Karen du Four des Champs, PCC

Karen wears several coaching hats

I wear multiple hats to our work together, coalescing my 65 years of life and professional experience: coach, advisor, trainer, mentor, human; integrating the latest in neuroscience with tools, apps, and techniques to get to the cor* of what's stopping you from building and sustaining momentum moving forward.

Because FITNESS for the brain is just as important as physical fitness for our overall well-being, I approach coaching from a mindset framework, addressing: “getting to the cor* of what stops you...” using a systems approach: the Operating System of PQ®.

The right mindset contributes to a high-performing person, leader, team, organization, and coach. That’s why I am first a PQ® Mental Fitness Coach, laying the foundation for accelerating the development of leaders, strengthening teams, and mentoring other coaches, creating long-term, transformational, sustainable results.

As a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through the International Coaching Federation (ICF), I have excelled in my role as a PQ® Mental Fitness Coach.

“Karen started her PQ®️ Mental Fitness training in May 2020, living in Oman during lockdown, feeling “stuck” — metaphorically and physically—unable to leave as both the country and airport were closed for months.

Through her journey of self-development as a professional, credentialed, and certified coach, she acquired new practical habit-stacking tools and brain activation techniques, called PQ®️ Reps. These innovations—based on the latest in neuroscience—created a transformative mindset, helping her turn previously “stuck” challenges into new, unforeseen opportunities.

These lessons continue to guide her actions today, December 2024.

She has been bringing this PQ®️ Mental Fitness program to her clients for over 4.5 years.”

Karen brings coaching globally.

Straddling seemingly contrasting worlds, with outward differences in ways of life… cultural norms… religious preferences… climates… time zones… I know from my years of traveling and meeting people from across the globe, each person I have met brings a common desire to bring the best of who they are into the world… to their work… to their teams… to their families.”

- Karen / Kareema (coaching for a decade across the Middle East)

From a small island in the Salish Sea I coach virtually from my cabin—nestled among lush gardens and adjacent to horse pastures—to individual and corporate clients, as well as mentor other coaches—globally, remotely, with in-person sessions upon request. I have been coaching, consulting, training, advising, mentoring, and delivering workshops and trainings since 1995, first across North America, than the Middle East (primarily Saudi, Oman, and Bahrain).

“Karen blends theory, application, and practice from various schools of leadership thought, change management, and coaching methodologies.

Together, she works with you and your team to co-create solutions to address your current challenges.”

Karen's is an approved ICF Coach

Karen is proud to be one of over 50,000-plus International Coaching Federation* members ID #009210573I, located in more than 160 countries and territories as an ICF* credentialed executive coach at the PCC distinction, leadership development consultant, interactive and engaging trainer, an insightful facilitator, a transformational culture shaper, a powerful keynote speaker, and an ICF Registered Mentor coach, in addition to being a Certified PQ® Mental Fitness Coach.

*Click here to schedule a complimentary 55-minute Break-through session.*

Click here for Karen’s condensed 2-page CV.

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Some of the Fortune 500 companies and internationally known organisations Karen has worked for as an employee, contractor, and/or consultant.

For the long story

Scroll down to read Karen’s unusual non-traditional career trajectory, which yielded rich experiences, unique insights, and fresh perspectives; bringing past professional roles and life lessons into her current work with clients.

In her early 20’s Karen started working with an NGO partner of the US State Department, followed by 2 years with UNHCR, both based in refugee camps located in Peninsular Malaysia —and that was prior to obtaining her University Bachelor’s degree. Back in the 80s they weren’t called “gap years,” but to this day, her “almost 4-year break” from academics—including 6 months solo backpacking throughout SE Asia and the South Pacific—was the best education from the ‘School of Hard Knocks’ she received. Karen learned resilience, problem-solving, and perseverance in spades.

Her 45-year-career has spanned industries, sectors, and countries. In addition to working with NGOs, non-profits, the financial sector, the tech industry, engineering, being an entrepreneur in tourism, and more recently serving clients in oil & gas, she spent 6 years in the Criminal Justice system managing a team of 20 legal advocates.

The bulk of her career has been 40 years in various roles across the “HR field”—from facilitating, learning & development, HR generalist, HR manager, performance management, talent management, and organizational development — with her focus over the past decade working in globally competitive companies delivering: coaching, facilitating, speaking, upskilling leaders, mentoring other coaches, and transforming workplace cultures towards more inclusivity, higher trust, and happier, engaged team members.

Karen’s diverse industry experience, together with working interculturally, is what makes her uniquely qualified to coach any leader from any sector across multiple continents, crisscrossing time zones, serving over 40 nationalities.

After working 6 years as an internal coach in the Gulf Region in the Middle East, including 2 years establishing an internal Executive Coaching office in a large Omani company, Karen relaunched her executive coaching, training, and consulting business globally. She serves clients located globally, across multiple times zones—virtually and in-person—with clients in Australia, Oman, Saudi, Bahrain, Canada, and the USA.

From 1:1 coaching … to large scale culture and employee workshops and change management solutions

Karen is multi-certified executive, leadership, mental fitness, and mentor coach.

Her ability to work across diverse cultural contexts, such as the GCC and North America, alludes to a nuanced understanding of global business dynamics and leadership needs.

Karen's focus on transformational coaching for top leaders and executives indicates a dedication to driving meaningful change and achieving sustainable results. Her proficiency in facilitating learning events on various topics, including cross-cultural collaboration, change resilience, emotional intelligence, and building a growth mindset, underscores her versatility and breadth of knowledge.

Clients have reported tangible benefits such as increased performance, reduced stress, and greater happiness.

**Karen was lead on a multi-year employee and culture engagement assignment as part of a large workplace culture re-framework due to a M&A— traveling to various in-country locations across Oman, Germany, Singapore, and USA, to solicit feedback, interview employees, implement employee-engagement surveys, and facilitate in-person focus groups—resulting in concrete, tangible recommendations made to senior leadership for employee buy-in of the new organisation’s proposed values, behaviours, and culture integration priorities.

Providing coaching to leaders since 1995.

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Professional Certified Coach Credential (PCC), awarded in 2018 by the global regulating body, the International Coaching Federation which sets the international competencies, standards, and rigors for our profession. Delivered and documented ~1000 hours of coaching. Completed 600+ hours of certified coach training.  Passed the Coach Knowledge Assessment (CKA) with a score >90% in 2017. PCC Credential renewed September 2022. ICF Registered Mentor Coach since May 2021.

Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) Awarded December 19, 2017. Completed over 200 coach specific training and certification hours from The Coach Training Institute (CTI)—the world’s largest and oldest in-person coach training school in the world—attending culturally diverse learning cohorts in Dubai and Los Angeles.

Certified Mental Fitness Coach (CPQC) with the world’s leading Mental Fitness training company. Karen began as a “Pioneer” in this positive psychology methodology blending neuroscience with cognitive behavioural psychology and performance science and and has completed over 4 years of (250 hours of CCEs) of intensive coach training into the PQ Coach Model, PQ Framework, and PQ Operating System founded by Stanford lecturer, CEO Coach, and former CTI CEO, Shirzad Chamine MBA, author of the NY Times Best Seller Positive Intelligence. Graduate of PQ Mastery, 29 March 2023 (Six month advanced program: October 2022-March 2023).

Trained in the Cultural Orientations Framework (COF) assessment tool and its applications, (52 hours CCEs) working with individuals and teams, at the intensive interculturalism training in Singapore (November 2019) with Professor Philippe Rosinski, author of Coaching Across Cultures, Global Coaching and founder of the COF.

Organization and Relationship Systems Coaching (ORSC™), an integrated and robust systemic approach based on RSI (Relationship Systems Intelligence™), used for working with teams and groups. Completed ORS@Work in 2019.

Trained Action Learning (AL) Coach, a team and group coaching methodology from the World Institute for Action Learning (WIAL), a process that involves small groups working on real problems, taking action, and learning as individuals, as a team, and as an organization.

Worked as an “On-the-job” (OTJ) Performance improvement coach with leaders in Fortune 500 companies across North America from 1995-2014.

Worked as a leadership coach for 4+ years with leaders at Saudi Aramco, traveling across the Arabian Peninsula, including remote areas like Saudi Arabia’s Empty Quarter, Shaybah.

Mentored by a Master-level MCC Coach Supervisor. (“Every good coach should have a coach.”)

     - Karen du Four des Champs, PCC, CPCC, ORSC, COF, CPQC Coach

“Every coaching session with Karen created a sustainable and powerful inner shift in clarity, confidence and readiness to take action. Karen seemed to have a sixth sense about what was blocking me and compassionately and skillfully coached me to breakthroughs. In between coaching sessions, I always knew Karen was tracking me, rooting for me and holding space for my growth.”

  — TS, VP of Ops with a Silicon Valley start-up