EXECUTIVE COACH
AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
MENOPAUSE CHAMPION & GROUP COACH
KAREN STEIN
MIDLIFE LEADERSHIP SERIES
Midlife is a defining stage of leadership.
It is where experience is high, expectations are higher,
and the way you lead needs to evolve.
I help leaders navigate this shift with clarity, confidence, and sustained impact.
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As featured in
THE MIDLIFE SHIFT
Midlife is a defining moment.
At this stage, leaders bring experience, wisdom, resilience, and perspective.
They are often at their most capable and most influential.
Yet this is also where complexity deepens.
Leaders often experience:
- shifting energy and focus
- questions of identity and direction
- rising self-doubt or pressure
- changing roles.
For women, this stage may include perimenopause and menopause.
For men, it may include evolving identity, pressure, and changing leadership expectations.
At the same time, organisations may see:
- leadership leakage
- presenteeism
- confidence and wellbeing erosion
- uncertainty through life transitions.
This is where my Midlife Leadership Series focusses.
I am an Executive Coach, leadership expert, author, Certified Menopause Coach and organisational menopause specialist, working at the intersection of leadership,
midlife and menopause at work.
Different moments. Different needs.
There is no single experience of midlife leadership. You may be focused on continuing to grow and lead in your current role, navigating menopause at work, or beginning to think about what you want from your next chapter.
My Midlife Leadership Series offers three different ways to support you.
Together, these three pathways support leaders through the full arc of midlife leadership: leading in role, navigating menopause (as appropriate), and transitioning into the next chapter.
This creates leaders who are confident, capable, and connected, and organisations that retain and elevate their most experienced talent, and support those transitioning into their next phase.
My Midlife Leadership Series provides leaders and organisations with strategies and practices in support of their continued success.
Experience shapes how I coach
I understand leadership from both sides of the coaching conversation.
I spent more than 30 years in professional services, including 24 years as a Deloitte Australia Partner, before bringing that experience into my work as an Executive Coach.
Today, I combine lived leadership experience with more than 2,500 hours of one-to-one coaching, a Master of Science in Coaching Psychology and evidence-based approaches from coaching and positive psychology.
My work in menopause at work brings another perspective to midlife leadership. As a Certified Menopause Coach and Menopause Champion, I supported Deloitte to become Australia's first Menopause Friendly accredited employer and now serve as an Independent Panel Assessor with Menopause Friendly Australia.
Across all of my work, my focus is practical: helping experienced leaders understand themselves better, make considered choices and continue to grow, contribute and lead in ways that matter to them.
Midlife Momentum™,
Keep your momentum
For experienced leaders who want to continue to grow, strengthen their leadership and sustain their impact through midlife.
M.A.D about Menopause™
Make a difference at work,
For individuals and organisations wanting to better understand menopause at work and create the conditions for experienced women to continue to contribute, develop and lead.
Midlife Mastery: The Next Chapter For experienced leaders ready to explore what comes next, drawing on their strengths, experience and aspirations to shape the next stage with intention.
Former Deloitte Partner · ICF PCC · MSc Coaching Psychology · Award-Winning Author · Certified Menopause Coach
FAQs
What do you mean by midlife leadership? Midlife leadership sits at a point in a career where experience is high, expectations are high, and the landscape is changing. For many leaders, this includes shifts in energy, confidence, identity and priorities. It can also include life stages such as perimenopause or menopause. This work focuses on helping leaders navigate that complexity so they can continue to lead with clarity, confidence and impact.
Who do you typically work with? I work with organisations who want to retain and support their experienced leaders, and with individuals who want to continue to lead at their best through midlife. This often includes senior leaders, partners and executives navigating change, pressure or transition.
Why is midlife leadership important for organisations? Midlife is often when leaders are at their most capable and influential. At the same time, it can be a period where organisations see quiet disengagement, reduced confidence or even loss of experienced talent. Supporting leaders well at this stage strengthens retention, leadership capability and overall performance.
How do you work with organisations? This work is delivered through keynotes, workshops, group coaching programs and one-on-one executive coaching. We can start with a single session or build a longer-term approach depending on what is needed.
Is this work only for women? No. While some of the work focuses on women navigating perimenopause and menopause, the broader focus is on midlife leadership. That includes leaders of all genders, as well as those who lead and support others through this stage.
What makes your approach different? My work brings together executive coaching, leadership development and a deep understanding of midlife and menopause in the workplace. It is grounded in a depth of real leadership experience at senior levels, as well as an evidenced-based approach, and designed to be practical, thoughtful and relevant to the realities leaders are navigating.
How do we get started? It usually starts with a conversation. From there, we can explore what would be most useful, whether that is a keynote, a coaching program or something more tailored.
International award-winning book
Be Your Own Leadership Coach
Self-coaching strategies to lead your way
Karen's international-award winning book, 'Be your own leadership coach (self-coaching strategies to lead your way)' is increasing the equity of access to self-coaching strategies, and filling the virtual backpacks of leaders with coaching practices.
