All four roles of generativity are evident in this citation. The first role of generativity is evident in his direct service as a coach to members of the US Federal Government, while the second role is evident in the leadership that Lee provided in setting up the consulting group to provide these services. In building the base for coaching services in an institution that was in need of new forms of leadership, Lee Salmon not only did the work himself, but also recruited others to assist.
It is in the acknowledgement of Lee’s role in helping to establish the International Consortium of Coaching in Organizations that we see Generativity Three in operation. Lee was not just thinking of the immediate coaching needs in his own organization, he also wanted to be a Steward of the field of professional coaching. He wanted to ensure that these services would be provided in many organizations for many years to come. To use George Vaillant’s term, Lee Salmon sought to be a “guardian” of the traditions and practices of professional coaching.
Finally, Lee Salmon was an active advocate for the expansion of coaching services to other societies. Beyond this, he actively worked on the expanded commitment of professional coaches to preservation of the world’s environment. As noted in the citation, Lee was always a champion for Sustainability. It was not just the sustainability of organizations and institutions. It was also sustainability of the air that we breath, the food that we eat, and the verdant world in which we take pleasure and find purpose. It is in this expanded vision of what professional coaching can be that we most clearly find Lee Salmon’s coaching to the Greater Good.
I will now be a bit for specific about Lee’s engagement in all four roles of generativity. I will quote generously from an article that he published in the International Journal of Coaching in Organizations (IJCO) titled: “Developing Leadership in U.S. Government Financial Institutions during Times of Crisis.” (Salmon, 2009).
Generativity One: This first generativity role requires that we care in a focused way for the welfare and growth of other people. Like King Arthur, we are concerned with and care deeply about the welfare of those living in our realm (family, community, profession) It is not just a matter of being nice and nurturing in our relationship with people about whom we care. It is about being supportive and guiding toward a specific goal and life purpose. As I noted above, generativity is about discernment and focus. In his effort to foster leadership in the US Government, Lee focused on resiliency. Furthermore, Lee focused specifically on one population: higher level managers in the US government. That is why he used the term “executive coaching” when titling his program. For Lee Salmon, resiliency was a particularly important mind and skill set for those serving in an executive role to acquire (Salmon, 2009, p. 67):
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