Coaching for Result

Last Saturday, I wrote if a person can be groomed to be a leader ? A number of Eastern Times readers whoｍ　Ｉmet on my flight to Kuala Lumpur talked to me in the flight. We discussed about leadership[ grooming and personal coaching.

One of them, Mr. Pui， asked me, “John, one of my staff’s performance is under par. What can I do to help him　 ? “

We discussed the need to identify his staff’s competency gap and provide one to one coaching. This week, I will talk about coaching and next week, I shall discuss about competency gap analysis.

Coaching

Coaching focuses on the individual. It can be responsible for enhancing morale, motivating and increasing productivity and reducing staff turnover as individuals feel valued and connected with their organization.

It can achieve a balance between fulfilling organizational goals and objectives and the personal development needs of the individual. It is a two-way relationship with significant benefits for both.

A good coach is be able to relate to the individual - stimulate and inspire them. They could have faced similar challenges as the individual and will understand the complexities of the commercial environment. They can sometimes help bring out the creativeness and problem solving skills that often get lost in the day-to-day delivery of work.

Location, location, location

Coaching invariably takes place at an individual’s place of work and, unlike attending a course, can be tailored to suit individual and company needs. I have developed a series of coaching clinics for one major blue chip organization in which recipients were able to enjoy the benefits of support for short bites, within their working day, without the need to spend long periods of time out of the workplace.

Coaching can be very effective where people have the right skills or qualities, but are not getting the results they really want. Through a short series of coaching sessions, enormous changes can be achieved. Along with some valuable thinking time, coaching can help people understand and improve working relationships and achieve focus and clarity in their work.


Fast track to a new role

Coaching can shorten the learning curve of those with new roles and help them adapt more quickly to a changing environment. By focusing on individuals, and helping them to achieve their potential, coaching can demonstrate a company’s commitment to achieving business growth through people.

Our coaching programs had originally been designed to help embed changes quickly and effectively within the company’s global organization while at the same time deliver some real investment in its people.


Before coaching could begin, we used to carry out group training exercises to see where individuals were at and to develop a greater understanding of training needs.

A leadership workshop then looked at some theoretical areas and tools – team dynamics and drivers for instance. From here a tailored coaching program, aligned to current work issues, was developed for each individual.

Working with us, you will be encouraged to talk through an individual’s needs and timescales for change. We provided the theory and tools to help develop one’s leadership style while coaching him/her on how he/she could deliver what was required.

From the start the emphasis is very much upon driving the individual to deliver change for themselves. That’s why it is important to be open and honest about your needs. There is a huge difference between being aware there is a problem and having the willingness to deal with it. I had a great rapport with my coach and it was clear that the individual had my best interests at heart.

It wasn’t about identifying deficiencies but about opening up the communication channels to talk about how I could meet my goals.

‘‘ Coaching doesn’t seek to resolve deeper underlying issues like poor motivation, low self-esteem and poor job performance. It is more concerned with the practical issues of setting goals and achieving results within specific timescales. ’’

Expectations

One of the golden rules of coaching is to agree expectations from the start. Through discussion, there needs to be clarity of the outcomes expected from the forthcoming coaching sessions. Here, the coach and coachee need to agree some key benchmarks that can be used as measures of success.

If the coaching is team-based, then the organization’s Mission and Objectives can be used to help set benchmarks.

Performance

Coaching enhances skills and ability and can raise a person’s game. It gives individuals the opportunity to review themselves, their performance and identify where enhancements can be made.

All coaching should lead to improved performance. Requirements in terms of the extent and urgency of that improvement, as well as time availability of those to be coached, will all help to determine the most effective means of delivering coaching. For it to work well, the individual and organization need to be engaged and, to this end, setting objectives and committing to them is important.

For individuals at any level, a series of approximately six coaching sessions, up to a maximum of half a day at each session, can be of enormous benefit. This kind of coaching can be intense. After all, it is encouraging people to confront issues and challenge themselves, so there is a need to ensure that this is balanced with appropriate levels of support and encouragement.

Jeremy, one of my coachee, reached a crucial point in his career when his role expanded from a Project and Line Manager of 15 people to an acting role looking after a department of chemists.


One-to-one coaching was arranged on the basis of one half day session per month initially.

Jeremy said:- I was aware that I needed to develop my interpersonal and communication skills. I have an open culture with consultants from Acme Strategic Consultants, which is great, and this allowed me to be openly critical of myself. Through coaching I feel I am now far more effective. The coaching centred on finding areas which needed developing and then, using similar scenarios, role-playing the situation to understand the issues.


Specific areas of development focused on how to communicate better with clear messages, learning through body language and how to prepare for difficult situations. Inter-personal skills around working with colleagues at all levels were also explored, including when and when not to get involved in specific issues and how to handle conflict.

Jeremy added:- I had some gaps in my skills and this has helped me look at myself and develop. It also gained me greater responsibility and ultimately promotion within the organisation.

Clear goals

For the individual, identifying and agreeing key outcomes from sessions is crucial and as these are explored it’s possible to identify needs more specifically.

Jeremy said: Coaching creates time to consider what am I doing with someone who has no political interest in our business. There are no underlying assumptions, and so by rehearsing the arguments in a safe environment things can become much clearer.

I tend to underplay my own value and my coach has helped me prepare for important presentations and meetings so that I can position myself more clearly to the audience and influence them appropriately. Having a coach means I can go through issues, ensure I have covered all the angles and rehearse so that I will be understood and present my views with confidence.

Jeremy’s coaching has been ongoing for two years, about half a day every two months with the option to approach his coach for more when appropriate. Jeremy sees coaching as a stable ongoing resource for the future.

Conclusion

We usually hold a review with the individual to assess the ‘‘journey.’’ The recipient of the coaching considers the story so far. What were the issues, the barriers, the objectives, the learning and the successes to date?

It is also useful for recipients to gather some hard data on the learning. For example, it may be that they have learned how to actively listen to colleagues by paraphrasing in difficult situations.


They should record, in writing, how they have been using what they have learned and the results. Doing this will reinforce new behaviors and help them in the future. This can then be incorporated into Performance Development Plans and further developed over time. Indeed, the learning from coaching will be most effective if it is introduced and applied with confidence as part of every-day working, with subsequent reviews and discussions over the longer term.