When done correctly, executive coaching can be a powerful and rewarding tool for improving the performance of executives and their organizations. The real benefit of executive coaching is not the training and development of a single person, although this person will benefit greatly from coaching. The true advantage lies in the influence that the participant has on the rest of the organization. When the participant is at or near the top of the organization, their high-performance behaviors can elevate the behavior and performance of the entire team.
But what are the pros and cons of an executive coaching relationship? In this article, we will delve into this topic to help you understand what you're really getting into before you invest in executive coaching. We will also look at the benefits of executive coaching and share some of the results you could see by investing in a coach for your leaders. The main benefit of executive coaching is that it can help create a culture within your executive team that embraces change. A proper executive coach will help you expand your thinking, move away from old habits, and find solutions to problems you don't encounter every day.
They can also help you devise a plan to manage change and delegate and lead the team responsible for executing it. Before hiring an executive coach, it's important to be aware of what it takes to truly see a return on investment. The only constant in business is change, so it's essential to create a culture within your executive team that embraces change, devises a plan to manage that change, and then delegates and leads the team responsible for executing the plan. It's also important to note that not all coaches cost the same, nor do they offer you the same level of results.
Therefore, it's essential to find a coach with extensive knowledge and experience in organizational behavior and rigorous psychological training to get the best results. The idea that an executive coach can help employees improve performance quickly is a big selling point for CEOs, who put the bottom line first. By ruling out employees who are not psychologically prepared or predisposed to benefit from the process, companies avoid putting executives in deeply uncomfortable and even harmful positions. If your coach knows you well and brings years of wisdom to help clients navigate similar types of scenarios, you can come up with a plan together and take faster and more effective steps to resolve conflicts.
While most organizations will leave you out of the field and see quick results, there's a specific caveat that may indicate that it's not a good fit for you, your company, and your executives: you can't train the incapacitated.
