Play the long game with your career.
Career coaching from a senior operator who has been there. Land your next role, recover from setbacks, and stay sharp between moves.
Coaching for every stage of the game
Whether you just got the news or you're planning three moves ahead, Long Game meets you where you are.
Mid-career and senior operators
Navigating a layoff, a move into Director or VP, or a pivot out of big tech and big brands. You need a strategy, not just a polished resume.
Early-stage professionals
Building direction, habits, and confidence early. Group training gives you structure, accountability, and a community moving in the same direction.
Career changers
Leaving the expected track, whether that's a new industry, a new function, or the jump from corporate to founder. You don't have to figure it out alone.
The next generation
My own kids are just starting their long games, and that is the heart of why Long Game exists. Everybody has a long game, and the habits and confidence you build early carry through every season.
Open your packs.
Three packs, three ways in. Every level of the Long Game has its own card, and Season 1 cards are originals that cannot be earned later. Open them all.
Train for the moment. Condition for the long game.
Most coaching ends when you land the job. Long Game is built like athletic training: an intensive when it counts, then ongoing conditioning so you're always ready for the next move.
Training Camp
The front door. A focused, short-term intensive for big career moments: a layoff, an active job search, or a role transition. We build your strategy, sharpen your story, and get you interview-ready and moving with purpose.
Career Conditioning
The membership. You don't stop training once you hit a goal. Career Conditioning keeps you sharp between moves, with three levels:
Base: Group training
Regular group sessions, community, and accountability. Ideal for earlier-stage professionals and anyone who wants steady momentum.
Build: Monthly 1:1 plus group
Monthly one-on-one check-ins plus group access, for people actively growing toward a promotion or their next role.
Peak: Senior and leadership
More frequent one-on-one time, plus support around the big moments: interviews, offers, and negotiations.
Start with Training Camp, land the role, then keep your edge with Career Conditioning.
The full playbook
Careers aren't built only in sessions. Long Game also takes the work outdoors, onto the pitch, and into organizations.
Off-Season
Coaching retreats for stepping back, resetting, and planning your next chapter, away from the daily grind.
Backcountry
Backpacking intensives where coaching happens on the trail and around the fire, led by an Eagle Scout with hundreds of miles of backcountry experience. Small groups, real conversations, and clarity that's hard to find on a video call.
Away Days
Soccer excursions built around the game and the conversations that happen on the way there. Matches, community, and career talk in one trip.
Halftime Talks
Guest speakers from sports and business, drawn from a career's worth of colleagues, leaders, and friends, sharing how they played their own long game.
Front Office
Strategy and hands-on execution for organizations. Advisory work like operating model design, portfolio governance, and roadmaps, plus doing the work itself: fractional and interim operations leadership, contract project delivery, and standing up the processes that make teams run. Built on extensive experience at Nike, Adobe, and Cisco.
Basecamps
Home field in Portland. Coaching worldwide.
Long Game is headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and coaches people anywhere by video. Our Basecamps are led by people we have built careers alongside at companies like Adobe, Nike and Cisco, so you get local insight with the same Long Game playbook.
Everybody has a long game.
Why Long Game
An operator, not a theorist
Coaching grounded in real senior leadership at Nike, Adobe, and Cisco, and in businesses built from scratch. You get advice from someone who has hired, led, and been on both sides of the table.
The whole career, not one search
Support doesn't stop at the offer letter. Career Conditioning keeps your momentum going, so the next move starts from strength instead of scramble.
A fit at every stage
Group training for early careers and one-on-one depth for senior leaders, with a clear path to move up as your goals grow.
Meet your coach
I'm Mike Leighty, and my career has never been a straight line.
Growing up in the Bay Area, soccer was my everything. I played nearly year-round at Ballistic United Soccer Club in Pleasanton, competing at a level that is the historical equivalent of MLS NEXT today. Testing myself at that absolute peak of youth development taught me early on what it takes to perform under pressure. When I wasn't on the field, I was in the backcountry with the Boy Scouts, backpacking hundreds of miles, building trail, and earning the rank of Eagle Scout.
On the pitch, on the trail, in school, and later in business, I kept ending up as the person leading the group. I rarely went looking for it. It just happened, and I learned to do it well: plan carefully, lift the people around you, and keep going when the climb gets steep.
I started at Cal Poly Humboldt, finished at Cal State East Bay, and earned my MBA in international business and sports management at Saint Mary's College of California while working in investments, asset management, and personal training.
From there, I was brought in to run and grow Cisco's Fast Track program. At Adobe, I led global sales contact center operations through its shift to a subscription model, as the business grew from $200M to $2B. At Nike, I led Scaled Analytics Portfolio Management, helping move a 400-plus person organization to a product-based operating model.
I've also been laid off more than once. Each time, I kept going and kept growing. That's the long game, and it's what I help my clients play.
Alongside Long Game, I co-founded and lead Second Rein Solutions, Bay Light Farm, and Oregon Horse Haven. I'm based in Portland, Oregon, and coach clients in person and virtually, wherever you are. On Sunday mornings, you'll usually find me at the co-ed pickup soccer game I run in town.
Questions, answered
How do I know which option is right for me?
Start with a free intro call. We'll talk about where you are and where you want to go, and I'll recommend Training Camp, a Career Conditioning level, or both.
Do you coach virtually or in person?
Both. Most one-on-one sessions happen over video, and in-person sessions are available in the Portland area.
What if I was just laid off?
That's exactly what Training Camp is built for. We'll get your strategy, story, and search in motion quickly, with a clear plan for the weeks ahead.
Can I switch Career Conditioning levels?
Yes. Many clients start in one level and move up or down as their goals and schedule change.
Do you only work with people in tech?
No. My background is in tech, retail, and enterprise operations, but the fundamentals of a strong career strategy apply across industries.
When are the next Off-Season, Backcountry, and Away Days trips?
Trips and retreats are planned in small groups throughout the year. Reach out through the form below and I'll share upcoming dates and details.
Do you work with companies?
Yes. Through Front Office, I advise on operations, portfolio management, and strategy, and I also do the work directly through fractional leadership and contract project delivery. I can also provide coaching for teams and employees in transition. Use the form below to start a conversation.
Let's map your next move
Book a free 20-minute intro call. Tell me a little about where you are, and I'll follow up within one business day.
mike@longgamecareercoaching.com
Portland, Oregon