Coaching can be applied to nearly any position, and comes with significant benefits. Research has shown that dynamic sales coaching, for example, <\/span>can lead to 28% higher win rates<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n However, not paying attention to coaching techniques can have serious consequences: <\/span>More than 60% of sales workers<\/span><\/a> reported that they would be more likely to quit their job if their manager was a poor coach. It\u2019s estimated that around 75% of organizations are wasting their resources simply because they haven\u2019t yet set up a formalized process for coaching.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n How does that change? By choosing an effective coaching model for your organization, and incorporating that type of coaching into your policies. Let\u2019s look at the options.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Coaching is the practice of helping employees overcome difficulties, address performance issues, and learn new skills. It\u2019s an important part of any manager\u2019s toolkit, and a common part of leadership in business. However, many organizations still keep this process informal, with each manager taking their own approach to coaching and how they prefer to communicate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Standardized coaching is more efficient, and can help spread good coaching skills around the company. One of the most common options is choosing a coaching model to train managers with. A good coaching model offers instructions for a particular coaching session, a walkthrough that can be used for those new to coaching to help produce results. There are a number of coaching models, some designed for certain departments or industries, and others made for more general use.<\/span><\/p>\n In addition to the statistics we mentioned above, coaching is a foundational exercise for improving a workplace and facilitating employees. Without coaching, employees may not be able to learn or improve on their own. With coaching, employees not only improve, but learn long-term skills they can use to analyze situations and find paths forward on their own. That\u2019s especially beneficial for sales, customer service, and other related tasks.<\/span><\/p>\n Along the way, the process of coaching helps leaders and workers connect and understand each other more effectively. It provides time and opportunity to offer not only ideas about improvement, but also affirmation and communication about workplace culture.<\/span><\/p>\n Coaching also plays a role in upskilling and talent growth. It helps employees qualify for more responsibilities, higher positions, and better compensation. Companies with good coaching programs often have a healthier, happier workplace than they otherwise would. And from a strategic level, coaching helps companies prepare for the future and meet the goals they have set for metrics like sales, new customers, and much more.<\/span><\/p>\n Picking <\/span>the best coaching model<\/span><\/a> may look a little intimidating at first due to the acronyms and often-technical nature of the process. However, a little research is a big help to understanding models. Let\u2019s start with some basics about the best coaching models, and where they may be the right fit.<\/span><\/p>\n Solution-Focused Coaching <\/b>–<\/span> This type of coaching is frequently used to tackle a specific problem that the organization has noted. It\u2019s based primarily on questions: The questions themselves can vary based on the situation, but are designed to lead an employee to solutions and changes.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n For example, a coach may ask something like, \u201cImagine if you started getting 30% more positive reviews from your customers. What do you think you would be doing differently? Is there something specific that you can see yourself doing in that situation?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This question-based format can be as open-ended as necessary, and is excellent at encouraging employees to think for themselves and take ownership of their growth. Questions can also be on certain skills or performance metrics as necessary, making it a very flexible form of coaching. It tends to end in set goals that the questions have created, giving employees an action plan to follow afterward.<\/span><\/p>\n One challenge with this model is that both coaches and employees may find these rounds of questions uncomfortable. It can take skilled communication and a willingness to try something new to be successful.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The G.R.O.W. Model<\/b> – This coaching framework for managers is divided into a series of steps that coaches walk through with an employee to help them achieve goals. Here\u2019s how it breaks down:\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Goals<\/b>: This goes through what specific goals an employee has, or the problem that they are trying to address \u2013 an important first step for any kind of project.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Reality<\/b>: This is a type of gap analysis that simply compares the stated goal to reality and asks, \u201cWhat sort of obstacles are in the way of this goal? What is keeping it from happening?\u201d This identifies key problems.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Options<\/b>: Here, the coach helps the employee figure out how the goal can become reality. It\u2019s more of a brainstorming stage than an analysis, helping the employee explore a variety of options and think about things from a solution-oriented point of view.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Will<\/b>: Now the employee picks a single first step to take to realize the goal. This makes the goal manageable, and lays a path forward for future sessions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The simplicity of the GROW method makes it a good choice when coaches and employees are both new to the coaching process. However, it may be necessary to dig deeper over time. Also, this method can require some inspiration and creativity to function smoothly.<\/span><\/p>\n Instructional Coaching <\/b>– As you may have guessed by the name, this is a teacher-focused type of coaching that\u2019s designed to help employees learn content that they need to do their job, learn a new skill, or meet new requirements. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n This type of coaching excels at teaching groups instead of one-on-one improvement. It often involves a classroom setting, and presentations or materials to go through. That makes it a popular choice for teaching teams new technology or new technical requirements the business is adopting<\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n While very efficient, instructional coaching rarely allows for much personalization, so it\u2019s not a great option to help tackle a specific performance issue an employee is having. It also doesn\u2019t help an employee find solutions on their own, which can be a helpful benefit of other types of coaching.<\/span><\/p>\n A similar type of coaching is group coaching. Instead of focusing on content that employees need to learn, group coaching focuses on teaching the group to function well together. This is where you may see classic techniques like trust exercises and roleplaying. It\u2019s important to differentiate between instructional coaching and group coaching depending on the end goal, or businesses may choose the wrong materials.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The C.L.E.A.R Model <\/b><\/span>– The CLEAR model is very similar to the GROW model, but with the differences that managers and employees may prefer as an alternative. It\u2019s also a popular option for general life coaching, and can be used by HR to help employees find a better fit within the company.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The S.T.E.P.P.A Model<\/b> –<\/span> Developed by Dr. Angus McLeod, the STEPPA system is a methodical model with clearly defined steps that can be applied to many situations. It\u2019s notable for its inclusion of emotional analysis, which is something that models like CLEAR don\u2019t specifically address.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The O.S.C.A.R. Model <\/b>–<\/span> OSCAR is a simplified coaching model that can be very effective for skills-based coaching and quickly finding solutions for a situation.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The A.O.R. Model <\/b>– This is a highly condensed version of the other \u201cacronym\u201d models that gets the same information across very quickly. It may be more useful when a coach has plenty of experience but still needs a basic blueprint to follow, or for sessions where coaches want to be less structured. It\u2019s also a time-saver if coaches are on the clock and looking for ways to be more efficient.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Block Removal and Shift Coaching <\/b>– This coaching model can use many of the techniques listed above, but has a different focus. Here, the coach works to bring the employee into a mental place where healthy change can happen. Employees can have many different kinds of mental blocks. They may feel like they are unworthy of a promotion, that they don\u2019t have the ability to learn new skills, or that they don\u2019t have enough time to do their jobs properly.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n This kind of coaching works to reframe the employee\u2019s perspective and shift their mode of thinking to one that\u2019s more positive and helpful. When employees understand that they are capable of more than they think, their mood and performance can improve immensely.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A closely related form of coaching is \u201cvictim vs. player coaching.\u201d Here, the coach specifically tries to move the employee away from a helpless, victim mentality and toward a player mentality, where they feel they can take ownership and act to make a difference.<\/span><\/p>\n Self-Directed Learning<\/b> – Not all coaching needs involve detailed conversations. Sometimes, the best kinds of coaching for a situation use both a coach and self-directed learning. In these cases, coaches work with employees to consider where they want to be, and what steps can take them there. Experimentation is encouraged, and employees do much of the work on their own, according to their own schedule.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This type of coaching works well with ambitious employees who want to hone their skills or learn new capabilities on the job. It\u2019s often used as part of leadership training and the promotion process. That brings us to another closely related topic.<\/span><\/p>\n Mentorship Programs<\/b> – Do mentorship programs qualify as a coaching model? While they may not be a technical model like those we discussed above, they are a coaching option that organizations can adopt. Traditionally, mentorship is seen as a, \u201cDo as I do,\u201d type of training, while coaching asks, \u201cWhat do <\/span>you<\/span><\/i> need to achieve?\u201d But this isn\u2019t a strict rule, and many kinds of mentorships can help mentees learn valuable skills and allow them to thrive in the workplace.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Mentorships may work best for leadership positions, or for passing along specific experience and knowledge about clientele, accounts, etc. It can be combined with other types of coaching as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Consulting <\/b>– Some would argue that consulting isn\u2019t really a training model at all. Consultations usually focus on specific situations, not people and their skills. However, there are times when consulting is an integral part of the coaching process.<\/span><\/p>\n For example, an organization may want to start coaching employees in how to meet important compliance requirements when dealing with a new government contract. However, the organization doesn\u2019t have anyone on staff with experience in dealing with this kind of compliance. <\/span><\/p>\n In this case, the best solution may be to hire an outside consultant to discuss compliance issues, the best methods of training, and how to set up training sessions with the specialist and the organization\u2019s teams. This is an important first step when businesses don\u2019t have a lot of the necessary experience.<\/span><\/p>\n Coaching doesn\u2019t come naturally to everyone. The best way to start a coaching program is with the right training for mentors, which can help people prepare for their coaching role, and find effective techniques.<\/span><\/p>\n The good news is that many types of leadership training can also help with coaching. The basic aspects of leadership, like communication skills, integrity, inspiration, and creative thinking, are perfect for those preparing for a mentorship role. It\u2019s also important to generate buy-in throughout the workforce. All employees should understand the value of a coaching program, and the direct benefits that it can bring.<\/span><\/p>\n For a new coaching initiative, consider starting with KnowledgeCity\u2019s brief course on <\/span>Establishing the Right Coaching Mindset<\/span><\/a>. This is a great way to prepare when creating your program and explaining the goals to your team.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For more ideas about the different types of training that can encourage leadership in an organization, our <\/span>leadership and management<\/span><\/a> programs<\/span><\/a> are a good place to start browsing. This allows you to pick the right programs for knowledge gaps or specific challenges you or the coaches may run across. Providing everyone access to these materials allows them to look for specific resources themselves whenever they want.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Manager](\"https:\/\/www.knowledgecity.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/11-Effective-Coaching-Models-for-Managers-1000x667pix.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nWhat is a Coaching Model?<\/b><\/h3>\n
Why is Coaching Employees Important?<\/b><\/h3>\n
Coaching Models for Managers<\/b><\/h3>\n
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How Leadership Training Can Help<\/b><\/h3>\n
Brush Up on Your Coaching Know-How with KnowledgeCity<\/b><\/h3>\n