Program Overview
You’ve spent years building successful organizations. Now consider what you want to build for yourself.
As an accomplished professional, you have likely spent much of your career anticipating what comes next for your organization. However, planning for your own future may feel less straightforward, especially when your career has been closely tied to your sense of identity. Replacing the energy and purpose of leading an organization is no small task.
Beyond the Corner Office has been designed for CEOs, presidents, and business owners who are approaching the end of their primary careers or have recently stepped away from their executive roles. Some participants may have ideas about what they want to pursue next, while others may be uncertain about what their next phase will look like. What they all share is a desire to remain engaged and explore how they want to spend their future.
This six-month, cohort-based executive seminar from the University of Chicago Graham School is designed for corner office leaders who are giving serious consideration to what comes next. Through guided reflection and candid conversations with fellow senior leaders, you will examine what has given your life meaning and consider how you want to apply your experience in the years ahead. Rather than preparing for retirement, the program is about rewiring yourself for a next chapter as exhilarating as the one you are leaving. It helps you determine what you want to carry forward from your career, what you are ready to leave behind, and what you want to build next.
Beyond the Corner Office Benefits
Through this executive seminar, you will:
- Gain a clearer understanding of who you are as a person, beyond your professional title, and how to bring the same energy and passion to what’s next.
- Determine what truly matters to you and how that can shape the way you spend the years ahead.
- Benefit from taking part in a confidential cohort of accomplished peers who are navigating the same moment and similar uncertainties as you.
- Develop a personal strategic plan that translates your reflections into a multi-year initiative that takes into account your aspirations and the practical considerations that will shape your next steps.
The results of our work together have given me direction and boosted my confidence in starting the process of moving from full-time work to a new portfolio career.
Stephen Phillips Former President, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices
The combination of Elisa’s insight and guidance along with the YouPivot program helped me reimagine my next phase.
Wendy DuBoe Former CEO, United Way of Metro Chicago
Elisa provided me with direct, specific, and sometimes difficult-for-me-to-hear […] feedback that greatly helped me to focus on what was truly important to me at this stage of my life.
Liz Tinkham Public Company Board Member & Former Senior Managing Director, Accenture
The You Pivot cohort helped me understand what truly matters to me and recognize that a meaningful next chapter isn’t about following someone else’s path—it’s about building one that aligns with how I want to live.
Ryan Condon CEO and Co-Founder, SATISFYD
Learning Experience
Leading an organization can be isolating, and so can stepping away from one. Guided by executive life coach Elisa K. Spain, participants share their reflections and challenge one another’s assumptions. The cohort provides a safe setting where you can speak candidly with peers about the uncertainty and emotions that come with this life phase. Participants often find that the richest thinking happens shoulder to shoulder with others who are asking many of the same questions about their futures.
The intimate group is central to the overall experience. Beyond the Corner Office combines two in-person sessions in downtown Chicago with four live online meetings over six months.
Between sessions, you will complete guided exercises in a workbook, along with assigned readings that help inform your thinking as you navigate the process. You will also meet with assigned peers to discuss your reflections and receive additional perspective. Peer pairs and triads rotate twice during the executive seminar so you get to know more members individually.
The time between meetings is intentional. It will allow you to consider what emerges from your conversations and return each time with a more developed understanding of what you want for yourself.
Session Dates and Times
| Date | format | time |
|---|---|---|
| Wed. April 28, 2027 | In-Person, University Club (downtown Chicago) | 12 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. CT |
| Wed. May 26, 2027 | Online | 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. CT |
| Wed. June 30, 2027 | Online | 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. CT |
| Wed. July 28, 2027 | Online | 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. CT |
| Wed. August 25, 2027 | Online | 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. CT |
| Wed. September 29, 2027 | In-Person, University Club (downtown Chicago) | 12 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. CT |
The Framework
A Structured Approach to Your Next Chapter
Beyond the Corner Office draws on the You Pivot framework, developed by Elisa K. Spain and used in her work with CEOs, presidents and business owners navigating significant career and life transitions. The four-stage process combines guided self-reflection with practical planning, helping you better understand your priorities before making decisions about your future.
Through workbook exercises and discussions with accomplished peers, you will develop a personal strategic plan to guide the next three to five years of your life.
Today Story: Understanding Who You Are Now
Your professional role has likely shaped much of your identity. Through guided reflection on your life and career, you will examine the experiences that have shaped you and identify what brings you fulfillment. This stage helps you understand what you value about your life today before considering what you want to change.
Questions you’ll explore:
- Who am I beyond my professional title?
- What experiences have shaped the person I am today?
- What brings me joy, and how do I want to use the time ahead?
- What has been my “why,” and what might my new one be?
What Matters: Examining Your Priorities
After years of professional demands shaping your schedule, this stage invites you to examine how you spend your time and whether it reflects what matters most. Through reflection and conversations with peers, you will consider where you find purpose and how your priorities may need to change.
Questions you’ll explore:
- How will the way I spend my time reflect what matters most to me?
- Where have I felt the greatest sense of purpose and contribution?
- What needs to change to make room for what I value?
Tomorrow Story: Considering the Possibilities
With a clearer understanding of your priorities, you will begin exploring what the next stage of your life could look like. This stage helps you identify possibilities that build on your experience while considering the commitments you may need to reconsider to pursue something new.
Questions you’ll explore:
- What do I want to continue from my current life, and what might I begin anew?
- What would a fulfilling next chapter look like for me?
- What constraints or concerns might influence the choices I make?
Activate: Developing Your Personal Strategic Plan
The final stage helps you translate what you’ve discovered into a personal strategic plan for the next three to five years. You will refine your direction through discussion with your peers and identify concrete first steps toward putting your plan into action.
Questions you’ll explore:
- What do I want to accomplish over the next three to five years?
- What commitments am I prepared to make to pursue this direction?
- What is the first action I can take to begin putting my plan into practice?
Meet Your Facilitator
Elisa K. Spain
Executive Life Coach and Founding Instructor & Coach, University of Chicago Leadership & Society Initiative
Elisa K. Spain brings extensive experience as a senior executive and trusted advisor to C-suite executives navigating consequential decisions in their professional and personal lives. Before becoming an executive life coach, Elisa was a Fortune 500 executive at Northern Trust. She subsequently spent fifteen years chairing a national CEO peer advisory board as a Vistage Master Chair, working closely with accomplished business leaders as they considered the challenges of leading their organizations.
As facilitator of Beyond the Corner Office, Elisa draws on her experience with executive peer groups to foster candid discussions among participants. Rather than prescribing what a successful transition should look like, she helps executives discover what matters to them and consider how they want their lives to evolve.
Beyond the Corner Office Frequently Asked Questions
How many people are in the cohort?
We are highly selective in who is admitted to Beyond the Corner Office. We intentionally keep the cohort small, ranging from seven to ten corner office leaders to allow for an intimate experience where all members are fully engaged. We aim to bring together business owners who built their own companies along with professional managers because each perspective enriches the conversation.
Do I need to attend every session?
Yes. Admitted participants do need to take part in all six sessions. Because Beyond the Corner Office depends on ongoing conversations and relationships within the cohort, attendance is important to the experience of every participant.
Is Beyond the Corner Office a retirement planning program?
No. It has nothing to do with retirement planning. It is about rewiring yourself for an exhilarating next chapter. Leading an organization brought energy, purpose, and passion to your life, and the program helps you work out how to create that again in whatever comes next.
I have been retired for several years, is this a good fit for me?
No. Beyond the Corner Office has been intentionally designed for leaders who are either still working and beginning to consider what comes next or have recently stepped away from their primary careers and are in the early stages of exploring their next steps.
Do I need to know what I want to do next before applying?
No. Beyond the Corner Office is designed for corner office leaders who are beginning to explore their options for what comes next after their primary career. Most do not have a clear picture of what they want their future to look like. This exploration is central to the experience.
How do I apply to Beyond the Corner Office?
You can complete the online application, which allows you to provide information about your professional background and details on what you are hoping to gain from the experience. Finalists will have a conversation with the facilitator before admission decisions are made. Admitted applicants will receive a registration link to complete their enrollment.
How does Beyond the Corner Office differ from individual executive coaching?
Beyond the Corner Office is a facilitated peer experience rather than a one-on-one executive coaching program. Participants work through a common framework while benefiting from conversations with corner office leaders who are navigating similar transitions. The group provides opportunities to challenge assumptions and develop accountability to one another as participants refine their plans.
What is the format?
Beyond the Corner Office consists of six live interactive meetings over six months. Two in-person sessions take place at the beginning and end, with four online meetings held between them. All meetings are live and are not recorded.
How much work is required between sessions?
Participants complete workbook exercises and selected readings between meetings. Some assignments are completed individually, while others involve conversations with assigned peers. Participants are expected to arrive prepared to discuss their reflections and contribute actively to the cohort. The first workbook section is completed before the first session.
Are the sessions recorded?
No. The conversations that occur in these sessions are deeply personal, and we do not record them to respect the privacy of our participants.
Is the cohort confidential?
Yes. At the first meeting, participants establish shared agreements for the cohort and commit to maintaining the confidentiality of personal information discussed throughout the seminar.
Are there specific texts required for Beyond the Corner Office?
Yes, a complete list of required and suggested readings will be shared with you if you are admitted to join the cohort.
How do I access Beyond the Corner Office after registration?
The materials and Zoom access will be available on the Graham Learning Platform three weeks before the start date. You’ll log in using the same credentials you used during registration. If you need help accessing the platform, check out our helpful video tutorial.
How does Beyond the Corner Office differ from the Leadership & Society Initiative?
Beyond the Corner Office is a shorter, less intensive six-month executive seminar designed specifically for CEOs, presidents, and business owners who are considering what comes next after their primary careers. Unlike the immersive and multi-disciplinary learning experience of the LSI fellowship, Beyond the Corner Office focuses on guided reflection and facilitated peer discussion.
UChicago has a reputation for academic rigor. Will I be able to meaningfully participate in the cohort discussions?
Yes. This executive seminar is built for adults who have life experience and want to deeply explore what comes next. The value of the experience lies in the cohort, and every participant is expected to contribute actively to the discussions.