Coaching leadership has been the mantra for decades. Yet research shows, that coaching is not the predominant leadership style in most organizations even today. Why?
2. It needs relatedness to the issues your people are having (often we mix coaching with mentoring) and
3. Just telling/teaching is deviously easy compared to coaching.
So, what is the solution?
- Time. Sometimes organizations and managers inadvertently operate like they were in crisis constantly - hopping from one issue to another - fixing symptoms, but not the problems. Coaching is seen as the least important thing. We are so easy to reach today from various platforms, that this can happen easily. The classic Eisenhower matrix can be really helpful - create more time for z. (The Eisenhower Matrix: How to Prioritize Your To-Do List [2025] ? Asana)
- Relatedness. If the coach and coachee are too distant in terms of experience and professional knowledge, coaching will not work. Why? If you are the senior "professor" of your topic, the daily problems of a first year student may seem too elementary to you and coaching as a waste of time, while a third year student can easily relate to the issues and provide valuable coaching. This is why for instance consulting companies do not want young consultants to work with senior partners directly. The remedy? Use the mentoring concept for senior - junior support. Seniority here can mean many things, like years in the organization (knowing the ropes), or in-depth knowledge of a particular topic, or being a seasoned leader.
- Easiness of telling. For us to use coaching instead of taking the easy way out, we need to become accustomed to use it. This calls for taking coaching seriously in your organization, turning it into a culture program, with targets, communication, support and success stories and constant monitoring of the progress. Important is also to make sure that we understand where coaching is preferred and where it is not - like lack of relatedness or if we have a real crisis in our hands
These were my thoughts and experiences. What are yours?
Executive Search | Leadership Advisory | Leadership Development
4 周My personal mantra in coaching, or as I call it Business Sparring, touches pretty much the same topics. I’ve used the acronym SLS for my role: S = Stupid => I play the part of a ”stupid” and ask questions L = Lazy => I’m not doing the work. The one who is being coached does all the work S = Slow => Take it slow. Coaching takes time. Nothing happens over-night.