
Organisations choose to invest heavily in coaching their high potential employees so as to groom them to take on bigger and diverse roles in the future. Leaders who are high performers will benefit immensely from havingan experienced external coach. This helps organizations adapt in a VUCA(Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) environment.
As CEOs of companies, leaders need to have a commitment towards personal development to achieve long term success. This sends out a message to their employees that the constant upgrading of skill sets is a pre-requisite to stay relevant in a global economy. Qualified external coaches can act as sounding boards for the business leaders.
Effective Coaches resemble horse whisperers. The term “Horse whisperer” refers to those gifted with a deep understanding of equine psychology, which enables them to whisper and elicit the horses’ cooperation.
Similarly, “CEO whisperers” will be able to establish a rapport with their clients (Business Leaders) through meticulous observation and intuition. Leaders may be extremely guarded and defensive. It is therefore imperative that the coach establishes a rapport with his client during the first meeting itself. Asking a few relevant questions will help the Coach understand the needs and desires of the business leader. To facilitate this, one may begin by asking him/her about their personal and professional achievements. Certain key areas for leadership development can be identified by the coach by asking a few relevant questions to the client:
- What are the specific issues you would like to focus on, both professionally and personally?
- How would you go about achieving them?
- What are the changes you want to bring about in yourself/organization?
- Why do you want the change?
- What are the relevant issues requiring immediate attention/action?
- How would you like the future to be different?
Leaders should feel comfortable to confide in the coach. They may need to be prodded gently to reflect on their strengths as well as weaknesses and seek change.
A few key aspects to keep in mind while coaching business leaders are:
- Leadership Alignment: Coaching intervention can provide a CEOs with clarity on past accomplishments and help in establishing his vision for the future. He can be encouraged to share the same with his team. This in turn would percolate down to the rest of the organization.
- Team Building: A CEO’s skills comes into play when he is required to build a strong team by integrating the strength of the individuals to accomplish the common mission of the organization. A coaching module can facilitate a leader in this task which will result in unhindered growth progression for the organization.
- Enhancing capabilities for taking on bigger roles: A CEO’S performance can be measured by his ability to empower his team to operate in a mature risk environment. A coaching intervention can be help a leader in creating this environment within the organization.
- Diversification using new technologies: Technology can improve the level of innovation in business. New innovative techniques can help the business leader stay abreast of the current and future trends in business. A CEO’s role is to gain a competitive advantage for his organization, through understanding and managing technologies for a sustainable growth.
- Developing soft skills: A senior leader needs to have varied skillsets such as good listening skills, adaptability to a dynamic environment, ability to seek out ideas and opinions of peers etc. A robust coaching program will help in Identifying roadblocks in personal development and help in effective leadership and career advancement.
An effective leadership coaching initiative which identifies the above aspects and provides the leader with a renewed & fresh perspective to face the challenges arising in a dynamic work environment. This will enable him in his personal and professional growth.
How to Coach a CEO. (2018, August 20). Retrieved from https://knowledge.insead.edu/blog/insead-blog/how-to-coach-a-ceo-9926