KEYNOTES
Coaching from the Core – Awakening the Transformative Leader
OCTOBER 15, 2025
About the Organizer: The International Columbia Coaching Conference is one of the world’s leading gatherings of scholars, practitioners, and thought leaders in the coaching field. Organized by Columbia University Teachers College, the conference brings together global experts to advance the art and science of coaching every year.
This year’s conference focused on the evolving role of coaches in a rapidly changing world and examined how the integration of inner awareness and systemic transformation can redefine leadership effectiveness.
The Power of Coaching from Within
Dr. Hitendra Wadhwa delivered a thought-provoking keynote at the International Columbia Coaching Conference 2025, inviting participants to explore a radical question: What if the most powerful form of coaching begins not with external tools, but with inner transformation? By the end, listeners were well-equipped with actionable frameworks to bring inner mastery into their outer impact as leaders and coaches.
This session was hosted by Dr. Terrence E. Maltbia, Professor of Practice in the Department of Organization and Leadership at Teachers College, Columbia University. The introduction was delivered by Sharon Birkman Fink, Owner and Chair of the Board at Birkman International, who emphasized a shared vision of developing human potential through science-based and soul-inspired methods.
