While many have explored the effects of the pandemic on employees, leaders in many organisations have taken a double hit. Leadership has been charged with continuing to lead amidst their own struggles whilst keeping teams engaged during The Great Resignation.
PwC called out the importance of the role of leaders in our post-COVID workplaces in its “Future of Work” report: “EVP [employee value proposition] is the balance of tangible and intangible benefits, representing why an employee or candidate would choose to work at one organisation over another. An EVP is complex and highly nuanced. There are objective elements, such as the terms of a leave policy, and subjective ones like the experience of working for a particular leader.”
We’ve all experienced it at one time or another: working for bad managers. The one who doesn’t trust and micro-manages everything we do, or the one who doesn’t create an environment of psychological safety and throws us under the bus. Forbes reported back in September 2021 that “Employees aren’t just stressed and overwhelmed with their jobs, but they’re also stressed with day-to-day life … And in most cases, people aren’t leaving because of the company. They’re leaving because of experiencing disappointing leadership.”
What’s more, working for exceptional leaders is often a key reason why people don’t leave organisations, despite a more competitive salary or a more prestigious company offer. Employees who enjoy working with good leaders where their day to day is inspiring and purposeful, feel part of something great – even if the rest of the organisation leaves a lot to be desired.
Some corporations are pushing the drive to return to the office, while other organisations such as Atlassian continue to work 100% remotely. As new challenges in ways of working continue to emerge, leaders need to navigate not only when and how teams should meet, but also the nuances of performance and team bonding. Leaders have their plate full before their own workload is even factored in. In fact, a Gallup study found that “Only about two in 10 managers intuitively understand how to engage employees, develop their strengths, set clear expectations, and coach their direct reports.”
Why then is the investment in coaching leaders not seen as a priority? Victoria Mills of Hello Coach – an expert coaching service for corporates – says that “while employers are spending big budgets on offsite days, there’s a gap in the day-to-day coaching support that leaders need to navigate new situations and team challenges.”
While the idea of coaching isn’t new, it has evolved over the years from sports and performance coaching to the office. Performance Coaching Fingerprint for Success defines coaching as “Someone who takes on a supportive and guiding role to help you reach your full potential in your career.” Unlike traditional methods of leadership, coaching gives teams opportunities to develop their skills to be the best of the best and develop themselves personally and professionally.
Coaching is critical to career advancement – it goes beyond professional development and boosts employee confidence by building strong communication skills; which in turn lifts their performance and productivity. In a strong coaching culture, 65% of employees report that they are “highly engaged.” And 80% of people who have received coaching report positive impacts in areas such as work performance, communication skills, productivity, wellbeing, and business management strategies.
Why not book a coaching session to see how it could help you? You’ll automatically get matched with coaches that have experience in the area you want to address, as well as the coaching style you prefer. So, it takes the guesswork out of selecting the best coach for your needs.
All coaches must have at least four years of professional coaching experience to be listed on Hello Coach, and each coach receives 150 hours of training per year; so you know you’re in safe hands.
Interested in improving your leadership skills and better supporting resilience in your employees? Get Hello Coach for your team!
Book a demo with one of our enterprise concierges here.
