I do a lot of coaching for organizations looking to boost the effectiveness of their leaders. Some companies see more success than others. Here’s why.
My most successful clients understand that coaching is a two-way relationship. They have to give in order to get. By that I mean, they have to give their people the support they need to be successful in their everyday work life and not just give them permission to attend a one hour meeting every other week.
They give coaches to their most successful people. That may sound counter intuitive to many people, but actually it makes perfect sense. Great employees are always looking for ways to improve. The not-so-great are generally happy with the status-quo. In order for coaching to be effective, the conditions must be right. So before you hire a coach, make sure your intentions are clear. Is it to raise the level of performance of a particular employee or is it your last effort to save the employee before letting this individual go? Knowing this before hand will enable you to have more realistic expectations regarding how successful the engagement has been.
My best clients realize that it takes time for behavior changes to take root. It’s rare that they will see a noticeable change overnight, although at times it may very well feel like someone has just become an overnight success. They are patient and they allow the employee to move at his or her own pace.
My top clients don’t view coaching as the solution to every situation that is currently slowing down the growth of their organization. They rely on me to provide them with options that may or may not include coaching. After all, the goal is to dramatically improve the client’s condition, which may or may not involve coaching.
