Team Engagements


Transforming Teams Through Expert
Facilitation, Individual, and Team Coaching 

Customized Programs Designed to Align Your Team and Overcome Any Challenge

IS YOUR TEAM STRUGGLING WITH

...

IS YOUR TEAM STRUGGLING WITH ...

→ Communication breakdowns and misunderstandings caused by team member differences            and skill gaps that hinder team performance, growth, and innovation?

→ Unwanted drains on precious resources due to misaligned goals and unresolved conflicts?

→ Leadership challenges affecting morale, productivity, and organizational performance?

→ Navigating change and increasing complexity including industry disruption, team structural        changes, and more?

The consequences can be costly—both financially and emotionally.

Unlock Your Team's Full Potential with Laura Gates' Expert Facilitation

Trusted by leading global companies, Laura Gates expertly guides teams and organizations through turbulence, change, and pivotal turning points that define their momentum and impact. 

Specializing in culture change, conflict resolution, hard conversations, trust building, and strategic alignment, Laura designs and delivers customized team experiences that address challenges your team faces while fostering improved trust and collaboration.

The results are lasting with impact at the individual, group and organizational levels.

What Clients Are Saying:

What Clients Are Saying:

  • "Laura is the most adept facilitator I’ve ever worked with. She has incredible tact and an uncanny ability to cut through difficult situations to get to the root cause of what’s going on."

    –CEO, VC-backed Tech Startup for Global Media/Tech Co.

  • "It’s never cookie-cutter with Laura. She customized our training to address our specific issues. Her magic, or secret sauce, happens real time—she’s able to pick up on things, make connections, dive deeper when necessary, and enable everyone's ability to spot behaviors and interpersonal dynamics as they occur. Laura works tirelessly to support the team and each individual."

    –Head of Business Continuity, Global Energy Company

  • "Laura is very effective at conflict resolution. She crafted a series of discussions and meetings within a context where we could share openly and vulnerably about our concerns and assumptions about each other. Laura helped us work through the challenges of the business environment—how our backgrounds and different work styles created barriers in our ability to work together effectively. As leaders of two organizations whose teams collaborating was essential to high level program success, she coached us through rebuilding trust in each other and enabling our organizations to work together effectively."

    –Senior Government Executive

  • "Prior to Laura’s facilitation we were in a tough spot as a global program, we were bogged down by incredibly nuanced and complex cultural, interpersonal, and communication differences. In terms of results, our team experienced big shifts. We are now energized and aligned and practicing new behaviors and communication strategies. It’s hard to put a number to it, but our one year plan will have a big impact on the business, touching every single part of the company from the customers to the bottom line."

    –Head of Business Continuity, Global Energy Company

Meet Laura Gates, MSOL

With more than 30 years of expertise in team facilitation, Laura Gates partners with leading organizations including NASA, Google, LinkedIn, and Shell Oil to build resilient, high-performing teams.

Highlighted by Culture Amp and showcased in First Round Review, Laura excels in overcoming team conflicts, communication and cultural differences to foster collaboration and innovation.

Her specialized frameworks, utilized across cutting-edge industries such as AI/ML, space, energy, semiconductor, media, technology, and biotech, enable teams to navigate complex dynamics, align their goals, and drive sustained organizational excellence.

Fun Fact:

Laura was a lead member of the coaching team for Shell’s URSA Gulf of Mexico platform, featured in Simon Sinek’s book The Infinite Game and NPR’s Invisibilia podcast, spotlighting how team coaching saved $40 million on a $1.5 billion project.

A Customized Approach to Team Success

Although Laura’s services can be procured for a one-time facilitation, most engagements are long-term and multi-layered programs, uniquely crafted based on your team's specific needs and budget, ensuring a personalized and long-lasting impactful experience.

Team Facilitation Programs Are Ideal For:

  • Laura specializes shepardizing executive and senior leadership teams through communication breakdowns, conflict, of challenges related to alignment, morale, and productivity.

    • Teams transitioning through industry disruption and technological evolution.

    • Companies undergoing structural changes (M&A, etc.) causing problematic team dynamics and performance.

  • Laura works with all kinds of teams in conflict including global and cross-functional teams experiencing unsatisfactory performance and breakdowns in communication, and work style, cultural, and interpersonal differences.

After Partnering with Laura, Teams Experience:

  • Facilitation cultivates the restoration trust and safety for the group which leads to better behaviors, stronger relationships, and team cohesion.

    When communication, behaviors, and relationships are clarified, teams are able to align on strategic initiatives and common goals, team dynamics dramatically improved, and the team see a considerable boost in productivity and innovation.

  • Laura has a knack for surfacing underlying issues and facilitating the often turbulent conflict resolution process in a constructive and helpful manner for all parties involved.

    Additionally, team members cultivate improved communication across several domains:

    • interpersonal

    • organizational

    • cross-cultural

    • cross-functional

    all of which contribute to improved team dynamics and individual performance.

Program Components:

  • A comprehensive assessment, stakeholder interview tour, and report summarizing insights into their strengths and areas for growth.

  • In-depth evaluations to identify underlying issues and opportunities for improvement.

  • Subject Matter Expertise includes:

    • Hard Conversations

    • How to Lead in Complexity

    • Operating in Zones of Genius

    • Giving and Receiving Feedback

    • Leadership Styles and Differences

    • Strategic Alignment

    • Laura's proprietary methodology: The Purpose Culture and The Purpose Initiativ

  • Expert guidance to navigate complex business challenges and strategic initiatives.

  • Team facilitations are designed to address specific team and interpersonal dynamics, improve collaboration, and enhance performance.

    Team coaching provides ongoing support to reinforce new behaviors, foster trust, and maintain strategic alignment.

  • Personalized coaching for leaders to develop skills, overcome challenges, and achieve their full potential.

Return on Investment:

Return on Investment:

Expected Impact and results vary, but typical ROI reported include:

  • Streamlined processes and reduced inefficiencies.

  • Enhanced performance driving business growth.

  • Improved accountability and productivity.

  • The team functions optimally, with individual team members focused efforts on key objectives and goals.

  • Elevated collaboration and innovation.

  • A stronger, more cohesive team.

  • Maximized productivity and efficiency.

More Testimonials:

“Laura is the most adept facilitator I’ve ever worked with. She has incredible tact and an uncanny ability to cut through difficult situations to get to the root cause of what’s going on.”
— CEO/VC-backed Start-up Tech Founder
“Laura’s skills in feedback and team facilitation helped me build a high-performing executive-level team at NASA Headquarters. One of the more skeptical members of our team even commented that Laura was the most impactful and effective facilitator he had ever encountered. ”
— Senior Government Executive, NASA
“As a result of team coaching, we definitely saw an improved operating culture. One specific example that comes to mind: It was clear the COO needed to go. He knew it and I knew it. Laura helped me communicate to him in a way that brought him to the same conclusion. It was the most graceful departure I’ve ever seen and Laura was instrumental in orchestrating it.”
— VC-backed CEO/Start-up tech Founder

Ready To Transform Your Team?

Don't let underlying issues hinder your team's potential.
Complete the form below to begin the consultation process and discover how Laura can guide your team to unlock greater innovation, creativity, and impact.

* Success Stories

* Success Stories

FAQ

  • Unlike traditional training or generic team-building exercises, Laura's facilitation is centered around coaching team members to align and work through challenges by having constructive conversations. This approach is especially effective when addressing difficult topics such as stakeholder management, cultural or style differences, and interpersonal dynamics. Each facilitation is uniquely crafted based on your team's specific needs.

  • While Laura aims to address as many critical issues as possible, it's important to set realistic expectations. It may not be feasible to cover all topics in one day. The focus is on helping teams discover and address underlying issues that disrupt effectiveness at the core. Together, we'll prioritize the most pressing concerns to ensure the session is impactful.

  • The process begins with upfront pre-session surveys and interviews to identify underlying issues and areas for improvement. This information allows Laura to tailor the session to address the core challenges your team is facing. By refining the agenda based on these insights, we ensure that the facilitation is both relevant and effective.

  • Laura draws on a variety of frameworks on a case-by-case basis, always with the intent to increase trust and collaboration. Some of the frameworks include Psychological Safety, Radical Candor, The Trust Equation, Culture Mapping, Zone of Genius, Systemic Team Coaching, Time Management (David Allen’s Getting Things Done), Conflict Resolution, and Emotional Intelligence (Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy).

  • The preference is to have real conversations about real issues in the room. Frameworks are used lightly to avoid overwhelming your team with too much data, especially in what may already be a busy space. The goal is to provide just enough structure to facilitate meaningful dialogue without detracting from the immediate challenges and dynamics at hand.

  • Laura has facilitated teams at a wide range of organizations, including large corporations like Google, YouTube, NASA, Visa, Shell, and the Navy, as well as many tech start-ups in AI, chip technology, gaming, biotech, and more. This diverse experience allows her to adapt to various team cultures and industry-specific challenges.