Introduction
The firm launched an innovative leadership development effort that was expected to accelerate the development of next generation leaders. The participants in this effort were drawn mostly from the ranks of middle managers and from many different business units and functional areas. Leadership development activities included group mentoring, individual assessments and development planning, a leadership workshop and work on strategic business projects.
Coaching was considered to be a key enabler for this approach to leadership development because the participants could work privately and individually with his or her coach to develop specific leadership competencies. The client organization engaged the Pyramid Resource Group to provide coaching to the leadership development participants. While participants spoke very highly of their experience with coaching it was decided to conduct a formal assessment of the effectiveness and business impact of coaching. It is intended that the results from this study be used to determine:
1. How did coaching add value to the business and what was the return on investment?
2. How could coaching be best leveraged in the future, especially if coaching was to be expanded to other business regions?
Data Collection Procedures
It was decided that the best way to isolate and capture the effects of coaching on the business was through a questionnaire. This questionnaire had two parts. Part one was completed electronically via email and examined clients initial reaction to coaching, what they learned, how they applied what they learned and captured their initial assessment of business impact. Part two was conducted over the telephone with each respondent and probed more deeply into business impact and the financial return on investment
The target population for the survey was 43 leadership development participants. These participants were drawn from two regions: Eastern United States (37) and Mexico (6). These participants represented a cross section of the business and included those in sales, operations, technology, finance and marketing. All had been identified as potential leaders and executives. Thirty (30) of 43 leadership development participants returned their surveys for a 70% response rate.
Results
Coaching was a very effective developmental tool for the leadership development participants, producing financial and intangible benefits for the business. Coaching sessions were rich learning environments that enabled the learning to be applied to a variety of business situations. Decision-making, team performance and the motivation of others were enhanced. Many of these business applications contributed annualized financial benefits. Other applications created significant intangible benefits. Overall, the participants appreciated their coaching experiences and would highly recommend coaching to others.
Three-quarters (77%) of the 30 respondents indicated that coaching had significant or very significant impact on at least one of nine business measures. In-depth discussions were conducted over the telephone with each respondent to further explore the business impact of coaching. Sixty percent of the respondents were able to identify specific financial benefits that came as a result of their coaching.
Overall, productivity (60% favorable) and employee satisfaction (53%) were cited as the most significantly impacted by the coaching. Respondents defined productivity in this context as relating to their personal or to their work group productivity and half (50%) documented annualized financial benefits. Employee satisfaction was viewed both in terms of the respondents being personally more satisfied as a result of the coaching as well as the being able to increase the employee satisfaction of their team members. The respondents could not quantify this benefit in financial terms. Employee satisfaction, then, was a significant source of intangible benefits. Customer satisfaction (53%) was also a significant source of intangible benefits.
The next most frequently cited as being significantly impacted by coaching were work output (30%) and work quality (40%). Twenty percent of the respondents identified financial benefits as a result of increased work output. Many respondents reported improvements in work quality, however, they were not able to quantify these improvements in terms of dollar benefits. Work quality improvements were considered an intangible benefit of the coaching.
Program costs were tabulated for all 43 leadership development participants in determining the return on investment. Overall, the coaching process produced a 788% return on investment. Given the client company"s downsizing activities and the general state of the telecommunications industry, the client was reticent to fully factor in the financial benefits from retention. Excluding the benefits from employee retention, a 529% return on investment was produced. While those clients who had customer or people responsibilities produced proportionally greater financial benefits, the realization of benefits to the business was fairly widespread throughout the group involved in this study.
Recommendations were made to maximize the business benefits from executive coaching:
*Manage the entire coaching process to ensure consistency and quality. Though the content of individual coaching sessions should always be confidential, the coaching process itself needs to be managed to ensure that the coaching clients and the coaches are following the appropriate process and leveraging best practices.
* Prepare clients in advance for coaching and don't force coaching on anyone. Because coaching remains a relatively new development technique, people may not understand how the coaching process can help them become better business professionals. The sooner they understand the process, the sooner they will see results.
*Offer clients the ability to select their coaches. Chemistry is important to build an effective coaching relationship. Provide prospective coaching clients with information about the coaches including biographies, education, coaching credentials, functional expertise, industry experience and other background information.
*Provide coaching strong organizational support. Those being coached should receive encouragement and support from their immediate managers. Also, coaching should be conducted in the context of other developmental efforts such as competency development, assessments, mentoring and leadership workshops.
*Ensure coaches are grounded in the company"s business and culture. Coaches are more effective when they can identify with and talk about the realities of their client's environment.
*Allow each coaching relationship to follow its own path. A major difference between coaching and training is that coaching allows the individual to determine what works best for him or her at a very personal level. Coaches need wide latitude to work with "the whole person" and help each client be more effective as a person as well as to be more effective as a business leader.
*Build performance measurement into the coaching process. Evaluation of coaching should be designed into the process from the beginning to better set performance expectations and open up new learning opportunities for making coaching more effective while the coaching is being conducted. For example, coaching can be refocused to deal with issues or to ensure that business priorities will be met. In this way, the evaluation of coaching becomes more than just a measuring stick "" it becomes a structured approach to deepen the business value of coaching.
About Lifecoachbusinesstools.com
Lifecoachbusinesstools.com is a professional services firm specializing in performance measurement solutions that increase accountability for bottom-line business results. Whether it"s developing a scorecard for a corporate university, determining return on investment for a human resources program or conducting a business impact study on an organization change initiative,Lifecoachbusinesstools.com consultants partner with clients to create powerful measurement methodology. Please visit our web site, www.Lifecoachbusinesstools.com to learn more about us.
* At a crossroad, or believing that deeper and more meaningful success is possible in your life, career or business?
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*Struggling with stress, confidence and time management, or just longing for greater effectiveness, clarity, balance or sense of purpose?
*Not getting the results you want and looking for the best in professional support to get a plan, grow, move into action and make a genuine breakthrough?
lf any of these are true for you, professional coaching with me might be exactly what you've been looking for.
Life, business or executive coaching is all about helping you get very clear on what you most want, creating a great plan that aligns with your values and builds on your strengths, and supporting you to make all the changes needed to achieve the outcomes you desire. As a professional service, coaching consistently delivers a high return on investment (over 500%) and can be a powerful partner in helping you achieve far greater levels of success, happiness and fulfillment. ( ICF studies have shown a 98.5% client satisfaction rate.)
If you have a big dream or are just wanting to get to the next level on your journey - or feel unfulfilled, stressed out, tired of the results you are currently getting - I invite you to look into working with an experienced professional who is totally focused on helping you succeed.
In my coaching practice, I provide a personal guarantee that you will get value out of every single session. If you are serious about making some important changes, I would love to chat with you, and give you a feel for what might be possible by working together.
How Do I Know If It's For Me?
People who come to coaching just have a sense that more success, clarity, meaning, and balance is possible in their lives. They have a hunger for living a fuller life that feels like the one they were meant to live. Properly supported they accomplish some amazing things through life coaching. And they routinely say that working together was one of the best decisions they ever made.
Get Clear. Get a Plan. And Get The Support You Need
To Make It A Reality
Life and Business Coaches know that any plan without action and commitment remains a dream. (That's why so many New Year's Resolutions end in failure.) Intention alone does not change behavior and rarely translates into sustainable change. However when you develop a vision for your life and career that is in direct alignment with who you are, and what you most want to do in this life, you become inspired. And inspiration, coupled with the right support and accountability, changes everything.
I consider it an honor and my calling to work with the individuals, independents, professionals, leaders, executives, organizations and new coaches who seek me out. They want to make dramatic progress in their personal and professional growth - so they can fully experience even higher levels of success, balance and fulfillment and make a bigger difference in their worlds.
Check It Out For Yourself
If you are serious about moving forward in your life, career or business, I'd be happy to chat with you and give you a sense of what is possible, so you can make up your own mind.
100% Satisfaction Guarantee
Coaching should provide you significant value out of every single session. To ensure this, I provide a 100%, money-back, satisfaction guarantee. If you are not completely satisfied with any particular session, you will immediately receive a refund.
Life & Personal Coaching Services For Individuals
If you are considering some changes in your life, career or business, I can guarantee that working with a Certified Life Coach can make a huge difference.
In coaching, we will always focus on what's most important to you, and find the most natural and effortless way to make the breakthroughs you want. We will quickly help you get clear on the best outcome for you, create a plan, develop priorities, and then begin to close the gap.
And along the way I would like to help you discover your unique gifts and talents; what you're most passionate about, what are the strengths that contribute the most to your success and what holds you back the most?
By stepping back long enough to answer some of these questions, we can better align your strengths and passions - to your career, vocation or business model - and help you get much better and more meaningful results. And that is what good coaching is all about.
More on Life Coaching
Coaching is also about setting up a trusting, confidential and supportive relationship that you direct. And working together week-to-week with your Life Coach will help you move forward faster, and go far further, than you might now imagine. It is also very convenient and affordable.
Making meaningful change in your life takes time, commitment and support. Whether you want a more rewarding relationship, better health, an exciting career, more business success, or more satisfaction, meaning and balance in your life - coaching can provide you with the structure and motivation to really accomplish some amazing things. (It is really difficult to put into words the synergy and benefits that come from working with a Life Coach. The best way to find out what coaching can do for you, is to actually try it.)
We are Not Meant To Do It All By Ourselves
Making meaningful changes in our lives can be tough when we try to do it all by ourselves. We have all had dreams, intentions and resolutions that never seem to amount to anything.
Without consistent, independent support even our best intentions get overtaken by the stress and circumstances of our daily lives. (We all seem to be blind and most resistant to the changes we would most benefit from making.)
