According to Innosight’s 2018 Corporate Longevity Forecast, lifespans on the S&P 500 stock index continue to shrink. The average tenure of companies on the index was 33 years in 1964. This was down to 24 years in 2016 and is expected to shrink to a mere 12 years by 2027. This means that at the current rate of churn, about half of today’s companies will be replaced over the next decade. This is just one indicator of the rapid and constant change we can expect to experience, and currently experience, in our lives that significantly impacts our work and culture.What...

Most of us are good at solving problems. Sometimes, we even think we can solve other people’s problems. We dole out advice like, “Let me lay this out for you. First, you need to. . . . ” This sort of direction can be helpful, for instance, when someone is trying something for the first time. But for most of us, receiving unsolicited advice isn’t particularly welcome. What’s more, it’s often not helpful.The problem is that when we give advice, the other person owns less of the solution. An article by Teri-E Belf and Michael Marx on the International Coach...

The process of executive coaching is a formal engagement in which executive coaches work with their clients in a series of confidential and dynamic meetings designed to establish and achieve clear goals. Most coaching “certification” programs teach a 4-step process of assessment that encompasses assessment, goal setting, accomplishing goals, and final review.

This is the first in a five-part series that describes how managers can coach people to practice genuine collaboration in the workplace. Each post represents an excerpt from ATD’s new book, Focus on Them, scheduled for publication in December 2018. Winsor Jenkins is a contributing author of the book.The importance of culture cannot be overstated when it comes to collaboration. We know that technology continues to be an enabler of collaboration. However, if we believe that culture is a pattern of basic assumptions invented, discovered by, or developed by a given...

Embrace the Power of Executive CoachingAs businesses become more complex, they tend to lean on their high performers to fend off competitors, innovate, and pivot to unexplored markets. But who do these executives and leaders turn to when they need to refine their own skills?Executive coaches. In The Art of Executive Coaching, Dr. Nadine Greiner takes you behind the scenes with nine stories of executive coach Alice Well and her clients. Follow along as she lets you in on the secrets, tips, and tricks to unlocking the transformative performance results leaders need...

Calculating the ROI associated with executive coaching can be difficult. As a high-level example, consider the following situation: A top-performing account executive at a large technology firm had recently been promoted to vice president of sales for the North American division. The executive had consistently exceeded his sales quota by 200 percent and had landed key marquee Fortune 500 customers. However, the new VP was underperforming in his new position. His direct reports were struggling to hit their individual quotas. The overall team morale had declined...

The key to reaping the full benefits of executive coaching is to secure company-wide buy-in and commitment. Here’s how.Executive coaching has different meanings for different people and different organizations. The applications of executive coaching are far-reaching; it’s critical to understand how different organizational stakeholders are likely to reap the greatest benefits. The sales department might be struggling with high costs or low customer satisfaction ratings. On the other hand, the marketing department may be struggling with leadership issues that have...

"Even modest improvements can justify hiring a coach. An investment of $30,000 or so in an executive who has responsibility for tens of millions of dollars is a rounding error." ―Jerome Abarbanel, VP of Executive Resources, CitibankThe demand for executive coaching has experienced rapid growth. Executive coaching is now a multi-billion-dollar industry. All signs indicate that executive coaching is a sound investment. Studies report an impressive ROI of 500-800 percent. A study conducted by MetrixGlobal LLC, for example, reported an ROI of 689 percent associated...

Providing one-on-one executive coaching is an expensive yet potentially powerful part of a leadership development strategy. It provides the opportunity for regular, targeted, individualized, and accelerated attention on a leader’s development goals. It offers a structure and safe space for consistent self-reflection and action planning, as well as a thought partner to provide support, reflective questioning, and feedback to move forward. In my previous article, I provided a few things to think about when setting up an executive coaching strategy. Assuming you...

Coaching to bring out the whole person. There are a wealth of leadership development methods—mentoring, action learning, and in-person or online training courses, to name just a few. Yet it seems we often focus on coaching. According to Kevin Cashman, Korn Ferry’s global leader of CEO and executive development, and author of Leadership from the Inside Out: Becoming a Leader for Life, “As careers advance, sorting out personal, team, and marketplace complexities is greatly enhanced by coaching versus training.” He continues, “When content or expertise is called...

Executive coaching has gained popularity in the past decade as an integral part of the talent management strategy in many organizations. Because it is one-on-one and tailored to the individual, coaching is often used to prepare leaders for roles of increased executive responsibility or as a support mechanism as they transition into these roles.Simply offering executive coaching to leaders and hiring and assigning either an internal or external coach to work with your leaders may not yield the results you seek. Here are three essentials to consider.Coaching is one...

A majority of leaders report that executive coaching efforts in their organizations are effective, according to the 9th annual executive coaching survey from Sherpa Executive Coaching. Fifty-eight (58) percent describe results from coaching as “excellent,” and more than 40 percent describe results as “good.” Among HR and training professionals, only 7 percent have seen results they would describe as only “fair,” with a mere 1 percent reporting “poor” results. A series of nine questions touched on all the benefits that executive coaching is designed to create...