A coaching culture is about delivering results, improving performance and making the most of people’s potential. The emphasis is on delivering results and making each other (and the wider organisation) stronger and more capable.
Having a robust coaching culture and the associated skills has enabled the Leadership Team to face into difficult conversations more readily – as evidenced when:
- the business de-coupled from a regional model into a country-led one
- the Senior Management Team had to come together and find £2million in cost savings within a short timeframe.
Background
For our client, a Leadership Review highlighted gaps in managers coaching capability, as well as inconsistency of application and approach, as well as their understanding about the nature, purpose and role of coaching.
It was clear that managers were spending too much time providing solutions to their teams, rather than coaching them to find innovative solutions to business
problems.
Managers reported that they were struggling to manage their workload and feedback showed that their people were feeling dis-empowered and dis-engaged. As a result, faced with changes to the business landscape and increased strategic pressure to deliver financial performance, the Leadership Team decided to invest in developing their own and their management team’s coaching skills.
JMA Leadership was commissioned to provide specialist knowledge, input and guidance on how best to design and facilitate a robust development programme tailored specifically to the needs of the business.
We created a six-month experiential coaching journey focussed on increasing the capability of managers to coach consistently, competently, and ethically in their everyday workplace conversations.
Initially experienced and led by the CEO and his Leadership Team, the programme was extended to the Senior Management Team; and then rolled out to all people managers.
A high-level overview of the programme core elements:
What outcomes were achieved? What was the business impact?
- 80% of leaders and people managers achieved the benchmark level of coaching capability
- They are now able to coach confidently and are internal ‘leader coaches’
- There were knock-on effects in engagement scores, qualitative feedback (both internally and from customers), and operating profits
- More is achieved in meetings as people use the GROW model to structure and lead conversations
- Quality of feedback conversations have improved thereby improving overall leadership capability
- Relationships, openness and transparency across the business have increased.
Quotes from programme participants on the value of the coaching programme:
“The way the SMT now work together to deliver a joined-up approach across and up and down the business means that our direct teams no longer work in silos”
“The entire business is collaborating and engaging in a more informal way – the way people think is now different”
“[The programme] has helped the organisation move forward – as evidenced at a recent 3-day strategy off-site – there is improved trust and relationships – people are more open.”
If you want to find out how to build and embed a coaching culture in your organisation get in touch with us at info@jmaleadership.com or call us on + 44 (0) 1604 340990.
We look forward to hearing from you.