Nothing is more exciting than tapping untapped potential.

That's what leaders do.

That's what coaches do.

That's why they are such a natural fit when paired.

The course trains for core coaching skills--no tricks, no jargon, and no special "techniques." It begins with the foundation that coaching is client-powered, and it trains people to ask open-ended questions, listen to the answers, and trust that the client will come up with their own best ideas.

Coaches begin with the question "What do you want?" and they care about the answer. Students in this course learn how to focus on the goal instead of focusing on the problem; they learn how to ask empowering questions instead of giving orders, offering their opinions, and providing advice. 

It is an ideal course to offer all employees for those companies who wish to shift their entire culture toward personal responsibility and empowerment. Even managers in an entrenched command-and-control environment learn how to shift their style to be more collaborative and inclusive.

Companies can gain extra benefit from this course by sending existing functional teams or managers from the same layer of an organization (such as all directors, all VPs). If you have been considering a team-building event, we highly recommend you offer a coach training instead. Groups say that after this training they have more respect for each other, greater trust, and a renewed enthusiasm for the future they will create together.

This is a medium-intensity course. It works best with participants who are open to learning the benefits of adopting a more coach-like approach at work.

Recommended group size: 18-24. 

Case Study

As part of a larger Leadership Development Program, a blue-chip company offered a team of executives (VPs and directors) a 2-day course in Coaching for Leadership, followed by short-term private coaching. At the end of the program, we asked for their feedback, agreeing to keep specific names confidential. Here’s what they said:

What went well?

“Great interaction in the Leadership and Coaching Class.”

“Loved the coaching class.”

“The private coaching.”

“The training on how to coach.”

“Coaching has helped me focus on the next steps for solutions to problems.”

“I thought the coaching class the best because it really got us to work together.”

What results have you seen as a result of the coach training?

“When there is a problem it helps me out of the paradigm of having to solve the problem. I play more the role of helping the person solve the problem versus automatically feeling I have to be the “savior.” Over time it sets up and reinforces a paradigm of empowering employees. If staff has too hard a problem they used to just dump it on me, but now I develop them. Out of that, [our company] has stronger bench strength.”

“The result for me is that I do more coaching of my employees. I now have a much more open-door policy so people feel more supported and get a greater connection to me. I coach my people. I do much more prompting in asking questions which develops my people more, and puts the onus more on them. This makes them own more of the decisions, and has them be more accountable.”

“I am now more attuned to opportunities to practice coaching than previously with my own employees. Coaching stimulates discussion that wouldn’t otherwise happen and they can get more direction which would have taken longer to get to; coaching makes the interactions more effective. Coaching increases my employees’ ownership and development.”

“As a VP, I use coaching techniques with managers and it’s working fairly well now. I don’t need to have the answer or present the solution. The employees present their own solution. As a result we are grooming the next level of executive management.”