Inside the Rise of Internal Coaching: How Rusty Tugman Built a Coaching Culture from the Inside Out

In this episode of The Coaching Edge Podcast, co-hosts Dr. Steve Jeffs and Erwin de Grave sit down with Rusty Tugman, leadership trainer, coach, and creator of the first internal coaching program in the history of Oklahoma state government. After 30 years in full-time ministry, Rusty transitioned into the role of leadership trainer and coach at the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS), a 6,000+ employee government agency serving some of the state’s most vulnerable citizens. What started as coaching a single employee organically grew—through word of mouth—into a robust internal coaching program offering executive, leadership, conflict, group, and team coaching.

Rusty explains the unique challenges and opportunities of internal coaching versus external coaching. As an internal coach, he is “one of us” inside the system, dealing with real power dynamics, conflicts of interest, and the reality that some clients technically have the authority to fire him. Yet that same embedded position gives him something external coaches rarely have: day-to-day visibility of behavior change, team dynamics, and cultural shifts in real time. He also shares how critical it is to position internal coaching away from discipline and “fixing” people, and instead as a positive, future-focused resource designed to unlock potential and support growth.

A major part of the conversation centers on how Rusty built and scaled an internal coaching program. He walks through four key pillars he used to design it:

1. Clear purpose – What problem does coaching solve, what value does it bring, and how does it support organizational goals?
2. Standards and structures – Using ICF competencies and ethics as quality anchors while allowing individual coaching style.
3. Measurement and impact – Demonstrating value, especially ROI and outcomes such as performance, engagement, and culture.
4. Delivery and consistency – Actually delivering results so coaching becomes a budget-worthy, permanent part of the business.

Unexpectedly, one of the strongest outcomes of the program has been employee well-being. Rusty shares that the most common feedback from coachees is not only about better performance, but about feeling supported, having a safe place to talk, and being able to process the emotional load of the work. For leaders—especially senior leaders—coaching becomes a rare space to think out loud, explore ideas without everything being taken as a directive, and confront their own self-doubt.

Rusty and the hosts also explore how internal coaches can coexist and partner with external coaches, aiming for alignment and consistency rather than competition. Ultimately, Rusty’s vision is a true coaching culture at OKDHS, where coach-like leadership, thought partnership, and human-centered support are embedded throughout the organization—not just reserved for the top of the org chart.

Watch the full episode here: https://thecoachingedgepodcast.com/inside-the-rise-of-internal-coaching-how-rusty-tugman-built-a-coaching-culture-from-the-inside-out/