5 Reasons to Hire an Executive Coach

Reasons to Get an Executive Coach

  • Focus and Clarification of Goals
  • Greater Accountability
  • Greater Confidence and Job Satisfaction
  • A Sounding Board for Ideas
  • Stronger Decision-making and Problem-solving Skills

In the past, corporations have relied on an Executive Coach to “fix” executives with problematic behaviors. Today, however, they are turning to the mentors to help rising stars in business achieve their potentials. Much depends upon getting just the right match of personalities between executive and coach, and upon the executive’s desire to grow. Additionally, with the emphasis on negative behaviors all but abandoned, there is little way to measure the positives that coaching imparts. In spite of this, corporations pay up to $3,500 an hour for the services of a coach. Here are five reasons your business might consider hiring a managerial coach.

1) Focus and Clarification Of Goals

Some of the success in this area comes from the detachment of the employee coach. Coming into a situation without understanding a job profile or an ongoing project requires explanations from the executive. Giving those explanations helps the exec pare down his role to the essentials. The unfamiliarity of the coach with the executive’s job can spur fresh viewpoints and new observations. Where the executive’s manager and his corporation may seem at odds over direction, the coach can help the executive sort out his priorities. He can also look at himself through the eyes of the coach to identify areas of weakness. Some of those weaknesses may need to be addressed, but a coach can help the client see others which are best left alone.

2) Increased Accountability

This comes from telling someone else your goals and accounting for failures. The coach can help his client see excuses for what they are.

3) Increased Confidence and Job Satisfaction

Coaches can help clients picture what success will look like and set direction to achieve the goal. The coach will assist the executive in strategizing and help him eliminate negative thought patterns. In addition, patterning the coach’s model of questioning and assessment can build those skills in the executive, giving him confidence in his leadership abilities. This point is especially valuable when companies are transitioning employees to areas of higher responsibility. A Gallup Poll of employees showed that only 13 percent of respondents felt engaged at work. Employees of corporations who have hired executive coaches had a 65 percent engagement.

4) A sounding Board For Ideas

Managers second-guess themselves frequently. Ideas for problem-solving are quashed by overthinking them, and innovations never make it past the “what if” phase because executives talk themselves out of trying the ideas. Other projects may begin when the executive has no clear plan to complete them. Coaches can challenge some ideas and support others to help the employee see without bias what they really entail.

5) Stronger Decision-making and Problem-solving Skills

Coaches can help executives reduce, or eliminate preconceived ideas about team members, employees or procedures that enable the client to engage in problem-solving. Coaching enables clients to distinguish between reality and prejudices. That, combined with greater confidence in his or her leadership abilities, can give the executive the courage to make decisions.

Coaches are expensive, and the fact that so many corporations are investing in their services is a testament to their success. Of course, the coaches can’t “fix” people who consistently blame others or make excuses. They also can’t do much for systemic problems in the company. What an Executive Coach can do is turn people with potential into executives with serious business skills.