Executive Coaching

Executive coaching is a thriving business and being used successfully by an increasing number of companies and organizations.

What is executive coaching?

Usually conducted on a one to one basis, the aim of executive coaching is to provide individuals and teams the space, time and means to develop particular skills and competencies to increase potential and performance.

Executive coaching may focus on areas such as:

• improving communications and personal impact
• dealing with management and board changes
• taking on a leadership role for the first time.

In an ideal setting, the individual will be given the opportunity to work with a coach they respect and feel comfortable with, in an appropriate setting , following a bespoke coaching framework which will allow for self-induced change and growth rather than enforced alteration to how they do business in a corporate context.

Why has executive coaching developed?

  In many ways executive coaching is a response to changes in how we work today. Not only are individuals becoming increasingly accountable, they are also being expected to be much more flexible and amenable to changes in the workplace – from changing management structures to changing roles and responsibilities on a project by project basis.

  We can no longer rely on jobs for life. Nor can management teams expect high staff retention if they are not providing their staff with the opportunity to develop.

Should you feel threatened by executive coaching?

Concerns around executive coaching programmes include the perception that it is a top down ‘demand’ upon staff that they change to fit new management expectations, and that those who ‘fail’ in their coaching will be replaced by more flexible and able colleagues.

One of the biggest changes in executive coaching in recent years is the move from remedial coaching - coaching for someone who is seen as failing - to developmental coaching - coaching for an individual or team who are considered to be the leaders of the future.

Benefits of executive coaching

  Companies are increasingly investing in executive coaching in order to have better motivated and more clearly focussed leaders within their management teams.

  There is also the perception that senior managers are lonely at the top, and rarely benefit from any form of mentoring or peer to peer development.

  Coaching can provide top-level individuals with a means to assess themselves within the context of a functioning and growing company rather than just as ‘the boss’.

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