The Evolution of Coaching

As the corporate world grapples with job losses, anxiety, and related issues resulting from “Work From Home” in the current pandemic and tries to make sense of the “new normal“, the challenge being faced by the corporate leaders is; how to develop the intangible and yet extremely important competencies of being a coach to the team to help them in keeping their heads above water as they navigate through the troubled waters of these times.

The word “leader” and “coach” now has greater importance and significance than ever before. Earlier, the leader needed to command, control and direct the team. That’s not what today is. Owing to rapid, constant, and disruptive changes, the leader today needs to give more of support and guidance rather than instructions to unleash fresh energy, innovation, and commitment in the team.

Additionally, today, with the senior leaders having to don the new role of a sounding board, allowing people to leverage their strengths and looking at areas in their lives which were never spoken of and yet seem to have the potential to compliment their existing strengths, the role of the leader has transformed.

In short, the new role of the leader is to become a coach.

The basic philosophy on which coaching functions is that “we human beings are extremely capable of change and transformation at any point of our lives and becoming the best version of ourselves”. Provided the change is for our betterment, is based on trust and is done in a safe and non threatening environment, it has the potential to make us better than we are.

The coaching we’re talking about—the kind that creates a true learning organization—is ongoing and executed by those inside the organization. Data of the last about one decade shows that evolved and progressive organizations moving away from the command and control culture and managers/leaders are shifting paradigms from being just managers and becoming more of coaches to their peers and colleagues.

The Case for Coaching

Athletes, musicians, and people from different professions have always given a lot of credit to their coach for their success. Roger Federer and Serena Williams, two cases in point, have won the maximum number of Grand Slams between them and they give a lot of credit to their coaches time and again for their success.

The leader as a coach does not play the sport for the team member, but he will stretch you, encourage you, show you the mirror, will almost certainly create insights which would lead to immense learning for the team member about themselves and would hold the team member accountable for their performance for the future. Great leaders who are great coaches listen well, which is the hallmark of any great coach.

While every leader at the helm of affairs may bring in their own strengths, at the same time” listening”, empathy and understanding of things not being said and still being understood is an art that is becoming more and more important as organizations develop leaders for different levels.

But, for leaders who are accustomed to tackling performance problems by telling people what to do, a coaching approach often feels too “soft.” What’s more, it can make them psychologically uncomfortable, because it deprives them of their most familiar management tool: asserting their authority, a trait which a lot of leaders acquire from their predecessors.

Read this example. In one study, when asked about their intent to develop their reportees, nine out of 10 leaders decided they wanted to help their direct reports do better. But when they were asked to role-play a coaching conversation with the same reportee, they demonstrated much room for improvement. While they know what they’re supposed to do: “ask and listen,” and not “tell and sell”, that behavior doesn’t come naturally in the leaders, because deep down they’ve already made up their minds about the right way forward, usually before they even begin talking to the reporter.

So their efforts to coach typically consist of just trying to get agreement on what they’ve already decided. That’s not real coaching—and not surprisingly, it doesn’t play out well.

Therefore, coaching as a developmental approach requires a paradigm shift in thinking and behaviour in which encouraging exploration of possibilities plays the most crucial role. And, while coaching is something which can be learnt and there are models which can be helpful, leaders must allow the coachee to formulate their own thought and ideas…and support them along the way.

For leaders, it may be quite an uphill journey initially as it requires an effort in letting go of their inherent managerial style. However, the development of coaching ability is a great skill to help the leader meander upwards in their leadership journey.

GrowthSqapes has robust solutions and strong capability in developing leaders as coaches.

This blog has been written by Rupender Khaira, Associate Partner at GrowthSqapes.