A recent survey showed that 67% of the participants believed that leadership coaching increased employee engagement and satisfaction, while 50% said it improved overall productivity. When it comes to coaching practices, leaders have traditionally employed a trust-based approach that focuses on working with employees to come up with solutions to new challenges. However, in a dynamic, ever-changing business environment, there are certain situations where leaders as executive coaches should resort to a direct-coaching process that maximizes goal attainment.
Let us first understand the traditional coaching process and how it differs from a direct approach for understanding the two situations.
The Traditional Coaching Process
Leaders today are expected to have all the answers. Given the dynamic business environment that we operate in today, it is an unrealistic and ill-advised expectation. One way for leaders to manage this expectation is to adopt a new role: that of the coach. A coaching approach will help employees understand complex organizations better and get the job done without being told what to do. Successful coaching entails using three practices: Asking, Listening, and Empathizing.
Asking Open-Ended Questions -The coaching process starts by asking an open-ended question. Leaders ask questions to establish receptivity to the topic, and it also helps avoid presumptions that could typically limit the conversation. Time spent asking questions will challenge the employees’ thoughts, egging them to arrive at a solution for the problem.
Hearing vs Listening – Once a coach asks open-ended questions, the coach must LISTEN – unearth the concerns and challenges, both expressed and implied. Most leaders as Executive Coaches struggle with a situation, as most cannot tell the difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is a cognitive process that occurs internally, but listening is involvement – the presence of the person both in body and mind with a single-minded focus on the conversation. A survey of 8,000 participants in businesses found that the average person only listened efficiently to 25% of conversations. Thus, effective coaches use listening to understand the context and emotions of those they are coaching.
Effective listening – A study conducted across 8,000 participants in businesses found that they communicate as effectively or more effectively than their co-workers. However, the same research showed that the average person only listens at 25% efficiency.
There’s a great deal of difference between hearing and listening. Listening in a Coaching Context requires significant eye contact and focused attention to capturing facilities expressions, gestures, and tics, which conveys a strong sense of engagement and interest from leaders.
Empathizing – Empathy is understanding a different point of view and establishing the interpersonal connection that enables effective coaching. Empathy is critical in helping employees manage their morale and think creatively about solutions. Empathizing shouldn’t prevent leaders from holding people to high standards but is a crucial step in assisting employees build resilience and learn from setbacks.
Leadership Coaching makes employees feel heard and understood while giving them the leeway to find solutions. It entails asking questions, listening to the employees’ concerns, and empathizing with their challenges. So, in essence, the traditional coaching process lasts for several weeks and months. In fact, in high-performing companies, it is an always-on program.
While the traditional coaching process is effective over the long term, certain situations may require Coaches to speak rather than listen, a quick and effective resolution.
There are certain situations in which leaders need to take a direct approach to coach. Click here to learn more.
