Karen Malloy launches six-month coaching program for leaders handling tough assignments

Leadership coach and HR strategist Karen Malloy has launched The Turnaround Code, a six-month program through Karom for mid-level leaders and executives tackling high-visibility, hard-to-fix assignments. The launch comes as global manager engagement continues to slide, making leadership readiness and team stabilization a bigger business issue.

Why it matters: - The program targets leaders of leaders who are being asked to fix struggling teams, manage transitions and prove they are ready for bigger roles. - Malloy is packaging a common promotion test into a structured coaching offer: whether a leader can turn a difficult assignment into measurable progress. - The launch lands as manager engagement weakens globally, which raises the stakes for retaining and developing capable people managers.

What happened: - Karen Malloy launched The Turnaround Code, a six-month leadership coaching program through her company, Karom. - The program is designed for leaders handling difficult, high-visibility assignments. - Malloy is based in Des Moines, Iowa. - The launch was announced Nov. 5, 2026.

The details: - The program combines 12 one-on-one coaching sessions, starting with a 90-minute kickoff. - The Undercurrent Assessment pairs a leader’s self-reflection with confidential feedback from team members and key stakeholders. - Malloy uses those results to help participants create a one-page Turnaround Plan. - An optional conversation with the participant’s manager can set expectations at the start. - Participants also get reflection guides and AI prompts to help build a meeting cadence, one-on-one structure and team charter. - A follow-up pulse survey in month five measures what has changed. - The program is aimed at mid-level leaders, senior managers, directors, assistant vice presidents and vice presidents. - Malloy says the work is meant to help leaders stabilize teams, build trust with stakeholders and communicate results to senior executives. - Additional information is available at leadwithkarom.com.

Between the lines: - Gallup’s 2026 State of the Global Workplace report found global manager engagement fell from 27% in 2024 to 22% in 2025. - Malloy’s pitch reframes difficult assignments as a signal of trust, not a warning sign. - Her background is central to the offer: more than 20 years in HR leadership at Mercy Medical Center-Des Moines, now MercyOne, and Kum & Go shaped the program. - At Mercy, Malloy worked with nursing leaders on engagement efforts across roughly 700 clinical employees. - At Kum & Go, Malloy partnered with an operations leader and 10 directors to improve engagement across a multistate retail region. - She also led enterprise-wide culture survey work at Krause Group and helped guide HR through a major acquisition and multiyear integration.

What's next: - Malloy is available for interviews on year-end promotion and calibration meetings, the first 90 days with an inherited team and why hard workers get passed over for promotion. - Participants in The Turnaround Code will leave with a plan, stakeholder feedback and a fifth-month check on progress. - Karom is positioning the program as preparation for greater responsibility, not just crisis management.

The bottom line: - The Turnaround Code turns difficult assignments into a measurable leadership test, with the goal of helping managers show they can lead through pressure and earn the next role.