Using horses as a mirror to develop authentic leaders
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Andreas Liefooghe, a University of London lecturer, executive coach and lifelong horseman, is extending his equine-guided leadership coaching programme to Thailand, in partnership with the Sasin Graduate School of Business Administration and Chokchai Farm
The head of Sasin’s human-resources management programme, Siriyupa Roongrerngsuke, said Liefooghe, who is also a visiting professor at the Thai business school, would jointly conduct Sasin’s new executive education programme with her at Chokchai Farm in Nakhon Ratchasima in October or November next year.
Andrew Moody, an equine specialist who previously worked for British monarch Queen Elizabeth II, with responsibility for the queen’s horses, will fly in to assist Liefooghe and Siriyupa in holding the boutique courses for Thai executives.
The new offering will make Sasin one of the first business schools in Southeast Asia to provide such an equine-guided coaching programme for executives, Siriyupa said.
The fees have not yet been set for the courses, but in England, Liefooghe usually charges 3,000-4,000 (Bt158,000-Bt210,000) a day for group coaching of 12 people.
The British professor hosts his equine-guided leadership coaching programmes at Richmond Park, the largest of London’s eight Royal Parks and the biggest enclosed space in the capital, and donates profits to charitable causes.
“We have had hundreds of clients within a very short period of time. Some are very high-profile persons, some belong to community groups, the army, executives including Microsoft’s HR director, and those of GlaxoSmithKline, AOL-Time Warner, and others. We’ve been very busy,” he said.
Equine therapy, which has been used to treat autistic children and has been offered in certain life-coaching programmes for some time, can also be applied as an effective and powerful tool to coach business leaders, specifically in the areas of inner awareness, enhancing interpersonal communication, motivation, team-building, and change management, said Liefooghe.
This is because the horse is a prey animal, and its flight instincts can be used as instant-mirror and non-judgmental feedback mechanisms for humans – and high-ego senior executives, in particular.
“Because horses don’t lie,” he explained.
Because of Asian culture, in which strong and open feedback is not usually welcomed, equine-guided coaching could be even more effective for Asian leaders.
“I have horses, I’m a psychotherapist and an [executive] coach; combining these tools, [they] become far more powerful.
“I don’t have to conduct coaching in a room any more.
So rather than a suit, I’m now wearing boots. It’s faster and more effective [than traditional coaching],” he added.
Liefooghe said equine-guided coaching could provide an “in the moment” action-learning experience that is a powerful tool for the development of authentic-leadership qualities.
A pilot course was recently conducted at Chokchai Farm with a group of Thai executives, with the aim of tailoring the programme to suit the local context.
The actual programme will run for two or three days at a time.
