Boston Beer

How Jim Koch's 'speed coaching' has helped Boston Beer go from a home enterprise in 1984 to bringing in almost $630 million dollars in 2012

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/25/idUS253517120220130425

What Does it Mean to be a Coach?

Martin Hill, British School of Coaching

My coaching supervisor, in highlighting further development opportunities, suggested a couple of avenues to consider. One of them was “What is required in ‘being’ a coach- rather than simply ‘doing’ coaching.”

This concept intrigued me and made me reflect on the skills and qualities that I think a good coach should possess. In no particular order, as this was a stream of consciousness thought process:

• Emotional Intelligence- Daniel Goleman (1998) “ Working with emotional intelligence”, New York: Bantam Books) outlines five main elements – Wikipedia summarises these as follows : “(i) “Self-awareness – the ability to know one's emotions, strengths, weaknesses, drives, values and goals and recognize their impact on others while using gut feelings to guide decisions. (ii)Self-regulation – involves controlling or redirecting one's disruptive emotions and impulses and adapting to changing circumstances. (iii) Social skill – managing relationships to move people in the desired direction (iv) Empathy - considering other people's feelings especially when making decisions and (v) Motivation - being driven to achieve for the sake of achievement.”  In my opinion “being” a coach means being aware of emotions in coaching conversations (both yours and your clients) and managing them.

• Curiosity- this is the element that I love – ensuring that I go into a coaching conversation in a “curious” state of mind, means that my questions and listening assist the client in achieving the goal set for the session. Resetting that state of curiosity prior to each session also serves to boost the energy levels I take into that session and assists in preventing unconscious transference from previous sessions. Curiosity is infectious and frequently serves to re-energise the client and achieve breakthroughs on issues that have become something of a blockage.

• Competence- one would hope that this would go without saying- but a search of any internet search engine will reveal hundreds and hundreds of hits re coaches- few of whom appear to have any coaching qualification. Competence means that the coach has a range of tools and models to use to assist the client in achieving their objectives – it also implies that the coach knows what they are doing – and more critically knows when those competencies are insufficient for the particular needs of a client- and ensure that they help the client in identifying someone who did have the necessary specialist skills.

• Challenge – this distinguishes coaching from a simple conversation and it is from challenge the client frequently gains the most useful and important learning. Challenge does not have to mean confrontation – it can occur in a variety of ways. For example for some the simple presence of another person can be a challenge; for others challenge can be made through silence or tone of voice; questioning and reflecting back the client’s own comments. One of the tools I use in reflecting on a coaching or supervision intervention is to assess whether there was any challenge. I also check this out with the client directly.

• Courage- not something that would immediately spring to mind perhaps, but this idea stems from reflections on my own coaching practice. It is not uncommon to find candidates embarking on coaching training, worrying about whether they will know what questions to ask; worrying if they are the “right” question etc. etc. Reflecting on my own coaching and supervision practice now, I am surprised to note how I often have the “sense” of something – and have the courage to follow up that feeling/sense. Obviously this has to be done consciously and carefully, but the courage of following one’s instincts has often uncovered the real heart of the client’s issue.  Courage also is involved in ensuring that as a coach one does the” right thing” – having the courage to decline work if it will impinge on your own ethics, values or beliefs or to ensure that it is the “right thing” for the client themselves.

• Integrity-  a key element of being a coach is to ensure that one operates ethically, professionally and with integrity. Maintenance of confidentiality is often an indicative benchmark of the level of a coach’s integrity.

 

• Open Minded-  this links in with curiosity perhaps, but although you may hear the same topics/issues cropping up it is crucial to keep an open mind as it will be a unique experience for each client . Keeping an open mind ensures that you also manage your own values and beliefs and are focused on the client’s objectives.

• Resilience- again, not one that may immediately spring to mind. As a coach you are often the guardian of the client’s declared goal or objective. It is not uncommon for obstacles or issues to crop up in the course of attaining that goal/objective. As the coach you must have the resilience to assist your client in navigating through the storm and steering them into the clear waters to reach the intended harbour.

To close, some short bullet points that are also spring to mind and which are self-explanatory:

• Commitment to excellence- both for self and for the client
• Commitment to reflective learning
• Continuing professional development
• Authenticity- Being Oneself
• Awareness of Own Values & Beliefs-Knowing Oneself

Those are my starters for ten – what are the ones that you would suggest?

Coaching in Education

Bsc clients Dubai English Speaking School will be presenting the impact of Coaching on the school, children and parents at Sheikh Zayed University 16th April 2013

Find out more about our work in coaching here

Where is Your Focus?

A friend sent me this silly picture by e-mail. When I had finished laughing, I realised that there was an important message embedded within it.

We value focus – managers, sports-persons and, of course, coaches - think of the competence around goal focus. But, when focus is too narrowly applied, it can be dangerous and damaging. People get trampled ….. or eaten.

I’m a big advocate of ‘consequence questions’ in coaching sessions, often using the ‘three chair’ strategy to challenge the coachee to think about what a course of action would seem like to Mr. X or manager Y.  Or, I might use hypothetical questioning to explore “what would happen if …” Perhaps it is exactly this ability of the coach, to impose a 360 degree perspective on the decision-maker’s thinking, which is at the heart of executive coaching. 

Julie Starr says that the coach is often the guardian of the coachee’s goal focus. Maybe we should also be the guardian of their awareness?

Of course, there are times when coaching is not appropriate at all – when telling is the right approach; in this case ……

“Lion! RUNNNNN!” 

Ray Garner is BSC's Programme Director of the ILM Level 7 Certificate in Executive Coaching and Mentoring and for the ILM Level 3 Award in Coaching.

Ray is an ex-Head Teacher with forty years experience in education and using coaching as a mechanism to transform organisational culture. 

When Coaches Shouldn't Coach

Judith Barton is Director of Coaching at the British School of Coaching and has been coaching and developing senior leaders in government and private sectors for 23 years.

Business coaching is a set of knowledge, understanding and skills which can be applied generically – i.e. it can be applicable to any business or work setting in the private, public or voluntary sectors.  Business coaching is focussed on facilitating the development of management and leadership skills: coachees may be operating at any level, ranging from  newly appointed team leaders to seasoned CEOs.  I have coached senior executives in the public and private sectors: Colleagues in The Development Partnership have coached junior, middle and senior managers, again in both private and public sectors.   

Alumni of the British School of Coaching work in middle management and senior executive levels in the charitable, public and private sectors, working in fields as diverse as animal welfare, health care, education and food production. So, a business coach can practice anywhere! 
 

However, I firmly belief that there are circumstances when coaches should not coach.  For example, a coachee may demonstrate signs of psychological or mental health issues such as depression or anxiety, or may reveal non-work circumstances which are impacting on their mental health, such as a recent bereavement.  These and similar circumstances are likely to impact on work performance (e.g. ability to concentrate and maintain focus, decisiveness, ability to empathise with colleagues or team members).

A coach may be able to support a coachee to focus on work issues in these circumstances but should not and must not try to become a ‘counsellor’ or ‘therapist’ unless additionally qualified in these fields.  Trying to maintain a pretence of supporting people with mental health issues is potentially dangerous for the coachee: it will also create anxiety in the coach who feels ‘out of her (or his) depth’ and is unsure of whether the interventions are appropriate or relevant.  

A coach may not wish to acknowledge that issues are beyond their competence but ethically should be both open to acknowledge this as well as having the basic knowledge that will indicate when a coachee is moving away from purely work-related/performance issues to more deep-seated psychological issues.  To help identify when coachees are displaying , you may find it helpful to look up signs and symptoms of depression and anxiety, on websites such as http://www.nhs.uk – the ‘Health A-Z’ tab, or http://www.webmd.boots.com – the ‘Health topics A-Z’ tab.  These sites also provide information about treatments for specific conditions. You can also rely on your own intuition and insights into human behaviour gleaned from your coaching training and continuing professional development. 

Once you have determined that your coachee needs support which is outside your professional competence, you need to have some suggestions and advice for your coachee to access appropriate help and support.  The websites noted above can signpost you in the right direction.  In general, services are be provided through the NHS (in the UK); through private providers; or through charities.   

In the UK, the starting point for access to NHS help is your GP who may be able to provide support themselves (around half surgeries offer in-house counselling) or refer the client on to appropriate specialist input, ranging from counselling through psychological therapies. Clients who wish to access counselling or therapy from the NHS will probably have to join a waiting list, although access to ‘talking treatments’ should become easier as policy to improve access is implemented. In some areas, psychological therapies can be accessed by self-referral, but most require a referral from a GP. 

You may have colleagues within your own coaching practice who have relevant competencies such as Counselling or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy recognised qualifications. You may wish to develop your own list of independent providers – but you must should ensure that any individuals are appropriately trained and members of the relevant professional body. 

If you are going to suggest an alternative source of support, you need to be aware of the different therapies that are available and the types of issues that they are able to address.  In addition to the above sites, more information can be found from UK websites such as British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP); British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP); British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC): UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). There are charities which offer services for specific issues, such as Cruse for bereavement care; Mind for mental health problems; and Relate for relationship counselling. 

It may also be appropriate to advise your coachee to approach their Occupational Health Department, professional association or HR Department if work-related matters are contributing to personal difficulties. 

Judith is currently running the ILM Level 7 Certificate in Executive Coaching and Mentoring, and the ILM Level 2 Award in Mentoring for Young Learners as well as continuing her coaching practice with British School of Coaching.