Coaching in a business environment is a training method where an experienced or skilled individual (a coach) provides another person (a coachee) with advice and guidance. While the coach responds to information about the coachee's needs, the coachee receives assistance from the coach in the form of listening, questioning, or instruction. 

Coaching is a facilitative approach that the coach enables future self-directed learning and development. Coaching in a business environment can occur internally, with managers and leaders engaging employees in either formal, “sit-down” coaching sessions or informal, “on-the-run” coaching sessions. 

As the many purposes and benefits of coaching are recognised, some organisations actively work to create a culture of coaching. It is a culture in which coaching behaviours are used as a means of communicating, managing and influencing others. It is also a place where employees' learning and development are valued. 

Read more: Why TRG Is Building A Coaching Culture and Why You Should Too 

Both coaching and mentoring can be beneficial to employees for a range of reasons and in a range of contexts. 

Mentoring can be a long-term intervention that develops the mentee as a whole person and depends on the mentor's own personal experience. Mentoring is useful in some circumstances, but it generally lacks the structure of a competent coaching program. It is also inappropriate in cases where professional coaching would be more beneficial. 

On the other hand, coaching is often shorter-term. Coaching works best when it is utilised to reward high-achievers by providing them with the space and assistance they need to create and achieve objectives and become the best version of themselves at work.

Learn more about the differences between Coaching and Mentoring via our infographic here.

There are two main types of coaching: executive coaching and team coaching. 

Executive coaching is a collaborative interaction between a consultant and a client in an organisation who has managerial authority and responsibility. Integration into a new role, performance difficulties or strategy consultation is all causes for executive coaching. It is frequently carried out by a third-party coach.

Team coaching is when a coach works with a complete team to assist them to coordinate their efforts and making better use of their resources. Internal team coaching is common, with the team leader taking on a coaching leadership style.

Thanks to coaching, leaders are able to deal with unknown situations. 

The workplace is a dynamic environment with turnover and volatile market forces. The beauty of coaching is that in order to be effective, leaders don't need to know everything; instead, they need to know how to empower people around them. 

The leader might use coaching to elicit the strengths and knowledge of the people he or she is leading. This allows leaders to concentrate on the larger picture, avoids micromanagement, and allows employees to demonstrate their competence. 

Read more: 5 Principles of Effective Organisational Coaching 

According to the ICF/HCI survey in 2019, respondents with a strong coaching culture reported higher outcomes in the areas such as: 

• Customer satisfaction 
• Regulatory compliance 
• Talent attraction
• Profitability
• Shareholder value
• Labour productivity
• Large-scale strategic change
• New product/service development and delivery 

However, coaching is not for everyone. Some people are resistant to change and are not open to receiving feedback. This is a problem with the person being coached, not a fault in the tool of coaching. Even the most successful employee can benefit from having a personal coach to help them handle challenges and achieve even greater success. Coaching may open up a whole new world in terms of greater candour, more respect from all levels of staff, professional alliances and partnerships, and improved skills to reach strategic goals for individuals who make a commitment.

1. Increased employee self-efficacy

Learning from others' experiences and being recognized by people you trust are two key components of self-efficacy. These elements are important components of the coaching relationship. Developing strategies to achieve goals and celebrating those accomplishments with a coach is a great way to boost one's self-esteem. 

2. Collaboration

There's something special about being part of a group where everyone is dedicated to personal growth. People are better able to understand each other’s motivations and underlying commitments. They try their best to reduce conflict and increase decision-making confidence. Individuals are better at managing time and contributing more effectively to the team. 

Read more: Sustainable Growth and Higher Team Performance Start Here 

3. Empowered individuals

Coaching supports and empowers individuals in an organisation. It provides them with a neutral environment where they can tackle concerns about professional development, as well as a safe place in which they can practice having challenging talks. 

4. Increased communication skills

Coaching helps employees improve their communication abilities. Individuals can benefit from developing excellent communication skills in all aspects of their lives, both in and out of workplace. 

Many leaders and employees are unfamiliar with coaching. Organisations have to reduce the worry and uncertainty that surrounds this novel strategy to overcome resistance. 

Read more: Top Business Coaches in The World – Who Are They? 

When working with resistance, pay attention to two factors: employee wellbeing and the congruity of the coaching intervention.

Workplace well-being is a combination of life satisfaction, work-life balance, and positive affect when working. A person can only achieve a delicate balance if he has the resources to complete his tasks. When coaching is introduced to an organisation where employees are already overworked, resistance may arise. Coaching should be simple to learn and implement.

Consider how effectively the intervention will fit into the existing culture. Coaching must be highly customised. The consultant's work requires a high level of personalization. Instead of giving cookie-cutter interventions that are the same for every client, good coaches build interventions depending on the requirements of their clients. 

All in all, coaching is not a secret solution; it is a scientific one. Working with a coach is a fantastic and effective technique for improving productivity and engagement at work. Coaching has significant personal and professional benefits for both employees and teams. 

World #1 Executive Coach - Dr Marshall Goldsmith 

Dr Marshall Goldsmith is a world-renown educator, a leading expert in leadership coaching, and an author of 39 books including the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller "Triggers: Creating Behavior That Lasts - Becoming the Person You Want to Be."

Dr Goldsmith was also known as the pioneer in the use of 360-degree feedback. He has coached over 150 CEOs and their management teams to successfully address change in the workplace.

World #1 CEO Coach - Mark C. Thompson

Based at Stanford University in Silicon Valley, Mark Thompson is a New York Times bestselling author of "Now... Build a Great Business", "Success Built to Last" and "Admired". Mark was voted World’s #1 Executive Coach by the American Management Association due to his contributions to coach companies drive growth, innovation and transformational change.

Mark's impressive profile includes coaching for Schwab operating executives and global corporations and star-ups like Lyft, Pinterest, Virgin, Intel, Google, Amazon among many others.

World #1 Strategic Innovation Coach - Dr Peter Chee 

Dr Peter Chee is the President and CEO of ITD World, a leading multinational corporation for Human Resource Development, and co-author of "5 Levels of Mastery" (with Dr Marshall Goldsmith) and "Coaching for Breakthrough Success" (with Jack Canfield).

Dr Chee was the inventor of The Coaching Principles (TCP), the Situational Coaching Model (SCM), and Achievers Coaching (ACT). Today, he is the Chief Coach and developer of the Certified Coaching and Mentoring Professional (CCMP) program, which is fully recognised and approved by the International Coaching Federation.

World #1 Coaching Guru - John Mattone

John Mattone is widely known for his unique coaching approach, which he calls "The 4 As". His approach can ignite and strengthen a leader’s inner-self and talents, thus enabling them to realise the four "game-changing" outcomes that they can leverage in their business and life: Altruism, Affiliation, Achievement, and Abundance.

Since 2017, John has personally mentored over 450 global executive coaches from 52 countries. John is also the author of "Talent Leadership and Intelligent Leadership: What You Need to Know to Unlock Your Full Potential." Interesting fact: he was the coach to Apple founder Steve Jobs.

World #1 Professional Body: ICF Global President 2019-2020 - Dr Marcia Reynolds

Dr Marcia Reynolds is a behavioural scientist, the president of Covisioning LLC, and the master of teaching others how to engage in powerful conversations that connect, influence, and activate change.

Dr Reynolds has extensive experience with coaching for many leaders in the healthcare industry over the past 25 years.

Excerpts from Marcia’s books "Outsmart Your Brain", "Wander Woman", "The Discomfort Zone: How Leaders Turn Difficult Conversations into Breakthroughs" and her latest international bestseller, "Coach the Person, Not the Problem", have appeared in business, coaching, and psychological publications worldwide.

Did you recognise what these coaches have in common? You guessed it! 

• They are experienced in founding successful businesses, networks, and communities.
• They are outstanding communicators with their recognised writing, speaking, and communication skills.
• They are backed by real-world testimonials.
• They have solid frameworks that yield credible results.