Coaching for Performance

By Mark Evenden @ Developing People Limited

Coaching can be an extremely powerful way to help managers to improve their performance. A recent study by the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) identified that 92% of managers who received coaching said that their performance improved as a result.

My own personal experience supports these findings too. When I took on my first Director’s role in the late 90’s, I struggled with balancing my time, making sure the manufacturing and distribution part of the business was performing on a weekly and monthly basis as well as looking at ways to improve productivity, reduce costs, and meet ever changing and increasing customer demands.

My coach helped by ensuring that I took regular time out to sit back, take stock of what I had achieved, and think about what I needed to do next. They helped me clarify my own personal as well as business goals, and supported me to overcome the inevitable barriers and obstacles I met on the way. They didn’t tell me what to do (although they occasionally offered up ideas and guidance), but they encouraged me to question what I was doing, to challenge myself, and to develop solutions that I was committed to. They also gave me honest feedback about how I spent my time, which encouraged me to focus on those priorities that were most important.

While many organisations provide coaching for senior managers (as with myself), I believe that the greatest benefit will come to organisations that enable coaching to become part of everyday management. With commercial and competitive pressures continually rising, organisations whose managers have coaching skills will be able to help their staff develop and perform at their peak, and therefore will be much better placed to meet their business challenges.

The final word should perhaps be left to the ILM, who believe that developing managers coaching skills is the single most cost effective development investment that a business can make.