ILRHR528: Fostering a Coaching Culture...employees. A sustainable coaching culture must demonstrate...

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ILRHR528: Fostering a Coaching Culture


This course includes

Three discussions

Six tools to download and use on

the job

One scored quiz

One scored four-part course project

One video transcript file

Completing all of the coursework should

take about five to seven hours.

What you'll learn

Familiarize yourself with the

employee development landscape at

your organization

Diagnose root causes of a situation

and determine who in the

organization will be the primary

focus of an intervention

Differentiate coaching from training,

mentoring, and counseling

Identify situations where coaching is

appropriate

Develop interventions to facilitate

employee development through

coaching

Course Description

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_transcripts.pdf


Coaching as an industry and an employee development tool is growing in prominence and importance. Responsibility for

coaching is increasingly falling to HR professionals. HR professionals can be called upon to coach employees directly, to

train managers to be better coaches, to build a coaching capability within the organization, or to identify external coaching

resources.

In this course, you will begin to practice skills and behaviors exhibited by effective coaches. In addition, the course

situates coaching within the broader context of employee development, which will enable you to analyze workplace

situations and diagnose when coaching is an appropriate developmental tool. You will gain insight into how both

institutional awareness and self-awareness are needed to foster and support successful coaching efforts.

M. Diane BurtonAssociate Professor, ILR School, Cornell University

is an Associate Professor of Human Resource Studies in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations atM. Diane Burton

Cornell University. Her primary appointment is in human resource studies with courtesy appointments in organizational

behavior and sociology. Prior to joining the Cornell faculty in 2009, she was a faculty member at the MIT Sloan School of

Management. Dr. Burton started her academic career at the Harvard Business School teaching leadership and

organizational behavior. She earned her Ph.D. in sociology at Stanford University and served as a lecturer and

researcher in organizational behavior and human resources management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Her primary research is a major study of high-tech start-ups in Silicon Valley, including the study of entrepreneurial teams

and executive careers. More recently she has been studying R&D teams. She is also studying leadership in the non-profit

sector and employment practices in law firms.

Start Your Course


Module Introduction: Survey the Employee Development Landscape

The HR role has evolved from a focus on administrative tasks associated with hiring people and ensuring they are paid to

that of a strategic partner who strongly drives success for the organization by helping develop talent and build

organizational capabilities.

In this module, you will carefully examine your organization's commitment to employee development and begin to

consider what place coaching has in your organization. As part of the process of discovery, you will have the opportunity

to consult with others in your organization about the ways in which your organization supports employee growth and

where there might be room for employee development programs to improve.


Watch: Categories of Employee Development

Employee development comes in many different forms. Though many organizations have at least some programs in

place, they may be limited in scope.

In this video, Professor Burton provides an overview of the four distinct categories of employee development to look for in

your organization.


Watch: Understanding How Employee Development Works in Your Organization

Whether your organization has a well-established employee development program or no organized approach to

supporting and nurturing talent, chances are you can find programs or opportunities that are either in place or have been

available in the past. Familiarizing yourself with these employee development opportunities will go a long way toward

helping you understand how, and how much, your organization thinks about employee development.

In this video, Professor Burton discusses the range of approaches organizations might take to employee development.


Watch: Supporting and Partnering for Employee Development

In order to be effective, employee development resources need to be both useful and used. In coaching, as with other

relational tools, managers play a key role in supporting employee development. Talent development systems work best

when HR consults and partners with line managers.

In this video, Professor Burton describes two distinct roles HR can play with respect to employee development and

provides some caveats to consider when planning and setting up programs.


Tool: Employee Development Checklist

Download the Tool

Employee Development Checklist

How well do you know the employee development program in your organization? What programs are in place? Do

employees know about these programs? Do they use them? Which programs are considered most effective, and which

are generally felt to be ineffective?

Use this checklist to keep score as you identify your organization's strengths and weaknesses in each of four categories

of employee development.

Keep a copy of this checklist so you can revisit it periodically to track progress toward employee development goals in

your organization.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_employee-development-checklist.docx


1.

2.

3.

Activity: Summarize Existing Employee Development Programs

Download the Tool

Employee Development Checklist

Take some time to gain a better understanding of the existing employee development programs in your organization.

Part 1: Gather information

Look through company resources and create a summary of existing employee development opportunities. Typically

information on these can be found in an employee handbook, new employee orientation materials, or the company

intranet. Review your findings with an HR manager to make certain you're getting an accurate picture.

You may also want to ask your manager the following questions about employee development opportunities to gain a

better understanding of how certain employee development opportunities are administered.

How long has this opportunity been available in the company?

Is this opportunity available to all employees?

What approvals are necessary to implement this employee development effort?

Part 2: Summarize your findings

Use the downloadable Employee Development Checklist tool to record your organization's strengths and weaknesses in

. As you complete this activity, save a digital copy of the checklist along each of four categories of employee development

with any additional notes from interactions with your colleagues. You will use these to complete the first part of the course

project.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_employee-development-checklist.docx


Watch: Coaching in Different HR Contexts

As an HR professional, fostering a coaching culture is not achieved solely through adopting a coaching role. In fact, you

don't need to engage in one-on-one coaching at all to support coaching in your organization.

In this video, Professor Burton discusses how HR coaching support can be considered to fall on a continuum from

strategic to operational, as well as how the focus can be on systems versus individuals in the organization.

This video includes a reference to Dave Ulrich's model of the HR function from , copyright Human Resource Champions

1997 Dave Ulrich.


Ask the Expert: Contrasting Views on Coaching

How you approach employee development and coaching in particular will be influenced by the executives and senior - -

staff in your organization. As you seek to develop a coaching culture, what you are able to accomplish and how you go

about it will depend on aligning your intentions with the assumptions and strongly-held beliefs of the drivers of culture in

your organization.

As you watch this series of interviews with Dale Wunder, Tom DiGiovanni, and Stephaine Jones, listen for the differences

in their perspectives on coaching in professional organizations. Consider the effect each might have on decisions about

coaching within their organizations.

is an Executive Advisor to Cornell University and a former Vice President of Human Resources Dale Wunder

at Shell Oil Company.

is a certified coach and an HR Leadership Coach for K12, Inc., an educational services Tom DiGiovanni

company.

is a certified coach and a Service Performance Coordinator / Master Coach for customer Stephaine Jones

service representatives in the healthcare industry.

Dale Wunder

Tom DiGiovanni

Stephaine Jones

Question

What guidance would you give an organization trying to decide how best to meet its coaching needs?

Question

What are the prerequisites for a healthy, effective coaching program within a human resources organization?

Question

How would you characterize the difference between internal coaching and external coaching?


Question

What is your business relationship with the people you typically coach?


Ask the Expert: Building a Coaching Capability

Not all organizations have coaching programs, and the reasons for this vary. Sometimes coaching programs are seen as

a non-essential component of employee development. Or the goals of a coaching program may be seen to be met in

another way, such as ad hoc interactions between managers and subordinates. For some organizations, the absence of a

coaching program may be due entirely to a lack of awareness of the benefits of coaching.

If your organization lacks or has only a rudimentary coaching program, you might be wondering where to start, or even if

it's possible to establish a robust coaching program where none existed before.


company.

Question

How did others in the company respond to the prospect of a coaching program?

Question

What coaching initiatives did you undertake as part of the human resources organization?

Question

To what extent did executives in your company support the idea of a coaching program?


Module Wrap-up: Survey the Employee Development Landscape

You should now have a clearer picture of your organization's commitment to employee development. You've determined

what programs exist, you have a sense of employee awareness and attitudes toward these programs, and you should

have begun to get a sense of your organization's appetite for an ongoing coaching program. At the same time, you may

have found others within the organization who are interested in participating in and helping build a coaching culture.


Module Introduction: Prioritize Potential Coaching Opportunities

Because resources are limited and because coaching is a resource-intensive process, care must be taken in committing

to a coaching intervention. A crucial first step for an HR professional is determining that coaching is, in fact, the most

appropriate response to a situation.

In this module, you will practice drawing a distinction between situations that are best suited to coaching and those that

might be better handled through counseling, mentoring, or training. You will look at your own organization and identify

potential opportunities for coaching. Only then can you compare the urgency and importance of various personnel

situations to help decide how best to invest your employee development resources.


Watch: Narrowing the Definition of Coaching

The word is used far too loosely to describe a variety of workplace interactions. For example, you may have coaching

heard coaching used to describe what happens when an employee meets with a mentor or when peer interaction is

encouraged to support adoption of best practices.

In this video, Professor Burton presents a working definition of coaching that is usefully narrowed and excludes mentoring

and counseling as well as casual interactions that could also be described as informal training. Understanding coaching

as a specific, intentional activity is essential when implementing the coaching methodology laid out here.


Watch: Mentoring and Counseling

Coaching is one of several relational tools that is used to support employee development. Relational tools can be

distinguished from one another by looking at who is taking on the supporting role as well as what kinds of interactions are

occurring.

In this video, Professor Burton explores mentoring and counseling roles and interactions in greater detail.


Tool: Employee Development Choice

Download the Tool

Employee Development Choice Tool

For any situation that requires HR involvement, you need to consider what type of engagement is likely to yield the best

outcome for the organization and the individuals involved. Coaching, counseling, mentoring, and training should all be

under consideration as possible responses. To some extent, this will depend on resources and competencies available to

you.

In any case, your decision should always take into consideration the person, the role played by that person, the nature of

the situation, and the skills or expertise needed to address the situation. By pausing first to answer a few basic questions

and reflect on those answers, you can increase the likelihood that your choice of intervention will produce optimal results.

Keep this sheet handy to help you consider whether coaching, counseling, mentoring, or training is likely the best

response to a workplace situation.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_tool-coach-counsel-mentor-train.pdf


Watch: Identifying Potential Coaching Situations

While a coaching intervention should never be an automatic response to workplace issues, it is sometimes the best

option. A strong coaching culture depends on recognizing situations in which coaching is going to have a lasting positive

effect.

In this video, Professor Burton outlines some common ways coaching can be used to solve problems and enhance

personal and organizational potential. In addition, she identifies characteristics of situations or individuals that lend

themselves to coaching interventions.


Watch: Prioritizing Coaching by Urgency and Importance

In most organizations, a thoughtful survey of coaching opportunities will expose a greater demand than can be met by the

resources available. An effective coaching program should involve a rational approach to deciding who receives coaching

and which coaching engagements are the highest priority.

In this video, Professor Burton describes how Stephen Covey's time management grid can be used to prioritize coaching

opportunities.

This video includes a reference to Stephen Covey's Time Management Grid from , copyright 1994 First Things First

Stephen Covey.


Activity: What's the Right Response?

Download the Tool

Employee Development Choice Tool

Read the following three scenarios. Use your familiarity with coaching, counseling, training, and mentoring to determine

which response is the appropriate scenario. For each scenario, decide whether coaching, counseling, mentoring, or

training is the best intervention. You will be asked to report and elaborate on your decisions in a discussion board that

follows this activity.

You can download a work aid from the link above.

Scenario One

Scenario Two

Scenario Three

Barbara was recently promoted from within the organization to head up the sales team. She has always been a top

performer in sales, and expectations were high when she took the position. When she moved up, the team's sales

numbers took an initial hit. This was expected since Barbara, their best salesperson, was no longer selling. After several

months, though, the numbers have not recovered as expected. Since compensation is based in part on team

performance benchmarks, there has been some discontent among the team. Several team members in particular, among

them Dave, have begun to suggest that maybe Barbara should move back into a sales role and that a new supervisor

should be brought in from outside the company. Barbara is becoming frustrated at the team's attitude and has indicated

that returning to the salesperson role is not in line with her career plan.

Jim has been a skilled and successful department leader for many years. But recently two different female employees

have complained that they were treated inappropriately. One woman complained about being excluded from an outing

where important decisions were made. Another felt that Jim didn't listen to her or allow her to contribute in group

discussions. Both women are younger and have been discussing their dissatisfaction with others in the department and

with one another. Jim is aware of the situation and feels he has done nothing wrong in either case. He is aware that this is

not a situation he can afford to ignore, but he's not sure how to respond appropriately and in way that will create the best

outcome.

Lesley, a senior marketing executive, is attending a morning rebrand working session and appears bored and distracted.

He is asking irrelevant questions and causing presenters to repeat information that has already been covered. During a

break, he is confronted by another member of the senior team about his behavior. Lesley expresses a degree of

contempt for the rebranding process and for the company that seems out of character. After more disruptive behavior by

Lesley, the meeting ends on a note of relative uncertainty and confusion, and Lesley withdraws to his office and keeps

the door closed for the rest of the day.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_tool-coach-counsel-mentor-train.pdf


Ask the Expert: Coaching Individuals and Teams

In this interview, we asked certified coach Tom DiGiovanni about some of his experiences coaching individuals and

teams.


company.

Question

What kind of work do you do as an external coach?

Question

What are some common issues you help clients address through coaching?

Question

Can you describe a recent team coaching experience?


Tool: Coaching Priorities Analysis

Download the Tool

Coaching Priorities Analysis Sheet

Once you begin looking at employee development needs, it's necessary to decide which needs are met immediately,

which are incorporated in future employee development plans, and which are met when and if resources become

available.

Use this tool, based on Steven Covey's Time Management Grid, to help you decide which coaching opportunities are the

highest priority for your organization.

Time Management Grid copyright 1994 Covey Leadership Center, Inc.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_tool-urgency-importance.docx


Module Wrap-up: Prioritize Potential Coaching Opportunities

Coaching is one tool that can be used to meet employees' developmental needs. By considering coaching alongside

other employee development resources such as training, counseling, and mentoring, HR professionals can foster an

environment where employees are learning and growing and are better able to contribute to organizational success.

You've looked at a number of workplace situations and considered not only their relative urgency and importance, but

also the most appropriate response to each situation and in particular whether coaching can be justified as an

intervention.

Once you have identified a potential coaching opportunity in your organization, you're ready to move forward toward

developing a coaching intervention that is the most appropriate and effective response. You will do so with the confidence

that is derived from having considered the other possible responses before deciding that coaching is the best option.


Module Introduction: Form a Hypothesis to Inform Your Coaching

Once you have identified a situation that appears to be well-suited to a coaching intervention, it's necessary to make sure

you have a clear and complete picture of what is happening. An appropriate intervention takes into consideration all

factors and stakeholders involved. A well-considered intervention will bolster your credibility as an effective HR

professional within the organization.

In this module, you will practice using tools and techniques that allow you to assess a situation, develop a well-informed

hypothesis about what is going on, and test that hypothesis in preparation for committing to a coaching intervention.


Watch: Attribution Errors

It is easy to look at the actions of others and find ill intent or personal shortcomings. It is also easy to jump to conclusions

about who is causing problems and should therefore be the target of an intervention. But often our interpretation of a

situation and our initial conclusions about how to address it are mistaken. In order to perform a thoughtful analysis of a

situation that might lead to a coaching intervention, you need to be aware of others' and even your own biases and learn

to account for them in your analysis.

In this video, Professor Burton introduces the subject of attribution errors and offers an approach that can help you

neutralize your bias and the bias of others.


Watch: Skilled Listening

Many of us have become accustomed to listening to what another person is saying without really trying to understand the

intent behind their words. This kind of half listening is almost always good enough to get by in casual conversations and

even in many workplace discussions. For coaching, though, and when preparing to recommend a coaching intervention, it

is essential that you listen and probe in a way that allows you to discover intent, motives, and context that sometimes

goes unspoken.

In this video, Professor Burton draws a distinction between different degrees of skill in listening and illustrates the

difference with examples.


Watch: Techniques for Effective Asking

In order to make an effective intervention, you need to understand what is actually happening, and to do this you need to

conduct effective interviews in which you gather data you can compare and analyze. Even assuming interviewees want to

cooperate with you, they may themselves not have a clear understanding of a situation or the ability to share their

perspective in a useful way. The way you frame your questions can make all the difference in the quality of the responses

you get.

In this video, Professor Burton describes how the questions you ask are a crucial part of active listening, and she

provides examples of questions and probes you can use to improve your interviewing skills.


Watch: Closed Versus Open Questions

The art of skillful questioning extends beyond what you ask to include the way you ask it. The questions you ask in an

interview can and should be carefully crafted to maximize the amount of useful data.

In this video, Professor Burton discusses the difference between open questions that invite reflection and engagement

and closed questions that can be answered without really sharing useful information.


Watch: Judgmental Versus Neutral Questions

In the best case a question that is interpreted as judgmental elicits a defensive response that is not helpful in resolving a

situation. And the interviewee may decide you pose a threat and shut down completely. You can't necessarily avoid

bringing up difficult subjects, but if you can find ways to broach tough subjects that are less confrontational, you're likely to

get better results.

In this video, Professor Burton discusses how language and tone can reveal bias and create defensiveness in an

interviewee, and she gives examples of neutral alternatives to judgmental phrasing.


Activity: Compare Neutral and Judgmental Questions

Maintaining a neutral tone is essential both for effective coaching and for getting the information you need out of an

interview. For each scenario, you will see a set of questions. Use what you've learned about neutral questions to order

them from best to worst.

Scenario One

Scenario Two

Scenario Three

An employee is underperforming. You want to encourage him to consider reasons he might be underperforming so you

can explore possible remedies together.

Drag each question box to rearrange the questions in vertical order from most neutral to most judgmental.

Most Neutral

Most Judgmental

revealA

Reveal answerReveal answer

Questions can be phrased in a variety of ways.

Judgmental questions evoke defensiveness.

In this scenario, these two questions are the most judgmental:

Why aren't you putting more effort into this?

Are you working as hard as you can?

A project is dramatically behind schedule. You want the coachee, who is responsible for the project timetable, to identify

the factors that may be contributing to the slipping schedule.


Most Neutral

Most Judgmental

revealB






Why weren't you paying attention?

What's the matter with you?

A team is experiencing low morale and a dysfunctional climate. You are coaching the team leader in an effort to improve

the team dynamic.


Most Neutral

Most Judgmental

revealC





How could you have let this negative dynamic persist?

Why aren't you showing some leadership here?


Watch: Using Three Lenses

Our own experiences and perspectives color our interpretation of what we see and hear. For any workplace event or

dynamic, it's possible to interpret it from a strategic, political, or cultural perspective. Considered together, these three

lenses are a framework that can help uncover what's really going on.

In this video, Professor Burton describes how strategic, political, and cultural lenses can be used to develop a hypothesis

based on data gathered about a workplace situation.


Tool: Three Lenses / Active Listening

Download the Tool

Three Lenses / Active Listening

When you become aware of a situation in your organization, your first impressions may be colored by biases and skewed

by limited information. Your response will benefit from gathering additional information and taking the time to develop a

carefully considered hypothesis about what is actually going on. The three lenses framework allows you to see a situation

from different perspectives.

Keep a copy of this tool at hand and use it to help you develop and refine your initial hypotheses about what is really

happening in workplace situations.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_tool-three-lenses-listening-tool.docx


Activity: Assess a Situation and Form a Hypothesis

Download the Tool

Three Lenses tool

In this two-part activity, you will practice developing a hypothesis in a workplace situation. In the first part, you will use the

three lenses framework to analyze the scenario and summarize your interpretation of what's going wrong using each lens.

Then you will develop a hypothesis and questions to test this hypothesis. In the second part, you will review a dialogue

between two employees involved in the situation and consider how new information might change your hypothesis.

You can download the Three Lenses tool from the link above.

Part One

Part Two

Read the following scenario that describes a new employee, Ellen, who is in a rotation program designed to help her find

a best fit in the organization. Use the three lenses to interpret the situation and develop a hypothesis.

Scenario:

Ellen is a newly hired consultant with impressive credentials from an elite school. She worked in investment banking

during her past three summers. She has a strong sense of her own capabilities based on her successes as a student and

as an interscholastic sports team leader and member of student government. Ellen is eager to impress her peers and

supervisors. She reaches out to others in the office offering to assist on projects and has begun to build a network within

the firm by participating in internal training programs. Ellen wants to be on the fast track for promotion and is eager to get

through her rotational assignments.

Ellen excelled in her first rotation on the marketing team, but she is struggling in her second rotation, where she is

working in a compliance group that helps firms audit their internal processes. Much of the work involves learning about

new regulations and updating policy manuals. The other members of the team have research backgrounds and enjoy the

intellectual challenge of the work. They find Ellen to be arrogant and disorganized. One of the policy manuals that Ellen

had revised had to be reprinted due to important omissions and typographical mistakes.

What hypothesis do you have about what might be going wrong in this situation?

Who would you interview and what information would you seek to test your hypothesis?

Record your answers in the Three Lenses tool.

Now read through this dialogue between Ellen and the HR manager responsible for the new employee rotation program.

For the duration of the rotation program and until she is placed within some division of the company, Pat is Ellen's

functional manager.

As you read through what is being said, consider what new insights you can gain from this dialogue. How does it change

your hypothesis about the situation?

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_tool-three-lenses-listening-tool.docx


Might there be any attribution errors in play?

Revise or refine your hypothesis about what is happening in this situation.

Here is the dialogue between Ellen and Pat, the manager of the rotation program:

Ellen, thank you for taking the time to meet with me.Pat:

No problem, Pat. What can I do for you?Ellen:

I want to be up front with you about why you're here. I've been fielding some complaints from others on the Pat:

compliance team. You know, it's clear that you're very intelligent, and I know you did great work with the marketing team.

I want to make sure we give this compliance team situation the care it deserves. Maybe we can start with your impression

of what happened with those recent policy manual revisions.

If you're talking about the customer data policy thing, I'm not sure what to say. I felt like I gave it a lot of my time and Ellen:

attention, but you know I'm really more of a big picture person. Don't you think it would make sense to contract a copy

editor to find and fix a few random typos?

Well, if it were just typos, that would be one thing. From what I've heard, though, there were some significant gaps in Pat:

what went out to print the first time. But let's take a step back for a minute. This isn't really about the software policy

manual. That's over and done with for now. What we really need to talk about is how you're working with the rest of the

compliance team.

Actually, I've wanted to talk with you about that, too. I was thinking what needs to happen is that they need to set up Ellen:

a workflow that's better at taking into account the kinds of problems that cropped up with the customer data policy and

that seem to be cropping up again with this new quality management project.

Now hold on a second, Ellen. I think we're getting a little bit ahead of ourselves here. I know you're anxious to get in Pat:

there and fix the problem, but the team has a workflow, and though it's probably not perfect, it's been getting the job done.

And if you asked some of your colleagues on the compliance team, I think they might tell you the problem is you. Now, I'm

not saying that's what I think, but it's something you need to be aware of.

Look, Pat, every organization needs to grow to survive. I'm not trying to absolve myself of responsibility here. I Ellen:

realize what I turned in on the customer data project may not have met the expectations of everyone on the team. At the

same time, I think there's a gap between what was expected and what was reasonable to expect. In this case, if

compliance's workload is going to grow, they're probably going to need to change how they do business.

Let me stop you right there. I'm telling you right now that the team expectations are that everyone on the team Pat:

understands the quality standards and cares about them enough to ensure a zero defect delivery.

Are saying you think I don't care about the work I'm doing for the compliance team?Ellen:

What I'm saying is, I think you're giving others on the team the impression that you don't care, which is at least as bad Pat:

as having me think you don't care.


Well, if that's what they think, why is this the first I've heard about it? You know I think of myself as a pretty good Ellen:

communicator, Pat.

Compliance is a pretty tight team, Ellen. They're all really good at what they do. Frankly, as good as your reputation Pat:

is, I'm not surprised you're having a little trouble.

So what are you telling me, Pat? What is it you want me to take from this conversation?Ellen:

I guess I'm just encouraging you to be a little bit more of a team player.Pat:

Okay, Pat. I'll see what I can do. Was there anything else you wanted to talk about?Ellen:

No, that was the main thing. Thanks for stopping by. And keep me abreast of how things are going from your Pat:

perspective.

Will do. Thanks for your time, Pat.Ellen:


Module Wrap-up: Form a Hypothesis to Inform Your Coaching

You have now begun the process of learning to transform a potential coaching situation into the foundation of a well-

considered coaching proposal. In this module, you identified a potential coaching situation, applied a three lens analysis

to identify possible explanations for what was going on, developed a working hypothesis, and identified questions to test

that hypothesis. By following a disciplined approach to developing a working hypothesis, you greatly improve your

chances for a positive coaching outcome.

The active listening, question development, and analysis skills you have practiced in this module require extensive

practice to master. Take as many opportunities to repeat this process as your time allows, even when you are not

optimistic about having a coaching proposal accepted. The benefits you accrue should extend beyond any immediate

goals for an improved coaching program.


Module Introduction: Develop a Coaching Plan

An effective coaching intervention is the product of the significant time and resources invested in its planning and

execution. It is important for the success of the program, and for an organization's coaching culture in general, that the

details and expectations for an intervention be spelled out clearly and shared with all stakeholders.

In this module, you will develop a written plan for a coaching engagement to address a problem or opportunity within your

organization. Your proposal will articulate all key components of an effective coaching plan.


Watch: Factors in Selecting a Coach

The relationship between an employee and his or her coach is a critical factor in the success of the coaching

engagement. Even an employee who is eager for coaching might balk if the process of selecting a coach does not seem

to be going well.

In this video, Professor Burton discusses the factors that need to be considered when selecting a coach for a planned

coaching intervention.


Watch: Elements of a Coaching Plan

In this video, Professor Burton describes the elements of an effective coaching plan.

Here are some questions to ask as you consider each element of a coaching plan.

Who (coaching target)

Is this a good investment?

Is the employee willing?

What (outcomes)

What is the goal?

Who are the stakeholders?

Choosing a Coach

Should the coaching come from inside or outside the organization?

Is the chemistry good?

Scope

What is a realistic time frame for achieving the goal?

What frequency of interaction is practical and useful?

Is a review or other external factor driving the time line for the coaching?

What is the expected total cost of a 3, 6, or 12 month engagement, and is that cost acceptable?

Check-in

After what duration can a change be expected?

What will you look for to determine if the coaching intervention is on track?

Define Success

How will you know the coaching intervention was successful?

What metrics, if any, can be applied to your assessment of success?


What are the needs or expectations of each of the stakeholders?


Ask the Expert: Managing Coaching Relationships

In this interview, we asked certified coaches Tom DiGiovanni and Stephaine Jones some questions about the coach-

client relationship.

is a certified coach and a Service Performance Coordinator / Master Coach for customer Stephaine Jones

service representatives in the healthcare industry.


company.

Defining Success

Coaching Chemistry

Interfacing with HR

Question

How do you know you're successful in a coaching relationship?

Question

Do you change your approach to coaching depending on how well you know a person?

Question

How do you provide feedback in a way that makes the recipient more open or receptive to it?

Question

What do you do when you identify a problem with the chemistry between yourself and the coachee?


Question

As an external coach, how do you meet the needs of the coachee while still satisfying key stakeholders, such as HR?

Question

In your role as a coach, what kind of coordination is there with human resources?


Activity: Best Scope and Resources for Coaching Plan

Read the following scenarios and determine what the most appropriate scope and coaching resources are for each

situation. For each scenario, answer the following questions:

What is the desired outcome?

Which would be better: an internal or external coach?

How long should the coaching engagement last?

How frequently should the coach and coachee meet?

You will be asked to report and elaborate on your decisions in a discussion board that follows this activity.

Scenario One

Scenario Two

Scenario Three

You are the HR manager in a large consulting firm. Part of the organization's strategy is to rotate consulting managers

across geographic regions. Most of the consulting staff based out of the New York City offices live in the outer suburbs

and only come to the office when there are client meetings. The office has evolved a work culture that is output oriented

and performance driven. A new manager, Allison, is rotating up from the Charlottesville office and is accustomed to

having all her colleagues in the same physical location from at least 8am until 6pm, and often later if there are deadlines.

Allison is having difficulty adjusting to managing a decentralized workforce.

You are the HR manager for a prominent regional history museum. The founding family, upon whose estate the museum

is located, has always held board positions. The grand-niece of the founder is currently the chairman of the board.

Several other relatives are members, but they are not a majority. Other board members are prominent community

members and large donors to the museum. Your newly hired executive director, Francesca, has joined after a successful

career as a senior curator at a leading art museum. It was a protracted negotiation as she is very talented. She took the

job only after the museum agreed to several salary increases and a multi-year contract. She has had uncomfortable

exchanges with the board over the allocation of resources for community events such as galas versus historic

preservation. She is now in a heated battle with the board chairperson, who wants to host an event for another local

charity in the historic dining room.

You are the HR manager for a retail chain. You typically promote managers from within the ranks of successful store

employees. You are working with a successful manager, Ivan, who has had an extraordinary sales volume and seems to

have cultivated a hard-working and loyal staff that is able to achieve excellent customer service and an overall very

profitable store. However, it has come to your attention via security personnel that one of Ivan's direct reports-a high-

volume and well-regarded store employees-"borrows" evening wear for nights out, does not remove tags, and returns the

merchandise to the store to be sold as new. You are concerned that Ivan either is not aware of the situation or is too

close to his staff to exert appropriate controls.


Tool: Coaching Plan Framework

Download the Tool

Coaching Plan Framework

A written coaching plan ensures you are considering all important aspects of a planned coaching engagement and it

becomes part of the record for a particular coaching effort. Completing a written coaching plan for every engagement will

support a consistent approach from one coaching effort to the next, and it can help you keep track of what has worked

and what hasn't.

Keep a copy of this sheet and use it to develop plans for your coaching interventions.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ecornell/content/ILRHR/ILRHR528/ilrhr528_tool-coaching-plan.docx


Ask the Expert: Becoming a Coach

In this interview, we asked certified coach Tom DiGiovanni some questions about the training needed to become a

certified coach.


company.

Question

How did you know you wanted to pursue coaching as a career?

Question

What recommendations do you have for someone who wants to become a certified coach?

Question

Can you talk a little bit more about your training in the certification process?


Module Wrap-up: Develop a Coaching Plan

You have developed a coaching plan based on careful investigation and analysis, hypothesis testing, and consideration

for the needs and expectations of stakeholders in your organization. Implementing your coaching plan will require buy-in

from all parties involved, patience and genuine effort by coach and coachee, and consistent, thoughtful check-ins

throughout the process. The benefits of a well-implemented coaching program can be great for the coachee and for the

organization as a whole. Whether or not you take on a coaching role yourself, your efforts represent a great benefit to

individuals in your organization. As others in your organization recognize the benefits of good coaching, a shift toward a

positive coaching culture becomes more achievable.


M. Diane Burton Associate Professor

School of Industrial and Labor Relations

Cornell University

Read: Thank You and Farewell

Congratulations on completing . As you have seen, the benefits of a coaching culture in the Fostering a Coaching Culture

workplace are tangible and significant. I hope this course has given you the perspective, skills, tools, and motivation to

incorporate coaching in your tool set as a human resources professional.

From all of us at Cornell University and eCornell, thank you for participating in this course.

Sincerely,

Diane Burton


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