take action between sessions. You're probably not ready if you're looking for someone to validate decisions you've already made, or if you expect coaching to fix your team's problems without you changing anything. The free 30-minute call is a no-pressure way to find out.