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Attempting
to introduce a coaching culture into any
organization
can be
frustrating and exhausting. The following top ten tips can
help
to pave the way.
1.
Ensure that you have fully studied
the commercial impact of having
a coaching culture.
Selling the concept to the Board and senior management
can be a tough process.
Make sure
you are prepared with a good
case for the organization to
implement
this change program. Ensure that you have passion and
belief in what you are
selling to them and that you have the
commercial
evidence
available that implementing such a program will
mean increased
commercial gain.
2.
Identify the key stakeholders
and make sure that they buy-in
to
the fact that a coaching culture makes economic sense
for the
organization.
Make
sure you identify the correct decision makers within the organization.
You
will need to ensure they understand exactly
what coaching is, what it
entails
and what it can bring to the
business. They will need to see evidence of results and
outcomes together with projections
of costs and any downturn in productivity while the change is
being implemented.
3.
Encourage
the CEO and key stakeholders to "walk their talk" and
make public
their support of the coaching culture.
Once
you have their buy-in, you must ensure that they start to implement
the coaching
strategy themselves and that their
talk and behaviors reflect this. There is nothing worse than
a
Board who talk a good game and then play a completely
different one. It is very
de-motivational for employees if they see that the senior management
do not support
the initiative.
4.
Don't try to
implement the program for change overnight and for everyone. Identify
a pilot group.
Do
not try to implement this overnight. Plan it out over months
and years rather than weeks.
The length of time will depend
on the size of your organization and also how deeply entrenched
the organization is in terms of a particular culture.
Start by identifying a group or department
where
feel the coaching culture
will take off. Don't try and use a problem
department!
5.
Identify key
roles or individuals who will ensure effective
implementation.
You may want to consider creating a new role to implement
the culture.
Your organization
may have the resources to bring
in outside consultants but what is vital is that you have
"champions"
within the organization itself who are committed
to ensuring effective change.
Such roles tend to be
coaching roles and in some cases they are known
as "change agents"
6.
Train
the "coaches" in coaching before letting them loose!
If you identify particular staff from within the organization
to
take on these
coach or "change
agent" roles make sure you recruit
well and that you train them adequately before they
begin
the process of change. Inadequately trained coaches can
cause more demotivation
than motivation!
7.
Communicate
the progress of the pilot - Good and not so good!
It
is vital that the rest of the organization is kept up to date
with progress. Results and
employee feedback should be communicated
as often as is possible and avoid at all costs
the "happy"
feedback where "everything in the garden is rosy".
It won't be! It is better to
communicate
both the good results
and the not so good. It is also essential to communicate
reasons
as to why things are working and not working
together with, in the case of things
not working,
an alternative plan to make them work.
8.
Link the changes
in behavior/culture to any increases in productivity and/or employee
morale.
The Board and Senior Management will want to see outcomes
and it is essential that you link
any changes in behavior
and/or practice to the results obtained. Manage their
expectations carefully.
9.
Keep training
the "coaches". Their development should be ongoing and
not a one - off.
Make sure your coaches and "change agents" have ongoing
development. Coaches do not
become effective overnight and
a one off program will not ensure they are capable of maintaining
the change process. Their development plans should
be ongoing and they ,themselves, have some form of external
coaching support.
10. Give
this project time
Plan this program over years and not months. You may see
a downturn in productivity to begin with but if you stick
with it, manage your stakeholders,
continually support your key
staff, and link all initiatives to results then watch future
employee morale soar and profits
follow!
Submitted
by Allan Mackintosh, Author of The
Coaching Manager - A Manager's Guide to Coaching Effectively.
You
think leadership is tough ? Imagine being in the shoes of
U.S. President George W. Bush prior to deciding to go to war.
Regardless of one's view of the
situation,
it must be agreed that he is in
an excruciatingly difficult position with handling mid east response..
Politically, many say he is in a
“no win” zone.
So it is with managers/leaders everywhere. Decisions can not please
all the people all the time. One must, however, live with
the outcomes. In your career what is the toughest decision you
had to make? What did you learn in the process ? THINK REFLECT
GROW
Chuck Reynolds is Chief Performance Officer - Excel Group Development
Chuck Reynolds is a Principal
and Chief Performance Officer with Excel
Group Development a Performance Solutions firm that assists
organizations in enhancing management and team effectiveness.
He can be reached indirectly by emailing
our admin group. Insert 'ATTN Chuck' in the subject area.
Visit them at www.GrowingCoaches.com
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