Sue Liburd - Executive Coaching: How to Make It Work

A person or group of persons within an organisation having senior policy and decision-making authority.

We simply assume that the way we see things is the way they really are or the way they should be. And our attitudes and behaviours grow out of these assumptions.

Steven Covey

There exists some ambiguity about what exactly Executive Coaching is. When I sit down with Business Leaders, Managers and Directors (Executives), I always need to clarify what it is and, more importantly, what it isnt, as well as dispelling myths and confusion and outlining the benefits. So youre not alone if you find yourself in a similar position. Few senior policy and decision makers have had enough exposure to coaching to be able to differentiate clearly between the different types and applications of coaching. This is partly due to the fact that coaching is a term that is applied differently by different people. If you dont know what it is, how can you know whether you would benefit from this form of development? So lets get a clear understanding:

Executive coaching is a facilitated, experiential and individualised one-to-one relationship, designed to assist Executives in developing and improving their effectiveness and performance in the workplace.

You may want to read the definition again, this time a little more slowly, digesting each word or short phrase carefully! On the surface this isnt a bad definition, however defining coaching by how it is delivered can be problematic. This definition could quite easily be applied to one to one facilitation; training or consultation and understandably professionals in these fields could make a claim to be doing the same thing. Perhaps more appropriately we should consider what executive coaching involves or is designed to achieve.

The Coach and the Executive work together to identify a range of options and develop strategies to issues, challenges or aspirations, from which the Executive can take inspired action. It occurs within the context of the organisation and therefore sessions are centred around work-related issues, with a focus on improving performance or changing a particular behaviour. Put simply, Executive Coaching is a collaborative, goal and solution oriented form of individualised development for the busy Executive.

The essential features of the process are that it is a short-term, outcome-centred, action oriented and a personally tailored approach to personal and professional development. Although designed to target high performance and improvement at work, a by-product is that it also has an impact on an individuals out of work life. What it is not - and I need to make this very clear - it is not counselling or any other form of therapy.

Although the focus here is on executive coaching, there are many different types of coaching. These include life coaching, career coaching, skills coaching, business coaching, divorce coaching, and a myriad of others. Some of these are explored in chapter 5. Whatever the focus or style of coaching, the principles are essentially the same: an individual works with a coach for an agreed period of time to focus on an area of personal improvement.

Regardless of the type of coaching an individual is engaged in, the process is principally the same. What makes it different are the skills employed and the approach adopted by the coach.

I usually approach coaching by first asking a thought provoking question, and then listening carefully to the answer. Which acts as a catalyst of where we need to dialogue next. I think of it as The Coaching Way.

Imagine youre standing on the bank of a river that you need to cross, but it is very fast moving and youre not entirely sure how to cross safely. Youve got several ideas, but equally are not a hundred percent sure that your attempt at crossing will successfully get you to where you need to be, i.e. at a specific point on the other side of the river, safe, dry and in good order.

Coaching enables you to construct a sustainable bridge from one side of the riverbank to the other. The Coach is a Master bridge builder, willing to support you in further developing your innate bridge building skills. The Master bridge builder, rather than start to build the bridge for you or with you, will begin by asking you a few important questions. To begin with you need to be clear about why you need to cross this particular river and what crossing the river will give you. In coaching we use the term the coaching journey - in reality it is a series of mini journeys. You will always start with exploration of the question, however articulated: What are you seeking to solve or resolve? Exploration of this need is imperative, as all too often the presenting challenge isnt the real issue that needs to be explored, and it is only through exploration that you can get to the crux of the issue or challenge. Likewise you need to be clear on what you want - often we arrive at a set of outcomes or behaviours and find it isnt where we really needed to be or how we had envisaged it. Coaching will get you clear about the destination, i.e. the outcomes, desired behaviours or change in thinking, and what that really means for you.

Knowing what you want and where you want to be means you can now construct the right bridge for your needs and the situation that you find yourself in. The nature of the journey across the river is one which ensures that, should you be faced with the situation again, or one similar, that you have a set of skills, knowledge and expertise that, without hesitation, will enable you to generate powerful options and make a plan and execute it flawlessly. Thus you in turn become a Master bridge builder equipped to support others facing a similar journey should you encounter them in the future.

Executive coaching is centred on performance in the workplace and is delivered to those who have responsibility for a range of organisational resources, have responsibility for the development of others, are involved in strategic decision-making within their organisations, have a desire to improve workplace performance, and who may be giving consideration about how to leverage their experience to best effect personally and professionally. It focuses on three key areas:

1. Performance ~ this focuses on an individuals effectiveness in his or her current position. Frequently it involves exploring one or more key management or leadership competencies, such as communicating a vision, building a high performance team or strategic planning and decision-making.

I have a great director but shes too close to her team and hence her decision-making isnt strategic enough. Commissioning CEO

2. Development ~ this refers to coaching interventions that explore and seek to improve competencies and characteristics required for a future project or role. It is often associated with organisational restructuring and reengineering.

Our Director of Consultancy is doing a great job with restructuring and motivating his teams, but he is not working well with his peer Directors. Commissioning Managing Director

3. The Executives agenda ~ this focuses on working on any personal or organisational concerns or challenges he or she may have.

I am having difficulty breaking into the inner circle of the board. What is the best approach to be accepted? A relatively new board Director

The coach, dependent upon the client needs and their own coaching style, will adopt a range of approaches and utilise a variety of concepts, models and principles drawn from: the behavioural sciences, their management expertise, relevant literature, and in some instances spiritual traditions. In addition you may be asked to complete specific actions that support the achievement of your goals. For example, you may be provided with additional resources in the form of relevant articles, checklists, seminars, assessments or models to support your thinking and actions. All additional actions outside of the coaching sessions are extremely valuable as they have the purpose of creating shifts in perspectives, promoting fresh insights and inspiring changes in behaviour towards taking new action.