Sunday, May 6, 2018

A633.7.4.RB - How Do Coaches Help?


To be an executive coach, it is necessary to know that clients are the first and best experts capable of solving their own problems and achieving their own ambitions; that is precisely the main reason why clients are motivated to call on a coach. When clients bring important issues to a coach, often they already made a complete inventory of their personal or professional issues and identified all possible (known) options. Clients have already tried working out their issues alone, and have not succeeded.

After some reflection on the above statement, I realized it has to be read in the correct context. It seems to me that the executive coach is talking about multiple opportunities they have had to coach others.  The coach isn’t saying that the client already has all the answers and the subordinates are not working with them. It can be implied that the executive coach is saying that the client is capable of solving their own problems, making a complete inventory of options, and determining important issues. They have within them, through coaching, the ability to achieve leadership.
            The statement starts off with saying that a client that is going to a coach already has the recreant knowledge of solving their own problems. The statement is not saying that the client already knows and can’t execute. I think it is saying that the client has what it takes to solve their own problems. A good leader can see the big picture(“sell”) and show others what they mean(“tell”) (Obolensky,2014). A manager can tell employees what needs to be done(“devolve”) and why(“involve”) (Obolensky,2014). Through the combination of the leader and manager strategies, leadership can evolve to produce a powerful result (Obolensky,2014).
            The executive coach states that clients only bring important issues, implying that they already made a complete inventory of all important issues with all possible options. This is what a manager would bring to a coaching meeting, a list of possible outcomes. A leader would have brought their group to the meeting to see what problems could be concluded. The executive coach will show that a combination of strategies needs to be applied to have better success. It is important to know all the possible outcomes, but it is not the only strategy  that needs to be implemented. You can’t show the employees the facts and expect them to follow based on logic. Leadership will find who will have followership and who needs persuasion.
            In conclusion, the above statement made by an executive coach needs to be read with the right context, it seems they are talking about different clients in the same statement. A manager has all “devolve” and “involve” information needed to make a good decision(Obolensky,2014). The leader has opportunity to “sell” and “tell” the employees what needs done(Obolensky,2014). The coach will express the needs for a combination of the two for leadership(Obolensky,2014).  

References
Obolensky, Nick. Complex Adaptive Leadership: Embracing Paradox and Uncertainty. Gower, 2014.

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