LinkedIn Content Strategy for Executive Coaches for Tech Leaders | Netwarm
LinkedIn playbook · Case study
LinkedIn content strategy for executive coaches for tech leaders: how a North Carolina leadership coach reached 407 managers, directors and founders in 4 weeks
We read every reaction on 26 posts from a North Carolina executive and leadership coach for tech leaders. 1,605 people, 407 managers, directors and founders. Here is what brings buyers, what brings peers, and the 5 posts we'd publish next.
Max Sawyer · Netwarm··11 min read
The creator in this case studyA North Carolina executive and leadership coach for tech leaders
Followers25,459
These numbers are from 5 November. Your audience has already moved.
New managers, directors and founders turn Hot every week and others go quiet. Run your free scan to see today’s version, with the names.
SellsExecutive and leadership coaching for tech leaders (promotion readiness, first 100 days, executive presence), change consulting and manager development for organizations, and business coaching for new coaches and consultants
PeriodOct 8 – Nov 5
Ideal client: senior managers, directors and VPs in tech who are ready for a bigger role, and the leaders and HR teams who need their new managers to move from technical excellence to leading people.The challenge: The coach writes for tech leaders almost every day: promotions, reorgs, difficult conversations, how the brain handles pressure. Other coaches read along in large numbers, and a share of every audience is people who will never hire a coach. Which posts reach the directors and managers who would?
Key takeaways
1 in 4 readers is a buyer.407 managers, directors, founders and executives reacted in 4 weeks: 25.4% of everyone who reacted. Peers (coaches, consultants, trainers) were 30.1%.
The post decides, not the topic.All four topics brought 20 to 24% buyers. Single posts ranged from 15% to 40%: the Situational Leadership post led by far.
12 buyers are Hot right now.They reacted to 5 posts or more. One of them reacted to 13 of the 26.
01
Who actually reads you, and what the LinkedIn algorithm changed
The coach posts almost every morning for tech leaders: careers and bigger roles, leading teams through change, how the brain works under pressure, and the inner life of ambitious people. 26 posts between October 8 and November 5, most of them out before 8 a.m. Eastern.
The LinkedIn algorithm shows a post to the people who reacted to the last ones, then to people like them. Leadership coaching is a crowded feed: the directors who might hire a coach read it, and so do hundreds of other coaches. Reach can't tell them apart. Who reacted can. We looked at the people who reacted and sorted them by role.
26posts in 4 weeks
1,605people reacted
407managers, directors & founders
35came back 3+ times
Audience by roleThe 1,605 people who reacted, by roleFree
Peers are the largest single group: 483 coaches, consultants, trainers and advisors, many of them coaching the same tech leaders. They push reach, and they rarely hire a coach.
Buyers come close: 407 managers, directors, VPs, founders and executives, about 1 in 4. Engineers, analysts and specialists make up much of everyone else: some of them are tomorrow's new managers.
SeniorityAll people who reactedFree
Founder, owner, C-level15.1%
Director, VP5.5%
Manager14%
Independent8.7%
Other56.6%
IndustriesManagers, directors and founders onlyNetwarm
Tech, software, IT and AI28.3%
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Core audience35 managers, directors and founders engaged 3+ times · 12 engaged 5+ timesNetwarm
35 managers, directors and founders keep coming back. One of them reacted to 13 of the 26 posts.See your regulars
Engager company sizeEveryone who reacted, by company sizeNetwarm
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See which company sizes your managers, directors and founders work at.See company sizes
02
What to post on LinkedIn to reach managers, directors and founders
Most coaches judge a post by its reactions. A coach who sells should judge it by who reacted.
We tagged each of the 26 posts by topic, then measured the share of managers, directors and founders among the people who reacted.
Your topicsWhat your 26 posts were aboutFree
26posts
Careers and bigger roles8
Leading teams and change7
Mindset and inner life7
Brain and productivity4
Topics that attract managers, directors and foundersShare of each topic’s reactions from managers, directors and foundersNetwarm
Mindset and inner life24.1%
Brain and productivity22.5%
Leading teams and change22.3%
Careers and bigger roles20.0%
Topics are level. Single posts range from 15% to 40% buyers. See which ones led.See which topics
Buyers come on every topic: each one brought 20 to 24%. The topic doesn't decide who reacts. The way a single post is built does.
Posts that brought the most managers, directors and foundersShare of managers, directors and founders in each post’s reactions1 of 5 open
#1Situational Leadership: four styles, and the question for your next 1:140%
#2A strong answer loses its impact when you don't know where to stop29.6%
#3The most grounded people don't have the easiest circumstances29%
#4Two kinds of curiosity in one interview28%
#5Productivity advice, through a senior leadership lens27%
For comparison, the post on promoting your best engineers into management reached 16.3% buyers, and the "7 questions" carousel 15%, the lowest share.
6 rules for LinkedIn engagement from managers, directors and founders
These rules come from what worked on the coach's own profile, and from the best-performing posts by executive and leadership coaches for tech leaders on LinkedIn over the last 3 months.
1
Name the model, then give the question for the next 1:1. A known framework gives managers something to recognise. The question at the end ("Where would my involvement help, and where would you prefer more space?") gives them something to try on Monday.On this profile: the Situational Leadership post brought 40% buyers, the highest share of the 26 posts, and 456 reactions.
Put them in the high-stakes room. The board question, the executive who interrupts, the stakeholder who asks "so what's the risk?". Directors read the scene and see their own week.On this profile: the post on stopping after a strong answer, set in front of an executive or board member, brought 29.6% buyers, the second highest share.
Quote the feedback they keep getting. "Be more executive." "Be more strategic." "Operate at the next level." Every director has heard one of them in a review. Unpacking the sentence brings the comments.Across the niche: Ling Abson's "be more executive" post drew 545 likes and 185 comments.
Name the rule that flips at the next level. What earned the last promotion can block the next one. "At manager level, more detail signals competence. At director level, it reads as a lack of clarity." One flip, said plainly, is easy to repeat in a 1:1.Across the niche: Gabriela Birova's "one rule flips" post drew 629 likes and 179 comments.
Tell one client's before and after. Where the leader was stuck, what you worked on together, what changed. A real arc (anonymised) shows the coaching itself, which essays can't.Across the niche: Meera Remani's "How Rohan got promoted to VP of Engineering" story drew 180 likes and 172 comments.
Share your own practice, not only the client's. "I've had to practice this myself for years." A coach who shows the habit in their own day earns trust from leaders who are tired of advice.On this profile: the post on coming back to yourself after a difficult moment brought 29% buyers and 715 reactions, the third biggest reach of the period.
When managers, directors and founders read: the best time to post on LinkedIn for executive coaches for tech leaders
We compared the share of managers, directors and founders by the day each post was published. 23 of the 26 posts went out between 6 and 8 a.m. Eastern, so there is no hour to compare.
Share of managers, directors and founders by posting dayAmong the people who reacted to each postFree
20.2%
Mon
21.6%
Tue
24.6%
Wed
18.8%
Thu
25.8%
Fri
22.3%
Sat
23.7%
Sun
Friday (25.8%) and Wednesday (24.6%) brought the highest share of buyers, Thursday the lowest (18.8%). Sunday held up well at 23.7%. The gap is real but small, and each day rests on only 3 to 5 posts.
Keep the early-morning slot: it lands before the first meeting on the East Coast. Put the posts that sell the work (the client story, the scorecard offer) on Wednesday and Friday, and keep Thursday for lighter posts.
05
5 posts ready to publish to target managers, directors and founders
Each post follows the rules above, in the coach's voice. Swap in your own details before posting: the real client moment is what makes it land.
1Ready to postNamed model + 1:1 question
The four delegation levels new engineering managers skipRule 1: a named model, then the question for the next 1:1. Modelled on the Situational Leadership post (40% buyers).
Hook
Most new managers don't have a delegation problem. They have a delegation-level problem.They hand something off.It comes back half-done, or done differently, or not at all.And they conclude it's faster to do it themselves.I see this often with engineers who've just stepped into their first management role.The issue isn't the handoff.It's that nobody said how much the other person was allowed to decide.Four levels worth naming out loud:1. Look into it
Gather the facts. I'll decide.Ask: Do they know what information I need?2. Recommend
Bring me options and your recommendation.Ask: Do they know what "good" looks like here?3. Decide and tell me
Make the call. Let me know what you chose.Ask: Am I ready to live with a decision I wouldn't have made?4. Own it
It's yours. No update needed unless something changes.Ask: Have I removed myself from the approval path?The mistake?Handing over level 4 work with level 1 instructions.
→ They wait for permission you thought you'd given.Or handing over level 1 work and expecting level 4 ownership.
→ They feel second-guessed when you step back in.Same task.
Different level.
Very different result.In your next 1:1, try asking:
"For this project, which level would you like, and which level do you think I'm actually giving you?"You might be surprised how far apart the answers are.🔖 Save this for the next time something lands back on your desk.
Visual · Single imageA four-step ladder: Look into it, Recommend, Decide and tell me, Own it, with the one question under each step. Same clean style as the Situational Leadership visual.Check before postingIf you use a published delegation model as the base, credit it in a last line, as you did for Hersey-Blanchard.
"You need to be more strategic"Rule 3: quote the feedback they keep getting. Modelled on Ling Abson's "be more executive" post.
Hook
"You need to be more strategic."It's one of the most common things senior tech leaders hear in a review.And one of the least specific.You deliver.
Your team ships.
People come to you when something is stuck.So what does more strategic actually mean?In my coaching conversations, it usually means one of four things:→ Time horizon
You're talking about this quarter. They want to hear about the next two years.→ Altitude
You explain how the work gets done. They want to know what it changes for the business.→ Trade-offs
You bring a plan. They want to see what you chose not to do, and why.→ Influence
You solve problems inside your function. They want you shaping decisions beyond it.Each one asks for a different change.That's why trying to "sound more strategic" in meetings rarely works.Before changing anything, ask the person who gave the feedback:"Can you share a recent moment where you'd have wanted me to approach it differently?"Then ask what a strong version would have looked like.Vague feedback becomes useful the moment it's attached to a real example.Which of the four have you heard most often?
Visual · Single imageA 2x2 grid: Time horizon, Altitude, Trade-offs, Influence, each with "what you do" against "what they want to hear".Check before postingSwap in the version of this feedback you hear most from your own clients.
The Director who was ready, on paperRule 5: one client's before and after. Modelled on Meera Remani's "How Rohan got promoted to VP of Engineering" story.
Hook
She had the results, the scope and the support of her manager.She still didn't get the VP role.When we started working together, a Senior Director in a software company told me:"I don't understand. I did everything they asked."And she had.She led a large team.
Her programs shipped.
People called her when things went wrong.But when we looked at the role she wanted, a pattern showed up.Everything she could point to was about running the business well.The VP role was about changing it.So we didn't work on confidence.We worked on evidence.→ One cross-functional decision she led, start to finish, beyond her own team
→ One trade-off she recommended to the executive team, in writing, with the risk she was willing to own
→ One leader she developed who could run her area without herFour months in, she wasn't asking whether she was ready.She could show it.The next VP opening, she was the first name on the list.The lesson I keep coming back to:Your success in your current role isn't the same as your readiness for the next one.What evidence would you point to today?
Visual · Text onlyNo image. The before and after carry the post.Check before postingUse a real client story, with their permission and no identifying details. Change the role, the timeline and the outcome to match what really happened.
What got you to Director: the status updateRules 2 and 4: the high-stakes room, and the one rule that flips at the next level. Modelled on Gabriela Birova's "one rule flips" post.
Hook
At manager level, a detailed status update builds trust.At Director level, it can cost you the room.I see this often with senior leaders stepping into bigger roles.They walk into the leadership meeting prepared.Every milestone.
Every risk.
Every dependency.Ten minutes in, someone asks:"So what do you need from us?"The update was accurate.It just answered a question no one in the room was asking.As a manager, showing your work proved you had things under control.At the next level, people assume you have things under control.What they want is your judgment.A simple shift helps:- Start with the decision or the ask.
→ "I need a call on X by Friday."- Give the one risk that matters most.
→ And what you recommend doing about it.- Offer the detail, don't lead with it.
→ "Happy to walk through the plan if useful."It can feel like you're leaving things out.You're not.You're making it easier for the room to act on what you know.What's one habit that served you well earlier in your career, but works differently now?
Visual · Single imageTwo columns: "Manager update" (milestones, risks, dependencies) and "Director update" (the ask, the key risk, detail on request).Check before postingIf you have a real moment from your own leadership career that matches the scene, use it instead.
The VP Readiness ScorecardRule 1 plus the lead magnet: the Scope, Impact, Readiness frame from the October 29 post, turned into a scorecard leaders can download.
Hook
Being great at your current role is not evidence you're ready for the next one.It's one of the hardest things to hear when you've worked hard for a promotion.A few weeks ago, I wrote about two Senior Directors being considered for a VP role.One led 250 people. The other led 75.Many of you asked: so how do you actually prepare?Here's the frame I use with clients:→ Scope
What have you been responsible for?→ Impact
What have you accomplished, in business terms?→ Readiness
What evidence shows you can succeed in the role you want?Most leaders have plenty of the first two.The third is usually thin.Not because they aren't capable.Because nobody asked them to collect it.So I turned the frame into a one-page VP Readiness Scorecard.12 questions across the three areas.
A score for each.
And one next step for wherever your score is lowest.It takes about 10 minutes.If you'd like it, comment "READY" and I'll send you the link.🔖 Save this for your next career conversation.
Visual · Single imageA preview of the scorecard: three columns (Scope, Impact, Readiness), four questions each, a score box at the bottom.Check before postingBuild the scorecard before posting. Send it through a Netwarm Reveal link so you can see which directors download it.
Free forever: unlimited scheduling through LinkedIn’s official API, with images, video and PDF carousels.
06
LinkedIn lead generation: lead magnets that work to target managers, directors and founders
Reactions show interest. A download shows intent. The fastest way to find out which leaders are serious is to give them something useful and see who takes it.
Among leadership and executive coaches, these formats get the most requests:
Format 1The 3-minute assessmentA short quiz that tells leaders something about themselves, with a result they want to share.
Format 2The playbook with a built-in assessmentThe signals senior leaders look for, a quick self-check, and what to do about each gap.
Format 3The template libraryThe templates you use with clients, grouped by the moment a leader needs them: first 90 days, budget season, reporting up.
Format 4The workbook with worksheetsOne decision leaders face, broken into sections that each end in a worksheet they fill in for their own team.
Our pick for you: “The VP Readiness Scorecard”Built from the Scope, Impact, Readiness frame the coach already shared in the October 29 post on two Senior Directors up for a VP role: 12 questions, a score per area, and one next step for the lowest one. Offer it in post 5, next to the Inner Boardroom assessment that already exists.With a Reveal link, every person who downloads it is shown by name, with their role and how warm they are. Your first Reveal link is free.Create your free Reveal link
07
From reactions to clients
Content brings directors and managers to the profile. It doesn't say when to reach out. Most never comment, so they stay invisible, and a director reading every post in October may have picked another coach by January.
On LinkedIn, the right moment to start a conversation is when someone keeps coming back. We call that Hot: 5 or more points over 90 days, where a reaction counts 1, a repost 2, a download or a reply 4.
Hot right now12 managers, directors and founders · not contacted yetNetwarm
12 managers, directors and founders are Hot. See who to message first.See who’s Hot
First messageAn opener for each Hot person, based on the posts they readNetwarm
Hi Jordan, you've been reading my posts on bigger roles for a few weeks. Is a VP move on your radar this year?Hi Sam, I saw the delegation post landed with you. Are you bringing new managers up on your team right now?
A first line for each of them, ready to send.See the openers
Netwarm sends nothing for you. It tells you who and when, and you write the message. It also works inside Claude and ChatGPT: ask "Who's Hot today?" and get the list.
08
FAQ
Every topic brought 20 to 24% buyers here, so build the post, not the topic: a named model with a question for the next 1:1, a high-stakes scene, the feedback leaders keep hearing, one client's before and after, and your own practice.
For this coach, Friday brought the highest share of managers, directors and founders (25.8%), then Wednesday (24.6%). Thursday was the lowest (18.8%). The gap is small: how a post is built matters more than the day.
This coach posts almost every day, and 35 buyers came back 3 times or more in 4 weeks. Daily works when each post gives leaders something to use. Put the posts that sell the work on the best days.
Look at who reacts, not how many. Group reactions by role, measure the share of your ideal clients per post, and follow the people who keep coming back. A free Netwarm scan does this for you.
Yes. Netwarm only reads public reactions to your own posts. It never logs in as you, never asks for your password, and never messages anyone for you.
How we made this playbook
We read the public reactions on 26 posts published between October 8 and November 5, 2026 (the first 100 reactors of each post), and sorted the 1,605 people by role. Comments were not counted, so engagement figures are a floor. Duplicate posts were left out.
Niche rules come from top posts by executive and leadership coaches over the last 3 months. Role groups are approximate, and some managers and founders sell to the same audience; a Netwarm scan matches people to your own ideal client.
