Case Study: A Decade of Intentional Development with Belco Forest Products
10 years. 100% promotion rate. Zero coincidence.
A decade ago, Belco Forest Products was growing faster than its leadership could keep up with. Hard conversations were avoided, silos formed, and good people left.
Today, every single leader who has gone through McLaughlin Mentoring’s coaching program at Belco has been promoted.
Here's what a decade of intentional EQ investment actually looks like, from the CEO who committed to it, to the leaders who lived it.
Client Snapshot
Organization
Belco Forest Products
Industry
Forestry / Manufacturing
Size
40 employees
Headquarters
Washington State
Engagement Period
10 Years (ongoing)
Engagement Type
Executive Coaching, Leadership Coaching, Leadership Training, Business Consulting
Belco is a leading manufacturer of premium exterior wood trim products, serving builders and dealers across North America. Built on a commitment to quality, strong customer relationships, and operational excellence, Belco has continued to grow and evolve alongside the needs of its customers and employees. As the organization grew, leadership recognized that sustaining that momentum required more than strong processes and products—it required strong, emotionally intelligent leaders who could communicate effectively, build trust, and keep teams connected.
The Challenge
Before engaging McLaughlin Mentoring, Belco was navigating a period of significant leadership transition and organizational growth. The following challenges were showing up across the executive and management levels:
At times senior leaders were struggling to navigate difficult conversations and were unable to effectively give clear, motivating feedback
Communication breakdowns were creating friction between departments, creating silos, and slowing decision-making
Turnover in specific roles was costing the organization in morale, recruitment, onboarding, and lost knowledge
The impact was:
Business results were being left on the table due to misalignment and miscommunication
The organization was growing faster than its leadership culture, creating pressure on performance
Communication gaps and lack of healthy feedback required to grow leaders and the company
Belco’s CEO knew he needed to shift and invest in people to build and sustain a strong high performance leadership culture.
The Coaching Engagement
McLaughlin Mentoring has partnered with Belco Forest Products for over a decade, delivering a fully integrated approach to leadership development that spans coaching, assessments, training, and talent strategy.
Length of Engagement
10+ Years (ongoing partnership)
Coaching Format
Weekly, bi-weekly or monthly 1:1 leadership coaching sessions based from the individuals Emotional Intelligence and psychometric assessment data.
Assessment Tools
EQ-i 2.0 & DISC are used for selection, development, and individual leadership coaching.
Focus Areas
Emotional intelligence, leadership effectiveness, executive communication, self-awareness, emotional regulation, psychological safety, team cohesion, management practices, prioritization, presentation skills.
Scope
Executive leadership team + managers + team leads; selection support for key hires; retention strategy for high-potential leaders.
The engagement has operated at three levels: developing individual leaders through deep 1:1 coaching, building organizational leadership capacity through training, and informing strategic hiring and retention decisions through psychometric assessment.
Key Breakthroughs
The following shifts represent the most significant leadership transformations observed throughout this engagement.
Leaders developed the self-awareness to recognize how their stress responses were directly impacting their team's performance, psychological safety, as well as their own.
A shift from reactive, directive leadership to a more inquisitive style that empowered teams to have more productive conversations and ultimately accelerated decision-making
A shift in leading with more curiosity & optimism led to more innovative solutions and empowerment of staff
Breakthrough in how conflict was approached, moving from avoidance to direct, empathetic solutions-based conversations
Leaders began using their EQ data to have meaningful conversations about performance
Leaders recognized the benefits of intentional and frequent connection points to drive awareness and alignment of key business priorities and updates (started a monthly LT meeting)
Leaders developed significantly greater confidence in their roles, using coaching as a source of validation during periods of growth, transition, and professional setbacks. Participants consistently reported increased confidence in their decision-making and leadership abilities.
Communication became more intentional and emotionally aware, with leaders reporting greater effectiveness in difficult conversations and an increased ability to regulate their emotions in high-stakes situations.
Cross-functional relationships strengthened as leaders leveraged EQ-i and DISC insights to better understand colleagues' working styles, resulting in more proactive and tailored communication and stronger collaboration across teams.
The coaching relationship created a psychologically safe environment where leaders could openly discuss challenges, receive objective feedback, and accelerate personal growth.
Every leader who went through this program has been promoted. That is not coincidence, that is a culture who invests and supports their people.
Results & Outcomes
The impact of this engagement is visible across individual careers, team dynamics, and organizational performance.
Leadership & Career Outcomes
100% of leaders who participated in our program have been promoted within the organization
Communication and alignment dramatically increased resulting in less errors/rework
Retention of key leadership talent improved significantly, leaders who were not adapting to or living the culture were excited.
Leaders consistently reported increased confidence in their roles, particularly during promotions, organizational change, and professional setbacks. Coaching accelerated leadership readiness and resilience.
The program became a leadership accelerator for emerging talent and recently promoted leaders, helping them navigate new responsibilities with greater confidence and effectiveness.
Team & Organizational Outcomes
Cross-functional collaboration increased, reducing friction and accelerating timelines
Communication quality within the leadership team was enhanced
Leaders demonstrated more intentional communication, stronger emotional regulation, and increased willingness to engage in difficult conversations constructively.
The widespread use of EQ-i and DISC assessments created a common language for leadership, improving understanding, trust, and collaboration across departments.
The coaching environment fostered psychological safety, enabling leaders to openly explore challenges and develop new leadership behaviors in a non-judgmental setting.
Leaders developed a stronger level of trust within the team.
Business Results
Strong executive talent hired during different business seasons to lead the team resulting in strong sales and delivery of product.
Decision-making speed at the leadership level improved, directly impacting operational efficiency through streamlined communication and clearer roles and expectations.
Belco established leadership development as a strategic capability, creating organizational cohesion and a scalable leadership culture rather than isolated management training.
The decade-long investment in leadership has enabled the organization to grow while maintaining cultural alignment and leadership continuity through multiple business cycles and transitions.
Emotionally intelligent leadership development is not a soft outcome.
It drives measurable team performance and drives business results.
Client Testimonials
“The EQ training and coaching have created awareness around our strengths and weaknesses which has dramatically improved leadership. We now look forward to having fierce conversations. The unique space the coaches hold allows my people to grow in their leadership.”
Bill Staley | CEO & Chairman of the Board, Belco
“The McLaughlin Mentoring Program has had a meaningful impact on how our team communicates and works together. The EQ training has helped us build greater awareness of our own emotional intelligence, communication styles, and how we relate to others. When you better understand yourself, you can communicate with greater clarity and intention while continuing to grow both personally and professionally.
At Belco, we believe in enriching the lives of our employees and to us, that means investing in the whole person. We’ve become a stronger business by developing stronger individuals, and ultimately, a stronger team.”
Savannah Staley | Director of People and Communications
“Working with McLaughlin Mentoring, and specifically with my coach Jenn, has had a meaningful impact on both my professional growth and how I show up at work. I often refer to Jenn as my “Belco life coach” because while our conversations focus on leadership and my role at Belco, she always takes a whole-person approach, recognizing that personal and professional life are deeply connected.
Jenn has supported me through some of my most important career moments, including stepping into my promotion to Director of Business Operations. More than anything, she has helped me build self-awareness and confidence in how I lead. Through her EQ coaching, I’ve become more aware of my patterns, triggers, and strengths—and how they show up in my leadership.
She doesn’t just give answers—she asks thoughtful questions, challenges my thinking, and helps me better understand my own decision-making style.
Through our work together, I’ve become more intentional as a leader and more confident in trusting my own voice. I’m truly grateful for the impact this coaching relationship has had on both my growth and my confidence.”
Julie Bradley-Rowan | Director of Business Operations
Jillian’s Insight
What makes the Belco Forest Products engagement so meaningful is not any single breakthrough moment, it is the decade of intentional investment in people. Belco understood early that their most important competitive advantage was not equipment, geography, or product. It was their ability to develop leaders who could grow with the organization.
Time and again, the leaders at Belco have demonstrated that emotional intelligence is not a personality trait you are born with, it is a skill set you intentionally build with the right coaching, the right tools, and the right commitment. Watching their CEO as well as his leaders elevate self-awareness, optimism, and move from reactive and states to grounded, self-aware, and genuinely inspiring leaders has been one of the most rewarding professional experiences of my career.
The business results speak for themselves. After ten years with this team, is that every one of those results traces back to a human development and connection. A leader who chose to lean in instead of shut down, who learned to ask a curious question instead of just give an answer, who built trust instead of compliance. That is the ROI of emotional intelligence.
If you want to learn more about what coaching can do for your team, please get in touch with us today.