Executive coaching firm Blend is improving client performance through using Oura rings to analyse their ‘physiological intelligence’.
Amanda Reynolds and David Mayes report

 

Could wearing a watch or a ring hold clues to providing more tailored and effective support in coaching, including helping hard-pressed executives find helpful ways of staying ahead and working smart?

Amanda Reynolds, founder of Blend, and her team of executive coaches are finding it to be so. For the past four years Blend has been using wearable tech in the form of ‘Oura rings’ to analyse clients’ physiological intelligence (PQ) such as heart rates, activity levels, sleep quality, daytime stress and active calories burned. This data is used to create a ‘PQ performance report’ and then combined with executive
coaching support.

Reynolds explains how she first became interested in the idea after being introduced to Andrew Macdonald, founder and chief executive of PQ(Iboro), which uses analysis of executive leaders’ essential body systems to support and improve performance.

“Andrew was seeing that executives face huge, physiological stress and pressure. But they don’t work smart like athletes do,” Reynolds says.

“We got our finance lead, because he’s super fit and interested in tech to wear a heart monitor when he slept. That data was then analysed by Andrew, but we noticed there were problems with that as it falls off in the night and it’s not actually very user friendly.”

The collaboration formed at the same time as Oura rings started to emerge on the market, so Reynolds bought some online for the Blend team and a US-based client to try out.

She says both the business and client benefits soon became apparent particularly when Blend, whose coaching faculty consists of 35 executive coaches and leadership experts, supported NHS leaders through the challenges of dealing with the Covid pandemic.  

“As an organization that for the last four years has coached more than 800 leaders, predominantly public sector, through some of the hardest leadership challenges they’ve faced, we know the pressure that leaders are under. Not all of them may be ready for Oura, but if they are this can really help them,” says Reynolds.

 

Benefits and making the approach work

Benefits include improving physiological and mental health, and thus performance. 

“Oura brings client-informed data into the coaching. It’s also about getting the client to be curious about the data. That was the starting point. From there we built a bit of a working relationship with Oura and we get access to technical support,” she says.

Macdonald explains that while most coaches are aware of how to incorporate diagnostics such as IQ and EQ into their practice, it’s not often focused on measurable performance outcomes. 

By contrast, when analysing the physiological data from the Oura ring over eight to 12 weeks, he can suggest a ‘diagnostic cycle’ which then forms the basis of Blend’s coaching.

“Improved performance is delivered through improved physiological and mental health. When people talk about stress they always think of external factors, but this is only a third of our stress response. The other two-thirds are physical well-being and, unfortunately, our genetics,” he says.

“With my approach there are hard measurable metrics which can be added in. Measuring activity such as calories burned and steps walked helps to understand what people are doing.” 

But key to it all is building in ‘recovery’. While this is something well understood by athletes, he finds that most executives approach this in a haphazard manner.

Macdonald says, “One of the hardest points of executive coaching is providing the trigger points for change. The key thing we have learned is that when you confront people with physiological data it’s like confronting them with the scales. The question then is ‘what do you want to do?’ Is this the person you want to be?”

In fact, the data can force executives to confront their own bad habits.

“How many people have lunch at their desks? When you are doing something at your desk you are typically in a stress mode. It’s impossible to effectively digest food if you are in stress mode. The consequences of that are that food isn’t digested properly so it’s stored as fat and then a couple of hours later you feel hungry and eat more.

“I am seeing it as an epidemic. Managers in the public sector are massively under exercised compared to the private sector with far fewer steps walked and active calories burned each day,” he says.

However, he says there are simple things executives can do to help. “Have a walking meeting, factor in exercise, don’t attend or chair meetings you don’t need to but delegate. Even going to bed 15 minutes earlier, staying off your smartphone at night or avoiding alcohol just before bed can have a huge impact. It’s the lowest hanging fruit,” Macdonald notes.

 

Coaching

Blend coaches Jill Savage, Amaranatho Robey and David Mayes agree that the PQ data has opened up coaching conversations in a way they haven’t previously seen.

Savage says, “The Oura data very much holds a mirror. And that’s what we do as coaches. Actually, it’s a very clear mirror with the data as you can’t argue with it. The clarity is absolutely there.

“The lovely thing about pairing coaching with Oura is that it helps create the motivation for change.” 

What Blend is finding with clients is that there can be really small tweaks that make a big difference to the data. By going to bed an hour earlier, you can actually change your recovery and your energy at the start of the
next day.

Robey believes using the data helps support a reflective relationship with a coach.

He says, “That’s where it becomes incredibly beneficial. You are actually exploring the data, and seeing what the impacts are, over a series of weeks. But you are also bringing the coaching attitude of inquiry and reflection and trying to understand it.”

Mayes feels that the data also helps executives open up to ‘whole person’ conversations.

“Executives are super intelligent, but they don’t necessarily spend enough time reflecting on themselves. They know their habits are not great. They know they can’t keep going the way they’re going. But the data seems to bring that out a little bit more into conversation. Blend then offers an increased level of challenge.” 

Reynolds believes this gives ‘permission’ to executives who can initially be cynical or wary of coaching to look at their own behaviours while also staying true to Blend’s values of ‘enabling’ and ‘kindness’.

“Most of the executives we work with are where they are and stay where they are because they’re not very kind to themselves. They drive themselves so hard and actually the journey will end in burnout or physical health problems or both,” she says.

“We’ve all been trained as executive coaches. We know about resilience, well-being and mindfulness. But my clients can struggle to integrate this learning when these topics are brought up. Wearable tech really helps them see what their body tells them day by day and the impact that changes they make can have.

“You can use the data to open up a conversation about what’s driving them so hard. Encouraging them to notice the data and make just one little change can be really enabling for them to realise that the body is incredibly adaptable.”

And it is not just with clients that the impact of using wearable tech is being felt. Blend also issues its coaches with an Oura ring so that they too can track their own performance and well-being.

Another Blend coach, Dorinda Nartey, describes the experience as a ‘game changer’.

“It often confirmed how I felt and gave me the data I needed to make life-enhancing habit changes like increasing my sleep duration (without guilt), taking a couple of moments in the day to just sit and breathe and recognising when to go easy on myself. It’s helping me take care of myself in a more compassionate way.

“In my coaching work, having experienced the journey myself, it helps me appreciate clients’ challenges and dilemmas better. It also equips me to ask more challenging open questions to help clients notice their own unhealthy well-being habits.”

Meanwhile, fellow Blend coach Beth Delfino believes the ring has given her the data to back up her sense of progress with her goals.

“It’s helped me understand my nervous system better and make links with my activities, work and environment. It has been a very valuable tool to enable me to know myself better on a physiological level,” she says.

“I eat earlier in the evening when possible – with no late-night news or caffeine and limited sugary treats! And I aim for an earlier bedtime. This is reflected in my sleep scores and I’m feeling the positive impact on my energy levels as a result.

“I have increased my activity – and the ring supports my accountability. I try to move regularly between meetings, at least once an hour. Finding time to rest during the day has supported better self-regulation. The reminders and tracking help so much with this. It’s supported me to be more mindful during my working day.”

And as one little change follows another both clients and coaches are seeing a leap in performance. 

In fact, Blend has incorporated the sporting world’s concept of ‘marginal gains’ into its coaching approach.

 

Extending reach and application

For Reynolds this poses interesting questions about whether it also opens up the use of PQ coaching further down the management chain.

“We have got almost five generations in the workplace, from senior executives in their mid-50s to 60s, working hard, but not necessarily smart and creating a culture like that. And then you’ve got the Gen X and the Gen Z with a different relationship to work, but potentially being incredibly stressed because they can’t work the way they want to work.

“I think there’s real potential there to get to those first and second tier managers and make it a group offer. I like the idea of doing group coaching with them so they learn together and build a peer group. There’s the potential to make them a great team who can learn about themselves as they go.”

Blend is also looking at using other types of wearables too such as Garmin, Fitbit, or Apple watches.

Reynolds, says, “We don’t want to be just wedded to Oura. We want to be wedded to wearable tech and integrating that into the learning.” 

Meanwhile, Macdonald believes that while the data is instantly available, the organisational benefits of the PQ approach will become really clear over time.

In particular, as AI is increasingly used in the workplace it could help executives to pinpoint areas where they can stay ahead.

“This is about a vision of performance,” Macdonald says. “It’s a long-term culture change. If you have got great people that are looking after their bodies and their brains, they will be adding value and outperforming AI. If you are not giving your brain the opportunity to outperform the machine, you are going to lose your job.” 

 

 

CASE STUDY: Supporting an NHS leader

Combining executive coaching with Oura ring data and insight to support a leader in the NHS

“Leaders in high pressure roles often sacrifice their own wellbeing to drive the organisation’s improvement. We now see our partnership with Oura alongside executive coaching helps leaders see the opportunity of paying attention to their body as they work and to enhance their performance as a result,” says Blend associate, David Mayes. 

One such leader was Cath Byford, deputy CEO and CPO of a large UK National Health Service Trust, which began working with Blend Coaching in 2023. 

As part of the executive team coaching package Blend was providing to the organisation, Byford was offered the ring through her one-to-one coaching with Mayes, in March 2023. 

“The past 12 months have been the most difficult of my career as a senior female executive. A challenged organisation and some key leadership changes resulted in a significant impact on my role within the organisation for a period of time,” says Byford.

The first coaching session generated a number of initial goals, such as increased levels of efficiency and productivity, improved work-life balance and becoming healthier.

“After coming to coaching we developed a broader activity plan to support the executive team and deputies through this turbulent time,” she says.

Mayes shares one of the surprising insights gained for Byford from the Oura data: 

“Cath’s daytime recovery was lower than she expected. She’d assumed that she was building in enough, mainly in an evening to relax. When we explored her data, she was surprised to see that watching TV or flicking through her smartphone of an evening was not as beneficial to her health as building in short walks, time away from her screen and reading, in terms of daytime recovery and winding down effectively before sleep.”    

This was a real ‘lightbulb’ moment! 

Byford says, “I knew I couldn’t keep going in the same vein with the huge challenges ahead and could only cope if I gave more focus to my own wellbeing.

“Working with David, and analysing the physiological quotient (PQ) data from my Oura ring, I made a number of changes to my habits, shifting my bedtime routine to head to bed a little earlier and losing the late screen time.

I’ve increased my daily physical activity by going to the gym and have introduced time-restricted eating, fasting throughout the day.” 

Mayes says, “The other aspect Cath talked to me about was reflecting on the link between her health and leadership. How by focusing on her health and well-being, she was able to be at her best more often, had increased levels of energy and resilience in order to lead others through change. An important learning was also about the importance of role modelling self-care and focusing on her own health, as an executive female leader.” 

Byford says: “These behavioural shifts, made as a result of the live physiological data Oura provides and the supporting coaching work, has improved my health and wellbeing – I lost a total of 20kg (44 lbs) in weight, improved the quality of my sleep and got my blood test results under control. On reflection I realised that I wasn’t giving enough time to myself and was tolerating my ways of working, rather than putting myself and my own well-being first.”

She is “proud to have prioritised self-care” – this has been a key benefit for her. 

“The focus on health and well-being, using the data from the Oura ring, helped me work through some really challenging times and developed my workplace resilience.

“The Oura ring combined with the executive coaching has been critical to my success in overcoming the leadership challenges I have faced. One element is that I’ve increased my ability to look back and reflect instead of spending too much time over thinking. The positive responses and feedback I have received from others has really helped, too.

“I’m not a watch wearer so I thought the idea of a ring was great. It’s always on capturing data. The daily insight and messaging helped to keep me focused on areas such as sleep, daytime stress, daytime recovery and activity levels.

“In terms of my health, it is now about sustainability – creating habits that allow me to be at my best more often without putting too much pressure on myself.

“I’m continuing with my coaching work and wearing the Oura ring. They go hand in hand in performance improvement in the workplace and my growth and health as an executive.” 

 

 

More information

• Blend: www.ltdblend.com
• Oura: https://www.ltdblend.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Oura-Coaching-Blend-Associates-.pdf

 

About the authors

• Amanda Reynolds is founder of Blend
• David Mayes is an associate at Blend