Welcome to Step Up Growth

I began my career in corporate sales and quickly discovered that understanding client needs and active listening are key to building relationships. I found enormous satisfaction in helping leaders solve business challenges and create pathways for organizational and professional success. This work led me to unlock my own potential to step up as an executive coach. I’ve never looked back.

A conversation with Step Up Growth Founder & CEO, Maxine Dotseth

Maxine, tell us a little more about your background.

I was raised in the Midwest by my mother, a teacher, and father, a farmer, who instilled in me the values of humility, empathy, and respect for others. While hard work and productivity can get you far in the corporate world, interpersonal skills are the number one differentiator for today’s leaders.

Prior to coaching, you led diverse teams and managed complex business initiatives across industries, including technology, finance, and insurance. Is there a theme to your approach to leadership and management that has been a constant throughout your career?

I’ve always focused on first identifying the successful outcome of a given situation and then creating a clear roadmap for navigating the complexity you’ll invariably encounter along the way. Simply stated, thinking strategically with the end goal in mind. Helping clients unlock their potential as leaders is best accomplished by supporting their professional roadmaps, charting a path from good to great.

Describe some of the roles you’ve had and the outcomes you’ve achieved.

As a business development lead, I closed large-scale transactions for institutional funds, foundations, pension plans, insurance firms, and family offices. As a sales manager, I created repeatable business models that increased annual revenue for a variety of clients and resulted in more than $500B in new asset creation. As a business leader, I’ve managed complex negotiations across organizations that influenced M&A strategies. Finally, as a coach, I’ve helped teams and organizations achieve greater levels of collaboration, efficiency, and output for measurable returns. As the founder of Step Up Growth, I draw on the intersection of a Fortune 500 financial services career, start-up experience, and not-for-profit leadership to create customized business frameworks that help my clients grow as leaders and navigate career and business shifts.

That’s quite a track record. What made you decide to pivot to executive coaching and, ultimately, launch Step Up Growth?

I founded Step Up Growth because of my own professional journey. Once I realized how much I thrive when partnering with and empowering people, I knew I had the ability to help others flourish too. Every client is unique with experiences that have shaped both where they are and where they want to go. My approach allows me to really understand these experiences so that, together, we can uncover purpose and use that to envision what is possible.

What are the highlights of your development as an executive coach?

I am a certified executive coach by the International Coach Federation (ICF), representing a globally recognized set of competencies and ethics in the field of executive coaching. As a trained leadership and career coach from the Center for Executive Coaching (CEC), I offer business frameworks for my clients to grow their businesses and further develop as leaders. As a certified career coach for CCI Consulting (now Careerminds)'s executive clients for over six years, I provided professional transition support, including AI-aligned personal branding, job search, and career change best practices. My work as a certified GENOS Emotional Intelligence practitioner includes leadership development and team engagement assessments to create more productive work environments, empowered teams, and client-focused business results.

Tell us more about your coaching approach and what clients can expect when partnering with you.

Drawing on my experience as a leader in Fortune 500 companies, start-ups, and not-for-profit organizations, I create customized professional frameworks that include a detailed discovery process to establish goals, a strengths-based assessment to reveal opportunities for growth, and an individualized coaching engagement in which we work together to achieve each clearly defined growth goal.

Recognizing that each client is unique, what are some goals that are common among leaders?

Authenticity is so important, especially given the pandemic's impact on the workforce. Helping leaders understand completely new expectations of employees, leverage technology in new ways, build organizational resiliency, and simply lead with more confidence and ease. These are attainable results that can truly move a leader toward greater success with both teams and organizations.

How do you express your own authenticity as a leader?

Giving back and supporting the community are important parts of who I am. As a Board Advisor, leader, and mentor for Women in Investing Network of Philadelphia, I provide leadership support and mentoring to help talented women achieve their professional goals and growth initiatives. I also serve as a board member of the Wynnewood Civic Association, supporting public education, land use, safety, and beautification initiatives.

Any final thoughts to share with leaders considering stepping up, Maxine?

I’m privileged to work every day with people motivated by a desire to grow and committed to investing in their success with me. Join me and, together, we will step up your growth and advance your leadership in new and powerful ways. The best is yet to come!

“Growth doesn’t come with a single action. It is the consequence of persistence, hard work, and the courage to step up to new pathways.”