Coaching
In recent conversations with Managers and HR Professionals across a wide range of organisations and market sectors, we've discovered remarkable similarities in the kinds of dilemmas being faced as they plan to meet their 2008 goals. Maybe you're asking yourself similar questions:
How do we help competent technical experts develop their interpersonal or managerial skills?
How do we develop high potential individuals?
How does someone develop a more strategic perspective after a promotion to a more senior role?
How do individuals learn to handle conflict situations so that they are resolved more effectively?
A recent large-scale survey by the CIPD highlighted these tricky, but common place, dilemmas as ones which are particularly well suited to coaching interventions. The same survey also reported:
- 78% of responding organisations have used coaching in their learning and development activities.
- 53% reported increased usage of coaching over the past three years (with 20% reporting a large increase).
- However, at the same time there has been a 26% reduction in formal classroom-based training.
So, what is coaching?
Although there are differing definitions amongst coaching professionals, the following are generally agreed characteristics of coaching in organisations:
- It is essentially a non-directive form of development
- It focuses on improving performance and developing an individual's skills
- The emphasis is on performance at work although personal issues may be discussed
- Coaching activities have both organisational and individual goals
- It assumes that the individual is psychologically well and does not require a clinical intervention
- It provides people with feedback on both their strengths and their areas for development
- It is a skilled activity
At Iridium we use the following definition of coaching:
The overall purpose of coaching is to enable people, in an increasingly competitive and pressurised world, take responsibility and control of their own learning and development in order to:
Develop their skills
Improve their performance
Maximise their potential, and
Become the person they want to be.
As such we view coaching as a holistic and learning-focused approach with an emphasis on personal skills and attributes underpinned by the use of appropriate tools and techniques.
Why Iridium?
There are many organisations and individuals providing coaching so why choose Iridium?
Firstly, our coaches are highly skilled and professionally qualified to the new European recognised standards. We've all had senior hands-on in-company roles as well as significant professional consulting experience. See Gill Graves coaching cv.
Secondly, we have considerable coaching experience and success stories. Our coaching clients include Vodafone, The Open University, The Prudential and The NHS. Take the following real life examples (names have been changed to keep confidentiality).
David had been working for his organisation for 4 years. He'd consistently been a top performing sales person and had recently been promoted to a Regional Sales Director. However, he was struggling to make the transition from a hands-on sales person to someone managing a team of sales and sales support personnel. He was too involved in all of the detail and working far too many hours. Over a period of 6 months we worked with David focusing on his delegation skills, performance management and taking a more strategic perspective in his new role.
By contrast Susan had been with her company for a long period of time and had been highly successful. However, acquiring a new manager really pushed her out of her comfort zone. The new manager had a very different working style and challenged many of Susan's ways of working. Although not completely bought into the idea of coaching Susan realised that she needed to make some changes, and make them fast. We worked with Susan for a number of months focusing on developing awareness of her own preferred ways of doing things and increasing her flexibility so that she had other choices available to her.
Both David and Susan met the coaching outcomes that they had set for themselves and have been successful in sustaining their increased performance levels. We have many more examples which we could share with you Your coaching programme will be tailor-made and personalised to reflect your specific requirements,however it is likely to include all, or some, of the following:
The coaching can take a variety of forms to suit your preferences and time commitments eg face-to-face, telephone coaching, email support. Contact us now for a free introductory session to see what is right for you. Maybe you would also like to take advantage of our 6-4-5 offer - we have found that most people like to have an initial programme of six sessions so we have a special offer of six sessions for the cost of five valid for coaching starting in July and August 2008.
To discuss further call Colin Graves now on 07881 636538. If you would like to do coaching yourself you may be interested in our "coaching with excellence" workshop and we also provide tailored programmes to embed a coaching culture into organisations.
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