Alexandra Riha Coaching

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴.

Not because it solved the problem.
But because it changed how the problem was being seen.

That’s often where coaching starts to work.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗜’𝗺 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 — 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸.

You don’t leave with a perfect plan.

𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆.
- A pattern becomes visible.
- An assumption gets challenged.
- A problem that felt tangled suddenly looks… nameable.

And in environments like supply chain, that matters.

Because when your day is full of:
* urgent escalations
* conflicting priorities
* incomplete information

…better thinking is not a luxury.
It’s part of better leadership.

𝗖𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 = 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸
𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆
- better perspective
- stronger self-awareness
- more useful questions

You won't always see this on a performance dashboard.
But once you see a pattern clearly, you can’t unsee it.

And that 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.

That’s why this layer matters.

Not because coaching gives answers —
but because it helps people stop solving the wrong problem.

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙦𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮?

Inspired by coaching effectiveness research, particularly Jones et al. (2016), translated into a practical lens.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗶𝘁.
The affective layer of coaching is often the least visible — but one of the most powerful.

You don’t spiral quite as fast.
You don’t react quite as sharply.
You don’t carry the same level of inner noise into every conversation.

𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬.

Because when your day includes:
- late shipments
- supplier and customer escalations
- shifting demand
- tense cross-functional meetings
and someone marking everything as “urgent” before 9am

…being 𝗮 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 is not a soft outcome.

It is often the beginning of better leadership.

𝗔𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 = 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹

This can look like:
--> more confidence in your judgement
--> less reactivity under pressure
--> more calm in difficult conversations
-->more self-trust when things are ambiguous
--> less internal chaos when the external chaos is already doing enough

Not dramatic.
But often where everything else starts.

𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲𝘀:
- how we think
- how we communicate
- how we lead

And whether we 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆…
or just pass our stress on to the next meeting.

And supply chain has enough handovers already.

That’s why I think this layer is often underestimated.

Not because it is less important.
But because it is harder to measure than a KPI dashboard.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝗶𝘀𝘆, 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱, 𝗼𝗿 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻?

Inspired by coaching effectiveness research, particularly Jones et al. (2016), translated here into a practical lens for reflection and conversation.

𝗦𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴?

Yesterday, I shared why coaching is growing — but often still misunderstood.

This is where I find this framework helpful.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟰 𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁

Inspired by coaching effectiveness research, particularly Jones et al. (2016), it offers a simple way of understanding how coaching creates change.

When coaching works, change rarely happens in just one place.

It often shows up across four layers:

𝗔𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 — 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹
Confidence. Calm. Self-trust.

𝗖𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 — 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸
Clarity. Perspective. Better questions.

𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 — 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁
Habits. Communication. Boundaries.

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 — 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲
Decisions. Relationships. Progress.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 ?
Most people look only at the last layer and ask:
“𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸?”

𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻, 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿:
==> How someone relates to themselves.
==> How they make sense of a challenge.
==> How they respond.

And then 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄.

That’s why coaching is 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 “𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.”

𝗔 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂
- 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶?
- 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥?

Inspired by Jones et al. (2016), translated here into a practical lens for reflection and conversation.

Where is New Work?

New Work in Supply Chain: Why We Optimized Flow but Not Human Work Supply chain resilience | Human-centred operations | New Work | Leadership ⏱ 7-min read It's 8:15am in Singapore. A supply chain planner opens the laptop, and the day is already in motion.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗜𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 — 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗮 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗻𝘁-𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺

In high-pressure supply chain environments, we often treat roles as fixed boxes on an org chart. But when the environment shifts, those boxes become cages.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁? Job crafting is a proactive "bottom-up" redesign of work. Instead of waiting for a top-down restructure, leaders empower teams to adjust three specific areas of their roles to better align with their strengths and the current operational reality:

𝟭. 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: Changing the boundaries of how work is done.
Example: A logistics planner automating a manual report to spend more time on strategic vendor relationship management.

𝟮. 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: Changing how we interact.
Example: A procurement lead initiating weekly "coffee syncs" with the warehouse team to solve silos before they hit the KPI dashboard.

𝟯. 𝗖𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: Changing how we perceive the purpose of our work.
Example: Shifting the mindset from "I manage inventory" to "I ensure our products reach the people who depend on them, no matter the obstacle."

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗸-𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆: When supply chain professionals in APAC or Europe practice job crafting, they move from being "reactive executors" to "active problem-solvers." This shift is the foundation of the Human Side of Change.

By allowing your team to mold their roles around their strengths, you don't just reduce burnout—you build an antifragile operation that can detect "weak signals" long before a disruption becomes a crisis.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝘀: "Are you managing fixed roles, or are you leading people who have the agency to optimize for resilience?"

𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Have you ever tweaked your daily tasks to better suit your strengths? I’d love to hear how it changed your energy levels at work.

👇 I’ll add the link to the full article on my website in the first comment.

𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗜𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗢𝗻𝗲-𝗦𝗶𝘇𝗲-𝗙𝗶𝘁𝘀-𝗔𝗹𝗹

>>What works in Munich doesn't work in Singapore

𝗗𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗱𝗮𝘆? 🚗

It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking we have to wait for a promotion or a new role to enjoy our work. But the concept of 𝙅𝙤𝙗 𝘾𝙧𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 proves that we have more control than we think.

As the image shows, even small tweaks—like listening to music for focus 🎧 or taking a recharge walk 👟—can shift your energy completely.

Tell me below:
If you could change just ONE small thing about tomorrow, what would it be? 👇

"𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵."

Let that sink in for a moment.

You can have:
✅ The best forecasting models
✅ The most advanced technology
✅ The most efficient processes

But if your people don't feel safe speaking up when they spot a problem...

None of it matters.

𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘀:

→ 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹
→ 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀
→ 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀

But only if they feel safe telling you.

Research shows that 85% of supply chain disruptions could have been prevented if someone had spoken up sooner.

The question isn't whether your people see the problems.

The question is: Do they feel safe telling you about them?

When people feel psychologically safe, they:
• Spot risks earlier
• Suggest more innovations
• Stay longer
• Perform at higher levels

But when they don't feel safe?

They stay quiet. Problems compound. Crises emerge.

Your supply chain's resilience isn't built on systems alone.

It's built on trust.

It's built on psychological safety.

It's built on creating a culture where people can tell you the truth—even when it's uncomfortable.

Read more about building psychologically safe teams:
https://www.rfr.bz/ff2dbe5

What's one thing that makes it hard for people to speak up in your workplace? 💙

Does your team openly share new ideas and flag issues before they escalate?

Or do you only hear about problems when it’s too late?

Communication patterns shape your supply chain’s success, and psychological safety is the hidden key.

Want to assess your team’s culture and spot hidden risks? Take this quick quiz to reveal your results

Assess Your Supply Chain’s Psychological Safety Score Discover your specific leadership "blind spots" in just 10 questions. Receive a custom report detailing your scores in Team Dynamics, Communication Patterns, and Culture Indications.

Ever wonder why your team doesn't speak up until it's too late? 🤔

You're not alone.

63% of workers don't feel safe sharing their opinions at work.

And here's what that silence costs:

❌ Problems that could be solved in 5 minutes become 3-week crises
❌ Your best ideas never get heard
❌ You feel increasingly isolated and overwhelmed

This isn't about being "too sensitive."

It's about psychological safety—and research shows it's the #1 predictor of high-performing teams.

Here's the thing:

When you don't feel safe to:
→ Admit mistakes without fear
→ Ask questions without judgment
→ Challenge ideas without punishment
→ Say "I don't know" without shame

You end up:
→ Hiding problems until they explode
→ Second-guessing every decision
→ Burning out trying to be perfect
→ Feeling like you're failing (even when you're not)

Sound familiar?

You're not broken. The system is.

One of the biggest myths in management: Good leaders always have the answers.

The truth? The best leaders create environments where everyone can contribute—including admitting when they don't know something.

Because psychological safety isn't about lowering standards.

It's about creating a space where:
✅ Mistakes are learning opportunities
✅ Questions are welcomed
✅ Your voice matters
✅ You can be human

When people feel psychologically safe, they perform better. Their teams perform better. Everyone wins.

But when you're constantly afraid of looking incompetent?

You hide. You struggle. You burn out.

And that's not sustainable.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing evidence-based strategies to build psychological safety—even when you're feeling overwhelmed.

Because you don't need to have all the answers to be a great leader.

You just need to create a space where finding answers together is safe.

Read the full article on why psychological safety matters (and what to do about it):

https://www.alexandra-riha.com/post/psychological-safety-supply-chain-s-hidden-bottleneck?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=psych_safety_jan26&utm_content=post4_ever_wonder

Have you ever stayed quiet in a meeting when you should have spoken up? What held you back? 💙