Introduction
At its core, coaching in the workplace is a training methodology where an individual with greater experience, skills, or knowledge provides guidance to a lesser-experienced employee in order to develop their performance and skill. It is important to distinguish coaching from another practice known as mentoring. Mentorship is meant to be a voluntary, long-term, broad guidance, driven by the actions of the mentee, oftentimes personal, and has no specific outcomes. Meanwhile, coaching is much more structured and focused, most often assigned in the workplace to raise the skills and competencies of lower-skill employees (SHRM, n.d.). It is generally short-term and aimed at achieving specific skill objectives in coach-driven sessions for development.
Nevertheless, coaching is very individualized concept, depending on the needs of the trainee and the competencies of the coach. Organizations have grown to understand the various benefits and uses of coaching, implementing it effectively and seeking to create an internal culture of coaching (Bozer & Jones, 2018). It assumes not only formal relationships but informal coaching behaviors where communication and influence of employees over others is used for positive development and creation of an environment which values learning among its staff. Overall, coaching is a valuable strategic tool being focused on addressing weaknesses in an organization, but flexible enough to have a variety of techniques that can be used in multiple scenarios (Bozer & Jones, 2018). This white paper will discuss coaching models, practices, ethics, and organizational impact to provide key information on its implementation.
Coaching Models
Coaching models are specific methods or approaches used during the coaching process, forming the underlying structure and exchange of knowledge, skills, and tools. The most well-known coaching models are known as GROW and OSKAR. The choice of model depends on a wide variety of factors but particularly the trainee’s needs and attitudes in accepting the chosen approach. While many models seem similar, they also have unique applicability to specific contexts. However, finding the right model and approach may consist of trial and error.
The most widely known model in coaching is GROW, which stands for goal, reality, options, and wrap-up/way forward. It was developed by John Whitmore, one of the leaders in building the business coaching industry. The model is simple but effective because it sets a goal, evaluates the current status quo, figures out options and solutions, and then selects the most optimal step to achieve that goal and to develop an action plan. Despite the simplicity, the GROW model remains uniquely popular as it is easy to understand and provides flexible structure on which to achieve the planned development in the coaching process (Alabdali, 2019). ways to process them, which is fundamental to motivation and performance. The OSKAR model developed by Karen Whittleworth and Andrew Gilbert is meant to be a more flexible framework, particularly for managers to develop skills and knowledge within their respective teams. The OSKAR approach takes the GROW model as a foundation, and follows the stages of outcome, scaling, know-how, affirm & action, and review (Alabdali, 2019). The key to the OSKAR framework is the focus on the problem solution rather than the issue itself.
Effective Coaching Skills and Practices
One of the key elements of coaching is that it can be personalized and customized as it is performed on an individual basis with a specific business objective as a goal. There are a range of skills and techniques that can be employed to achieve the desired result and impact the success and productivity of the client. One of the most well-known practices is goal setting. As seen in the model section, virtually all coaching approaches encourage to set a clear objective prior to beginning the process. Oftentimes, that may be more challenging than it seems, which is why a commonly utilized technique is setting SMART goals. The SMART goals acronym stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time bound. The set goals should adhere to these characteristics as the SMART framework allows to easily monitor, measure, track, and identify completion among these goals (Müller & Kotte, 2020). Furthermore, to increase the effectiveness of coaching, there should be set expectations for what the whole coaching experience is set to achieve, as well as the small goals that should be achieved during individual sessions, so that there is visible and accountable workload and progress.
Coaching is similar to mentorship in that it also seeks to educate and encourage growth from the coachee. A common practice for coaches is to promote self-reflection and development by asking guiding questions and looking for teaching moments. Guiding questions can lead to productive coaching experiences while the coachee can also reach certain conclusions that empower them to be more confident and independent. It is also important for coaches to support personal confidence, as one of the primary roles of coaching in business and professional environments is to build competencies and skills (Wiginton & Cartwright, 2020). Inspiring personal confidence will allow the coachee to be proactive and engaged in their respective skill expression and become better professionals.
Finally, coaches are encouraged to take on a positive approach when interacting with clients or team members. While people may have different motivational techniques, a coach is not usually the right person to employ pressure or shame tactics that are negative in nature. Coaches are expected to maintain a positive outlook no matter the techniques used, with the use of positive affirmations, encouragement, and most importantly, empathy. Empathy allows the coach to connect with the client and realize their personality, motivations, preferences, and ambitions; the knowledge of which can then be redirected to achieve the established objectives.
Ethics in Coaching
As professional coaching has become more widespread, becoming more than a $2 billion industry, the profession faced a certain degree of notoriety and scrutiny. Unlike other helping professions such as counselors or social workers, there are no real government or organizational regulations regarding the concept. Therefore, ethical standards of professional coaching practice are largely self-imposed, and technically no coach has to abide by any specific code of ethics if they do not wish to do so. However, in the attempts to legitimize the profession, the Global Coaching Community (GCC) has prioritized the issue of ethics and creating standards (Iordanou & Hawley, 2021). Currently, the best available code of ethics stems from professional organizations on coaching, which most coaches choose to join for greater connections and opportunities in the industry. The community of practice indicates that there is an obligation of coaches to the profession and other members, as well as by joining, they are accepting accountability for ethical conduct and can be punished for breaching it (Iordanou & Hawley, 2021).
Ethics in coaching is vital because the relationship inherently places the coach in a position of influence and power. Coaches are also given responsibility and are expected to maintain high standards of competence. Working with individuals on such an individualized basis, often addressing issues, negativities, or sensitive topics encompasses a high level of ethical responsibility (Iordanou & Hawley, 2021). Coaches should be familiar with the basics of ethics in coaching practice on what is allowed and prohibited. Furthermore, there is potential for ethically challenging situations to arise where the actions are not as straightforward. Coaches are called upon to maintain strong professional values which can be used to resolve such situations, and if possible, to seek input from more experienced coaches or organizations.
Assessment of Strategies to Evaluate Coaching Effectiveness
Assessing coaching effectiveness is difficult because the notion is so comprehensive and partially subjective. Many frameworks focus on evaluating coaching effectiveness at the individual level, the organizational level, and the process indicators. Individual level focuses on the coachee that has undergone coaching, this can be both subjective such as 360-degree feedback rating, achievement of coaching objectives, and comparison in pre- and post- coaching (Carter, 2006). It is critical to understand that coaching seeks to influence behavior as a primary factor, even if it is through more measurable concepts such as skill proficiency. Individuals can be evaluated on their job performance, skill level, and appraisals after coaching.
At the organizational level, coaching should be evaluated if it was implemented on a large scale at any given firm. There are two means of measuring effectiveness of coaching, through business performance or people-based indicators. Business performance (depending on industry) will focus on major elements of productivity either through sales, production numbers, customer acquisitions, good/service quality, and ROI. People-based indicators are more subjective, encompass aspects such as job satisfaction, customer satisfaction, employee attitudes and organizational culture, and stakeholder perception. Finally, there are process indicators which can range from return on investment per price of coaching session to subjective evaluation on the quality and satisfaction with the coach (Carter, 2006). Whenever evaluating coaching effectiveness, it is important to consider both short- and long-term outcomes, along with realizing that there are many intangible benefits to employee behaviors that may reveal with time just as much as there is a focus on direct objective KPIs.
Recommendations for Best Practices
Coaching can be used to facilitate a range of positive practices in the workplace that impact engagement, productivity, satisfaction, and motivation. One key aspect that coaching can provide is improving emotional intelligence, that is fundamental for interactions in the workplace between colleagues as well as any interactions with clients or customers. Through emotional intelligence skills, individuals can assess the attitudes and emotions of others, finding best means of communicating with them, and be engaged with any interactions (Wiginton & Cartwright, 2020). Another practice is building accountability, which reflects on trust in the workplace as well. An accountability culture in an organization is not a negative element, as taking responsibility does not necessarily mean to take blame, but rather have the opportunity to learn and develop from errors. In combination with a developed feedback process in a workplace, accountability can contribute tremendously to performance and job satisfaction as employees see progress and have the trust to engage with one another to support and drive each other’s growth.
The aspects of goal-setting and attaining the set objectives discussed throughout the paper are critical to employee engagement, satisfaction, and motivation. Learning how to set goals, both individually and collectively, and working towards them using a developed plan with each employee knowing their respective roles and contributions is fundamental for highly functioning teams. Furthermore, working collectively towards an organizational objective not only increases staff satisfaction but steers employees towards fulfillment of specific KPIs which enhance motivation levels and can result in tangible bonuses (Wiginton & Cartwright, 2020). Overall, coaching practices focus strongly on the transformation of the mental state, from one of helplessness and limitations, to one that is focused and solution-based. Even if it is a difficult process, a coachee is encouraged to develop a plan and take small steps, with shifting the focus to their strengths rather than self-criticism. As a result, the mindset is transformed to one that is complementary with professional development and a successful attitude.
Conclusion
Coaching is a unique training method that is gaining significant traction in modern business and organizational contexts. It allows for the development of professionals and teams through a developed process that is facilitated by qualified coaches in order to achieve desired performance and skill outcomes. With commitment from the organization, leadership, coaches, and persons being coached, it can lead to creation of a positive coaching culture in firms. Coaching has shown promising results and has become more than a fad. It brings tremendous value, both within an organization as well to its external stakeholders who can see the results of professional and performance growth. With the numerous applications of coaching across modern organizations, it is a method that should be actively invested in and promoted.
References
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Carter, A. (2006).Practical methods for evaluating coaching. Web.
Iordanou, I., & Hawley, R. (2021). Coaching ethics. In J. Passmore (Ed.), The coaches’ handbook: The complete practitioner guide for professional coaches (pp. 1-10). Routledge. Web.
Müller, A.A., & Kotte, S. (2020). Of SMART, GROW and goals gone wild – A systematic literature review on the relevance of goal activities in workplace coaching.International Coaching Psychology Review, 15(2), 69-97. Web.
SHRM. (2022). Coaching in a business environment. Web.
Wiginton, J. G., & Cartwright, P. A. (2020). Evidence on the impacts of business coaching.Journal of Management Development, 39(2), 163–180. Web.