Mothers - Are you the loneliest Exec?

Ray Garner

It’s lonely at the top – so CEO’s, and those who write about them, will tell you. The wise CEO will often turn to an external ‘Executive Coach’ to help them review their visions and aspirations in a ‘safe environment’.

But, there is one type of CEO that rarely gets the recognition, nor support, that they deserve. They wear more hats than most other execs – they are leaders, motivators, financial controllers, human resource managers, trainers and developers and, often, counsellors. In addition, they may be interior designers, chefs and accountants; and any number of other, unspecified jobs. They are, of course, wives, home-builders and household managers. In UAE, they may also be a long way from home and the support networks they grew up with. Yet, they are the heart of the family and the leadership challenges they face, whilst presenting a smiling face to the world, are evidently similar to the challenges faced by the business exec. If on a smaller scale, within the family, then all the more intimate and intense than within the corporate setting.

It occurs to me, as an ‘executive coach’, that so called ‘life’, or ‘personal’, coaching is really indivisible from any other branch of our profession and deserves the same respect and kudos.
In this environment differences become concerns, concerns become problems. Who do you turn to, it can be a close friend of a group of ladies who you meet for coffee or exercise with. In this environment there is likely to be a transient group and may not bring with it the non-judgemental confidentiality necessary. This is the place for coaching.

What is a coach?

A coach is not an adviser, a therapist or a counsellor. A coach should practice by asking the key questions, giving you space to think, providing opportunity to identify ways to move forward and commit to action.

This approach isn’t laden with others view of ‘right’ but provides a non-judgemental space and time.

To the potential client, I would borrow the beauty-product strap-line – “Because you’re worth it!”

Know yourself, know your client

In order to operate professionally and within the ethical boundaries of coaching,I believe we have an obligation to our clients to undertake periods of sustained self-reflection. My personal mantra that has supported my continued development and ability to self-reflect objectively on my performance,and that of my clients, is ‘know yourself, know your client’.

When we make the decision to bring about a change involving the development of new knowledge and skills to move forwards, it is my belief that we must first be aware of the behavioural default settings from which we operate as a norm. To enable this process of self-reflection to have a purpose we must understand the values, beliefs and attitudes that we hold and that are the foundation on which we base our decisions. Understanding ourselves, and the standpoint from which we operate, we are able to communicate effectively and develop relationships based on mutuality of purpose and outcome.Similarly, through reflection you are better equipped to foresee situations when assumptions and judgements might hi-jack your session, when emotions might supersede the facilitation of a clients thoughts, learning and progression and when ego states might limit relationships. Linked to this is fully understanding the role and responsibilities we take on within our professional and personal lives; an appreciation of how our personal culture has impacted on us emotionally and spiritually, and the persona that we choose to show people in public.

Once self-aware, you become better equipped with the skills and tools to support your client through their journey of understanding and how their values, beliefs and attitudes might impact on their relationships and decisions that they make.

Charlotte Randall

New Year Blog: Perfect time for coaching.

A new year brings with it thoughts of change, focus and commitment. Commit to doing that something – that something could be change job, lose weight, learn a language; complete that qualification!

Whatever it is, it shows that without commitment it wouldn’t have been achieved. History shows us people need help to move from transient solutions to achieve the holy grail of sustainable solutions.

As coaches we work with clients to achieve sustainability – it’s what we do. The first week of 2015 is a great opportunity to show the power of coaching, help people make their resolutions sustainable.

Remember:

1)People need help to identify change and to make change.

2)Weather isn’t an excuse – for me this is a metaphor. Clients who don’t commit to their actions    will not achieve. A coach should commit in their sessions.

3)Be prepared for the year ahead, life will throw up demands and challenges, some of which will be in your clients control. To achieve sustainability you will need to be flexible.

4)Don’t be blown off course. 2015 will offer many distractions especially with a general election.

5)Reward yourself, give yourself a treat for maintaining your focus and achieving SUSTAINABILITY.


Judith Barton

BSC Coaching Network Event: October 2014

In October we launched a new series of Coaching Network events.  In these short, informal sessions we lead a seminar on an important area of coaching, followed by a chance to mix with like-minded professional coaches and share learning.

This event was led by Martin Hill, senior tutor on the ILM Level 7 Certificate in Executive Coaching and Mentoring.  Martin discussed internal coaching, strategy, confidentiality and ethics.  It was attended by delegates who traveled from as far as the UAE and France (not to mention 400 yards down the road!)

Martin’s seminar was followed by lively discussion and delegates stayed in the venue for several hours afterwards to chat over lunch.

The next Coaching Network event will run on the 17th of January – it will be facilitated by Angela Hill, who will lead a session on the role of the coach to challenge.

Book a place now here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/bsc-coaching-network-spring-2015-tickets-13985959381

Visit the BSC Website for more information.

Book Review: Coaching and Mentoring at Work

Coaching and Mentoring At Work (2nd Edition)  –Mary Connor and Julia Pokora (2012) Open University Press, McGraw-Hill Education

Martin Hill, Senior Tutor, BSC

 This book is relevant for experienced practitioners and also provides a great framework for new practitioners and students. I would also suggest that this is an essential read for purchasers of coaching and mentoring service, HR professionals and managers/leaders who are interested in developing their coaching and mentoring skills.

The book is written in an accessible, easy to understand style and is crammed full with practical examples and tips. The authors even reserve a chapter for one of the key characters in any coaching or mentoring relationship – the client. This is one of the few coaching and mentoring texts that address the position of the client and sets out the factors that clients should bear in mind when deciding whether to embark upon coaching or mentoring and suggests how best to prepare themselves to get the best out of that experience, as well as highlighting some of the standards and behaviours that they should be expecting from a coach or mentor- a useful chapter for the practitioner to reflect upon their own practice to ensure that they are meeting these expectations and standards.

The book considers the similarities between coaching and mentoring and one of the key arguments of the authors is that “a learning relationship is central to both coaching and mentoring, which are more than just a set of activities or skills.” It also highlights the differences between the two disciplines, albeit the majority of the book focuses on the common elements.

The structure of the book prompts reflection and learning opportunities for the reader- reinforcing the reflective learning discipline that is a prerequisite for the wise practitioner! I found the chapter on contracting to be a practical and comprehensive guide which addresses the key factors that one encounters in reality – a book that addresses the practitioner elements as well as the subject theory.

The main model that is advocated by the authors for both coaching and mentoring is Dr Gerard Egan’s Skilled Helper” model-once again the authors approach this with a winning combination of theory and practical application. Two chapters show how the model would apply to a coaching scenario and a mentoring scenario. The authors also highlight other models commonly encountered in coaching and mentoring.

The authors also provide a comprehensive guide to tools and techniques that will support the successful implementation of the model – twelve tools and techniques that are succinctly described and the pros and cons considered.

The second edition features a new chapter which deals with reflective practice, supervision and accreditation – this is outlined with the same hallmarks of clarity and practicality with useful checklists and prompts.
This book will be one of the “default” texts that I turn to in my coaching and mentoring practice, and also in my role as manager and leader. It will be one of the texts that I will recommend for my ILM Level 7 candidates as a good “foundation” text.

Martin is a Programme tutor for British School of Coaching's executive coaching courses.  Read more about our ILM qualifications and CPD courses here.

Developing a School Leadership Coaching Team

Charlotte Randall

Through private invitation, the Dubai English Speaking School (DESS) was asked to present at the 'What Works' Leadership event on April 16^th 2013 at the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) in Dubai.  The Headteacher, Mr David Hammond, along with myself, jointly delivered a presentation that focused on the success of introducing the ILM Level 3 Award in Coaching accreditation into the professional development programme of our senior and middle leaders.

The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) is a regulatory authority of the Government of Dubai and is responsible for the growth, direction and quality of private education and learning in Dubai.  'What Works' was established by the KHDA, as an invitation only event, to provide a forum for collaborative learning within Dubai’s private education sector. Their vision, to bring schools together to share best practice and develop professional relationships based on underlying values that put the pupils at the heart of learning.

By taking the approach of training all members of the leadership team (teaching and non-teaching) on a rolling programme due to complete in 2014, we have started to build capacity and capability across the organisation for increasing performance at all levels. This is being achieved through individual coaching sessions, performance management conversations and the integration of the coaching dialogue into the core of the organisation.

Areas that have been developed as a result of enhancing the schools professional development opportunities with an accredited leadership coaching team are:

Leadership and Management:

• Team collegiality, motivation, challenge
• Behavioural changes at leadership level to get the best from the team
• Raising the profile of leadership roles through addressing staff performance

Career/Role Development:

• Linked to the above leadership and management points but also….
• Career progression within the organisation (long term and short term goals linked to teaching and learning)
• Understand my role within the organisation

Teaching and Learning:

• Develop teaching and learning strategies
• Developing in key areas such as formative and summative assessment

Time Management:

• Using the Time Management Matrix to support colleagues through pressure points in the term
• How to deal with stress and panic

Project Management:

• Building a rationale and action plan towards implementing a project

Change Management:

• Supporting colleagues to adapt to change within the working environment
• Transition out of the organisation and succession planning

Raising the profile of a department:

• Developing skills and practical actions to raise the profile of the department/subject area

It was a privilege to have been invited to the 'What Works' event and be able to share the good practice, commitment and hard work of my colleagues at DESS to ensure that as an organisation we are always moving forward.

During the presentation, visual harvesting or graphic recording was used to collect the content of the talk in real-time, the result of which can be seen in the photo below.

Charlotte Randall

Read more about the coaching programme the British School of Coaching are implementing at Dubai English Speaking School here



 

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.