Dave Veale
As a founding partner of Acre Architects, Monica Adair has built a mission-driven design practice – growing from two people to 17, tackling increasingly complex projects along the way and garnering national and international recognition.
Leadership at that scale doesn’t stand still. Over more than a decade, Monica has returned to executive coaching time and again with Vision. Not because something was wrong but because she’s found it invaluable to her and to the success of the firm.
“Each phase of the business brought different challenges. Coaching helped me slow down enough to really think – not just react,” she says.
“I don’t work at my full capacity without a coach,” she adds. “I work well in dialogue and partnership. Coaching helps me figure out what needs focus, what’s actually at play – so I don’t unnecessarily spiral, so I can tackle things head-on.”
Rather than working with a single coach, Monica partnered with several Vision coaches over the years. Each brought a different lens, meeting her where she was at that moment.
“That variety mattered,” she says. “Different coaches helped me see different things – about myself, about how I lead, and about what the business needed.”
Sometimes the work focused on high-stakes team dynamics. During one competition for a particularly high-profile bid, when The Acre was shortlisted alongside major international firms, Monica relied on coaching to help navigate the way with the design team.
“I’d go to coaching before meetings so I could show up in a way that brought the best performance – grounded, clear and able to lead a team under pressure.”
At other points, coaching centred on how to navigate growth. As Acre brought on more people, the need for greater structure became clear.
“We heard from our people a desire for more certainty, policy, and defined processes – we’d operated with freedom and few rules,” Monica says. “Having a coach helped me better listen and lead without sacrificing what makes us who we are.”
Today, coaching is an integral part of her business. It’s a part of the company budget and she refers colleagues to it regularly.
“Coaching creates space – space to be really honest, to ask harder questions,” Monica says. “It helped me trust myself more, especially when the path forward wasn’t obvious.”
For Monica, the value wasn’t about quick fixes. It was sustained reflection – returning to the work as the work evolved.
“Leadership isn’t one chapter,” she says. “Coaching supported me through those transitions – not by telling me what to do, but by helping me hear myself more clearly.”
Could coaching be an invaluable part of your leadership and your organization’s success? Contact us today to explore the potential.
