Smoothing the path

‘New’ and ‘leader’ are two straightforward words. Put together, there can be a jumble of implications. Take ‘new’ in a professional capacity: new role, new organisation, new culture, new responsibilities to the organisation, new responsibilities for other people’s livelihoods, new direction, new relationships, new objectives, new status, new expectations, new pressure, new and further-reaching consequences, new journey to work, new workload, new work-life balance, new skills, new opportunities, new knowledge, new learning, new profile. That’s a whole lot of new.
 

For the most part, employers count on their new leaders to swiftly take all this in their stride, evolving into highly competent and confident bosses by adapting themselves to their new organisation. They are expected to take the lead, make and manage a success of the changes they’re experiencing, sometimes with little input from a board member or a more senior manager: after all, they’ve been appointed because of their ability to do this, right? There’s nothing wrong with a challenge but wouldn’t it be better for the organisation and the individual if the new leader could become effective and confident in their new role quickly and (largely) happily, rather than slowly and painfully? Enter induction coaching.

WHAT IS COACHING?
The coaching process is, at its simplest, a series of confidential, focused conversations that people can use to help move themselves forward. Eric Parsloe, a coaching and mentoring guru, suggests: “The overall purpose of a coaching and mentoring conversation is to provide help and support for people to take responsibility and control of their own learning and development in order to: develop their skills and/or improve their performance and/or maximise their potential and/or proactively become the person they want to be.” Coaching can focus on both development and performance and while it can be therapeutic, it is not therapy.
Induction coaching takes place for around the first six months of a new job and is an adaptable process according to the subject’s own skills, knowledge and experience. It might focus on maximising potential right from the start, or on skills development. The point, is that the agenda is led by the person being coached.

HOW IT WORKS
The role of the coach is focused on supporting the learning and development of their pupil so that they are confident and competent in taking the lead. The coach’s role will comprise a variety of behaviours. These will typically include some of the following: a sounding board, challenger, ‘safe container’, professional friend, conscience, mirror, celebrator. A safe, confidential, non-judgemental environment is provided for the client to work in. This trust allows the person being coached to be open to reflect, in a way that generates deeper self-awareness. This helps to better identify and prioritise challenges and plan for achievement, particularly important for a new leader undertaking a potentially overwhelming role. By taking the responsibility to make changes that might not otherwise have been made, and by evaluating the outcomes of these changes, the person coached can work towards tangible objectives. By inwardly taking the lead in their learning and development, they can outwardly take the lead in their organisation.

THE RESULT
After induction coaching has finished, its effects will keep being felt. The person’s attitude to learning and development may have changed with greater awareness of what he or she needs to do to maintain a trajectory of learning and development. And the organisation is developed too – not just the new leader. The coaching experience can rub off on leadership style, encouraging the development of a coaching culture throughout the whole organisation, resulting in a more focused, confident and effective workforce, and ultimately, a more successful company.