Here are some brief case studies of the types of corporate coaching undertaken by our experienced consultants:- 

Case Study 1: Coaching in the Aftermath of Bullying 

John, an accounts manager, reluctantly used the company’s grievance procedure after some few months of bullying by his boss, Phil, the Finance Director.  An investigation confirmed that Phil’s behaviour had been bullying and indeed there were indications that other staff had left because of Phil’s behaviour.

Throughout the process, Phil asserted his innocence of any unacceptable behaviour, and at the end of the investigation, both Phil and John were feeling ‘bruised’.  It is rare – particularly in small companies where there is little scope to move people into alternative areas – for relationships to be ‘mended’ sufficiently to enable people to work together in harmony going forward.  However, Elaine, the HR Director, wanted to put every effort into keeping both individuals together, and recognizing that the bully also needs support, suggested coaching for Phil.

The first session was exploratory or ‘diagnostic’ to try to get beneath the surface and to find a way of supporting him, helping him to manage the aftermath, particularly in his position as a member of the senior team.  This required delicate handling, overcoming his resistance and resentment about the situation he was now in,  as well as  time to build trust and confidence.  Phil asserted that he did not know what was wrong with his behaviour, and it became clear that he found relationships with both peers and his own reports difficult, although he spoke more warmly of his relationship with his boss, the CEO.  The way forward was to “hold a mirror” up to his behaviour and help him understand what was unhelpful and how it might affect other people.

We worked quite intensively over three months through a mixture of activities, including various psychological and management questionnaires and discussions to help him to understand his strengths as well as his weaknesses, his preferred personal and management style, identifying patterns of thinking over time. Agreeing areas to work on together and approaching tasks and challenges – eventually with some humility -  over some three months enabled Phil to regain his self-confidence and develop more useful ways of relating to his staff.

Six months on, the feedback from the HR Director was that he was a ‘changed person’.  We had quarterly reviews over the following year so that Phil continued to feel supported and was encouraged to develop as a much more effective – and much happier - people-manager.

Please note: All the names have been changed for purposes of confidentiality

Case Study 2: Coaching for building positive relationships and developing people

A Sales Director had requested coaching to help him build better relationships, deal with conflict, and develop his team to improve service and increase sales. Having agreed clear outcomes for the coaching, we explored his values, skills and strengths. We completed activities to raise his levels of self-awareness and understanding and appreciation of others. The client learned which of his beliefs were holding him back and replaced these with more useful ones that would help him achieve his goals. We invested some time developing skills and techniques to help him communicate more effectively and manage his own and his team's performance.

At the end of the programme the client said that the coaching had helped him ‘take more control of his life'. He reported feeling more confident and content and was achieving more win:win outcomes in both his business and personal relationships. The company director who sponsored the coaching programme said: "His personal growth has benefited the company tremendously. He has grown in confidence, takes responsibility for his actions, faces demanding challenges and follows through. He is asserting his position yet still retaining the character that makes him so popular." After the coaching, the client went on to exceed what had been considered stretching sales targets for the year and was looking forward to another demanding and successful year with renewed confidence and vigour.

Case Study 3: Coaching for career progression and life balance

A client wanted to progress her career and maintain the quality of her family life. At the time she was Acting Head in a school that she loved. Her goal was to obtain the headship at that particular school. As a Deputy Head, she had applied for headships in the past and had been told that she was considered not quite ready. This was affecting her confidence and self-belief and she was wondering if she was in fact ready for such a responsible position. During the coaching, the client learned more about herself through personality profiling (using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator®) and exploration of her values, skills and strengths. She also discovered how others are different and used this knowledge to develop her leadership capability. We prepared for a crucial parents evening which the client reported was hugely successful. She told me about her vision for the school and how she would like things to be.

The coaching helped her realise that she could fulfil the requirements of the role and maintain the quality of her family life provided she was organised enough which she acknowledged as one of her key strengths. She began to believe that she was ready for this role, that she deserved it, and was really motivated to go for it. Having clarified this as an outcome, we made sure that her job application did justice to her knowledge, skills and experience and we prepared for that all important interview. The client got the job and is now at the helm of a successful school and leading a happy team. She also has the quality of life with her family that was so important for her to retain. This client said of the coaching: "The support and challenge offered have contributed to a positive life change for me and those around me personally and professionally. I see continuing this relationship as a vital part of my professional development."

Case Study 4 - Coaching to manage workload/stress/team

A senior civil servant was offered coaching to help him manage his workload and stress and also to improve his team management, a role that he was relatively new to. Through coaching he was able to identify and separate the different elements of work pressure (his own behaviour, the team and organisation) and concentrate his efforts where they were most likely to have effect. His delegation to his team improved, as did his ability to deliver tough messages about performance. He made changes to his lifestyle which improved his mental and physical health and enabled him to switch off and look at situations objectively. This also gave him greater confidence in communicating with senior management and he was able to make a sound business case for increased staffing.

Case Study 5 - Coaching to improve job transition

A senior civil servant was offered a secondment to another government department. The coaching started by looking at lessons learned from the previous post and acknowledging strengths and achievements. We then concentrated on creating a vision for what was to be achieved in the new post and broke it down into short, medium and long-term aims. This enabled the coachee to start the role with a blueprint, rather than be swept up in day-to-day management. Through coaching, the manager was also able to develop a strategy for networking and influencing, in order to raise her profile.

Case Study 6 - Coaching at the start of a major project 

A headteacher was tasked with merging her successful school with a less successful neighbouring school. Through coaching she was able to identify the detail of the challenges faced, create a vision and action plan for bringing the second school up to standard. She created autonomy within her senior team, enabling her to delegate effectively. She also created a communications strategy to involve staff, parents and the wider community. We also focused on maintaining her own energies and work-life balance.

Case Study 7 - Group coaching 

A group of managers from a borough council worked in an action learning set to tackle the issue of Equality Impact Assessments. They were able to co-coach through difficulties, share good practice and create a commonality of approach within the organisation.

Case Study 8 - Coaching for career development

A deputy off shore oil rig manager considered to have high potential was coached over a two year period. He had just missed out on a promoted post and had been assigned to a special project while his rig was being refitted. Working alone on this project didn't suit his people-focused personality, however the assignment helped to stretch his capabilities. Ironically he was required to think strategically to progress and the detail required for successful project completion seemed far away from the big picture approach of a promoted role.

Through quarterly coaching sessions we explored his career options at various levels, both on shore and off shore, and he developed detailed plans of how to approach three alternative roles. Happily he gained the role he wanted and is successfully implementing his strategic plan as manager of his own off shore rig. During the course of the two year's coaching we considered the many aspects of his leadership role and how this could be integrated with his long term career & personal ambitions.

Case Study 9 - Coaching to improve working relationships 

Rob is a senior manager in a large corporate organisation. His line manager asked him to consider coaching because he was gaining a reputation for losing his temper. Rob had previously had problems with his heart and this was a worry to all. Both Rob and his manager felt stress was a key issue, but were unsure how to progress.

In our initial session, we used the HSE standards as a framework to identify the sources of Rob's stress, i.e.

• The Demands of people's jobs
• How much Control (or how much say) people have in the way they do their work
• The Support provided by the organisation, line management and colleagues
• Relationships at work, including promoting positive working, preventing/resolving conflict and dealing with unacceptable behaviour
• The extent to which people understand their Role in the organisation & do not have conflicting roles
• How organisational Change is managed and communicated

We quickly discovered that the problem was not the job itself, which was well defined and easily within Rob's capabilities. His line manager was on his side, if not always pro-active. However, he was very frustrated at the way recent organisational change had impacted on his team. His inability to influence some critical aspects of this change had led to frustration which had spilled over into anger, so that relationships were being soured at all levels.

In the second session we identified what Rob could realistically expect to influence/control, and whether he could ‘let go' of what he couldn't influence. This ‘letting go' proved to be Rob's core challenge. He had high expectations of others, and couldn't hide his disappointment when he believed they were less conscientious than he was. We spent another session understanding where these powerful expectations came from, and how Rob could choose different responses.

By the fourth session, Rob was seeing positive change. He had taken responsibility for the way he expressed his views and was using influencing styles that were paying dividends. On a practical level, he had asked for and received communication process changes that would support his team in doing their jobs. He was also putting a higher priority on his health, and began a weight control programme that eventually lost him 2 stones.

Case Study 10 - Coaching stressed executives

The HSE stress management standards identify Support as one of the 6 key conditions influencing health, well being and organisational performance.

The standard requires that:-

• Employees should receive adequate information and support from their colleagues and superiors; and that
• Systems are in place locally to respond to any individual concerns.

For stressed senior executives, this support can be hard to find. As the leaders of the organisation, they can feel that they should be providing rather than receiving support. And since they tend to have fewer immediate colleagues and superiors to turn to, life at the top can be lonely and isolated.

Executive Coaching is a way of responding to this problem. The following case studies illustrate how a non-judgemental outsider can help the executive to find his or her own solution.

A Career Decision:-
Finance Director John's career was at a critical stage. A capable individual, the Company wanted John to move up to group level and allow a promising team member to fill the gap. However, John was avoiding making a decision because he was very worried about the impact of a move on his family; in particular his wife who was prone to anxiety and bouts of severe depression.

Coaching enabled him to talk confidentially about the situation at home, his values and aspirations. It enabled him to develop criteria for accepting a new role, and to identify alternative ways in which he could meet his own need for a challenging role, whilst continuing to support his wife and family.

A Stressed Team:-
Operations Director Suzanna's 360 degree appraisal had resulted in a very disappointing set of scores. Working in a complex, fast changing environment, she had been working long hours, close to burn out, and was inclined to blame her co-directors when things went wrong.

Coaching helped Suzanna to see herself as others were seeing her, and to understand how she was adding to the stress levels of her team. The 360 feedback was used to complete a SWOT analysis from which Suzanna was able to use her strengths and make the most of opportunities to create some quick wins with her team, while in the longer term she undertook an in depth management development programme.

A ‘win-win'
In each of these cases, it had been possible for the executive to work through a stressful situation with the coach acting as facilitator, with personal growth outcomes that brought significant benefits to the organisation as well as the executives.