Why Coaching?
A recent study by the American Management Association, in conjunction with the Institute for Corporate Productivity, confirms that “an external coach’s role in executive leadership development improves an organization’s productivity and profitability.”
Preston Leadership’s primary mission is to improve productivity and profitability through leadership development at the mid-tier executive level, where strategy meets execution. As individual contributors and managers are promoted, they must re-align their values and priorities to best serve the larger organization. But this simply does not happen automatically.
Coaching is more effective than traditional training and mentoring because the higher an employee rises in an organization, the more difficult it becomes for him or her to receive “unfiltered” information about performance. Therefore, according to the study, “an outsider is the best choice to address sensitive performance or personality issues.” Also, most organizations cannot maintain enough internal resources dedicated solely to wide-scale leadership development using the most effective method: coaching.
What makes Preston Leadership coaching the best solution?
Relevance, Reinforcement and Scalability
The study goes on to say that “improvements in organizational performance take place when a large number of employees have received coaching. Before organizational performance reflects positive changes due to coaching, a coaching culture—in which coaching is widely utilized and strongly supported by top management—must exist.”
Our experience confirms the data, and our approach enables a cost-efficient wide-scale implementation. Preston programs engage large numbers of leaders across a variety of functions with our large team of certified coaches and a proprietary web-based software solution.
Over six months, our coaches engage with their leadership clients at least twice per month, and stand ready for impromptu consultation virtually any time. This allows for real-time guidance, multiple opportunities for practice, and critical feedback.
Summary
Coaching is associated with higher performance
The AMA study confirms the relationship between the extent to which individuals receive coaching and their abilities in terms of leadership. Further, their research shows that coaching will continue to expand and mature as an important leadership development practice. “Coaching will become one of the keys to developing and retaining scarce talent in the future, and companies that learn to leverage it well will have a significant competitive advantage in the global marketplace.”
Source
American Management Association and Institute for Corporate Productivity (2008). Coaching: A Global Study of Successful Practices. Retrieved December 24, 2008.
