Coaching: an obligation of means or of results?

Is coaching an obligation of means or of results? This question is debated within the coaching community. Some consider that the mere fact of putting all the means at the disposal of the coachee is enough to qualify the coaching as successful. Others believe that the coach is, in part, responsible for the coachee reaching his or her coaching goals. At Talentis, we belong to the second category and believe that, like more and more professions, professional coaching is subject to an obligation of results.

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Is coaching an obligation of means or of results? It's all a question of culture at the outset.

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In the Anglo-Saxon countries, for example in the United States, coaching is considered to be aimed at achieving measurable results. This is due to the fact that, in this country, coaching was initially inspired by sports coaching. In sports, no discussion is possible, the objective is to win the competition. Hence the results-oriented dimension of professional coaching in this type of country. In France, coaching began to develop within companies at the beginning of the 80's, carried by psychologists, psychotherapists, psychoanalysts etc... This is very specific to France. For this reason, some French coaches will tend to consider their clients as autonomous, adult, and therefore holding the keys to their own development. " Neither savior nor persecutor " is the slogan often heard from French coaches. At Talentis, we share part of this point of view. Namely, to consider that the coach is not there to "baby-sit" a Talent. His role is to accompany the person in an efficient way to allow him to find the resources to progress. On the other hand, we are convinced that as coaching professionals, we have an obligation to get as close as possible to a results-oriented culture. Let's see what this means.

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Moving from a culture of means to a culture of results in coaching: validating the intentions of each stakeholder.

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When it comes to professional coaching, there are 3 players present:

• The company that proposes to a manager, a leader or a group of Talents to be accompanied
• The person accompanied, the coachee
• The coach

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Moving from a culture of means to a culture of results, or at least getting closer to it, starts with the brief. When a company contacts us, as coaching experts, we have the duty to position ourselves on the following aspects

• Is coaching the most appropriate solution to the person's problem?
• Is this type of support compatible with the person's environment and reality at that time?
• Is this a process originating from the future coachee or from the company?

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As coaches, asking ourselves these questions is already a first step in the adoption of a results-oriented culture. It is better not to start coaching if the intentions are not clear than to do it with only the financial aspect in mind... It will be a matter of revalidating the intentions of each actor during the famous tripartite meeting.

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At the time of the start-up: obligation for the coach to make the right diagnosis to address the right coaching objective.

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One of the key moments of a coaching is at the beginning. At the moment when the coach and the coachee define together the objective(s) of coaching. The coach's goal is to identify the right situation A (starting situation) and a situation B (desired ending situation). In this process, the coach is responsible for making an accurate diagnosis. The success of the coaching process depends on the correct diagnosis. There is no point in coaching someone on their ability to drive transformation projects if their problem is their lack of assertiveness. Beyond the finesse of the diagnosis, the success of a coaching depends on the relevance of the tools used by the coach during the sessions. It is an obligation of means but also of result. Choosing the right tool to address the right issue and implement the appropriate action plan. Hence the need for coaches to be constantly trained in various tools, theoretical fields and practices related to professional coaching.

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To (re)read: 6 keys to develop your assertiveness

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A growing need to be able to continuously measure the results of coaching

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More and more companies want to coach a large group of talents at the same time, wherever they are. This explains the boom of online coaching platforms. On a platform like Click & Coach, a large part of the technical development is allocated to the permanent optimization of the reporting for Human Resources. HR wants to be able to follow the consumption of coaching hours, the satisfaction of their Talents, the achievement of objectives ... To do this, questions are asked to the coachees at the end of their journey:

• Was the coach challenging enough?
• Has it taken into account the reality of my environment?
• Did he listen to my problems and issues?...

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Remote coaching platform: Why such a success?

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With the advent of these platforms, the quality of coaching and the achievement of objectives are increasingly being put to the test. And this is starting to happen with respect to the so-called "classic" individual coaching. The culture is changing, dear coach friends, get ready!