A633.8.3.RB_McNerneyLeighAnn

In my discussion this week I feel I described a coach very well and I want to reiterate this definition before moving on to describing an executive coach’s roles and responsibilities. “Coaching is an important behavior for strategy, organizations and individuals because everyone benefits from the developments. Coaching is not a “one size fits all” (Coaching the ten killer myths) it’s a practice that focuses on the weakness and strengths of the employee, and then concentrates on helping the employee understand why they need to improve and then helps develop ways to improve; while fostering independence. Coaching enables employees to figure out problems on their own which equip them with problem solving skills building confidence and increasing their resourcefulness as well as their critically thinking skills. Coaching increases engagement among employees at all levels increasing opportunities for fluid communication both up and down, breaking the charade because everyone is in the know through feedback. Skills are improved at the employee level which transfers to the overall organizations success. The increased attention on the employee contributes to the value they have and can increase their loyalty to the organization.
Executive coaches perform in similar ways within the business environment. They are coaches brought into an organization to better employee’s professional as well as individual skills in order to increase growth and improve their performances.  They usually are people who have a general understanding of diversity and differences experienced in the workplace and can assess the different challenges with an adaptive style. Once they can meet the employees and get to know what their thoughts and concerns are as well as what motivates them they can begin the coaching technique focusing on specific goals put in place within a \particular time frame. Through open communication channels they can deliver feedback back to upper management and vice versa to the employee in order to break the charades many organizations face.
In a Harvard Business Review: What can coaches do for you? HBR conducted a survey to a 140 leading coaches asking important questions on what their jobs do for people and where their field is going. Of the survey findings the general agreements among all of them was that “most companies engaged a coach to help fix a toxic behavior at the top. Today, most coaching is about developing the capabilities of high-potential performers…executives who get the most out of coaching have a fierce desire to learn and grow” (Harvard business Review). What this means is people getting coached in today’s world are the lower leveled employees all the way up to the executives and through this coaching they are producing employees with leadership characteristics.
Executive coaching has the capabilities of discovering employee’s hidden potentials they didn’t even know existed until they started asking and answering open non-suggestive questions to help them discover these hidden potentials. Michael Norris is an executive coach and he believes that most executive coaches only “skim the surface” when developing employees skills and discovering these unknown attainable qualities. He goes on to suggest that many employees “have no one they can talk to about their dreams and aspirations”. That’s where he comes in an simply gives them the opportunity to talk and all he will do is listen. Throughout the process “Norris tells people what to do (they have to figure that out for themselves), but makes them ‘aware of the choices available” (The Executive Coach).
Throughout my research thus far as well as the reading it is clear to me that leadership depends on coaching and coaching enables effective leadership.

A good leader is one that can create SMART goals with a few simple rules implementing the four + four principles. They can devolve responsibilities enabling each of their employees to have the ability to take the lead. A good leader can ask questions and seek help form others. The leader is able to successfully keep the energy positive and motivating when their employees will falls. A great leader operates with a team mentality and drops titles and focuses on building employees professional and personal skills. They are a coach helping the individuals better themselves and they are resourceful. They lead by example, do the right thing because it’s the right thing to do. A good leader can play the mediator when disagreements arise and foster innovation and creativity. A good leader is someone whom can better the team members for the common good of bettering them, while also keeping focus on the objective at hand. That is why these two roles go hand in hand and rely 100 percent on each other.

Having a leader described above will restructure an organization completely transforming it to become a polyarchy organization. Within this organization everyone builds their skill sets and they all play a part in boosting one another to excel.  The organization can administer clear direction and promote an understanding that can be internalized throughout each employee. Roles are defined and feedback plays a vital role in the operations success. Upper management ensures their employees receive adequate information, training and facilitate knowledge sharing. Employees have common goals and personal goals that can be developed and acquired through their careers with this organization. The overall big picture of what needs to be done is accomplished with the shared vision and cohesiveness runs all the way through. 

My organization relies heavily on the descriptions above and they enforce a modern interactive way of doing it. Through coaching our leadership team is able to raise the bar every year and keep our organization efficient and empowered to continue doing this.

Obolensky, N. (2010). Complex adaptive leadership. (1st edition.). London, UK: Gower/Ashgate
http://hbr.org/2009/01/what-can-coaches-do-for-you
The executive coach. (2006). Management Today, , 84-84. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/214771632?accountid=27203