Can we assume star performers are reaching their full capacity? In an environment where competition drives success star performers are consistently looking for the edge that will allow them to continue to push boundaries and open new frontiers. Successful companies recognize their executives need innovation, stimulation, clarification and enhancement of competencies such as judgment, decision-making, supervisory skills, people management and critical thinking.

Executive coaching is assisting star performers to stay on the top of their game. When leading athletes reach peak performance do they give up their coaches? NO. They rely even more heavily on them for fine tuning performance, sharpening the edges, spotting possible avenues for increased performance, monitoring the competition and seeking innovation.  The coach is responsible for maintaining the competitive position while the star performers put in the hard yards to consolidate that position.

Coaching executives is critical to success in many multinational companies and is now becoming accepted practice in medium sized businesses. In a competitive and faced paced world there is no place for complacence in corporate success. Executives need to be at the top of their game and just like sporting stars they are more in need of a coach at this level than ever before.

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There are many forms of coaching for executives and there are some common elements that will make coaching a success. Whether you go for an in-house coaching system or employ an external coaching consultant it is necessary to have a full and open discussion on the process of coaching before commencing.

Coaching does not assume a position of lack or negativity that needs to be fixed – that is performance management. Neither is coaching a relationship where one person is assumed to have all the experience and knowledge – that is mentoring. A good coach is diagnostic. They use a system of assessment, goal setting and planning, backed up by a strong framework of coaching obligations – contracting, checking and measuring – to ensure increased performance, adaptability and innovation.

A good executive coach will spend approximately 70% of the coaching time questioning and listening, 10% confirming or clarifying actions required, 10% planning where to go to next, 5% playing devil’s advocate and 5% encouraging through support and congratulations. So why would you pay someone to question and listen for 70% of the time they are working? Well there is a very good reason for this! Executives are very bright, usually well educated, skilled, entrepreneurial, thinkers and doers – what they need is support  and direction and they rarely need to be told what to do. In fact they will resent being given orders! They need a sounding board to bounce ideas and work through processes and this is one role for the executive coach. This is where entrepreneurial leadership is born. It is the expansion of ideas and the introduction of innovation that allows for leadership emergence.

The skill development side of executive coaching is often based in the practicalities of managing people. It is about delegation, managing performance, feeding back to staff, organisational planning, strategic  ability and emotional intelligence. The coach works with the executive to improve competencies in all these areas.

In order to measure improvements executive coaches start with an assessment of baseline management skills. Often this is achieved by using a 360 degree or linear interview process. An objective analysis of how others perceive performance is a great way to establish a baseline and also provides a checking system that can be used at various stages of the coaching process to check on progress. What emerges from the assessment are the strengths and weaknesses of each executive and  themes for focusing coaching.

All coaching involves setting goals and developing a plan of action to achieve those goals. This occurs around a systems approach where each coaching session has certain elements that occur every time the coach and the executive meet. These elements are negotiated individually but will usually involve a review of the time since the last session and the goals that were set. A discussion about achievements and progress towards agreed goals. Adjustments that need to be made. Personal learning and what to do next. A decision about what the focus of the session will be next time. The aim of the sessions is to propel the participant towards leadership and better management skills.

Coaching is about change. Change is hard for most people and requires periods of review and consolidation, learning new habits and taking on new approaches. It is not an easy process and is only undertaken at an executive level when the executive is awakened to the knowledge that being at the top is only the beginning – staying there is what it is all about.