There is no single, standard approach to implementing a coaching programme. However, there are some key factors that need to be addressed in order for the programme to be successful as summarised in the diagram below.

Important rules for implementing a coaching programme:

• Make it voluntary unless the purpose and culture suggest it should be compulsory: anecdotal evidence suggests that voluntary programmes work best
• Ensure the organisational culture can support it (and if using the programme to leverage cultural change, ensure that appropriate structure and process changes are implemented first)
• Facilitate coachees to choose their own coach
• Coaching should be non-directive – the coach should not tell the individual what to do or how to do it
• Agree clear terms of reference between organisation, coach and coachee
• Adopt an ethical code of practice and provide confidential support for coaches to explore issues which may arise
• Provide a clear framework for the programme
• Be clear about purpose – for individual and organisation
• Build in means of measuring progress within individual coaching relationships and at overall programme level
• Start small but aim to make coaching – in some form – universal.

STEP 2: Planning for implementation

Develop a coaching culture:

A coaching culture is one that supports individual learning and development, that encourages employees at all levels to try new things, to be creative and innovative in approach. There is an inherent personal and organisational risk in this and the individual therefore needs to understand the boundaries and feel supported both at a team and company level. Feedback is crucial and usually lacking in the majority of organisations. People, generally, are uncomfortable offering constructive, detailed feedback even when it is requested.  

A coaching culture is one in which individuals are able to be open about their development journey and receive regular and appropriate feedback to support them. It is one that recognises that employees need ‘time out’ from their task-driven day both for coaching sessions and to reflect on their learning. Forward thinking companies recognise that this ultimately leads to greater productivity, motivation and employee morale. Coaching encourages employees to aim higher and this may mean more rapid career progression, sometimes out of the organisation. Organisations with a true coaching culture will try to accommodate the employee’s needs within the organisation but demonstrate maturity where this is not possible. 

Are you ready?

The first step is to establish whether the organisation can provide the type of environment described above and whether the target coachees are likely to be open to coaching. There is something of the chicken and egg in this as organisations tend to use coaching to build both of these but it is important to establish how supportive the existing culture will.

For example, a very ‘hire and fire’ task and results-driven culture will not value time spent away from task and, worse, staff will view development needs as weaknesses to be used against them. Even in less extreme environments, these tendencies may well exist and need addressing as part of the programme design and launch.

In some instances, it may be necessary to make some practical changes to working practices, structures and policies before coaching can realistically be implemented on any broad basis.

Who is the programme aimed at – and why?

Ideally, coaching should be offered to all staff but this is not practical in the first instance. It is appropriate to offer different types of coaching programmes to different levels or functions but there should be a sense of cohesion and common overall purpose.

Four key factors are important here:

1. Purpose is clearly defined and communicated positively
2. Senior management are proactively supportive of the initiative (for this reason some organisations choose to start with the board)
3. Start with a pilot group and expand in a structured manner
4. Encourage coaching but don’t make it mandatory

Structure and length of the programme

There is no simple formula for identifying how long a coaching relationship should last or the format it should take. Each programme will be designed to suit the specific needs of the individual relative to the time and resources available.

A programme may last just a few weeks or extend through many years. It may consist of face-to-face, email, telephone and video-conference based sessions. Ideally it should be sufficiently flexible to meet the coachee’s needs, personal preferences and learning style.

As a rule of thumb, many coaching sessions are approximately two hours in duration (sometimes shorter in ‘line manager as coach’ relationships) and are held every 2-4 weeks (sometimes decreasing in frequency as the programme progresses) and a ‘typical’ coaching programme will typically last between 3 and 12 months with regular reviews.

In a full ‘coaching culture’ coaching becomes part of informal day-to-day colleague conversations.

Manager as Coach

Many organisations now consider it good practice for their managers to adopt a coaching approach to managing and developing their people. There is an inherent conflict between the role of manager and coach, however, which needs to be acknowledged and worked with. A key part of the manager’s role is to deliver targeted results to the organisation. The role of coach means taking an objective and facilitative approach to assisting the individual in achieving their potential. Where these two objectives are in harmony, the relationship can work well. Where the individual’s best interests (in terms of e.g. job satisfaction, career ambitions, personal aspirations etc) are in conflict with specific objectives set by the manager, the role of objective facilitator becomes nigh on impossible for the typical manager. It is important for both parties to recognise and work with this conflict.

Adopting a coaching approach works best when managers dedicate pre-arranged times to meet with individual team members for coaching sessions in which the employee’s well-being and ongoing development are the focus.  These should be separate to normal operational meetings, appraisals and reviews where the manager may adopt coaching techniques but the agenda is not specifically the individual’s.

Professional / external / executive coaches

Particularly appropriate where resources or skills are not available internally, external coaches bring objectivity, fresh perspectives, best practice principles and focus on objectives. Naturally this is a more costly approach than using internal coaches but may also produce faster results, particularly in senior and specialist roles, as coaches ‘hit the ground running’, bring a wealth of knowledge and experience from their field and should act as a natural extension to internal resources. Sessions with external coaches are typically seen as highly motivating and important to an individual’s ongoing development.

Internal coaches
 
Some organisations employ dedicated coaches to work with managers and teams within the organisation. Their role is similar to that of the external coach. They are typically lower cost and have a better understanding of the organisational systems. However, because they are part of the system they may not be, or perceived to be, as objective as an external coach and issues around confidentiality need to be explicitly addressed and rigorously adhered to.
 
In some instances, non-line managers will coach individuals in other teams. They may be senior or peer to the coachee. The purpose of these types of coaching (or mentoring) relationships are usually to encourage mindshare and diversity across functions, teams, divisions and geographic regions.

Skills development coaches

Skills coaching has some commonalities with one-to-one training but combines a more holistic approach to developing the core skills an employee needs to perform in their role.

Skills coaching programmes are tailored specifically to the individual, their knowledge, experience, maturity and ambitions and are generally focused on achieving a number of objectives for both the individual and the company.

The skills development coach may be the line manager, an internal ‘specialist’ or trainer or an external coach but will bring specific technical skills and experience.

Remedial coaches

Whilst most coaching focuses on the positive, it is worth acknowledging that coaching plays an important part in addressing individual and team performance problems (and in some organisations staff have a misconception that coaching is always remedial).

Coaching can be a highly effective alternative or support to disciplinary procedures to highlight the issue, identify root causes and, where practical, identify potential solutions. Where an individual is genuinely struggling to perform, coaching offers a more supportive approach which signals to the individual that they are valued within the organisation.

Remedial coaching may be offered by any of the types of coaches identified above or may be offered by an appropriately skilled member of HR.

It is reasonable to use a combination of the above concurrently within an organisation to best meet the needs of individual employees within the resources and budgets available.

One of the most crucial factors influencing the success of the coaching programme is the relationship between coach and coachee.

Best practice suggests:

• The coachee should, wherever possible, choose their coach (usually from a ‘pool’ of coaches working within the programme). At executive level this is particularly important.
  
• Rapport and mutual respect are at least as important as the coach’s experience
  
• The company needs to facilitate and ‘hand-hold’ coachees through the selection process (eg by clearly defining the process for selecting a coach, by setting timescales, distributing coaches’ details and biographies and by facilitating introductions between coaches and coachees).

When entering into a coaching relationship it is good practice to define expectations and limitations of the programme. Ideally, a written contract or agreement which outlines the following will assist in ensuring that the relationship commences on the right basis.

The programme manager should be proactive in designing this and ensuring that both coaches and coachees understand their responsibilities. Professional external coaches will typically offer a written contract with the organisation and often the individual.

Documenting the nature of the relationship serves the following functions:

• Assures that both parties understand the boundaries and limitations of the relationship
  
• Provides a reference document that can support evaluation of how successful the programme has been
  Acts as a guide for understanding when the relationship has been successful and when the relationship should be terminated.

It is important for the coach and coachee to work towards measurable objectives (although the nature of the coaching relationship, particularly at senior level, may be more reflective than action-oriented).

It is also important that the organisation has some means of measuring the effectiveness of a programme. These measurements should, naturally, be linked to purpose but it is important to note that often the most far-reaching outcomes can appear to be the least tangible or quantifiable. It is therefore important to take a qualitative approach to measuring programme success. 

The programme manager should have a variety of means of reviewing and assessing progress of the programme and should retain close contact with coaches and coachees to solicit formal and informal feedback and to provide support in a timely and proactive manner.

No matter how competent an individual may be as a line manager or communicator, coaching skills are not always intuitive. It is therefore essential that coaches’ skills  are effectively assessed. External coaches should be able to demonstrate high levels of competence but internal coaches or line managers may need training to either develop the core skills or to orientate them in the application of existing skills. A two-day bespoke induction course may be sufficient to get most managers started in coaching their teams but ongoing support and training will be required.  There are a number of coaching training schools offering more in-depth training and this is recommended where budgets allow. Ongoing support may take the form of regular workshops, on-line or face-to-face discussion forums, development centres, FAQs and one-to-one supervision / mentoring by a lead or senior coach.

For senior or executive level coaching, where the focus is more on insight and reflection than on skills and action, a higher degree of coaching skill may be required and it is not usually practical to train someone ‘from scratch’ for this purpose but to use coaches who already have experience working at this level.

It is also good practice, though not widespread, to offer some form of orientation training (usually ½ to 1 day) for coachees to set their expectations accordingly. This can double-up with an opportunity to meet the coaches and to start the process of selecting a coach.

Whilst it is widely agreed that face-to-face coaching is most effective, in seeking practical means of managing coaching relationships, the following approaches are all ‘tried and tested’ and valid according to individual needs and logistical circumstances.

Note that all of the non-face-to-face activities are generally considered to be more successful where coach and coachee have the opportunity to meet at the start of the relationship (or have already met in other business situations).

Technologies such as video conferencing and chat rooms also offer more advanced means of meeting without face-to-face contact.

• The coach's role is to respond to the coachee's developmental needs and agenda; it is not to impose their own agenda.
  
• Coaches must work within the current agreement with the coachee about confidentiality that is appropriate within the context.
  
• The coach will not intrude into areas the coachee wishes to keep private until invited to do so. However, they should help the coachee recognise how other issues may relate to those areas.
  
• Coach and coachee should aim to be open and truthful with each other and themselves about the relationship itself.
  
• The coaching relationship must not be exploitative in any way, nor must it be open to misinterpretation.
  
• Coaches need to be aware of the limits of their own competence and operate within these limits.
  
• The coach has a responsibility to develop their own competence and operate within these limits.
  
• The coachee must accept increasing responsibility for managing the relationship; the coach should empower them to do so and must generally promote the coachee's autonomy.
  
• Coach and coachee should respect each other's time and other responsibilities ensuring that they do not impose beyond what is reasonable.
  
• Coach and coachee share responsibility for the smooth winding down of the relationship when it has achieved its purpose - they must both avoid creating dependency.
  
• Either party may dissolve the relationship. However, both coach and coachee have a responsibility for discussing the matter together, as part of mutual learning.
  
• The coachee should be aware of their rights and any complaints procedures.
  
• Coaches must be aware of any current law and work within the law.
  
• Coach and coachee must be aware that all records are subject to statutory regulations under the Data Protection Act, 1984.

Conclusion

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