This article, written by Alison Eadie, first appeared in the Telegraph Business File 14th December 2000. This blog is in memory of Alison who died in 2004.

Santa Claus is finding it lonely at the top.  As chief executive of North Pole Enterprises, he has no one to share his problems with.  The elves and the reindeer have each other. Mrs Claus is preoccupied with the grandchildren.

Santa suspects the global brand of which he is custodian needs updating. He wonders if his leadership style is appropriate. How is he to manage the impact of the credit crunch alongside ever-rising stakeholder expectations? Is it time for him to hand over the sleigh reins? To whom should  he turn for help?

As he flicks through management publications he spies a piece about executive coaching. It is apparently the latest thing. Even successful people suffer from self-doubt and need a sympathetic ear. Life is fast changing and top people’s behaviour has to adapt, he reads.

So Santa decides to call in an executive coach. We hide under the couch and listen.

Santa Life just does not seem to be as much fun as it was in the simple old days. The children now text or e-mail letters instead of sending them up the chimney. They barely believe in me any more. How can you talk to me about self-belief when even seven year olds doubt my existence.

Coach You are obviously unhappy doing a job you once loved. Is it because you have changed, the task has changed, or your role in the organisation has changed? Let us think in terms of a triangle of task, role and person. Where, as we go on our journey of prompted discovery, do you think the emphasis lies? What bothers you most?

Santa It hurts that children no longer respect me. Apparently I am not cool. What am I to do?  Arrive on a micro scooter? Shout whazzup or whazzat or High Fives instead of ho, ho, ho? And it is not just the children. My employees laugh at my poor technological skills. When e-mails first arrived, I asked my secretary to print them off so I could read them. Now the elves in the workshop want to hold online auctions to source our toy supplies more cheaply. I do not understand.

Coach Many boards of directors are baffled by the technology of the businesses they run. Have you considered a reverse mentoring programme? The younger e-elves could help you.  You will have to swallow your pride and admit your inadequacies. Not many chief executives can do this. Think about it.

Santa Then there is this work-life balance malarkey. Elves used to be grateful for a job here. Now they make outrageous demands. Because they are working long hours at this time of year, they think I should arrange to have their drycleaning collected, their dogs walked and the snow cleared from their driveways. All the most caring employers offer this sort of concierge service, I am told. The elves also want communal spaces in the grotto where they can mingle with their colleagues, play games and chillout. Chillout? At the North Pole? Are they mad?

Coach You seem to be having difficulty securing buy-in from your customers and your staff.  Followership is no longer automatic. You need new skills to influence and persuade stakeholders to stay loyal to you.  You have to find a better way to communicate your brand values. How do you usually communicate?

Santa I shout.

Coach Hmm, is anything else worrying you?

Santa Well I do not go along with this diversity stuff. We have always been an equal opportunities employer. You can see we have never discriminated against anyone for having big ears or red noses. But I am not going to change the tradition of hundreds of years. The chief executive of this organisation will always be a fat, white man.

What is more, I am not putting up with this dress-down nonsense. How can we possibly have elves in smart casual clothes? They wear green breeches and that is that.  They would look ridiculous in chinos and polo shirts. So would the reindeer, come to think of it.

Coach Your leadership style appears to be hands-on and somewhat inflexible. Have you considered letting go a little and trusting your employees more? Is there anything in your background that drives you to resist change? Perhaps you should delve into your childhood and see if you can identify causes of insecurity.

Santa Stuff and nonsense. My father brooked no interference in the way he ran North Pole Enterprises and nor will I. However I am worried about Nicholas Junior. He is showing no aptitude at all. I will never be able to retire if he doesn’t buckle down.

He has some crazy ideas. He thinks I should offer the elves share options to stop them chasing fairytale salaries elsewhere.  This is a family business. How can I give it away?

Coach I can see there are quite a few issues to work through on all three parts of our triangle.  You need to develop greater insight into your own behaviour and how you interact with others. You recognize all is not well, which is a good start, but you are reluctant to accept you may have to change. Rather than relying on your position and force of personality, you need to learn the art of advocacy. It is going to take a long time. I recommend a course of two hour sessions once a week for at least the next year.

Santa Well, I suppose I have to keep up with the chief executives. What do you want for Christmas?

Coach About £500 an hour would do nicely.

(with thanks to Steve Schneider for his ‘mentoring’ help)