"Joan Pastor was my professional coach for over two years. I can say, with great confidence, that she provided me with expert assistance in transitioning from a sales career to one in education, one better suited to my talents. Her guidance helped me in accessing and building my strengths that allows me to excel as a professional and live a life with an authentic purpose. Joan has been a true gem in my life and I am truly grateful for our time together."
A Happy, Satisfied Client
"I'm a young professional who works for the Mayor of a large US city. Although I've reached this relatively high level position I've spent years feeling "stupid." For years I've had difficulty understanding what I've read in school or what teachers have just said to me. I found myself reading passages and it took several times before it would sink it. "It wasn't until last year that I realized I had a learning disability and what a life changing moment it was. Joan was a patient and understanding professional. She put me through months of testing and in the end she diagnosed me with a LD, something that probably should have been diagnosed years ago. I am now able to recognize how this issue affects me and I am able to take the tools Joan has taught me to overcome my LD and stop it from negatively affecting me. I will have my LD for the rest of my life but because of Joan it won't hinder my progress any longer." A Young California Professional>
At JPA International, Inc., we have developed a whole process for assisting people in various stages of their career development. This might include someone just starting out who needs career direction, to someone who has reached mid-life and now asks: "What am I going to do when I grow up?" (You would be surprised how many times this humorous question comes up), to the restless person who has reached his/her career goals and is asking: "What's the next step?"
And, of course, our coaching is invaluable to those who find themselves out of a job due to company downsizing, or any number of other reasons. For those clients, the core philosophy behind our coaching process is that anyone, at any age, can truly turn a career around, resurrect it, give it a fresh coat of paint. Are there different challenges at different ages? Of course. But it doesn't mean that you can't have a vibrant, successful career, whatever your age, challenges and goals.
There are generally three reasons people come to JPA for career coaching:
* The first is the personal - not happy, bored, ready for a change.
* The second is down-sourcing, outsourcing; they've been let go and they're terrified.
* The third is derailment. These clients have lost their job due to a recurring pattern of performance issues. Getting to the heart of the problem - is it , e.g., lack of skills, inability to conform with a company's culture? - is JPA's specialty.
Career Coaching is a structured process. Part of it is educational, things a client needs to do in order to get a job, change jobs, enhance jobs. There's homework involved. It's goal-directed and results-oriented. You know you're done when you have accomplished what we set out for you in the first couple of sessions. For some people, it might be three months. The longest was three years. In those three years, this person went from a sales person to Executive VP of Sales in a major corporation. We still talk periodically, as she feels the need.
The most successful people in business - whether it's health care, finance, corporate, not-for-profit, entertainment, sole proprietor - all use a coach at some time in their career. The most successful have a coach on call to go back to when they're ready for the next step.
Some of JPA clients have been AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, the Department of Defense, numerous military professionals, Bank of America, Realty Executives, KPMG, Mattel , Inc., UnionBay Sportswear, and dozens more. In some cases, the organization brings JPA in; in others, the individual contacts us for private coaching. JPA has also worked with numerous people in the entertainment industry, helping them not only to develop their creativity to its fullest potential but also to help them grow successfully within what is probably the most difficult industry.
