September 2009 Newsletter
In many organisations their seems to be a rift between the known value of business coaching and what is really happening on the ground.
Join us as we look at the stats, facts and best practice for organisation altering coaching. Our training news looks at:
Coaching Stats to Start
A recent Blessing white survey indicated:
• Despite wanting to be coached fewer than 1-2 employees in large organizations are coached in the UK
• Organizations' managers and employees appear to believe in coaching’s contribution to their success, but managers sheepishly admit they don’t spend enough time coaching
• The bulk of managers are expected to coach however only 25% have rewards and recognition tied to their coaching activities
• Two-thirds of coachees say it improved their satisfaction and performance, yet coaching is often described as a ‘nice-to-have’ behaviour, or as an unessential aside to core work
• The bulk of managers worried about having all the answers to their staff’s questions, yet when asked employees said they want to be stretched - they don’t want advice
Coaching: Is it Damaging, or Delivering in your Organisation?
What is coaching?
Business coaching is literally defined as providing positive support and positive feedback to an individual or group in order to help them recognize how they can enhance the effectiveness of their business.
But like any discipline coaching requires patience, honing and skill and so it is only natural to come across examples of incredible coaching success as well as dismal and damaging defeats. We’ll flesh out some top tips for avoiding the latter and surfacing coaching best practice.
Top class business coaching comes with impressive advantages, namely it is:
• A cost-effective and powerful means of developing staff
• A way of highlighting what people can readily achieve, given the right support.
• A means of simplifying/managing what might appear to be particularly difficult situations
• Improving individual and team performance and increasing levels of motivation.
Coaching is also related to several other organizational processes including change management, team building, facilitation, performance management, and strategic planning. Many coaching tips can be acquired from these other processes. You can also position coaching as a way of adding momentum to these processes.
Identifying a good coach
Successful coaching begins with finding the right person for the job. Some characteristics of a good coach are:
• Natural rapport
• Having the interests of coachee at heart but not becoming emotionally involved
• Understanding individual characters and challenges by asking the right questions
• Knowing when to listen/probe with open ended questions
• Emulating the behaviours they seek to develop
• Being able to assume numerous perspectives on a situation or challenge
Good coaches can guide the coachee to options and even abilities of which they were not directly aware. In short an appreciation and sensitivity to the people who drive company ambition to fruition is essential.
To coach, or not to coach?
Knowing when to coach and when not to coach is as important as choosing a good coach. Assessing the suitability of coaching someone is not only important to the organization’s credibility with coaching initiatives but also the well-being of the coachee.
Here are some contexts where coaching can yield positive results:
• At the start of a new project or assignment
• When an error has been made
• When a new member joins the team
• Whenever there is feedback to be given
• When there is conflict
• When someone lacks confidence
• When targets are missed
• When someone has a skill that would be helpful to others
• When planning (opportunity to use the GROW model)
Equally knowing when not to coach is key. It can be damaging to coach:
• On issues that relate to mental or physical abuse, alcohol and drug dependency, and deep-seated emotional trauma. These are subjects best dealt with by a professional counselor or qualified therapist
• When upset, angry or very stressed
• When very emotionally attached to the coachee
In conclusion...
coaching indicates a commitment to developing staff and has been repeatedly found to improve staff engagement. (ECI: White Paper 2004) Developing a coaching culture can take time but if structured in the right way can change potential to results.
Our Coaching for Performance programme is renowned for helping forge a coaching culture in way that is specific to the needs of the organisation. Alternatively give us a ring on 020 7407 0044 to discuss your needs in more detail.
An Interview with Acclaimed Business Coach Jacqui Dove
How has your perspective on coaching changed as you have developed as a coach?
When I first heard about coaching I was curious to see what effect it would have. Way back then I thought coaching was something that was ‘done to you’. How wrong could I have been!
As I learned more, was coached myself and trained and honed my skills, I discovered how incredibly powerful it is to have a coach help you to really see your own thought processes. What’s more, by asking the right question, a coach can open up your eyes to possibilities that were always there but were never considered.
What’s the difference between coaching and mentoring?
The real difference between the two is the use of advice.
A mentor, strictly speaking is a ‘trusted advisor’. Someone you go to who has a skill, some knowledge, or experience that you want to draw on. Having the right mentor is incredibly beneficial.
A great coach, however, does not give advice. Their skill is not in knowing the answer but through skilful listening and questioning, drawing the knowledge out from the person being coached. They may offer up some options, but not until the person who is being coached has exhausted all of their own options first.
What advice would you give to an organisation that is looking to enhance their coaching culture?
People who don’t really understand what coaching is tend to tell others what to do. They think it’s quicker that way. But what you’re doing here is training people to do as they’re told – no more, no less.
For coaching to be productive and beneficial staff need to understand what it really is and to have the training and support to implement it properly, otherwise it’s a waste of time. The basic coaching skills of listening and questioning sound very easy. The problem is that most of us don’t listen properly and we don’t ask the right type of questions. It takes practice and effort – this is why proper training and on-going support is so important to keep the principles firmly at the forefront of the new coach’s mind.
What positive results have you seen within organisations that have successfully implemented coaching cultures?
Firstly, increased staff motivation. Coaching means spending time with someone and getting to know how they think – and there’s nothing as motivating as someone being genuinely interested in you and your career. In turn the bottom line of the company benefits from increased staff productivity and efficiency.
Secondly, managers feel more in control because they’ve talked things through with staff and they know how they are going to approach a project or a task. As a result delegation comes with less associated risk and the productivity of management increases.
And, finally, people are trained to think for themselves and take responsibility for their actions.
A little while ago while facilitating a coaching programme, one of the participants suddenly commented – ‘My manager’s been on this course and now I understand how he’s been getting the best out of me.' I think that just about sums it up!
To find out more about Jacqui click on Jacqui Dove or alternatively mail edward@you-unltd.co.uk to find out how Jacqui can help your organisation's coaching initiatives.
Send to a friend
If you know someone else who would enjoy this communication please feel free to forward this or they can subscribe by clicking here.
Training is new to our organization. You:unlimited really helped us by making their workshops hands on and acc...