For 30 years, Giusi Cerfeda built her career inside some of the world's most recognized organizations.
Giusi worked across marketing, innovation, product development, communications, and retail for companies including Colgate-Palmolive, Nestlé, Johnson & Johnson, and 3M. She led teams, developed brands, delivered business results, and navigated the pressures that come with senior leadership.
When she reflects on her career today, she can see that she always had a passion for developing people and helping them capitalize on their strengths. That was always more important to her than meeting targets or winning market share.
"I think when you leave a company, people will not remember that you delivered X percent top-line growth, or margin, or market share," she says. "People will remember how they felt working with you.".
“I personally benefited so much from being a coachee throughout my career,” Giusi explains, “so my first exposure to and experience of coaching’s impact was firsthand. As I started to manage larger and larger teams, the complexity of leading people really hit me and I realized that technical expertise alone would not be enough. That’s when I looked to coaching to develop further and strengthen my personal and professional growth.”
Giusi saw how powerful it was to have dedicated space for reflection. Space to step back from the noise, challenge assumptions, and think differently.
When she later left corporate life, she found herself asking a simple question: if coaching had helped her so much, why not learn how to do it herself?
She reached out to two former coaches and asked where they had trained. One of them was an Erickson graduate, and that’s how she landed up training in Erickson’s unique solution-focused coaching methodology.
Coming from corporate, Giusi had to let go of having a plan and seeing results. Instead, equipped with her newfound coaching skills, she embraced holding ‘coach position’ and letting things flow.
This requires a significant shift. Less telling and more listening. Less solving, and more trusting. And along the way, she discovered one of her favorite aspects of coaching: silence.
"I love creating that space for people to reflect, see their challenges from a different angle, and allow time for silence."
In a business world that often rewards speed, urgency, and constant action, Giusi found value in something very different. Pause, reflection, and awareness - and the moments she remembers most - those breakthrough moments.
"Those aha moments during the sessions," she says. "That's what's unique with coaching for me."
Having experienced coaching as both a leader and now as a coach, Giusi has a unique perspective on its impact inside organizations.
For individuals, she believes coaching creates something that is increasingly rare.
Space.
"I think the real value is having that space for reflection," she says.
Most professionals know how to build plans and set goals. The challenge isn't usually creating a strategy. The challenge is creating one that is connected to who they are.
"If you don't dive into your values and what really is your purpose and what motivates you, any plan won't work."
Through coaching, leaders gain clarity on what matters most to them. That clarity helps them make decisions, navigate change, and stay committed when challenges arise.
Giusi sees this especially among newly promoted managers.
Many discover that technical competence got them into leadership, but leadership itself requires something different. It requires self-awareness, communication, perspective, and the ability to empower others. And coaching helps develop those capabilities.
For organizations, the impact extends even further.
"It's about creating a transversal culture," she explains. "Every layer of the organization is focused on empowering people and creating that safe space." That psychological safety, she believes, is one of the most valuable outcomes of a coaching culture. When people feel safe to think, question, contribute, and grow, organizations become stronger from the inside out.
One of the biggest misconceptions Giusi encounters is the idea that coaching is simply a collection of soft skills.
"I don't think it's a soft skill," she says. “Of course, coaching develops active listening, open-ended questioning, and emotional intelligence. Those skills matter, but that’s just the beginning.
“Coaching elevates people, changes their perspective, and holds people accountable."
And that accountability is where transformation happens. A coaching conversation doesn't just generate insight. It elicits ownership, action, and commitment.
People become responsible for what they want to achieve and how they will achieve it. And that distinction matters, especially because organizations need employees who think differently, solve problems effectively, take ownership, and create results. Coaching supports all of those outcomes.
During her research into coach training, Giusi spoke with many people and explored different approaches. What stood out about Erickson was its structure, its practicality, and the confidence it gave her.
"I love the Erickson toolkit," she says. “I’ve met coaches who completed training elsewhere but felt uncertain about how to actually coach - basically, they didn't know where to start, but my experience was different. And the real beauty of Erickson was that it brought together tools and processes, and taught the depth of what sits behind them."
She particularly appreciated that coaching methods were explained through the lens of how people think, learn, and create change. Rather than simply being told what to do, she gained a deeper understanding of why the tools worked.
As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly present in the workplace, some people wonder whether technology might eventually replace coaching.
Giusi isn't convinced. In fact, she believes the opposite may happen.
“AI can generate questions, it can provide information, and it can accelerate processes. But coaching is fundamentally human, and that’s becoming increasingly important.”
As workplaces become faster, more complex, and more technology-driven, people need opportunities to slow down, think deeply, and reconnect with what matters.
That is where coaching continues to shine. And for Giusi, that remains the greatest reward.
"The real beauty of coaching is seeing your coachee flourishing and thriving. Those moments of growth, and those moments of realization when someone sees a new possibility for themselves; that’s what it’s all about.”
ABOUT GIUSI CERFEDA
Giusi Cerfeda is a Strategic Business Advisor, Board Member, and Professional Coach with over 30 years' experience in multinational companies in Business Development, Marketing and Retail Execution. She has successfully managed several teams to drive business performances in highly competitive environments.
To follow and connect with Giusi on LinkedIn, visit her profile here.