What is Executive Coaching and Why Someone would Need It?

Executive coaching is about helping individuals recognize their blind spots so they can get over hurdles to reaching their full potential. And if one leader (or manager) can be helped this way, the entire organization and its employees will likewise be better off.

One major reason companies bring in an executive coach is the need of a third party (not in-house) person to uncover blind-spots for individuals. Because the ‘executive coach’ is a highly trained outsider, the hard-hitting truth can often be objectively deciphered and delivered. This is something very difficult for an in-house employee to pull off.

Sometimes, individuals resist coaching. It’s common for them to think, If i’m already an executive or a leader, why do I need coaching at all? If and when this happens, that executive often needs reminding that what got them here, won’t get them there (Marshall Goldsmith). All great athletes need a coach, even when they’re at their best.  Think…

• Muhammad Ali in Boxing
• Michael Phelps in Swimming
• Michelle Kwan in Figure Skating

Just as these athletes were at the top of their game and still in need of a coach, so too are the executives/leaders/managers operating in a company.  Individuals in your company who are highly talented, but missing a few blind spots, are the ones who might perform exponentially better with executive coaching.

Coaching in the corporate world, however, is a lot different than sports coaching in that it’s never 100% advice given.  It’s 80% inquiry, 20% advice; or 70/30….maybe 50/50 if the executive coach has earned the right to advance. The perfect balance is often tricky to achieve but absolutely possible.

That’s why in the last 10 years, businesses have begun to realize that coaching is a great way to develop leaders and managers (even front-line staff) to the benefit of the company’s bottom line. And we’re excited to be a part of this movement and to make a large impact, one person at a time.