VP, SVP & Newly Promoted Executives

VP & SVP Coaching

By the Stratos Coaching Team · Updated

The VP role is not a bigger Director job. It is a different role completely.

VP and SVP coaching is one-to-one executive coaching for leaders stepping into the vice-president level or preparing for SVP. It covers the first 90 days, the shift from running a function to shaping the enterprise, the peer landscape, and how you communicate at the executive table. Our guide on how to choose an executive coaching firm lays out the criteria for VP and SVP leaders.

Book a Free Call Explore Coaching Programs
Follow Stratos Coaching on Google

What is VP & SVP coaching?

VP and SVP coaching at Stratos Coaching prepares newly promoted vice presidents and senior vice presidents for the altitude shift. It covers the first 90 days, the identity change from operator to executive, organizational awareness, and the strategic communication needed to influence peers and the C-suite. Engagements are 1:1, structured, and built around your transition.

The Challenge

The VP altitude shift breaks most leaders.

At Director, you were judged on your team's output. At VP, you are judged on enterprise outcomes you cannot directly control. The director-to-VP promotion changes everything: scope expands and stakeholders multiply. The instinct to work harder and manage tighter is exactly wrong.

The VP role demands strategic thinking, leading through other leaders, and influencing rooms where you are one of many voices. The question is whether you learn this before the organization forms its opinion of you.

Executive team in boardroom strategy session
What We Coach

The four capabilities that define VP success.

VP skills are rarely taught and almost never coached, so we focus on the four areas where VPs most often struggle.

VP coaching session in progress
Transition Navigation
We coach you through the listening tour, organizational mapping, and stakeholder alignment that set your first-year trajectory. See our guide to the first 90 days as a new VP.
Presenting Up & ELT Communication
Board and ELT communication means less time, higher stakes, and an audience judging your altitude with every sentence.
Organizational Awareness
Organizational awareness is not optional at VP. Coalitions and trust decide whether your vision gets funded. We coach reading the organization as a skill.
Team-of-Teams Leadership
You now lead leaders who lead teams. That means setting direction, not managing execution, and developing leaders instead of solving problems.
Book a Free Call

20 minutes. Virtual. No pitch.

Executive team planning first 90 days strategy
Newly Promoted VPs & SVPs

Your first 90 days will define the next three years.

Research puts the failure rate of executive transitions near 40% within the first 18 months (McKinsey/CEB transition studies). The gap is transition strategy, not talent. Here is what the first 90 days demand.

01
Listen before you lead

Conduct a structured listening tour to map what stakeholders need and which early wins build credibility.

02
Release the identity that earned you the promotion

You built your career solving hard problems. At VP, your value is the direction you set and the leaders you develop.

03
Map the organizational landscape before acting on it

Map the real power structure and alliances before you need them. Moving fast without that map is the top cause of VP derailment.

04
Choose three priorities and hold them

New VPs try to do everything. Those who thrive narrow to three priorities and defend them through the first six months.

Who This Is For

Built for leaders navigating the altitude shift.

Diverse executive team collaborating on strategy
Newly Promoted VPs
The critical early months are ahead of you or already slipping away. You need a structured transition approach. For research and failure patterns, see our guide on executive coaching for new VPs.
VPs Aiming for SVP
The gap between VP and SVP is perception, not tenure. We coach the skills that close it and prepare you for our C-suite program.
VPs in Their First Year
In the first year, the organization decides who you are. Coaching now has the highest measurable ROI, a return the International Coaching Federation has documented across global studies. Leading a technical function? See executive coaching for tech leaders.

Key Takeaways

  • Research finds roughly 40% of new executives fall short within 18 months, concentrated in the first 90 days (McKinsey/CEB transition studies).
  • Sessions focus on VP demands: enterprise strategy, cross-functional influence, and board and ELT communication.
  • Stratos Coaching scopes VP coaching for Directors moving into VP roles, VPs, and SVPs, not first-time or mid-level managers.
  • A derailed VP is estimated at $500,000–$1.5M; see executive coaching for new VPs and the cost of executive coaching.

Who you will be working with

Every Stratos Coaching engagement is led by a former C-suite or SVP operator with 25+ years of enterprise leadership experience. Each coach holds the Certified Executive Coach (CEC) credential and has sat on the other side of the promotion decision.

There is no associate handoff and no rotating roster. The coach you meet on the complimentary altitude call coaches you from the first session to the last.

See our documented engagement outcomes →

A diverse group of senior leaders collaborating around a table in a modern office
FAQ

Frequently asked questions about VP & SVP coaching.

What is leadership coaching?

Leadership coaching is executive coaching for leaders navigating critical career transitions: director to VP, VP to SVP, or into the C-suite. It addresses expanded scope, stakeholder complexity, ELT communication, organizational dynamics, and the shift from managing teams to leading organizations.

What are the biggest challenges in VP transitions?

The biggest challenges are the shift from operational to strategic thinking and a far larger stakeholder map. New VPs must also communicate with the executive leadership team, navigate organizational dynamics, earn trust, and lead through other leaders.

How should a new VP approach the early transition?

A new VP should run a structured listening tour, map the organizational landscape, and build relationships with key stakeholders and peers. The goal is to name the three priorities that will define the first year. The biggest mistake is trying to prove yourself before you understand the terrain.

What is the difference between VP and Director level leadership?

At Director level, success means delivering results through your team within your function. At VP level, success means influencing enterprise outcomes across functions, navigating organizational dynamics, communicating at the ELT level, and thinking strategically about the business. The skills that make a great Director often work against you at VP.

Is it normal to feel overwhelmed as a newly promoted VP?

Yes, and it is more common than most VPs admit. The role requires different skills than those that earned the promotion. Research puts the failure rate of executive transitions near 40% within the first 18 months (McKinsey/CEB transition studies). Overwhelm signals that the role demands a structured transition approach, not harder work, and leaders with that support ramp faster.

How much does leadership coaching cost?

Every Stratos Coaching engagement is scoped to the leader and the mandate. As a market reference, coaching at this level typically runs $5,000–$20K+ for a six-month engagement and $15,000–$65,000+ for annual C-suite advisory (industry ranges). We'll give you your exact number in one 20-minute altitude call, and our complete guide to executive coaching costs covers market pricing across providers.

Keep Reading

Related Articles

The First 90 Days at a New Altitude
Altitude Transitions

The First 90 Days at a New Altitude: What No One Tells You

8 min read
What Got You Promoted Will Get You Fired
Altitude Transitions

What Got You Promoted Will Get You Fired

9 min read
Executive coaching for VPs and SVPs
Altitude Transitions

Executive Coaching for VPs & SVPs: The 2026 Guide

Guide
What Leaders Say

Results from executives who've been through the program.

Ready to operate at VP altitude?

Book a 20-minute assessment. We'll map the gaps between how you lead now and what your VP role demands.

Book a Free Call
Book a Free Call