About the Author
Hello from the UK! Carol Braddick will be stirring the pot on the topic of managing coaching. For starters, whoever thought we might need to "manage" coaching?
Carol works as an Executive Coach and OD consultant through the Graham Braddick Partnership. She has been immersed in researching, writing and speaking about company practices in coaching for several years.
Carol has worked in the field of people and organisational development for over 15 years, including with global firms such as Hewitt and Towers Perrin. Carol has completed the Fielding University Graduate Certificate in Evidence Based Coaching. Her professional development in executive coaching also includes programmes with Management Futures, Lore International Institute and Oxford Brookes University. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Linguistics from Pomona College and received her MBA in Finance from New York University.
Originally from New York, Carol has also lived and worked in Latin America. Currently, she, her British significant other and their assorted pets live in a tiny village north of London with ample opportunities to step outside the world of coaching and enjoy countryside adventures and surprises.
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May 16th, 2008 •
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Let’s say you work in Human Resources (HR), interviewing coaches. You’d like to have a “pool” or short list of coaches to refer to your executives. You’d also like to give the execs a sense of a coach’s style, and find out from the exec what style he or she would work best with.
If you’re a coach, you’ll need to be able to describe your style to HR and to the exec in interviews. Or perhaps in writing. For example, one company asked its new coaches to prepare 100-word style summaries for HR to use in matching coaches to execs.
Do we all speak the same language when we talk about style? What is HR or an executive trying to learn with the question “What’s your coaching style?”
If, as a coach, you say your style is non-directive, what are you saying? What does HR or the exec hear when you say non-directive? How do you know what they will “hear?”
Popularity: 23% [?]
Comment by Christine Heinrichs on 17 May 2008:
Reminds me of “I know that you believe that you understood what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant,” which is attributed to State Department spokesman Robert McCloskey. Communication is the nexus of human relationships and discussions of style are subject to miscues. Thanks for making this point, Carol.
Comment by Justin Buffer on 20 May 2008:
Great point Carol. I think it is always best to give a voluntary clarification, because some people will not always ask for it, and will assume that their assumption is truth. In a situation like the one above, I would offer a voluntary clarification.
Justin Buffer- http://www.ptlcoaching.com
Comment by Abiel Guerra on 20 May 2008:
I don´t know Carol. What comes to my mind is that, in an ideal situation, I, as a Coach, would ask the company what they are trying to do with coaching: train, educate, career development, leadership development, team development, outplacement, narrow job performance gaps, indoctrinate, work in the personal / professional issues defined by the executives, etc. Then, being honest, I would tell the company if I match the job. Also, I mean, are you going to deliver a specific solution to a diagnosis performed by the company? That supposes that the diagnostic is right, that you understand the need / problem and that you have the right answer to the need / problem, etc. of the company. OK, that is an ideal situation.
Maybe I´m not being realistic and depending on how good / bad I´m doing in the business I would “mimic” to what the company needs: yeah, I can: train, educate, do career development, do leadership development, do team development, do outplacement, narrow performance gaps, indoctrinate, or work in the personal / professional issues as defined by the executives. Maybe in my portfolio some of my services match the company needs but, it is not coaching, it’s… something else. But the company wants coaching…
Do we all speak the same language when we talk about style? I think not. Would you, as a Coach, tell the company: OK, I´m a non-directive coach, so I wont give you information about the executives advances or progress in the coaching relationship, I will work in the executive agenda, not in the company agenda or needs, you´ll just pay my bills and that’s it, is that clear?.” Or you would say: “yeah, so you want to indoctrinate your managers? … perfect I can do that…I have the brainwashing certification” …
What is HR or an executive trying to learn with the question “What’s your coaching style?” I don´t really know. It may be they don´t want a revolution in the company, with a non-directive coach giving tools to their executives to materialize their own dreams and goals: become freelance, independent consultants, entrepreneurs, competence for the company paying the coaching bills… I don´t know what HR wants.
If, as a coach, you say your style is non-directive, what are you saying? What does HR or the executive hear when you say non-directive? How do you know what they will “hear?”
I guess that there is a previous job to be done, before signing the contract — talk and put your cards and the company cards on the table; know if the coaching style and values match the needs of the company. Is the way I look at the issues you bring out in your article.
Comment by cphillips on 6 June 2008:
I have had the experience of being asked such a question when interviewing with a potential client organization, and I agree we should have a ready response. It is so critical to be clear what we do and what we don’t do as coaches. I have been through a few different coaching programs or workshops, and feel like my approach is blended.
What I try to say when decribing my style is in a few dimensions:
a) I am about 50% mentor/ 50% coach, so I work well with new leaders who need some guidance along with empowering coaching.
b) I tend to “push” more than “pull”. I work well with people who want someone to stretch them, push them outside of their comfort zone.
c) I have high “accountability” standards - I will ask for a lot, and expect the client to follow thru with what they agree to.
These seem to help people make a decision on whether I might fit their goals.