Executive Coach and Principal, Bates Communications, Inc.
Sarah Woods has a passion for transforming senior executives into strong leaders who improve overall company performance.
In creating relationships based on trust with her clients, Sarah combines a sincere interest in and admiration for her clients with an energizing style and sense of humor. She is dedicated to helping leaders achieve greatness and she assists them in stretching beyond their limits with tangible results.
Sarah has an extensive list of clients at the C-Suite level who have significantly transformed their leadership style through coaching; improving performance and sustaining measurable results. Sarah works with senior leaders in industries such as finance, pharmaceuticals, health care, technology and defense, and manufacturing.
Prior to joining Bates Communications in 2007, Sarah spent a decade as a management consultant advising both international and early stage startup companies in the area of communications and sales & marketing strategy. Sarah worked with growth companies in multiple industries to develop their competitive advantage through clearly articulated vision and values. Over the years, served on the leadership teams of multiple start-up companies, consulting to the CEO on communicating key value messages, developing sound sales strategy, and learning the keys to successful negotiations.
As the SVP of Planning and Operations for a successful online retailer, Sarah led a virtual team in three countries in the development and launch of a patented e-retail program and was the liaison to the consumer and business press during the official public launch of the company.
Sarah first joined the growing e-commerce wave in the mid-90’s leading Sales & Marketing for Streamline, an e-retail startup, where she established the company’s sales model, recruited and trained their telesales organization, established their pricing model and developed the brand strategy to take the company to a $50 million dollar IPO 4 years later. At Streamline, Sarah oversaw all corporate communications and public relations efforts, orchestrating the official roll-out to investors and media.
Earlier in her career, Sarah lead a regional sales operation for The Knoll Group, a global contract furniture manufacturer where she successfully integrated three corporate sales and distribution teams through a series of company acquisitions. By developing a high performing team and distribution network, Sarah both increased revenues in the region as well as transformed the organization to target a more profitable marketplace. At Knoll Sarah served on the company’s Field Communications Board, working to bring relevant learning from field experiences to corporate and manufacturing personnel to better serve Knoll’s marketplace.
An active member of her community, Sarah has served on a number of boards and community leadership teams. A graduate of Skidmore College in Saratoga, New York, and lives in Wellesley, MA with her husband and three children.
Contact Sarah Woods at swoods@bates-communications.com
"Working with Bates Communications has been a tremendous asset to our company. Sarah Woods immediately connected with our executive team and quickly understood the nuances of our business, enabling her to have an immediate impact. She brings tremendous insight and relevance with directness and a sense of humor. She was able to achieve breakthrough results on an executive coaching assignment. Comments from colleagues included “What an amazing turnaround”, “The difference was immediate and lasting”, “[This executive] has so much more impact now”. As our business needs changed, Sarah was a step ahead and provided valuable guidance and strategic thinking to enable our team to effectively lead the organization through change. I highly recommend Bates Communications and look forward to working with the firm again soon."
- HR Executive, Pharmaceutical Company
“Working with Sarah Woods and Bates Communications has had a significant impact on my effectiveness at communicating at the senior leadership level. I am now more confident, better prepared, and have increased impact when presenting to audiences such as our Board of Directors, industry groups and strategic partners. Sarah quickly dove into my business during a time of transformative change, identifying opportunities for me to rapidly demonstrate greater impact, motivate my workforce and successfully launch highly visible strategic initiatives. She brought a successful balance of structure and flexibility to the engagement, all with a sense of humor that made the work fun. It was great to have her in my corner.”
Jim D., President, Major Health Insurance Company