We had an awesome group of participants attend my “Creating a Coaching Culture” session at the Association of Talent Development session in Cedar Rapids on September 12^th!

The focus of this workshop is on creating a culture that supports having internal coaches available to employees, managers and leaders.  Once the culture is in place, it will be important to have effective coaches that can help everyone achieve higher levels of performance. If you are interested in information about how my internal coaching certification program can provide training for your internal coaches please contact me at eric@myersbds.com or 563-340-7600.

We began our session with a discussion of the need for internal coaches. While many organizations engage external coaches for on-going development, there are also many internal roles that require an ability to provide some level of coaching.  Successful internal coaching is an approach that usually requires some refinement to the culture of most organizations.  This discussion led to the importance of analyzing whether or not an organization has the internal resources to make this cultural shift or if they should have an outside coach help create and implement the strategy. There are advantages to both approaches and this decision should be made carefully.

We reviewed a condensed version of my all day training seminar that outlines the steps involved in creating a coaching culture with internal resources or external help. Here is a brief recap of the steps we discussed:

STEPS FOR CREATING A SUCCESSFUL COACHING CULTURE

1. Create a coaching strategy. Developing a new aspect of your culture successfully is the result of a well thought-out strategy that demonstrates that a coaching culture is the right approach.
2. Utilize inspirational leadership techniques. Motivating the organization to embrace the change is one of the change leader’s most important roles.
3. Create a team. Consider carefully who has the social capital to execute the strategy.
4. Get support. Each player on the team will have different needs and it is important to understand how to motivate them each in a unique way.
5. Remove obstacles. Identify real and perceived constraints and eliminate them with a systematic approach.
6. Keep the momentum going. There is no final step to making a culture refinement. It is an on-going process that requires determination.
7. Consider organizational culture. Align the new culture perspective with the overall organizational culture.
8. Analyze and revise. Your strategy is not a sacred writing that can never be changed. Be very willing to adjust over time.
9. BE CREATIVE AND FUN! Serious results can usually be accomplished even more effectively with creativity and an enjoyable environment.

Remember that careful planning and patience is crucial to successfully launching a strategy to create a coaching culture!

For more details about creating a coaching culture, please contact me eric@myersbds.com or 563-340-7600.