The Democratization of Coaching

By Chris Morgan, December, 2017

For decades management science has espoused the leader’s role as coach in developing more capable organizations. It has been a struggle for most to find the time, and we have compensated with a dependency on consultants. Software solutions can help, and offer the opportunity to expand good coaching practices.

The cost of executive coaching engagements varies depending on the level of the client. Six months with an enterprise level SVP typically runs $30k, but I have seen costs for CX0s run as high as $100k. I once asked the head of Training & Development at Goldman Sachs whether he thought there was more value from the latter. “Not that I can tell” was his reply.

That was at least ten years ago. Now the coaching profession has matured and with so many providers, there is downward pressure on cost. Smart organizations have also learned enough about the process of coaching such that it can be re-engineered and streamlined. McKinsey now prescribes a shortened formulaic process to their vendors which must be delivered for $15k!

Like all other services (and products) the market will fragment into specialties and find their place on the price/quality grid. High quality and price will be reserved for CXOs where an experienced person delivering interview-based feedback and in-person guidance will still be the norm. At the lower left corner of the grid, we will see Likert scaled questionnaires completed online, then presented in lengthy reports but little human touch.

Impact

Grids, process and techniques aside, the value of feedback and coaching comes from the learning insights that can be elevated and the positive changes that can be achieved. Let’s call that Impact. The problem is that neither the more affordable nor higher end approaches guarantee impact largely because the process tends to be run by outsiders who, often for reasons of confidentiality or proprietary solutions, operate somewhat in a black box. Without visibility and the continuity of ongoing discussions with management, there is less chance of creating change.

To illustrate, a couple of months ago I was talking with a friend about his boss, a startup CEO, who was working with a coach to deal with his poor people leadership. I asked my friend who would see the feedback and his commitments to change. Apparently no one. Predictably there was no impact — until the CEO was asked to step down.

Agile increases expectations

The agile revolution is underway in HR land! Dr Anna Tavis, who teaches The Future of HR at NYU uses this metaphor in much of her work1 While it has its origins in 1970s manufacturing, ‘agile’ is a term typically associated with the modern software development process. At its essence is the idea of shorter cycles involving many stakeholders. Similarly, for the last few years progressive organizations have been moving away from backwards looking infrequent performance reviews towards regular check-ins aimed at improving performance and growing talent.2 Instead of setting annual goals, priorities are now meant to be reviewed and revised based on the predictably unpredictable nature of today’s work.

At least this is the theory. In reality, most leaders haven’t yet been able to free themselves from the trappings of urgent tasks to get to important things like developing talent. It’s not like everyone’s workload shortened. In fact the US sits near the top of national rankings in terms of average hours worked.3 With this shift to agile practices, we have asked our managers to massively increase the amount of time they invest in reassessing priorities, reviewing progress and coaching.

Leaders struggle

For decades, management thought leaders have advocated the role of Leader as Coach, the idea that part of a line manager’s job is to develop a capable and motivated team.4 In theory everyone wins; individuals get to learn and advance their careers, managers enjoy productive teams freeing them up to make more strategic contributions, and organizations benefit from a more talented and engaged workforce — throughput per capita even.

While leaders vary in how much they actually take up this role, or how effective they are, most will agree that it is indeed part of their responsibility to coach and develop a capable and motivated team. But they struggle mightily to get around to it, not least because it is a time consuming and complex process that needs to be handled sensitively.

Added to the time commitment is the socially delicate nature of these conversations. Most people know that offering unsolicited advice is a great way to put people off. And when coaching, stepping over the line from building people up to being critical is another way to hurt feelings or demotivate team members.

Technology can help

The good news is that software solutions are emerging to guide and support the shift. Gathering candid, learning-oriented feedback from work colleagues is one of the best ways to inform the coaching process. Historically it has been a time-sucking chore. The dominant 360 feedback gathering tool is still an annual (ahem) survey demanding up to an hour per person to complete. Debriefing typically involves a lengthy meeting with the person receiving the feedback, their manager and the ‘process facilitator’. Documenting conclusions and actions to follow takes another few weeks of elapsed time. Not exactly agile.

Now there are solutions which guide and automate feedback gathering and the larger coaching process making it easier for the Manager. Good ones will offer a visualization of your team (direct reports) with links to all the things you need to do to coach; development goals, anytime feedback and regular check-ins.

The opportunity

With the emergence of new software solutions, we should be able to expand coaching from the elite and expensive consultant offering, and streamline a laborious and infrequent chore into something easier, more frequent and integrated with ongoing management conversations.

Imagine that instead of setting up an annual survey of how you are perceived against some consulting firm’s proprietary model, you are always able to give and request feedback from your colleagues against the values and skills you want to promote. And imagine that instead of the conversation about your career aspirations and learning interests being relegated to an adjunct to your annual performance review, a clever UI helps you articulate, share and update your interests with your boss and colleagues anytime.

Of course, technology can never replace in-person contact, but it can guide, streamline and automate much of the process freeing us up to get to the important conversations that build future capability. Technology offers the opportunity to expand good coaching practices and put it back into the hands of the many.

If you are one of those managers struggling to find the time to develop a more capable team, or an individual seeking more coaching from your boss, maybe it’s time to connect with your HR partner and to look into coaching tools!

Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Chris Morgan is one of the most respected and trusted executive coaches. He has more than 20 years experience, having started with The Alexander Corporation, a firm rated by The Economist as the UK market leader. He is also founding Principal of Morgan Alexander, a consulting firm that coaches senior management teams to lead winning organizations. Morgan’s clients are primarily CXO engagements with Fortune 500 companies.

1. HR Studio podcast Episode 33 The Performance Management Revolution with Dr Anna Tavis https://soundcloud.com/ajo-11

2. Peter Cappelli and Dr Anna Tavis, The Performance Management Revolution, Harvard Business Review, October 2016

3. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Division of International Labor Comparisons

4. Joseph Weintraub and James Hunt, 4 Reasons Managers Should Spend More Time on Coaching, Harvard Business Review, May 2015