The Change Coach role
In my Change Coaching role I challenge managers to examine their day-to-day actions, the options they have, the actions they can take and what difference it could make. I help by::

xxxxxx being a good listener
xxxxxx helping you get sorted
xxxxxx finding out what motivates you
xxxxxx helping you realise your potential
xxxxxx understand what is holding you back
xxxxxx being 100% behind you
xxxxxx never criticising you or giving you glib answers
xxxxxx treating all conversations as confidential
xxxxxx refer you on to others who are better able to help you

Because all one-to-one encounters are private and confidential, sensitive issues can be shared. Real changes can then be explored and an action plan developed. As well as increasing individual effectiveness, Change Coaching can foster learning and leadership in teams, simply by focusing on individual contributions, understanding the link between actions, challenging people to clarify expectations, assessing outcomes and learning new behaviours to get better results. A lot hangs on the quality of the conversations that take place, the level of understanding and empathy achieved and the extent to which relationships feed the soul.

The complex nature of change
It's a myth to think that change can be 100% predictable when introduced into an unpredictable and uncertain context. In complex or chaotic situations it's better to see change as something that happens in the moment - it's about what you are doing NOW, making sure it is serving your intentions. Change is the 'means' by which you achieve the 'ends' you seek.

Many of my corporate clients seem paralysed by a need to overplan the 'ends' leaving insufficient energy and resource for the 'means' to achieve them. My executive coaching clients on the other hand can get lost when they fail to pin down the 'means' by which they hope to achieve their desired 'ends'. They often fail to see that it is the way they see things and interpret their expeience that is the barrier to change.

Focus on Real Change Leadership
In a fast changing world, 'good enough' often achieves more than 'excellence'. It's sometimes better to make a start towards your goal while you are planning your next steps, than to consume large chunks of time on plans that you know will most likely have to be changed in the light of experience. Making the choice to 'do it now' is fundamental to the notion of real change. When choices require the active involvement, commitment and coordinated action of others (bottom-up) then we are talking about real change leadership.

The four dimensions of Change Coaching
Let's look at the Manager-Coach relationship. You start by establishing the goals (top-down), clarifying the purpose of the coaching activity overall and the reason for the the meeting. You then look at the tasks required from the coachee's perspective (inside-out), encouraging them to talk about how they see things, guiding their thinking through sensitive questioning to get clarity and focus into expections and actions.

Then it's a case of encouraging the coachee to think about the likely consequences of their proposed actions or their impact on the outside world(outside-in). By listening carefully, questioning with sensitivity and seeking explanations a clearer perspective emerges.

You may want to share your own experiences to get other people's views on possible barriers or danger points. Setting milestones to observe and assess progress is vital. This is about enabling the coachee to work with colleagues in new ways (bottom-up). If you are the coachees line manager, you may need to speak to others to ensure the coachee gets the cooperation and resources they need to make progress.

PREV | NEXT
1x2 3