WORKPLACE COACHING: DEVELOPING LEADERSHIP SKILLS …

WORKPLACE COACHING: DEVELOPING LEADERSHIP SKILLS

Prepared By

ANDY CHERNOFF

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

MASTER OF ARTS In

LEADERSHIP

We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard

Project Sponsor, 'Belus' Corporation

Nancy Greer, BA, MA, EdD Project Supervisor, degree(s)

Committee Chair, P. Gerry Nixon, PhD

ROYAL ROADS UNIVERSITY September 15, 2007

©Andy Chernoff, 2007

1*1 Library and Archives Canada

Published Heritage Branch

395 Wellington Street Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada

Bibliotheque et Archives Canada

Direction du Patrimoine de I'edition

395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada

Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-35393-6 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-35393-6

NOTICE: The author has granted a nonexclusive license allowing Library and Archives Canada to reproduce, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, communicate to the public by telecommunication or on the Internet, loan, distribute and sell theses worldwide, for commercial or noncommercial purposes, in microform, paper, electronic and/or any other formats.

AVIS: L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public par telecommunication ou par Nnternet, preter, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou autres formats.

The author retains copyright ownership and moral rights in this thesis. Neither the thesis nor substantial extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author's permission.

L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement reproduits sans son autorisation.

In compliance with the Canadian Privacy Act some supporting forms may have been removed from this thesis.

Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la protection de la vie privee, quelques formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de cette these.

While these forms may be included in the document page count, their removal does not represent any loss of content from the thesis.

Canada

Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu manquant.

Workplace Coaching ii

ABSTRACT

In the evolving and highly competitive world of wireless telecommunications,

leadership and management style has become a topic of great interest for both

organizational and personal growth. Leadership theory suggests that developing an

organizational coaching culture and utilizing coaching skills as a leadership strategy will

inspire increased employee satisfaction and engagement. Workplace coaching has

evolved in recent years from an employee performance management process, to a

transformational humanistic leadership technique. Coaching inspires people to access

their intrinsic skills, creativity, values and beliefs for the betterment of themselves, their

workplace relationships, and the organization. Using a community based action research

methodology in accordance with Royal Roads University Research Ethics Policies; this

project explored the impact of introducing a coaching program to a team of

telecommunication mangers. The study revealed that coaching did significantly

contribute to the leadership skills of the participants.

Workplace Coaching iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS iii

CHAPTER ONE - FOCUS AND FRAMING 1

Introduction 1 Research Question 2

Sub-Questions 2

The Opportunity and its Significance 3

Systems Analysis of the Opportunity 6 The Canadian Wireless Business 6

Organizational Context 9 The Belus Mission 9 Organizational Leadership Environment 9 Western Network Operations 11

The Team 11 Regional Leadership Environment 15 Coaching Program 16

Coaching model. 16 Coach training. 18

Conclusion and Research 19

CHAPTER TWO - LITERATURE REVIEW 21

Introduction 21 Literature Sources 21

Engagement 22 Definition of Organizational Engagement 22 Characteristics of Engagement. 23 Self-efficacy and Leadership Influence 25

Workplace Coaching 26 Introduction 26 Coaching Theory 27 Coaching Definition and Organizational Fit 29 Coaching and Adult Learning Theory 32 Coaching and Leadership 35

The Components of Effective Coaching Conversations 36 Recognizing blind spots 37 Building trust. 38 Creating equitable relationships 38 Hearing what is being said behind the words and/or actions 39 Listening on three levels 39 Engaging in cycles of action 40

Workplace Coaching iv

Experiencing breakdowns and breakthroughs 40 Coaching Summary 41

Organizational Culture 41 Culture and Performance 42 Culture and Leadership 42

Chapter Two Conclusion 44

CHAPTER THREE - RESEARCH APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY 45

Introduction 45

Research Approach - Qualitative Action Research 45

Project Participants 47

Research Methods and Tools 49 Interviews 49

Manager Interviews - Coaching 49 Sponsor (Director) Interview - Coaching and Leadership 57

Manager Focus Group - Coaching 52 Final Recommendation Interviews 55

Study Conduct 56 Phase I Interviews 56

Manager Interviews - Coaching 56 Sponsor (Director) Interview - Coaching and Leadership 59

Phase II Manager Focus Group - Coaching 60 Phase III Director and HR Recommendation Interviews 62

Data Analysis 63

Ethical Issues in Action Research 64 Respect for Human Dignity 66 Respect for Free and Informed Consent 66 Respect for Vulnerable Persons 67 Respect for Privacy and Confidentiality 67 Respect for Justice and Inclusiveness 68 Balancing Harms and Benefits 68 Minimizing Harm 68 Maximizing Benefits 68 Additional Ethical Considerations 69

CHAPTER FOUR-RESEARCH RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS 71

Introduction 71

Study Findings 72 Training Expectations 73 Manager Coaching Perceptions and Understanding 76

Previous Coaching Programs 76 Current Coaching Program 78

Workplace Coaching v

Coaching and Leadership 79 Skill: Listening Deeply 80 Skill: Using Curiosity and Open Questions 81 Outcome: Creating Awareness 83

Manager awareness 83 Employee awareness 85

Outcome: Employee Accountability. 86 Outcome: Authentic Leadership 88 Coaching and Leadership Summary 89

Engagement and Coaching 90 Coach Training Applications and Sustainability 93

Applying the Training 93 Coaching Opportunities 95 Program Sustainability : 96

Study Conclusions 99 Parti. 99

Life Coach vs. Coach Approach 99 Coaching and Leadership 101 Learning and Applying Coaching 103

The coaching program and adult learning. 103 Objectives and sustainability. 104

Engagement and Coaching 707 Part II. 108

Coaching Within the Broader Organizational Context 108 Organizational culture and the benefits of coaching. 108 Organizational readiness Ill

Scope and Limitations of Research 112 Gender and Background 112 Limited Sub-Culture of Study Group 113 Other Limitations 114

Chapter Four Conclusion 115

CHAPTER FIVE - RESEARCH IMPLICATIONS 117

Introduction 117 Overview of Conclusions 118

Recommendations and Organizational Implications 120 Leading the Way: A llowing Coaching to Succeed in Western Net Ops 120

Recommendation One - Lead by Example 121 Recommendation Two - Sharing Narratives 122 Organizational Implications of Recommendations One and Two 123

The Future of Coaching in Belus 126 Recommendation Three - Sharing the Coaching Program 126 Recommendation Four - Participative Program Design 127 Recommendation Five - Training Program Model 129

Workplace Coaching vi

Organizational Implications of Recommendations Three, Four, and Five 132

Implications for Further Research 135

CHAPTER 6 - LESSON LEARNED 138

REFERENCES 143

Appendix A: Letters of Invitation and Informed Consent 149

Appendix B: Phase I Research Questions 155

Appendix C: Phase II Focus Group Themed Findings and Discussion Questions 157

Appendix D: Research Phase III - Study Recommendations and Questions 159

Workplace Coaching 1

CHAPTER ONE - FOCUS AND FRAMING

Introduction

This research project was conducted within a Canadian wireless

telecommunications organization. To ensure company confidentially and to protect

market sensitive data the pseudonym of Belus will be used. Also, to protect corporate

privacy, internal organizational documents will not be cited directly. Wherever possible,

sources of internal data will be described within the body of paper.

The concept of workplace coaching has been used within the Belus Organization

for years. Although the term coaching has a wide spectrum of meaning (Grant, 2001),

within Belus there has been a significant emphasis placed on coaching as the method of

managing employee performance. Internal Belus management training documents refer to

coaching as a technique to correct and improve workplace performance. Examples within

these training manuals cite coaching as a management technique to address performance

issues such as substandard work quality, tardiness, or poor attendance. Company

managers have received internal training that focuses on coaching as a performance

correction or disciplinary process and they have been encouraged to practice these

techniques with their teams. In this project I explored the current perceptions,

understanding, and effectiveness of workplace coaching within Belus and addressed

opportunities for development.

I became interested in exploring coaching through both personal and professional

interests. Personally, I have been working with a professional coach for several years.

This coach uses the Co-Active Life Coaching Model (Whitworth, Kimsey-House &


Scandahl, 1998) and understands the multi-dimensional value of coaching for both

professional and personal development.

At Belus, I am a member of the Western Network Operations (Net Ops) manager

group whose key functional objectives are to expand and maintain a highly complicated

and geographically disperse telecommunications network. The work environment is

extremely technical, competitive, and ever-evolving (Industry Canada, 2007). In order to

remain competitive and employ talented people, traditional hierarchical management

practices that objectify people and focus on tasks must evolve (Crane, 2002). For

organizations to prosper and evolve it is essential that their managers embrace and

develop leadership coaching skills that unlock and maximize the potential of their

employees for the benefit of all involved (Crane, 2002; Whitmore, 2002, Weiss &

Kolberg, 2003; Bowerman & Collins, 1999).

Research Question

The main research questions were: (a) How effective is the current coaching

approach being used by western regional managers in Belus Net Ops in enhancing both

those managers' leadership skills and the level of engagement of the employees they

coach? and, (b) What implications does this have for the future of this coaching program

within Belus?

Sub-Questions

The sub-questions being explored within this research include:

1. What coaching techniques have Net Ops managers used most frequently and

feel most comfortable and confident in employing and why?


2. What barriers have Net Ops Managers experienced in applying coaching

techniques and why?

3. In what ways has the use of these coaching techniques impacted the

manager's self-assessment of their leadership skills?

4. What positive impacts on employee engagement have the managers observed

related to employing a coaching approach with members of their teams?

5. What opportunities exist at the individual, team, regional and organizational

level to further enhance the positive impacts of the coaching program?

The Opportunity and its Significance

The term coaching has been used within my organization for years, and as a

manager I have participated in several corporate sponsored coaching courses. Much of

this training has focused on using coaching as a strategy to manage employee

performance and discipline issues. This form of coaching involves showing struggling

employees how to better meet the needs and expectations of the organization and almost

universally fails to recognize the employee as an individual with unique needs, desires,

talents and motivations (Evered & Selman, 2001; Whitmore, 2002). This approach to

coaching is based on the philosophy that leaders have the ultimate answers to employee

problems and their role is to instruct employees on what to do and how to do it

(Bowerman & Collins, 1999; Crane 2002). Such an approach demonstrates that there is a

knowledge gap within my company related to the true nature, scope and purpose of

coaching as it has emerged over the past two decades in the corporate leadership arena

(Weiss & Kolberg, 2003). As leaders we fail to inspire employee innovation and

engagement by focusing on task driven performance management coaching (Whitmore,


2002; Revans as cited in Bowerman & Collins, 1999). We also further segregate

ourselves from our people with little opportunity for self-discovery or facilitation of

mutual understanding (Grant 2001).

The coaching that this paper investigates is different from that described above.

This project defined coaching as, "unlocking a person's potential to maximize their own

performance. It is helping them to learn rather than teaching them" (Whitmore, 2002, p.

8). To further describe coaching, Grant (2001) wrote, "The core constructs of coaching

include: a collaborative, egalitarian rather than authoritarian relationship between coach

[manager] and coachee [employee]; a focus on constructing solutions not analyzing

problems; the assumption that clients are capable and not dysfunctional" (p. 9). By

researching the impact of coaching within Belus Net Ops, I intended to provide a

powerful leadership framework to develop mutually beneficial manager/employee

relationships that would collaboratively engage employees in achieving organizational

goals and increased workplace satisfaction.

The Director of Western Net Ops supports this humanistic coaching philosophy

and has instituted an interactive program based on The Coaches Training Institute (CTI)

Co-Active Coaching Model (The Coaches Training Institute, 2003) for Net Ops

managers. This training intervention was designed to provide leaders with exposure to

coaching techniques that act as a catalyst to cognitive and behavioural shifts in perception

of self and others. The overall goal of developing coaching skills was the hope that

leaders would embrace this as a way of leading that makes a positive influence on

employee engagement and organizational outcomes. In the context of my research


project, this program acted as the foundation from which I explored the concept of

coaching including its merits, challenges, and outcomes in various corporate contexts.

This research project was designed to have the potential to shift the use of

coaching within the organization from a performance management tool to a leadership

and development strategy that will inspire employee engagement. To support this notion,

Popper & Lipshitz (1992) described the use of coaching as, "a process of creating a

culture of development [and] an atmosphere of learning" (p. 15). From a leadership

perspective, Tansky and Cohen (2001) wrote, "managers who perceive they have

coaching skills (self-efficacy concerning coaching) will be more likely to develop their

employees" (p. 288). Harter, Schmidt and Hates (2002) stated, "Employees are

emotionally and cognitively engaged when they know what is expected of them ...

perceive that they are part of something significant with coworkers whom they trust and

have chances to improve and develop" (p. 269). With this project, I hoped to uncover the

potential benefits of developing and using coaching techniques to inspire more balanced

and engaged people within Belus Western Net Ops.

Employee engagement, defined as "a measure of the energy and passion that

employees have for their organizations" (Looi, Marusarz, & Baumruk, 2004, p. 12 ) is

measured each year at Belus. The consulting firm, Hewitt Associates, conducts an annual

survey and benchmarks Belus against other Canadian Companies in relation to the level

of employee engagement and satisfaction. Fifty of the highest scoring companies are

identified each year. These companies are considered "magnet" employers who have the

ability to attract and retain the best talent, thus increasing the viability of their business


(Hewitt Associates, 2005). Since the first assessment in 2003, Belus survey results have

consistently fallen short of its desired employee engagement and satisfaction goals.

As the telecommunications field is extremely competitive and there is a consistent

demand for new technology (Industry Canada, 2007), Belus has a keen interest in both

attracting top talent and gaining a competitive edge through employee engagement,

commitment, and innovation. Leadership coaching recognizes the employee's, "need for

meaning and purpose in their lives. They [employees] want to work, their activities and

existence to have value, to be a contribution to others" (Whitmore, 2002, p. 112).

Academic coaching literature (such as Crane, 2002; Whitmore, 2002; Weiss & Kolberg,

2003) suggests that leveraging the benefits of coaching is one method that Belus Net Ops

Managers can use to achieve this employee engagement goal. The coaching intervention

introduced to Belus Net Ops Managers manifested itself as a tremendous opportunity to

research the effectiveness of coaching as leadership strategy.

Systems Analysis of the Opportunity

The Canadian Wireless Business

Belus launched a national cellular telephone network in the mid eighties and,

through a process of entrepreneurial risk taking, market growth and corporate

acquisitions, is now one of Canada's largest wireless voice and data communications

service providers. As specified on its web site, Belus prides itself on supplying wireless

voice and data coverage to over 90% of Canada's geographically distributed population.

In addition, on-line company information indicates that Belus subscribers have global

access to wireless services allowing them to use their phone internationally in over 175

countries throughout Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa.


Providing wireless service is a very competitive, capital intensive, and ever

changing business. Capital expenditures by wireless providers for network infrastructure

and radio spectrum has consistently exceeded one billion dollars per year over the past

several years (Industry Canada, 2007). Belus shares the Canadian market with two other

main national competitors. In addition, there are a handful of smaller provincially based

wireless providers like Saskatchewan Telephone and Manitoba Telephone, as well as

service resellers such as Virgin Mobile, all competing for a portion of the market

(Industry Canada, 2007). Wireless service providers are continuously under pressure to

change, upgrade, and expand in order to keep up with consumer demands (Industry

Canada, 2007).

Providing wireless service in Canada is regulated by the Canadian Radio-

Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and Industry Canada. The

CRTC's main roles are, "ensuring the confidentiality of customer information and

ensuring that customers are not subject to undue preference or unjust discrimination.

However, the CRTC does not regulate the rates, quality of service or business practices of

cellular (wireless) service providers" (CRTC, 2007, Tf 1). The other wireless regulatory

body is Industry Canada: "Industry Canada has responsibility for licensing the underlying

spectrum resource, radio spectrum, including the awarding of licenses along with their

associated terms and conditions of license" (Industry Canada, 2007, f 70).

The Canadian Competition Bureau has recently heard complaints of unfair pricing

and business practices attributed to the three main Canadian wireless service providers

(Industry Canada, 2007). Consumer advocates feel wireless services are overpriced and

that there is a lack of competition in the Canadian Market (Industry Canada, 2007). This


activity, coupled with the availability of additional radio spectrum in the 1700 MHZ and

2100 MHZ bands indicates that there is an opportunity for a another wireless service

provider to join the Canadian market (Industry Canada, 2007). Wireless consumer

advocates are suggesting the CRTC and Industry Canada award the available spectrum to

a fourth (new) national service provider at a reduced cost to stimulate competition,

consumer choice, and to decrease consumer costs. Although the auction for this

additional radio spectrum has yet to be announced by Industry Canada, Belus executives

and financial analysts (Nowak, 2007) are speculating there will be a fourth entry in the

Canadian Wireless Industry by 2008. Belus insiders, based on their experiences in the

late nineties when two new services providers, Fido and Clearnet, entered the Canadian

wireless market, are speculating that the new company will attract talented employee

from Belus, as well as significantly lower industry profit margins.

Succeeding within this larger systemic context creates a dynamic for Belus and its

relationships with its employees and its customers that it cannot ignore. The key impacts

of these realities for Belus are that it must compete for customer and employee loyalty

alike. Customer loyalty is largely dependent upon Belus providing the best products and

services in the marketplace. This inexorably ties back to the level of employee readiness

and motivation to provide these exceptional products and services.

This research explored the current Belus leadership culture and illustrated how the

introduction of workplace coaching influenced a transformational shift in leadership

competencies within a team of managers. Based on study results, this report advocates

that Belus embrace coaching as a fundamental organizational wide leadership change

strategy to ensure its success in the competitive wireless marketplace.


Organizational Context

The Belus Mission

The Belus company mission is focused on continuous profitable growth. This

statement is simple and straight forward; Belus's main purpose for existing is to deliver

industry leading financial results and to ensure value for company stakeholders. Senge

(2006) stated that although profit is like oxygen to an organization (meaning it is

essential), our purpose as individuals and as organizations has to be greater than simply

breathing (making a profit). Profit, if made at the expense of employees, essentially

whittles away our humanity (Senge, 2006). The key to complete organizational success is

the behaviour of its leaders. Weiss and Kolberg (2003) write, "Competencies at the

leadership level trickle down through the organization, positively impacting morale,

motivation, commitment, and ultimately organizational results. How employees perceive

their organizational culture is linked directly to the actions of the leaders" (p. 10).

Company executive's main objectives are financial. There is no shared vision in Belus's

mission statement that links the people that serve the organization to the goals of the

company. One cannot help but speculate that the poor employee engagement and

satisfaction survey results are influenced, at least in part, by the organization's mission of

profit above all else.

Organizational Leadership Environment

The Belus Net Ops managers, who were the focus of this research project, are part

of a much larger technical group known as Engineering and National Net Ops. This

multi-facetted team of engineers, planners, technologists, and technicians are responsible

for designing, building, and maintaining the wireless network which provides Belus


customers with wireless voice and data service. Schein's (1997) description of an

Engineering Culture most accurately depicts the leadership environment in Belus's

Engineering and Operations Sub-organization. Schein wrote,

Although this [engineering] culture is most visible in traditional engineering functions one can see it in operation equally in the designers and implementers of all kinds of technologies-information technology, market research, financial systems, and so on.. .One of the key themes in the culture of engineering is the pre-occupation with designing humans out of the systems rather than into them, flf 26)

The engineering culture within Belus National Net Ops has resulted in a vertical

organizational structure that primarily focuses on having frontline workers carry out

manager-assigned tasks and rewarding them with a salary. For example internal messages

and directives from the office of the Vice President of Net Ops focus on task delivery and

achieving performance objectives. There is no mention or support for individual

development, innovation, or creativity. The management environment within National

Net Ops centers on following pre-defined processes and achieving the objective

performance metrics. This form of leadership, defined by Beairsto (2003) as

"transactional", is limited in promoting or supporting innovation and engagement in the

workforce as the workplace culture is solely driven by the manager's wants and needs.

The result of this hierarchical approach is a workforce that is narrowly focused on

completing a scope of tasks that are predetermined by another individual, which

disconnects them from their customers and their own "higher needs" (Bass & Avolio,

1993).

Maslow (as cited in Shigehiro, Edward, Richard, & Eunkook, 1999) proposed a

need-gratification theory of well being describing self-actualization as the ultimate goal

of self-development. Maslow's work assists leaders in understanding that as individuals


have their basic physical and psychological needs met they are driven to satisfy higher

needs of self-esteem, self-actualization, and overall happiness (Shigehiro et al., 1999).

Transactional leadership, however, is more concerned with meeting monthly key

performance indictors rather than exploring how those numbers translate into customer

service and employee satisfaction, esteem and self-efficacy (Bass & Avolio, 1993).

Although the transactional leadership approach has some merit when managing

numerical objectives (Beairsto, 2003), it is not enough to connect the workforce with the

ever-changing needs of the customer or to motivate employees to be visionary and

innovative. "People are much more than robots that go to work to make their numbers

every day, based on a pseudo-scientific theorem of rational, self-interested, utility-

maximizing, shareholder-pleasing homo economicus" (Secretan, 2006,Tf 11). In order for

the organization to survive and grow, we need to embrace an emerging mindset, which

recognizes diverse perspectives, continuous innovation and progress as the cornerstone of

practice (Anderson & Ackerman Anderson, 2001). To summarize, there are opportunities

within Belus for leaders to shift their engineering transactional leadership focus to a more

humanistic approach thus enabling the organization to inspire engagement, innovation,

and ability to change in its workforce.

Western Network Operations

The Team

Presently there are approximately 450 employees in Belus Net Ops nationally.

Western Net Ops, the target group for this project, is a smaller part of the National Net

Ops Team. Western Net Ops is comprised of 115 permanent employees who report to my

supervisor, the Director of Western Net Ops. Western Net Ops is a team of specialists


whose key functional responsibilities are to implement all network evolutionary changes

while continuously expanding and maintaining a highly complicated and geographically

disperse telecommunications network across Western Canada. The area of responsibility

spans 2600 kilometers from Thunder Bay, Ontario to Tofino, British Columbia. The

Network consists of hundreds of cellsites, multiple wireless switching centres, and

thousands of miles of microwave radio, fiber optic, and copper wire facilities serving

well over a million customers.

The Western Team consists of a director and nine managers. Each manage has an

average of twelve direct reports. The average tenure of the management team within

Belus Net Ops is in excess often years. The tenure of front line staff ranges from new

hires with no experience to employees with twenty years of service. Aside from a few

administrative support staff, the majority of the team consists of highly specialized

telecommunications technologist, technicians, and project managers. To keep employees

abreast of technology changes, Belus invests hundreds of thousands of dollars each year

in technical training for its staff. Western Nets Ops budgetary information from 2006

indicated training expenses for that region exceeded $400,000. Presently employee turn

over is low, but if the fourth service provided enters the wireless market, it is speculated

by the Western Net Ops Management Team that employees will choose to leave and join

the new organization. Our highly trained employees are considered valuable resources by

the competition, particularly to start-up companies. For example, when FIDO and

Clearnet launched their networks in the mid 1990's, several key people left Belus to join

these organizations, enticed mainly by hirer wages and lucrative bonuses.


The learning curve for new employees is intensive and long. It takes several years

for technical people to become competent in all aspects of their job. Presently, with the

assistance of an external consultant who specializes in adult learning, Western Net Ops is

developing technical competency and proficiency standards to measure the technical

aptitude, readiness, and development needs of staff. Due to the dynamic nature of the

business, wireless technology is continuously changing therefore establishing fixed

measurable technical competencies has proven to be a difficult task to complete and

implement.

In addition, Western Net Ops struggles with setting and measuring employee's

development and behavioural competencies. The annual performance review process

does ask the manager to rate employee's behavioural competencies. However, the

process is seen as very subjective and difficult to use. The performance review format has

changed every year for the past four years and many of the managers consider the review

process as an additional administrative task that has little added value. To add additional

complexity to the performance review, Belus Human Resources also instructs managers

to include a discussion of future employee development during each performance review

meeting. Performance evaluation and development planning processes have different

goals, and the two tasks require different styles of conversion. Combing both in the same

meeting results in confusion for both manager and employee, and makes setting

developmental objectives difficult and ineffective (Beer, 1992).

We demand more and more of our employees each year. Worker responsibilities

expand, the customer base grows, technology changes, and network complexity

increases. Western Net Ops work in a dynamic environment where change appears to be


the only constant. As with many successful organizations, we have had to learn to not

only survive, but thrive in chaos (Tom Peters as cited in Beairsto, 2003). For example,

since I began working at Belus Net Ops in 1998,1 have witnessed a tremendous amount

of organizational and technological change. In the Fall of 2006, we began deploying a

third generation (3G) wireless network designed to provide enhanced user features, voice

quality and fast data speeds allowing Belus to remain competitive. This is the third such

network-wide expansion project I have participated in since joining the company.

In addition, the nature of our work is often very urgent and we are required to take

action quickly, particularly in times of cellular service interruption. Many customers,

including emergency services, rely on Net Ops to do its job. In the event of a network

emergency, service must be restored as quickly as possible. The very nature of our work

requires Western Net Ops to have fully engaged employees at all times.

The workforce is distributed throughout Western Canada. While many people

work in larger urban centers such has Vancouver and Calgary, at least sixty percent of

staff works remotely, often independently and alone. Therefore, a large amount of daily

communication with their peers and manger is via telephone or e-mail. Much of the time,

solving problems or implementing network augmentations requires multiple people in

several locations working collaboratively to accomplish preset tasks. In order to be

successful at their job, people need to develop virtual relationships-building and strong

verbal communication skills.

In summary, leadership and operational challenges included: (a) employees that

are geographically spread across four provinces in various rural and metropolitan

settings; (b) employees are required to be availability twenty four hours a day seven days


a week; (c) many employees work alone and are solely accountable for customer service

in their area; (d) network technology is varied, complex, and continuously changing; (e)

continuous technological changes require staff to be constant learners; and (f) most

management and leadership employee support is provided from a distance.

Regional Leadership Environment

The Western Net Ops leadership environment is predominantly transactional

largely due to the influences of the overall engineering culture we work in. Managers

and their reports are measured on key performance indicators that are consistent within

Net Ops across the country. The performance metrics are clearly defined and an

individual's key performance metrics are recorded and tracked within a national database

tool. To further illustrate the Western Net Ops management culture, a recent statement

dated February 15,2007, from the Director of Western Net Ops to his management team

helps describe the manager/employee relationship within the Western region, "I think we

are missing a great opportunity to connect them [employees] into the business and fully

engage their talents...there was a heavy bias towards KPI [key performance indicators]

type goal setting with little emphasis on social intelligence". Through workplace

discussions, meetings, and reviewing employee survey results, I have learned that the

task-driven and technical nature of the job leaves some employees feeling disengaged

from their leader and the business.

Annual organizational reports which highlight regional performance results show

that the Western Net Ops Management team has been successful at meeting or exceeding

organizational performance measures year over year. However, the data provided from

the 2005 employee surveys supports the need for leadership and organizational


development in the area of overall employee engagement, people practices, and employee

growth and development.

Coaching Program

Coaching model.

The Director of Western Net Ops introduced the Co-active Coaching Model as the

fundamental framework for his manager coach training program. In an interview

conducted on May 25,2007, the Director stated that,

My objectives for introducing coaching training to the management team was to help them create an environment which enables people to develop to their full potential. I want my managers to get to know their people, to understand each individual as a whole person, and to treat people as people and not objects. (DR)

The Co-active Coaching Model is coachee or client centered indicating that the individual

being coached has the capability within themselves to solve problems or create a more

fulfilling life for themselves (Whitworth et al., 1998). It is the coach's function to inspire

the coachee to self-discover those solutions and to hold the coachee account for obtaining

their milestones and objectives (Whitworth et al., 1998; The Coaches Training Institute,

2003).

The Co-active Coaching Model is based on five fundamental skills the coach must

understand and utilize in the context of a coaching conversation. The first skill is

listening at a deep level to hear not only the words said, but to observe the coachee's

tone, emotion, and body language (Whitworth et a l , 1998). Whitworth et al. wrote, "The

real listening of coaching takes place on a deeper level. It is listening for the meaning

behind the story, for the underlying process, for the theme that will deepen the

[coachee's] learning" (p. 9).


The second skill, called intuition, refers to the coach's ability to rely on and to

trust their inner feelings to assist in the coaching process. When the coach effectively

listens to the coachee, they will develop a deep understand of the coachee and can then

draw on their own intuitive feelings to help inspire the coachee and guide the coaching

process (Whitworth et a l , 1998).

The third coaching skill is exercising curiosity by asking the coachee open-ended

questions that build on the topic of discussion and enable the coachee to explore the

subject from alternate perspectives (Whitworth et al., 1998). Whitworth et al. wrote,

"curiosity in coaching allows the coach and client to enter the deepest areas of the client's

life, side by side, simply looking, curious about what they will find" (p. 10).

Coach self-management is the fourth skill in the Co-active Model. In order for the

coachee to truly control the coaching agenda, the coach must use self-management

techniques to avoid controlling or telling the coachee what to do (Whitworth et al.,1998).

"Self-management is the coach's ability to set aside his or her own personal opinions,

preferences, defensiveness, ego" (Whitworth et al., p. 11).

The fifth skill is action/learning. Action/learning makes the coachee accountable

for his or her own development and learning. In the coaching relationship the coachee

sets his or her own objectives and develops action plans. It is the duty of the coach to

track the coachee's progress toward achieving the desired goal (Whitworth et al., 1998).

The goal of this skill is not to achieve objective goals, it is about learning and action, "the

[coachee] can learn as much from failure as from accomplishment" (Whitworth et al., p.

11).


Coach training.

The coach training program was taught by two external, CTI Certified Facilitators

and was delivered in a combination of classroom and tele-class environments. The

program began with an interactive three day classroom session where facilitators

introduced a coaching concept, and then direct participants to practice the concepts with

fellow learners. All nine Western Net Ops mangers, as well as thirteen external guests

attended the three day session. Of the additional thirteen participants, seven were from

other Belus business groups, and six people attended from external private and public

sector organizations. To ensure the managers had a safe environment for learning, and to

minimize any perceived feelings of coercion amongst the staff, the Director of Net Ops

did not attend any of the training sessions.

External learners were invited to participate free of charge to enhance the richness

of the interactive learning environment for all involved. This action was informed by the

social constructive learning theory. Merriam and Caffarella (1999) wrote,

The social constructive view...posits that knowledge is constructed when individuals engage socially in talk and activity about shared problems or tasks. Making meaning is thus a dialogic process involving persons-in-conservations, and learning is seen as the process by which individuals are introduced to a concept by more skilled members, (p. 262)

The results of the course evaluation indicated that inviting people external to the Net Ops

Team was a successful learning strategy. Participants commented that role playing and

practicing coaching skills with people they had just met, inspired them to focus on the

newly taught skills more so than if they were in a class with people they already knew.

The second segment of the training consisted of three ninety minute tele-classes

held April 11,25, and May 8,2007. These telephone conference-call sessions, required


each learner to dial in to a conference bridge. The sessions, were lead by the same

facilitators that hosted the classroom sessions. Participation in this segment was limited

to the nine Net Ops Managers, plus one additional Belus Manager who had also

participated in the first course. The tele-classes revisited the Co-active Coaching

fundamentals presented in the classroom training and encourage participants to share

their coaching successes and difficulties. In addition, participants were divided into pairs

and given homework assignments to practice coaching skills with each other.

The classroom coach training, follow-up tele-classes, and homework practice

sessions were based on the premise that learning and change is a cyclical process

(Mackeracher, 2004; Langley, Nolan, Nolan, Norman, & Provost 1996). The first

classroom segment introduced the learners to the fundamental co-active leadership

coaching skills and allowed the participants to practice those skills in a safe facilitator-

lead setting. Then the mangers were given the opportunity to apply those skills in the

workplace. The tele-class segments reviewed key concepts, allowed managers to share

their learnings with colleagues, and provide a forum for additional coaching practice.

Conclusion and Research

The coaching program was introduced as a leadership approach for the Western

Net Ops Management Team. This change initiative was indirectly linked to each

manager's personal objectives for 2007. One of the manager bonus objectives this year

was to improve ESAT (employee satisfaction and engagement survey) results. In a

document dated February 15,2007, the Director of Western Net Ops stated that his

expectations are his managers will use coaching to enhance employee engagement survey

results. He wrote, "If we want better ESAT, we need to make sure the [people] onboard


are nurtured and those who are not engaged are turned around. [This is] fertile ground for

using coaching skills you experienced in the Coaching Leadership Workshop".

This research project examined the leadership culture and manager/employee

relationships within Western Net Ops from the manager perspective. The intent of this

research project was to determine how effective the coaching program was at enhancing

Western Net Ops Managers leadership skills and the level of engagement of the

employee they coach. The research also determined the sustainability of this and future

coaching programs within the Belus Organization.


CHAPTER TWO - LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction

This qualitative, action-based research project is based on three pillars of

knowledge: (a) employee engagement, (b) coaching, and (c) organizational culture.

Understanding each of these concepts at a theoretical and practical level, including how

they are linked, is essential to the development of new knowledge and understanding of

how coaching techniques can be used to exert a positive influence within the

organizational context. Interwoven throughout this chapter and described through a

coaching lens, are the themes of effective leadership and personal change.

Literature Sources

Literature for this paper was obtained through a focused search in the Emerald,

Bloomberg, ProQuest, and JSTOR databases as well as a global database search using

Google Scholar. Key search terms included engagement (employee), motivation

(employee), transformational (charismatic) leadership, adult learning theory, coaching,

organizational culture, organizational change, learning organizations, and management

(styles, theories, models). In addition to reviewing periodicals, books related to each of

the main topic headings were also used as a primary source of information. Additional

resources were located through reviewing the reference lists of each relevant article

and/or book and located through a focused search, when appropriate. Additional search

terms, identified within each additional resource, were used to locate relevant information

related to the specific topic being explored.


Engagement

Employee engagement is a term used by organizations to measure employee

satisfaction, involvement and enthusiasm (Harter, Schmidt & Hates, 2002). For most

organizations, focusing on engagement is a departure from examining the more

traditional metrics of profitability, revenue growth, and market share. While these

markers remain very important to gauge a company's fiscal performance, human-oriented

measures that examine employee attitudes and behavioral traits are also being recognized

as significant organizational metrics (Pfeffer, 1998). Harter et al. (2002) described

engagement as follows:

Employees are emotionally and cognitively engaged when they know what is expected of them, have what they need to do their work, have opportunities to feel an impact and fulfillment in their work, perceive that they are part of something significant with coworkers whom they trust and have chances to improve and develop, (p. 269)

Within the context of this research project it is important to understand the characteristics

of employee engagement from both a business and individual perspective. It is also vital

to explore what organizational and leadership conditions inspire meaningful human

engagement.

Definition of Organizational Engagement

Over the past 25 years, the Gallup Organization has conducted a meta-analysis

including 2500 business units and 100,000 people employed in business, health care, and

educational fields (Buckingham & Coffman, 1999) Through their extensive research and

data analysis, Gallup has empirically determined a definition for employee engagement

which is measured using a relatively simple 12-question employee survey. The Gallup

engagement survey is a predictor of desirable organizational outcomes such as employee


satisfaction. An overwhelming amount of evidence indicates that favorable survey

findings signify high levels of employee engagement, and these results correlate directly

with desirable business results (Buckingham & Coffman, 1999).

It is clear that "there are practical as well as humanistic reasons that managers and

researchers of organizations should be concerned with employees' engagement in work"

(May, Gilson & Harter, 2004, p. 13). With findings similar to that of the Gallup

organization, Harter et al. (2002) define engagement as a performance measure of worker

involvement and enthusiasm, and established it to be a positive predictor of employee

retention, customer satisfaction, and organizational profitability. Based on the extent and

size of Gallup's research, in conjunction with the other sources cited above, there appears

to be evidence to suggest a positive correlation between employee engagement and

organizational success. The next logical step, therefore, is to explore literature pertaining

to leadership and motivation in an effort to understand the characteristics of engagement

at an intrinsic level.

Characteristics of Engagement

When introducing his concept of flow, or true life engagement, Csikszentmihalyi

(1997) wrote, "It must mean to live in fullness, without waste of time and potential,

expressing one's uniqueness, yet participating intimately in the complexity of the

cosmos" (p. 2). When viewed from an individual perspective, flow is best described as a

feeling of fulfillment and accomplishment (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997). At work, people

experience these feelings when they are placed in highly-challenging, skill-requiring

situations that demand concentration and creativity to achieve the desired results

(Csikszentmihalyi, 1997). Csikszentmihalyi's research, using the "Experience Sampling


Method" (p. 59) of study, which was designed to measure how people occupy their time,

indicated that adults experience more periods of flow when working compared to leisure

activities. One could summarize from these findings that people inherently want to be

engaged, and may look to the workplace as a source of holistic fulfillment. This notion

also aligns with Maslow's theory of human motivation and self-actualization (Whitmore,

2002).

Zukaf (1989) and Quinn (2004) stated that people achieve authentic engagement

when they fully comprehend their true values, beliefs and life purpose, and are able to

live by these principles with integrity. Zukaf (1989) also wrote,

When the deepest part of you becomes engaged in what you are doing, when your activities and actions become gratifying and purposeful, when what you do serves both yourself and others, when you do not tire within but seek the sweet satisfaction of your life and your work, you are doing what you were meant to be doing. The personality that is engaged in the work of the soul is buoyant. It is not burdened with negativity. It does not fear. It experiences purposefulness and meaning. It delights in its work and in others. It is fulfilled and fulfilling, (p. 236)

A large proportion of the literature exploring organizations, including Gallup's

work, defines employee engagement through the context of organizational relationships

and experiences (for example, see Buckingham & Coffman, 1999; Looi et al., 2004).

Kahn (1990) builds on this concept by arguing that people's perceptions create the

conditions in which they personally engage, or disengage. People will apply varying

amounts of cognitive, emotional, and physical energy to their work tasks. Kahn argued

that, the more people draw on these personal psychological domains to perform a role,

the better the result, and the more content the individual. Kahn wrote:

People become physically involved in tasks, whether alone or with others, cognitively vigilant, and empathically connected to others in the service of the work they are doing in ways that display what they think and feel, their creativity, their beliefs and values, and their personal connections to others, (p. 700)


Conversely, disengagement is the withdrawal of a person's preferred behaviors

that are often replaced with defensive characteristics like suppressing one's true identity,

thoughts, and feelings (Kahn, 1990). Disengaged employees distance themselves from

their work roles and disconnect from their co-workers by withdrawing cognitively and

emotionally. Characteristics of disengagement may include the absence of collaborative

social interaction, lack of ownership in work roles, and a feeling that work tasks have

little meaning or importance (Luthans & Peterson, 2002).

Self-efficacy and Leadership Influence

Luthans and Peterson (2002) refer to self-efficacy as, "an individual's beliefs

about his or her abilities to mobilize cognitive resources and courses of action to

successfully execute a specific task within a given context" (p. 379). Research has shown

that there is a strong positive relationship between self-efficacy and work performance

(Stajkovic & Luthans, 1998). Luthans and Peterson (2002) suggest that managerial

understanding of self-efficacy may provide leaders with needed awareness to inspire an

environment of engagement within their team. Their data also indicated that emotionally

and cognitively engaged employees have direct and indirect effects on their manager's

own state of self-efficacy. Essentially, Luthans and Peterson found that when workers are

engaged the team's performance and morale is elevated, which results in positive

manager feedback and a heightened level of leadership effectiveness. The employee

engagement - managerial relationship can be self supporting and a continuously

developing alliance.

Gallup's data (as cited in Buckingham & Coffman, 1999) emphasized the

importance of the manager's ability to directly influence employee engagement and


satisfaction levels. Managers should strive to inspire self-efficacy and engagement in

their people by developing supportive and trustworthy relationships. Specifically, it is

important for managers to encourage and support employees to: find creative solutions to

difficult issues, provide opportunities for growth and continuous learning, use open

dialogue, and demonstrate genuine concern for their people (Luthans & Peterson, 2002;

May et al., 2004). Academic literature affirms the important for employees having strong

emotional ties to their manager, and to have meaningful work that allows them to live

their personal values and beliefs at work (Luthans & Peterson, 2002; Kahn, 1990;

Whitmore, 2002).

The next section of this literature review will introduce coaching as a viable

workplace leadership practice that will inspire employee engagement and development.

Popper & Lipshitz (1992) described the use of coaching as, "a process of creating a

culture of development [and] an atmosphere of learning" (p. 15). From a leadership

perspective, Tansky and Cohen wrote, "managers who perceive they have coaching skills

(self-efficacy concerning coaching) will be more likely to develop their employees" (p.

288).

Workplace Coaching

Introduction

Coaching, when viewed from an organizational management perspective, implies

a wide spectrum of definitions and connotations. To illustrate one viewpoint, Bowerman

and Collins (1999) wrote,

The traditional view of coaching is that it is a workplace skill set required of mangers and supervisors particularly for the performance management process...where work is compartmentalized into specific tasks and functions, and where employees are well managed by paternalistic leaders, (p.292)


This supervisory approached of telling or showing people the answers to problems can

be effective if the solution is already known or when there is only one definitive way of

completing a task effectively and/or efficiently. This type of coaching, however, has little

benefit in assisting people to resolve new challenges that require non-traditional, creative,

or innovative approaches (Revans as cited in Bowerman & Collins, 1999). This

autocratic, manager-centered paradigm of workplace coaching "focuses heavily on

control, order, and compliance, with the consequence that people became objectified,

measured, and expended" (Evered & Selman, 2001, p. 16). Coaching in the context of

this paper is the opposite of that described above. This literature review will focus on

coaching as a humanistic leadership and management strategy that unlocks the potential

of individuals to maximize their performance, creativity, and ability to learn (Evered &

Selman, 2001; Whitmore, 2002).

Coaching Theory

Over the past several decades, coaching has emerged as a leadership technique

that has received much attention within the context of organizational leadership and

culture. However, within the first decade of its emergence in the corporate sector, little

had been written about coaching at a theoretical level (Popper & Lipshitz, 1992). Popper

and Lipshitz, were two of the early researchers to explore coaching from the psycho

social domain, making a connection between coaching and social learning theory

(Bandura, 1977; Kohlberg as cited in Popper & Lipshitz). An understanding of social

learning theory provided insight into how and why coaching appeared to be an effective

technique for enhancing the performance and engagement of employees. Popper and

Lipshitz stated, "In our opinion, self-efficacy is the key psychological variable in


coaching" (p. 15). The premise behind the success of coaching, therefore, is that an

employee's psychological development is reliant on a sense of empowerment first and

foremost, which, ultimately, leads to a sustained sense of self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is

defined as:

An impression that one is capable of performing in a certain manner or attaining certain goals. It is a belief that one has the capabilities to execute the courses of actions required to manage prospective situations. Unlike efficacy, which is the power to produce an effect (in essence, competence), self-efficacy is the belief (whether or not accurate) that one has the power to produce that effect. It is important here to understand the distinction between self-esteem and self efficacy. Self esteem relates to a person's sense of self-worth, whereas self efficacy relates to a person's perception of their ability to reach a goal. (Wikipedia, 2007,11)

Bandura's social learning theory (1977) is based on the belief that positive

experiences establish the foundation for the development of self-efficacy and self-

efficacy inspires ongoing learning. Positive experiences are achieved through the skilled

use of a series of coaching techniques that encourage mastery (Popper & Lipshitz, 1992).

Mastery is achieved from four main sources: (a) performance accomplishment

(experience), (b) vicarious learning (modeling), (c) verbal persuasion (encouragement)

and, (d) emotional arousal (physiological response to external stimuli) (Popper &

Lipshitz, 1992, p 15 & 16). It is Popper and Lipshitz's (1992) position that

the feeling of mastery and the experience of success, internalized and projected on to perceptions of self-efficacy, cannot find meaningful expression in short-term learning relationships characteristic of lectures, seminars and workshops. They can find expression only in ongoing learning relationships - which is an inherent component of coaching. Because it is based on ongoing relations, coaching has greater potential influence than other teaching relationships, (p. 16)

This conceptualization of mastery is derived from Bandura's (1977) theoretic work

exploring how personal beliefs influence one's ability to do certain things.


Coaching Definition and Organizational Fit

Coaching, as defined by Popper and Lipshitz (1992), is the process of human

resource development that extends beyond the mere transfer of knowledge from teacher

to student. These authors summarized this notion by stating, "At the basis of these

learning processes is the learning person, with his anxieties, hopes and belief in himself

(p. 17). When leaders use coaching techniques that take into consideration the array of

psychological factors that influence behaviour, they can then begin to tap into the often

dormant skill and enthusiasm hidden within each employee (Grant, 2001; Whitmore,

2002 ). Coaching, therefore, acts as the mechanism through which leaders assist an

employee in developing empowering positive self-beliefs leading to enhanced job

performance through enhanced self-efficacy (Popper & Lipshitz, 1992; Whitmore, 2002).

As the interest in and use of coaching has exploded over the past decade, so have

variations in its approach and the terms used to define it. Despite the array of coaching

approaches currently in use in both the personal and professional arenas of development,

the common unifying philosophies remain consistent. These philosophies include: (a) a

passion for individual growth, (b) assuming responsibility for the possibilities that exist

and, (c) nurturing and exploiting individual talent (Du Toit, 2007). Coaching is distinctly

different than other leadership and psychological development techniques. As stated by

Du Toit,

Unlike other methods of intervention, coaching resists the temptation to tell people what to do. Instead it is concerned with assisting and facilitating people in their sensemaking activities, enabling them to deal with and to remove the blocks that may be preventing them from moving from one state to another. One of the reasons for the success of coaching is that it addresses the deeply held beliefs and behaviours that inhibit performance.... The essence of coaching is to liberate the full potential of the individual or team of individuals....One of the most valuable


gifts a coach has to offer her client is the ability to step away from the day-to-day business and reflect on the possible routes and choices available, (p. 284)

O'Shaughnessy (2001) elaborated on this point in his study of highly successful

individuals and organizations. His position is that in order to achieve the high level of

performance required to achieve exceptional results, those individuals involved must be

"stretched" (p. 195). Success, therefore, is dependent on the psychological position of

individuals to be "prepared to be better than they ever imagined they could be. It requires

endless effort and... careful and creative thinking. It also, in the vast majority of cases,

requires...coaching." (O'Shaughnessy, 2001, p. 195). A recent survey conducted by The

Quo Group, (O'Shaughnessy, 2001), demonstrated that "executive coaching is playing a

major role in improving the caliber of UK businesses and in maximizing

competitiveness....The survey revealed an across-the-board consensus that coaching was

one of the most powerful strategic and tactical weapons open to businesses today..." (p.

195). This study alone reveals the power individual beliefs and coaching have on

organizational success.

The act of coaching consists of a number of techniques that result in specific

outcomes for the coachee, regardless of his or her position within an organization. These

outcomes include: (a) the ability to identify one's own strengths, desires and goals at a

personal; and/or professional level, (b) inherent assumptions, beliefs and values that may

help or hinder the process of goal attainment, (c) what, explicitly, the coachee can do to

achieve the desired goal, (d) the internal and external resources available to the coachee,

and (e) the sequence of steps the coachee must take to move him or her closer to the

desired goal (Whitworth et al , 1998; Whitmore, 2002). "Through [coaching]

conversations and dialogue it is possible for individuals to see themselves in an entirely


new context, and to explore new avenues for action that were previously not seen to exist.

In this way, personal transformation is possible" (Bowerman & Collins, 1999, p. 292).

The assumption behind coaching is that it provides a means for employees to find

and/or achieve "organizational fit" or "job-person match" (Weiss& Kolberg, 2003, p.

102). Organizational fit involves the alignment of personal values, desires and skills to

organizational values and goals (Huang, Cheng, & Chou, 2005). The aim is to employ

individuals who are well matched to the organization and vise versa. Specifically,

organizational fit refers to the match between the level of need for autonomy and self-

efficacy and the organization's ability (at the leadership level) to engage employees to the

degree to which they are best suited now and in the future (Huang et al., 2005; Weiss &

Kolberg, 2003). Coaching recognizes that the employee (i.e. the coachee) has the intrinsic

knowledge about who they are and what they wish to achieve, although this may need

skilled facilitation to uncover (Weiss & Kolberg, 2003). When organizational fit is

achieved, the individual's internal motivation is ignited and commitment to innovation is

established, thus achieving optimal results for both the individual and the organization

(Huang et al., 2005; Weiss & Kolberg, 2003).

Even with the vast array of materials available on the subject of coaching, there is

still debate over what the final definition of coaching is, or should be. Some authors

speculate that a definition of coaching can be limiting as it can take many forms and can

be applied to many situations (Bowerman & Collins, 1999). The underlying principle of

coaching, as described previously, is that it is a mutually agreeable strategy used within a

relationship of trust where one individual (the coach) facilitates the attainment of insight,

knowledge, skill, creativity and satisfying outcomes in another (the coachee). The agenda


for a coaching conversation is set and directed by the coachee and the coach acts as the

expert in engaging the coachee in the process of self-discovery, not as an expert in the

content being discussed (Bowerman & Collins, 1999; Weiss & Kolberg, 2003). With this

underlying premise of coaching explicitly and universally accepted, what is clear is what

coaching is not. Coaching does not aim to fix something that is "broken" (i.e. it is not

psychotherapy, counseling, or task management nor is it molding individuals to fit

organizations) and the coach does not presume to know what the destiny for others will

be (Grant, 2001). Lastly, coaching is not teaching, training (including sports coaching),

advising or mentoring, although elements of each of these strategies may exist in varying

degrees in some forms of coaching relationships (Bowerman & Collins, 1999; Weiss &

Kolberg; Grant, 2001).

Coaching and Adult Learning Theory

In 1968, Malcolm Knowles introduced andragogy as a theory of adult learning

which he defined as "the art and science of helping adults learn" (Knowles, p. 43 as cited

in Merriam, 2001). There are five assumptions of adult learners that form the foundation

of andragogy. Merriam stated that the adult-learner:

(1) has an independent self-concept and... can direct his or her own learning, (2) has accumulated a reservoir of life experiences that is a rich resources for learning, (3) has learning needs closely related to changing social roles, (4) is problem-centred and interested in the immediate application of knowledge, and (5) is motivated to learn by internal rather than external factors, (p. 5)

A key concept in Knowles' model of andragogy is that the majority of adults learn

outside of a formal classroom. The adult learner also takes responsibility for designing

their learning activities in a way that meets their intrinsic needs (Merriam & Cafferella,

1999).


A second model of adult learning, which Knowles also contributed to, is called

self-directed learning (SDL) (Merriam & Cafferella, 1999). Similar to andragogy, the

self-directed learning model proposes that adult learners require a different approach to

education than children in order to fully understand and demonstrate new cognitive and

behavioural changes. The traditional model of teaching children (pedagogy) includes the

assumption that the teacher is the expert and is in charge of passing on his or her superior

knowledge by telling or lecturing the student (Merriam & Cafferella). In contrast, SDL

focuses on the use of facilitated learning techniques with the goal being the development

of each learner into reflective self-directed individuals (Merriam, 2001). In an SDL

environment, "a self-directed or autonomous person is able to invoke a coherent set of

beliefs, values, and attitudes" (Mackeracher, 2004, p.45). When an individual is able to

call upon their internal characteristics and drivers, they are able to find their own

meaning and direction for their learning (Merriam, 2001). Within the SDL model, the

role of the teacher or facilitator is that of assistant or learning partner. The facilitator's

function is to understand the learner's readiness and current stage of development and

suggest strategies or set goals to assist learners in meeting their learning objectives

(Whitmore, 2002).

Both the SDL and andragogy adult learning theories closely align with the

coaching philosophy previously described. In a coach approach to learning, the coach

(facilitator) and coachee (learner) establish a collaborative relationship where the coach

inspires the coachee to identify his or her own learning needs and strategies (Grant,

2001). Unlike traditional training, coaching taps into the learners, "metacognitive skills -

the ability to think about one's thoughts, feelings and behaviours - [which] are essential


factors in mastering new skills" (Grant, 2001, p. 7). The coach is not required to be a

subject matter expert. Instead the coach views the coachee as a whole person, with a

hierarchy of needs (Whitworth et al., 1998) and an array of abilities. The facilitation of

learning involves the coach "hearing" what is being said by the coachee both through

verbal and non-verbal communication. This process involves three levels of listening

including listening to thoughts, emotions and feelings, and to the individual's deep-

seeded will (energy and commitment) (Whitworth et al., 1998; Whitmore 2002). By

deeply listening to the coachee the coach is able to assist the coachee to developing

learning strategies that align with his or her values, preferences, and past experiences

(Whitworth et al., 1998; Whitmore 2002). Like contemporary adult learning theory,

coaching recognizes that individual's are complex and have unique characteristics and

experiences that need to be considered for effective learning to occur.

To conclude this section, it is important to compare coaching to mentoring. The

terms mentoring and coaching are often used interchangeably in leadership literature

(Tansky & Cohen, 2001), causing confusions and misconceptions about what each are

and are not. Mentoring is considered a form of coaching in some organizational settings,

but it is significantly different than coaching as defined in this paper. As described by

Grant (2001), "Traditionally mentoring has been a hierarchal relationship in which a wise

senior passed on his or her domain-specific knowledge to a grateful junior" (p.6).

Mentoring involves considerable skills in leadership and communications, but unlike

coaching, the relationship is a one way transfer of knowledge from the mentor, who sets

the agenda, to a designated recipient (Weiss & Kolberg, 2003). "In contrast, coaching is a

process in which the coach facilitates learning in the coachee. The coach need not be an


expert in the coachee's area of learning. The coach need only have expertise in

facilitating learning and performance enhancement" (Grant, 2001, p. 7).

Coaching and Leadership

This section will introduce the fundamental components of a coaching

conversation and each component will be explored in the context of organizational

leadership. First, it is important to briefly define two contrasting leadership styles,

transactional and transformational. Transactional leadership refers to the more traditional

form of task management where frontline workers carry out manager-assigned tasks for a

predetermined salary. This form of leadership is limited in promoting or supporting

innovation and engagement in the workforce as the workplace culture is solely driven by

the manager's wants and needs (Beairsto, 2003). Transactional leadership (also referred

to as charismatic leadership),

"moves beyond the transactional activities of management and purpose in a manner that truly justifies use of the term leadership.. .Transformational leadership addresses higher order needs for belonging, self-esteem and self-actualization, and it becomes moral in that it raises the level of human conduct and ethical aspiration of both the leader and the led, and thus has a transforming effect on both" (Beairsto, p. 12).

Huang et al. (2005) wrote,

[Transformational leaders] provoke affective and cognitive consequences among subordinates, such as emotional attachment to and trust in leaders, motivational arousal, and enhanced self-efficacy. [Transformational leaders] are able to have an extraordinary influence on their followers and lead their transformation (p.36)

To further build on the concept of transformation leadership, Kouzes and Posner

(1995) listed five fundamental practices of exemplary leadership. The first practice was

to Challenge the Process, which referred to the leader's ability to challenge the status


quo, thus inspiring people to discover creative and innovate solutions to move the

organization forward.

The second practice was to Inspire a Shared Vision, which meant to "breathe life

into the hopes and dreams of others and enable them to see the exciting possibilities that

the future holds" (p. 11).

The third practice was to Enable Others to Act, which was described as, "leaders

know that no one does his or her best when feeling weak, incompetent, or alienated; they

know that those who are expected to produce the results must feel a sense of ownership"

(P-12).

The fourth practice was to Model the Way, which referred to the ability of leaders

to build understanding and confidence in their teams by demonstrating congruency

between speech and action.

The fifth, and last, practice was to Encourage the Heart This practice described

the ability of leaders to inspire people by recognizing successes, by providing

encouraging feedback, and allowing people to take risks and sometimes fail without

penalty.

The similarities between the characteristics of transformational leadership, as

described by Kouzes and Posner, and the fundamental leadership coaching strategies will

be discussed in more detail in the following section.

The Components of Effective Coaching Conversations

Humans often get trapped in self-limiting patterns of behaviour and are either

unaware are unable to change or leave these comfort zones (Quinn, 2004). What

frequently occurs is a failure to recognize that these patterns of behaviour, which are


often not explicitly evident, are what prevent the individual from living up to their true

potential, and therefore, not achieving true happiness in their work and personal lives (i.e

develop a sense of self-efficacy or mastery) (Whitmore, 2001). True and sustainable

change begins with empowering individuals through the provision and facilitated

application of specific methods and tools that allow an individual to change him or

herself (Lyneham-Brown, 1997). Effective coaching inspires change by helping the

coachee clearly "define their goals, awaken their enthusiasm, expand their horizon of

possibilities and commit to action" (Bowerman & Collins, 1999, p. 294). Bowerman and

Collins, present seven key components of effective coaching conversations that are

consistent among the key authors on coaching (for example see Crane, 2002; Whitworth

et al., 1998; Whitmore, 2001). The seven components are as follows: (a) recognizing

blind spots, (b) building trust, (c) creating equal relationships, (d) hearing what is being

said behind the words and/or actions, (e) listening on three levels, (f) engaging in cycles

of action, and (g) experiencing breakdowns and breakthroughs. Each of these

components will be briefly described in the following section.

Recognizing blind spots.

Through the appropriate use of exploratory and reflective questions, a coach

provides an opportunity for an individual to recognize aspects of themselves (such as

internally held beliefs or assumptions) that may either interfere or assist in the

achievement of specific goals (Bowerman & Collins, 1999). Often the existence of blind

spots first becomes evident to the coach who then, through the use of skilled exploration

techniques, facilitates the recognition within the coachee. This realization then opens up a

realm of new possibilities for action that were not previously evident. In the context of


organizational change for example, this technique can be beneficial in assisting

employees in realizing what skills, expertise or resources they have to assist them in

embracing the change and living to their full potential (Bowerman & Collins, 1999;

Whitworth et al., 1998; Whitmore, 2001).

Building trust.

Trust is considered the heart of the coaching relationship (Bowerman & Collins,

1999). In the context of transformational leadership, for example, the foundation of

success is the employee's trust in the leader which enables them to establish commitment

to a vision and action plan (Kouzes & Posner, 1995). The coachee must trust that the

intentions of the coach are in his or her best interest and that the employee is considered a

capable, valued and important part of the organization. When leaders (i.e. coaches) show

commitment and passion for an employee's growth, give ownership and responsibility for

creative possibilities back to the employee and nurture the development of the

employee's talent, trust is elicited (Kouzes & Posner, 1995). When trust between the

coach and coachee is evident, mutual learning and growth emerges and sustains

innovation and commitment to achieving success (Kouzes & Posner, 1995; Whitmore,

2001).

Creating equitable relationships.

One of the challenges faced by leaders within organizations is the desire to

establish relationships with employees that demonstrate a sense of "equality", which,

technically, cannot occur due to the very nature of organizational structures. However,

"equitable" relationships can be achieved. Equity speaks to the notion of respect and

dignity for diversity (Secada, 1989), despite the formal roles held by either the coach or


coachee. Equity is about fair treatment for all individuals. Diversity is about recognizing

and embracing differences. Applied together they provide a holistic approach to

management and leadership aimed at creating a work environment that uses and values

the talents, abilities and contributions of all people (Secada, 1989). The principle of

equity, therefore, must be prevalent and consistent within organizations, explicitly

between leaders who use coaching as a method of fostering the self-efficacy, mastery,

and engagement of employees.

Hearing what is being said behind the words and/or actions.

A coach requires skill in observing the coachee's explicit actions as well as

drawing out the possible interpretations the individual may be applying to a specific

situation (Bowerman & Collins, 1999). A coach skillfully clarifies and challenges the

coachee, allowing him or her to see a new path of action and veer away from dwelling on

why something cannot be done to what and how specific goals can be achieved. This

component of coaching is especially relevant in developing a mutual understanding of the

real and perceived roadblocks associated with organizational change. When an

individual's interpretation of a situation presents a barrier for moving forward, the

coachee facilitates the realization of alternate realities that enhance self-efficacy and

motivation (Crane 2002, Whitworth et al., 1998; Whitmore, 2001).

Listening on three levels.

A coach listens to and views the coachee as a whole person, with a hierarchy of

needs (Whitworth et al., 1998). Listening involves "hearing" what is being said both

through verbal and non-verbal communication. The three levels of listening include

listening to thoughts, emotions and feelings, and to the individual's deep-seeded will


(energy and commitment). This component of coaching recognizes that individuals are

complex organisms that have unique characteristics (Crane 2002, Whitworth et al., 1998;

Whitmore, 2001). Within a coaching context success can only be achieved when the

whole individual is realized and supported.

Engaging in cycles of action.

Coaching is a process versus a single action. The cyclic nature of coaching is such

that it allows the coach to move alongside the coachee through periods of learning,

growth and transformation (Bowerman & Collins, 1999; Whitmore, 2001). Leaders who

use coaching are able to recognize opportunities for intervention that further support the

coachee in developing. When coaching is used consistently and seamlessly throughout

the organization as an informal method of leadership and communication, a coaching

culture emerges (Megginson & Clutterbuck, 2005). Within a coaching culture employees

have the reassurance and trust that, through the coaching process (i.e within the

relationship with their leader[s]), they will have access to the opportunities and tools they

require to achieve their desired goals as well as success for the organization (Megginson

& Clutterbuck, 2005).

Experiencing breakdowns and breakthroughs.

Psychological growth and development is not necessarily a linear process and

roadblocks will often occur for both the coach and coachee (Bowerman & Collins, 1999).

When trust has been established however, and the coach is skilled at listening at all three

levels of communication, mutual exploration of what and why breakdown has occurred in

either the relationship or the coachee's development process often leads to a mutual

breakthrough (Whitworth et al , 1998; Whitmore, 2002). A breakdown may simply be a


situation that requires a new way of thinking or acting that is unfamiliar to the coach, the

coachee, or both (Whitmore, 2002). A breakthrough, therefore, is evidence that learning

has occurred, that the relationship has mutual benefit, and that the coach is committed to

the coachee's overall success and well-being as well as their own success as a leader

(Bowerman & Collins; Whitmore; Crane, 2002).

Coaching Summary

In summary, coaching is a technique that can transform individuals and

organizations. It is a key component of transformational leadership and key to facilitating

change, learning and innovation within organizations. Coaching is a method of attaining

mutual understanding and respect amongst organizational members, regardless of one's

position. Above all, coaching facilitates the development of employee's sense of

empowerment, self-efficacy and mastery, leading to increased engagement and

commitment to the organization, and in turn improved performance by the organization.

Organizational Culture

Organizational culture has many varied definitions (Barney, 1986). One broad

example is Schein's (as cited in Denison, 1996) definition which is:

a pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems (p. 12).

Although the exact meaning of culture has been described in numerous ways, research in

this field shows evidence of a positive correlation between a company's culture and its

organizational effectiveness (Barney, 1986; Denison, 1996; Denison & Mishra, 1995).

Studies of organizational culture have found that companies with advanced human

resources strategies that nurtured worker independence, creativity, and participation


appear to have better objective performance results when compare with organization that

do not embrace these practices (Kravetz, 1988; Kanter as cited in Denison & Mishra,

1995). Therefore, for the framework of this research project it is important to further

explore how culture is defined, how it develops, and how it contributes to employee

engagement and organizational success.

Culture and Performance

Denison and Mishra (1995) developed a model of organizational culture and

effectiveness based on four cultural traits; involvement, consistency, adaptability, and

mission. Involvement was described as the employees' perceived participation, and

influence in organizational processes (Denison as cited in Denison & Mishra, 1995).

Adaptability was referred to as the capacity of an organization to detect the need for

change as a result of external influences (Denison & Mishra, 1995). Denison and Mishra

(1995) wrote, "The two traits, involvement and adaptability, are indicators of flexibility,

openness, and responsiveness, and were strong predicators of [business] growth" (p.204).

Consistency and mission were defined as the organization's ability to have a clear,

shared, and consistent vision and values throughout all organizational levels and were

found by Denison and Mishra (1995) to be strong predictors of profitability. While

Denison and Mishra's (1995) research did provide sufficient evidence to suggest a link

between cultural traits and performance, the influence of leadership on cultural and

organizational results warrants further exploration.

Culture and Leadership

The... review of literature on the relationship between leadership and performance and between culture and performance of an organization is dependent on the conscious alignment of employee values with the espoused values of the company


strategy. This clearly indicates that organizational culture and leadership are linked. (Ogbonna & Harris, 2000, p. 770)

Schein (1992) indicated that organizational culture and leadership styles are

interrelated and that their mutual influences are dynamic and situational. When a

company is first established the strengths, values, and beliefs of the founding leader(s)

will dictate the culture. As the organization matures, the company's culture will evolve

due to external and internal business pressures. These pressures, in turn, will directly

influence the leadership style of the original leaders. Ogbonna and Harris (2000) wrote,

"The relationship between the two concepts [leadership and culture] represents an

ongoing interplay in which the leader shapes the culture and is in turn shaped by the

results" (p. 770).

Bass (as cited in Bass & Avolio, 1993) examined the influence of leadership

styles on culture. Bass found that transactional leaders resist change and tend to work

within defined cultural boundaries, while transformational leaders are more adept at

understanding the culture, envisioning possibilities and nurturing a common vision that is

based on shared (employee and leadership) values and beliefs. To further exemplify this

concept, Brown (1992) wrote,

One of the most significant of ...discoveries is that leadership is not just a rational or technical activity, and organizations cannot realistically be designed along purely scientific lines. Managers do not merely plan, budget and control, they also help create a culture which is rich in meaning and emotion, (p. 3)

In high-performing, successful and satisfying organizational cultures, leaders understand

and value people. Successful leaders are able to understand and manage the task focused

business objectives, achieving profit which enables the company exist. Successful leaders

also understand that fiscal achievement is contingent on the ability to meet the humanistic


needs of the organization's people, allowing them to develop to their full potential (Beer

& Nohria, 2000; Bass and Avolio, 1993). Leaders who create such cultures inspire an

atmosphere of creativity, growth and change (Kouzes & Posner, 1995). "They align

others around the vision and empower others to take greater responsibility for achieving

the vision... They take personal responsibility for the development of their followers"

(Bass & Avolio, 1993, p.l 13).

Chapter Two Conclusion

This chapter has explored academic literature to develop an understanding of

employee engagement, coaching as a leadership strategy, and the traits of effective

organizational cultures. It was found that engaged employees were emotionally and

cognitively connect to their work. Engaged employees had a strong sense of self-efficacy

and had belief and value systems that aligned with the organization. They were also able

to apply their tacit knowledge, strengths, experiences, values, and beliefs to the

performance and goals of the organization. Similarly, it was discovered that high-

performing organizational cultures had leaders who were capable of tapping into the

innovative and creative potentials of all employees to inspire a shared vision for

organizational success. It was found that these fundamental concepts of culture and

engagement are greatly influenced by leadership style and practices. The reviewed

literature also reviewed the theoretical constructs of coaching as an effective learning,

change, and leadership approach. "Coaching principles underpin the management style

of the high-performance culture to which so many business leaders aspire. Any coaching

program will help make culture transformation more realizable" (Whitmore, 2002, p.

168).


CHAPTER THREE - RESEARCH APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY

Introduction

The intent of this project was to gain insight into how the introduction of a coach

training program affected the leadership skills of a team of telecommunications

operations managers. More specifically, this research was designed to answer the

questions: (a) How effective is the current coaching approach being used by western

regional managers in Belus Net Ops in enhancing both those managers' leadership skills

and the level of engagement of the employees they coach?, and (b) What implications

does this have for the future of this coaching program within Belus Net Ops? Using

action research and qualitative data analysis, the project explored the understanding and

vision of leadership from a management perspective and discovered the positive impacts

of using coaching skills as a management strategy. In this section I will describe the

project's research methodology, participant selection, research methods and tools, study

conduct, and ethical considerations.

Research Approach - Qualitative Action Research

Community-based action research is "a practical tool for solving problems

experienced by people in their professional, community, or private lives" (Stringer, 1999,

p. 11). Unlike hypothetic-deductive quantitative research aimed at collecting and

analyzing numerical data in an effort to either support or dispute a predetermined

hypothesis, action research involves engaging in an inductive qualitative journey that

attempts to understand and find meaning in the experiences and perspectives of the

participants (Glesne, 2006). Glesne further described this concept in the following way,

The ontological belief that tends to accompany qualitative research approaches portrays a world in which reality is socially constructed, complex, and ever


changing. What is "real" becomes relative to the specific location and people involved. The qualitative epistemology holds that you come to know those realities through interactions and subjectivist explorations with participants about their perceptions, (p. 6)

Glesne's theoretical framework for participant-focused, qualitative action research was an

effective strategy for exploring and learning from my colleagues. More significantly, the

results from the study findings and conclusions were used to determine effective methods

for improving leadership through organizational change interventions. As Palys (2003)

stated, "new knowledge can't be created unless we trust a good portion of the knowledge

we already have" (p. 320).

Coaching had recently been introduced to the Belus Western Net Ops

Management Team through a combination of formal training and third party facilitated

sessions. This research project explored the effectiveness of this initiative by capitalizing

on the collaborative and inclusive nature of community based action research, where

participants and researchers worked together in a process of social discovery (Glesne,

2006). The cyclic nature of action research was well suited for exploring the evolution of

coaching as a transformational leadership strategy within the management team. This

notion was supported by Stringer (1999) who stated, "As participants work through each

of the major stages, they will explore the details of their activities through a constant

process of observation, reflection, and action" (p. 19). Through an inductive and iterative

process of data collection and analysis, this work endeavored to inspire communication

and understanding of the personal and team impacts of coaching on leaders and on those

they lead. The purpose of this project was to inspire the participants to understand

coaching in the context of their organizational community and to discover how coaching


could be used as a leadership strategy for the betterment of the organization and its

people.

Project Participants

Stringer (1999) wrote, "By sharing their diverse knowledge and experience-

expert, professional, and lay-stakeholders can create solutions to their problems and, in

the process, improve the quality of... life" (p. 10). Therefore, the fundamental

considerations in selecting participants for this study were to: (a) capitalize on an

emerging understanding of coaching as a leadership strategy within a specific team of

managers, (b) find a balance between the business and leadership competency

development needs within the Belus Net Ops Management Team and, (c) understand the

benefits and potential drawbacks inherent in the engagement of colleague-participants

with whom I have existing relationships. My challenge as the primary researcher was to

be mindful of how to best balance each factor while collaboratively gathering and

analyzing the data.

My organizational sponsor (the Director of Western Net Ops) and eight

geographically disperse Western Net Ops Managers were invited to volunteer in this

research project, and all chose to participate. Aside from my sponsor, all eight individuals

(and myself) have similar organizational roles and all report to the same Director. The

management team represents a wide spectrum of knowledge and experience including

various technical and leadership strengths, challenges, and operational successes.

Geographical dispersement across the western provinces means that some managers work

in isolation, and only occasionally meet face-to-face with their front line employees,

peers, and supervisor. The primary methods of communication for some managers


include the use of e-mail, net-meeting, and/or telephone. Other managers work in

centralized locations where personal face-to-face interactions with their teams, fellow

managers, and supervisor are a daily occurrence.

The Director of Western Nets Ops was the project sponsor as well as the

participant's direct supervisor. The Director's dual role and existing relationship to the

study group may have resulted in some managers feeling coerced or obligated to

participate in the study. In order to ensure the anonymity of the volunteers, I prepared the

manager letters of invitation and informed consent (see Appendix A), had my sponsor

distribute the invitation to all eight potential participants via e-mail, and requested that

the responses be returned to me only. The letters invited managers to participate in a one-

on-one interview and a focus group discussion. I also invited my sponsor to participate in

an interview to discuss coaching and leadership as well as a final follow-up interview

which explored recommendations from the focus group and future implications of

coaching within Belus (see Appendix A for Director letter of invitation and informed

consent). In addition, for the final recommendation and organizational implication

interview phase of this project, I invited a representative from Corporate Human

Resources (HR) (see Appendix A for HR letter of invitation and informed consent) to

provide a corporate perspective on the project. Altogether, a total often individuals

participated in the data collect portion of this project.

Collecting data from across Western Canada was valuable as it enabled me to

gather a wide range of perspectives and experiences from managers who developed and

applied coaching competencies in diverse situations. Factors such as population

distribution, customer density and needs, varying topography and weather conditions, as


well as varying team dynamics all contribute to the Western Net Ops sub-cultures in

which the coaching program was implemented. The findings that emerged from this

diverse mix of participants was critical in developing recommendations for sustaining

and further enhancing coaching as an organizational leadership strategy.

Research Methods and Tools

This project was divided into three research phases; (a) Phase I manager and

Director interviews, (b) Phase II manager focus group, and (c) Phase III final Director

and HR recommendation interviews.

Interviews

Manager Interviews - Coaching

The intent of the project was to understand the participants' previous coaching

perspectives and experiences, and to explore what impact the coach training initiative had

on enhancing their leadership competencies. The first phase of data collection was

through the use of personal interviews designed to focus on the participant's use of

coaching. Interviews humanize the data collection process allowing for a closer

connection between researcher and the participant (Palys, 2003). The objective of using

personal interviews to collect the preliminary data was to build trust and to minimize the

effects of peer/supervisor pressure that may emerge in a large group setting. Behavioural

interview questions were developed that explored the characteristics and nature of

coaching in various workplace situations and contexts. Glesne (2006) explained that,

"experience/behaviour questions are generally the easiest ones for respondents to answer

and are good places to begin to get the interviewee talking comfortably" (p. 82). (see

Appendix B for the manager interview questions).


Prior to launching the interview process, I tested the draft questions with a Belus

Manager who was not involved in the study but did attend the coaching program. This

initial trial interview served as a pilot study to confirm my interview methods and tools.

The trial verified that: (a) my chosen questions elicited rich, narrative responses that

linked directly to the main research questions; (b) the proposed one hour interview time

duration was adequate for my planned protocol; and (c) the operation and functionality of

the audio recording equipment was satisfactory.

Another important facet of the pilot was that it allowed me to verify the feasibility

and authenticity of data collection methods. As suggested by Palys (2003), I made audio

recordings of the interviews as well as took short-hand notes of key interviewee points

while at the same time being mindful to not allow the writing to distract me from

listening deeply to the interviewee. The written interview notes acted as a framework that

assisted in organizing and understanding the audio transcriptions and helped ensure the

authenticity of the data. Using knowledge from the pilot, the interview questions and

method were refined to ensure that I was able to engage participants in meaningful

dialogue while maximizing the trustworthiness and authenticity of the project data.

Once the pilot interview questions and methods were tested and the necessary

adjustments made, I proceeded with scheduling and conducting the interviews. Each

participant was contacted directly or by telephone to coordinate and schedule a meeting.

When possible, each interview was conducted at venues requested by the participant to

ensure their comfort, thus maximizing the depth and richness of the data shared. As

Stringer (1999) wrote, "When people talk in the comfort of their own territory, they are

most likely to be honest and forthcoming" (p. 86). In addition, Glesne (2006) stated,


"Select quiet, physically comfortable, and private locations when you can. Defer to your

respondents' needs, however, because their willingness is primary, limited only by your

capacity to conduct an interview in the place they suggest" (p. 86). Nine interviews were

conducted during the first phase of research, seven were held in each respective

manager's home office, and only two mangers were interviewed away from their regular

work setting at other Belus locations.

The manager interviews consisted of eight questions (see Appendix B). The

interview was designed to last approximately one hour, and most sessions lasted from 45

to 60 minutes. Glesne (2006), in support of this interview length, wrote, "An hour of

steady talk is generally an appropriate length before diminishing returns set in for both

parties" (p. 88). The interview audio was recorded and transcribed with the assistance of

a third party service. To ensure the trustworthiness and authenticity of the data, copies of

the transcripts were forwarded to the participants for their review. Participants were

asked to document any edits, additions or deletions they wished to make to ensure the

information fully reflected their opinions and perceptions. I received no feedback from

participants pertaining to their interview transcripts.

Sponsor (Director) Interview - Coaching and Leadership

My sponsor introduced coaching into the organization with the intent of shifting

the leadership culture from being primarily task orientated and transactional to a more

human-focused transformational style. The goal of this cultural shift was to inspire and

enhance employee engagement and satisfaction. Before any outcomes or change

recommendations could emerge from my work I needed to fully understand how the

Director defined and conceptualized leadership and how he envisioned linking coaching


to this desired leadership model. I explored these questions by conducting a personal

interview with him.

The sponsor interview was conducted in much the same manner as the manager

interviews previously described. The personal conversation was recorded and I also

documented key points to ensure accuracy and authenticity of the data. The interview

questions were designed to help me understand my sponsor's vision of leadership, what

leadership attributes and competencies he wanted the managers to develop further, and

the role of coaching within this leadership development model. When designing the

questions, I used Stringer's (1999) Grand Tour suggestion to formulate queries that were,

"sufficiently global to enable participants to describe the situation in their own terms" (p.

69). Examples of interview question included; (a) Tell me about your leadership

philosophy and, (b) How does introduction of coaching training link to this philosophy?

(see Appendix B for the draft interview protocol for the Director).

The sponsor interview was conducted prior to the manager focus group and the

resulting themed findings were combined with the manager interview data to inform the

focus group discussion. The results of this interview were also significant in the

development of the study recommendations that were later used in Phase III of the

research project.

Manager Focus Group - Coaching

Once the first phase of research was complete all the interview data was

transcribed and analyzed to determine the main themes that emerged from the

participant's narratives. The next step was scheduling a focus group discussion involving

all of the study participants, excluding the sponsor and the HR representative. This


research approach was supported by Glense (2006) who wrote, "focus group research can

be an efficient use of time in that it allows access to the perspectives of a number of

people during the same time period" (p. 104). Hosting a focus group was also an

opportunity to triangulate results by examining the data from a different perspective

(Glesne, 2006) and provided a means to substantiate both data trustworthiness and

authenticity.

The beginning of the focus group session was an opportunity for me to, once

again, articulate the overall intent of the project and provide an additional opportunity for

informed participation. Next, I shared the themed findings with participants and asked

them for feedback as a means of authenticating my interpretation of the interview data. In

addition, five new questions were asked of the focus group to further explore the

coaching program and its organizational applications (see Appendix C for focus group

themes and questions). The ultimate goal of the focus group was to proactively explore

which components of coaching were currently working and where opportunities for

changes or enhancements of the current coaching practice exist. The focus group results

were transcribed, themed, and shared with the Director and the Corporate HR

representative in the form of recommendations outlining the impacts of the coaching

program at the individual, team, and organizational levels.

Hosting a focus group to build on previous data was an effective research

technique to nurture participant inclusion and ownership of the recommendations. In

support of this approach, Palys indicated that, "After a piece of research is completed ...

and the researcher has analyzed and interpreted the data, this information might be


imparted to additional focus groups ... Such discussions may help researchers gather

alternative interpretations for further consideration" (p. 162).

"Focus group interviewing relies heavily on the facilitation or moderator skills"

(Glesne, 2003, p. 102). As my experience in focus group facilitation ranged at the novice

level, additional effort was placed on preparing and practicing in advance. It was

logistically difficult to emulate a trial focus group. However I did engage one of the non-

participant managers who understood coaching, as well as my sponsor, to review my

proposed questions and strategy, and to provide critical feedback.

Of the eight managers that participated in the interviews, all but one was able to

take part in the focus group. I facilitated the discussion, the audio was recorded, and an

assistant was present to capture key discussion points. Like the interviews, the focus

group was held in a quiet and private venue where participants felt comfortable to speak

openly. Due to the geographically disperse locations and individual schedules of the

participant group, it was difficult to arrange for everyone to meet in one location. To

maximize participation and minimize coordination challenges, I attempted to schedule

the session to coincide with our summer 2007 manager meetings, however this was not

possible. The organizational and personal demands on each manager made it difficult to

coordinate a face to face meeting with all participants. After discussing the options with

each individual, it was collaboratively decided to host the focus group with a conference

call. Myself, the assistant, and two managers were present in a private meeting room in

Vancouver. The other five managers each selected convenient private locations that

enabled them to speak openly, and dialed into a conference bridge to participate.


To assist participants in preparing for the meeting, I provided them each with a

copy of themed interview findings and additional focus group questions prior to the

session (see Appendix C). The group discussion was approximately one hour in length,

and the audio was recorded and later transcribed. As with the interviews, the focus group

transcripts were distributed to each participant for their review and feedback which

enabled me to maximize data trustworthiness and authenticity.

I have worked with all of the participants for many years and we have been

involved in several collaborative group initiatives in the past. As described by Glesne

(2006), our preexisting relationships and familiarity enhanced the success of the

discussion and may have offset the tendencies of participants to hold back information in

the more public focus group setting. To conclude this section, it is important to note that

my sponsor did not participate in the focus group as he is the direct supervisor of all the

participants. His presence may have caused ethical concerns and could have impeded the

openness of dialogue and the authenticity of the data shared.

Final Recommendation Interviews

The final phase of this research consisted of two interviews. First, I conducted a

second interview with my sponsor and shared the recommendations that had arisen from

the focus group (see Appendix D for study recommendation and Director/HR questions).

I also requested his input and thoughts on the organizational implications of the

recommendations. Secondly, I conducted an interview with a Corporate HR

representative (see Appendix A for Human Resources letter of invitation and informed

consent) to share the recommendations (Appendix D) that arose from the project. The

intent of the HR interview was to more fully understand the current management training


strategy and leadership philosophy from a corporate perspective, and to explore the

implications of implementing the study recommendations at an organizational level.

These two interviews followed the same structure as the previous sponsor

interview. Each interview was an hour in length and was conducted in the quiet and

security of the participant's Vancouver area offices. The discussions were recorded and

transcribed, and copies of the transcripts were forwarded to the individuals for review

Study Conduct

Phase I Interviews

Manager Interviews - Coaching

To begin the interview process, I initially composed a list of thirteen draft

questions. After consulting with my project supervisor, the list was deemed too long for

the intended hour long interview, therefore, the number of question was reduced to seven.

I then conducted a pilot interview with a Belus Manager who had attended the coach

training but was not a potential research participant. The pilot was very helpful as it

enabled me to verify the operation of the audio recorder and test my interview questions

and protocol. During the pilot interview, the interviewee provided constructive feedback

on the questions as well as my interview methods. After the pilot session, I listened to the

recorded audio and reviewed the handwritten notes I had taken during the meeting. I then

revised the interview questions again and eventually arrived with the eight which were

used for the manager interviews.

All the potential research participants and I worked on the same team and we

knew each other well. In addition all the managers knew I was attending Royal Roads

University, and from previous conversations, the managers were aware that I may need


their help with a school project. The Director distributed the invitations via e-mail to the

prospective participants (see Appendix A) and all eight invitees agreed to participate. As

the participants accepted, I spoke with them face to face, or via telephoned, to further

explain the intent of the work, to answer any questions, and to schedule the interviews. I

also e-mailed the interview questions to the participants before each meeting so that they

could be reviewed in advance.

This first phase of eight interviews took five weeks to complete. Four of the

interviews were held in Vancouver, and four interviews required me to travel to other

cities across Western Canada. I was fortunate to have the support of my Director who

allowed me to travel during work time and also helped finance the excursions. The entire

interview meetings had the same format. Once we were both comfortable in a private

meeting room or office, I thanked the interviewee in advance for his time and

contributions. I then reviewed the letter of informed consent and communicated their

right to privacy and to withdraw from the study at any time. I was also careful to explain

to each manager that the letter of invitation and informed consent invited them to take

part in two separated study phases; the individual interviews and also the focus group

discussion. I then asked each manager to sign the letter and confirm that they were

comfortable with having the conversation recorded. All managers reviewed and signed

the letters and none of the participants objected to being recorded.

As the interviews progressed, so did my inquiry skills and confidence. During the

first four interviews, I had difficulty keeping the interviewee focused on the subject

matter and would allow the topic of conversation to drift. Fortunately, I hired an

individual to transcribe the interviews which was of considerable benefit to me. The data


were transcribed shortly after each meeting was complete, and reading the initial

transcripts allowed me to adjust and enhance my interview skills. After reading the first

four transcripts, I recognized that the initial interview conversations were unfocused at

times. I become more self-aware and was able to adjust my discussion protocol to more

efficiently and effectively conduct meaningful interviews.

No two interviews were the same. For example, some participants required direct

eye contact from me as they spoke, and they appeared to find my note taking disruptive.

If I looked down to record an important point, they hesitated or stopped talking. Others

would speak more freely, hardly noticing that I was writing down key words from their

narratives. Depending on the individual, I quickly assessed if taking notes was

appropriate and adjusted my behaviour accordingly. Subsequently, some interviews

resulted in very few notes being recorded, while others yielded two or three pages. At

least two managers pre-read and reflected on the questions prior to the interviews, but

most did not look at the question I had e-mailed out in advance. All participants were

eager to share their thoughts on coaching, leadership, and organizational culture. All

managers seemed open and authentic; several shared personal stories from outside the

workplace to illustrate their leadership and coaching experiences. I did not perceive that

any of the managers felt uncomfortable or coerced into participating.

To organize the transcribed data, a simple template was developed which allowed

me to add notes alongside the data on the same page. I e-mailed each recorded interview

to the transcriber as soon as it was complete. The transcriber typed the data into the

template and depending on her work load, some interviews were returned in two to three

days while others took up to a week. Several interviews were more difficult to transcribe


than the others, due primarily to either the accent or acronyms used by the participant.

This resulted in words being omitted from the written text. In some cases, I needed to

listen to the audio to locate and fill in words that the transcriber could not identify, and in

all cases I was successful in recognizing the missing words and completing the

transcripts.

To ensure the trustworthiness and authenticity of the data, copies of the transcripts

were forwarded to the participants for their review during all three interview phases. I

asked participants to document any edits, additions or deletions they wished to make to

ensure the information fully reflected their opinions and perceptions. I received no

feedback from participants pertaining to their transcripts during any of the three research

phases.

Sponsor (Director) Interview - Coaching and Leadership

In conjunction with the manager interviews, I also conducted the first of two

interviews with the Director. The Director interview was performed in the same manner

as the manager interviews. An e-mail initiation was forwarded to the Director,

accompanied with a letter of invitation and informed consent, asking him to participate in

two separate interviews. He accepted the invitation and we scheduled a time to meet for

the first interview. The meeting was held in the Directors office. Prior to beginning the

interview, I thanked him for volunteering, reviewed the letter of invitation and informed

consent, and had him sign the letter. With the Director's permission, the conversation was

recorded and later transcribed. The Director was asked seven questions that focused on

his leadership philosophy and how he perceived coaching as contributing to that

philosophy and to various organizational objectives. Some of the responses were unique


and served to inform the beginning sections of Chapter 4 (Project Results and

Conclusions) of this report. In addition, the Director's data was also combined with the

manager transcripts and all of the Phase I research findings were themed together.

At the end of the first phase of research, I had nine transcribed interviews and up

to three pages of handwritten notes from each interview. I had read all of the interviews

several times and had added notes and thematic ideas to the documents. Over a weekend,

I began to organize the data into solid themes. The results were the following five board

themes; (a) understanding of coaching, (b) program expectations, (c) leadership skills, (d)

engagement, and (e) coaching applications. Each category was assigned a highlighter

color. All hand written notes were color coded using highlighter pens. The same process

was used on the electronic documents, using the highlighter function in Microsoft Word.

The next research phase involved sharing the interviews finding with mangers in a

focus group settings. These five themes became the framework of the focus group

discussion, and also served as the initial outline for organizing Chapter Four of this

report. Before I could move forward with the focus group, I began to further break down

the data into more detailed subcategories. During this analysis process, the sub-categories

eventually evolved to become the detailed outline for Chapter Four.

Phase II Manager Focus Group - Coaching

Once Phase I of research was complete and the interview data analyzed into five

broad themes, I spent the next three weeks further analyzing the data in each category. I

developed five summarized descriptive statements that would be shared with the focus

group to outline the study findings to date. This summary, along with five additional

questions were then forwarded to the managers prior to the focus group. In order to


maximize the richness of the focus group discussion, the summarized research statements

and additional focus group questions were not written in isolation. One of the managers

who was part of the coach training but was not participating in this study, as well as the

Director, reviewed my focus group protocol and offered feedback to enhance the

material.

All managers indicated their interest in contributing to the focus group. The

challenge was bringing all eight participants, who lived in four different provinces,

together at the same time in the same location. I had hoped to host the session during our

second quarter manager meetings, unfortunately this was not possible due to

organizational demands. After discussing the options with each participant, it was

collaboratively decided to bring the participants together via conference call. Several

phone calls were made in an effort to coordinate a meeting time that allowed maximum

participation. Eventually a date and time was chosen that enabled seven of the eight

managers to participate. During the discussion, two participants and I were in a meeting

room in the Vancouver and five other managers dialed into the conference bridge from

separate locations. Also present in Vancouver was an assistant asked to attend and take

hand written notes which I used to assist me in analyzing the results.

The beginning of the focus group session was an opportunity for me to, once

again, articulate the overall intent of the project and provide an additional opportunity for

informed participation. Next, I shared the themed findings with participants and asked

them for feedback as a means of authenticating my interpretation of the interview data. In

addition, five additional questions were asked of the focus group which further explored

the coaching program and its organizational applications.


The results of the focused group discussion were themed using the same five

categories as the interview data. The transcripts and notes were read several times and the

data was color coded and then inserted into the continuously evolving and growing

Chapter Four.

Phase III Director andHR Recommendation Interviews

I continued to analyze the interview and focus group results while further developing

Chapter Four. After two weeks of work, I felt ready to proceed with Phase III, which was

intended to explore the organizational implications of introducing coaching to the wider

organization. Two participants were selected to be interviewed for this phase, the

Director and a Corporate HR representative. The focus group results were shared with the

last two interview participants in the form of recommendations which outlined the

impacts of the coaching program at the individual, team, and organizational levels.

Accompanying the recommendations for each interview was a series of questions

designed to further explore the perceived benefits of introducing coaching to a wider

segment of Belus.

The second Director interview followed the same process as the first, and

informed consent was obtained for both sessions prior to the first interview. This

interview was, again, held in his office and lasted approximately one hour. The tone of

the interview was very positive. I had sent out the recommendations and questions prior

to the meeting and the Director had read the document and had prepared notes enabling

him to more readily share his thoughts and perspectives with me.

Following advice from my project supervisor, the final study interviewee was

with a representative from Corporate HR. The intent of the HR interview was to more


fully understand the current management training strategy and leadership philosophy

from a corporate perspective, and to explore the implications of implementing the study

recommendations at an organizational level. After some exploration into who I may

invite into this project, I was able to find an enthusiastic volunteer from HR to

participate. We exchanged several e-mails and scheduled a mutually convenient time to

meet in her Lower Mainland Office. Prior to the interview, I forwarded a copy of the HR

letter of invitation and informed consent, along with the study recommendations and HR

questions to the participant.

As with previous interviews, I thanked the HR person for volunteering, reviewed

the letter of invitation and informed consent, and asked her to sign the document prior to

proceeding. With her permission, the interview was recorded and I also took handwritten

notes. The HR interview was very rewarding. The volunteer spent considerable time

preparing and offered a tremendous amount of information from a wider corporate

perspective.

The data from this final interview phase was transcribed and themed using the

same broad categories used with the previous data. The results were used to triangulate

the findings from earlier interviews and also served to inform the conclusion within

Chapter Four.

Data Analysis

Community-based qualitative action research is an inductive emerging process of

knowledge that grows from the observation of everyday life (Palys, 2003). Palys stated

that "inductive research should ... "unfold" and "evolve" as more and more is understood

about the phenomenon or research site under consideration" (p. 313). In the spirit of


Palys' inductive research analogy, I analyzed my interview and focus group data by

"pawing" through the text and transcripts multiple times and allowed patterns related to

coaching and leadership to unfold (Ryan & Bernard, 2003). "Data analysis involves

organizing what you have seen, heard, and read so that you can make sense of what you

have learned" (Glesne, 2006, p.147). I followed Glesne's approach by organizing the data

into themes as it was collected.

Each transcribed interview was put directly into a Microsoft Word template which

allowed me to also add themeing notes and highlight linked concepts with different

colors. I read each transcript multiple times, and with each successive pass, additional

notes and highlighting was added. This repetitive process allowed common themes to

naturally surface. The themes eventually became the outline for Chapter Four of this

paper. My strategy involved using theories of leadership obtained through a systematic

review of the literature to inform the data analysis process. Although existing theory

helped inform and guide my analysis process, I remained open to all the new and

innovative concepts that emerged from the data. By remaining open to the possibility that

new constructs or aspects of leadership may be embedded in the transcripts, I ensured

that the work was not limited by the constraints of any single pre-existing theoretical

framework. In his discussion on data analysis, Dick (2005) wrote, "like action research:

the aim is to understand the research situation. The aim ... is to discover the theory

implicit in the data" (121).

Ethical Issues in Action Research

Ethics "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right

and wrong behavior" (Fieser, 2006,1f 1). The exploration of ethics is divided into three


general areas: metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics. After reviewing the

literature and understanding the basic premise behind action research, further expanding

the concept of normative ethics will add to the context of this discussion. Normative

ethics involves determining appropriate behaviours and moral standards that regulate

right and wrong conduct. Normative ethics also involves the task of clearly articulating

the good habits that we (as humans) should acquire, the duties that we should carry out,

and the impact of our behaviour on the well-being of others (Fieser, 2006).The key

assumption in normative ethics is that there is only one ultimate criterion of moral

conduct which is simply to do what is, ultimately, the "right" thing to do (Fieser, 2006).

"Being ethical as a researcher means that [one has] an obligation to consider

things from research participants' perspectives and to ensure participants' rights are

safeguarded" (Palys, 2003, p. 83). The data collected, the objectives and conclusions of

the research, and ultimately all that is shared outside of the researcher-participant

relationship was in the best interest of the participants and did not cause the participants

(or others) harm in any way. Demonstrating ethical behaviour, including respect, dignity,

confidentiality, inclusiveness, and awareness of human vulnerabilities, was evident in my

research as it is in all aspects of my life. My goal throughout this project was to continue

to be conscious of these values and concepts and ensure that I adhered to the Royal Roads

University (RRU) Ethics Research Policy (2007). The eight normative ethical principles

that guided my research were: (a) respect for human dignity, (b) respect for free and

informed consent, (c) respect for vulnerable persons, (d) respect for privacy and

confidentiality, (e) respect for justice and inclusiveness, (f) balancing harms and benefits,

(g) minimizing harm, and (h) maximizing benefit (RRU, 2007). Further details of how I


addressed RRU's eight ethical research principles are outlined below. In addition, I have

reviewed and have adhered to the RRU Policy on Integrity and Misconduct in Research

and Scholarship (RRU, 2007) which outlines the "principles, practices and procedures to

ensure the integrity, accountability and responsibility of scholarship and research carried

out under the auspices of Royal Roads University" (RRU, 2007,1f 1).

Respect for Human Dignity

I demonstrated respect for human dignity through the use of a number of

strategies. I began by appreciating each participant's desire to meet in their chosen

location to ensure their comfort and protection of their sense of security. Additionally, all

information provided through the interview and focus group sessions was respected and

honoured as that person's personal beliefs and values. There was no attempt to alter the

meaning or intent of the data by myself or other participants. Upon completion of the

project I personally thanked all participants for their involvement, reiterating that their

participation was instrumental in carrying out the project and, therefore, informing

organizational change in the area of leadership and coaching. In essence, all of the ethical

principles outlined within the RRU Ethics Research Policy (2007) culminate under the

premise of respect for individual dignity.

Respect for Free and Informed Consent

I clearly outlined the nature and purpose of the research, my affiliation with RRU

including program faculty and project supervisor contact information, to each participant.

I fully disclosed my plans in all literature and verbal interactions that involved

participants, and emphasized that participation was voluntary and withdrawal was

acceptable during any point in the research. As the process of obtaining informed consent


was ongoing (versus a one time act that stops after the signing of a consent form), all

questions and concerns were addressed as they emerged, ensuring that each participant

was fully informed at every point in the project.

Respect for Vulnerable Persons

All individuals participating in this project were over the age of majority and

assumed to be mentally competent based on their employment status within Belus Net

Ops. Some participants may have felt vulnerable because the research was directly

related to their job performance. To ensure each participant was protected from personal

harm as a result of sharing information related to their managerial conduct, safeguards

were be put into place. Firstly, all data including transcripts and audio recordings were

depersonalized through the assignment of unique pseudonym codes, which prevented the

data from being personally linked to an individual. Secondly, the process of obtaining

informed consent from my sponsor included stipulating my personal accountability for

adhering to the strict prohibition on divulging any personal information related to the data

obtained to anybody internal or external to the organization under any circumstances at

any time. The research, therefore, was in no way used to measure manager performance,

individually or as a group.

Respect for Privacy and Confidentiality

I respected the right to privacy and confidentiality of all participants in several

distinct ways. Firstly, all written and recorded data was coded with a non-identifying,

unique pseudonym to protect the identity of each participant. Secondly, any individually

unique or identifying comments within transcripts were deleted. Thirdly, all records, both

print and electronic, were stored in a locked cabinet accessible only to me and computer


documents were password protected. Lastly, all records will be destroyed once the project

has been accepted by RRU at its completion. In addition, the research methodology was

designed to maximize participant anonymity from their supervisor who was also a

participant.

Respect for Justice and Inclusiveness

No participants were excluded on the grounds of sex, race, age, or mental or

physical disability. The selection of participation among all those who volunteer was

based on the criteria set out in the above Project Participants Section.

Balancing Harms and Benefits.

I believe that participation in my study did not cause harm. The opportunities and

recommendations that resulted from this project are believed to benefit the leadership

development of all current and future managers.

Minimizing Harm

I ensured this research did not introduce any element of personal harm such as

adversely impacting an individual's job security. The research interview and focus group

methods for this project were designed to keep the participants and their supervisor (my

sponsor) separate, thus mitigating the potential for personal harm and maximizing their

confidentiality, safety, and privacy.

Maximizing Benefits

This study focused on identifying the specific components of coaching that

contribute to manager's leadership skills and the results were used to formulate

recommendations for enhancing leadership through the use of coaching within Belus Net

Ops. In order to maximize these benefits, I formulated research questions for the focus


group based on the themes that emerged from the individual interviews. This approach

respected the iterative process of this research and ensured that the benefits of the project

were determined by the participants and not biased by my own goals or desires.

Additional Ethical Considerations

While developing the concept proposal for this project, I reflected on how I would

ethically balance my biased position in respect to the benefits of coaching with the

position of the participants (whose perspectives may or may not align with mine) without

duress or manipulation. Being aware of my personal convictions was important to

ensuring I was consistently ethical, as such bias could have led to perceived coercion and

inaccurate interpretation of the data. As a further step to maximize authenticity and

trustworthiness of the data and to offset any researcher biases, a triangulation research

approach (Glesne, 2006), employing multiple data collection methods including; manger

interviews, sponsor interview, and a focus group, was used. Further, by involving the

focus group in the validation of the thematic interpretations I made of the interview data,

I was able to mitigate the possibility of my own biases inappropriately skewing these

interpretations.

Informed consent and confidentiality were two other over-riding principles that

were considered. I clearly outlined the nature and purpose of the research, including how

the results were and were not be used within the context of the organization. By ensuring

full disclosure of project objectives and expectations of involvement, participants were

able to make an informed choice about their participation (Glense, 2006; Palys, 2003). As

my research participants comprised the management team I work with, and my project

sponsor is our Director, the issue of vulnerability and harm could have arisen.


For example, participants may have felt pressure to give answers that either

downplayed or failed to reflect their personal perceptions and experiences because our

boss was sponsoring the project and was personally invested in the implementation of

coaching within the manager team. Furthermore, participants may have feared that the

research findings would influence an organizational shift that conflicted with their

leadership philosophy which could result in additional job demands or pressure to engage

in cultural or personal change. As the primary researcher, it was my role to clearly define

the nature of the research and ensure that all data, even that which did not support the

ideas of the current leader, was collected and transparently reported while at the same

time protecting the identity of the individual who offered those comments.

Additionally, it was my role to ensure that the data were not used against a

participant. The research did not introduce any element of personal harm such as

adversely impacting an individual's job security. The research was, in no way, used to

measure manager performance. The findings identified what specific components of

coaching contribute to manager's leadership skills and the results were be used to

formulate recommendations for enhancing leadership through the use of coaching within

Belus Net Ops. The research interview and focus group methods used for this project

were designed to keep the participant managers and their supervisor (my sponsor)

separate thus mitigating the potential for personal harm and maximizing their

confidentiality, safety, and privacy.


CHAPTER FOUR - RESEARCH RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

Introduction

The intent of this project was to gain insight into how the introduction of coach

training influenced the leadership styles and skills of a team of telecommunications

managers. More specifically, this research sought to answer the questions: (a) How

effective is the current coaching approach being used by western regional managers in

Belus Net Ops in enhancing both those managers' leadership skills and the level of

engagement of the employees they coach?, and (b) What implications does this have for

the future of this coaching program within Belus Net Ops? Using action research and

qualitative data analysis, this project explored the impacts of coaching as a management

and leadership strategy.

The research was divided into three phases. The results of each phase were used

to inform and guide the subsequent research segment. Phase one consisted of manager

and Director interviews designed to explore the impact of the coach training program and

the use of coaching skills in the workplace. Phase two of the research consisted of a

manager only focus group, which had two main research objectives. The first objective

was to ensure the authenticity of the interview data. The themed findings were shared

with the manager participants and they provided feedback on the accuracy of the results.

The second objective was to proactively explore what components of coaching are

currently working and where opportunities for changes or enhancements of the current

coaching practice exist. In the third and final research phase the themed focus group

findings were presented to the project sponsor and a corporate HR representative in the

form of recommendations. This final research segment outlined the managers'


recommendations, perceived impact and sustainability of the current Net Ops coaching

program, and explored the implications and feasibility of introducing a similar program at

an organizational level. To facilitate ease of understanding, and to link related concepts

fluently, the study findings and conclusions presented in this chapter represent the

interwoven themes from all three research phases.

The experiences and perspectives often people contributed to the findings

presented in this chapter. In order to guarantee participant privacy, all transcribed quotes

were coded with a non-identifying pseudonym and any individually unique or identifying

comments were not used. In some cases, quotations transcribed from audio recordings

were edited for grammar and sentence structure to enhance readability, making certain

that significant care was taken to maintain the meaning and contextual content of the

data. To ensure contextual accuracy of the data, permission was obtained from both the

Director and HR participants to reference their quotes directly. The Director and HR

participant's contributions were unique to the study group therefore it was important to

identify their individual data. Transcribed quotes from the Director and HR representative

were coded as (DR) and (HR) respectively.

Study Findings

This section describes the participant's perceptions and experiences with the

coach training program, the uses of coaching skills as a leadership technique, and the

implications of further organizational coaching development. The study group for this

research project consisted of eight Belus Western Net Ops Mangers, their Director, and a

Corporate HR Representative. The range of participant management experience varied

from six to 20 years and their overall tenure ranged from two to 18 years. Of the nine Net


Ops participants, five gained all of their management experience at Belus, and four had

experience from other organizations. Aside from experience level, the sample group was

homogeneous. For example, all of the Net Ops managers were male, which is

characteristic of technical employees in Belus. All participants have similar technology

based educational backgrounds, and all have followed similar career paths within the

telecommunications industry. Additionally, all participants acquired their management

experience within the engineering and operations groups of telecommunications

organizations. Only the HR participant's background, gender, experiences, and education

varied significantly from the rest of the study group.

Although each participant had their own interpretation of workplace coaching in

the context of their individual leadership paradigm, similar ideas and common themes

emerged from the interviews. The most common themes included: a) previous

understanding of coaching, b) leadership and coaching, c) employee engagement and

coaching, d) coach training applications and sustainability, and e) coaching and the

organization. These themes emerged from the pages of transcribed interviews and were

linked together to form the Study Findings and Study Conclusions sections of this

chapter. The data presented throughout this chapter represents the combined voices of the

eight manager participants, their Director, and a corporate HR representative. Quotations

from interview transcripts are presented as evidence to support the study's themed

findings.

Training Expectations

Prior to presenting the study findings, it is important to explore why the coach

training was initiated within Belus Net Ops. The Director of Belus Net Ops introduced


the program to his team on his own accord, independent of any organizational

educational initiatives. In the context of this research, it was important to understand the

intent of the training. Therefore much of the Director's interview was designed to

understand what his expectations of the training intervention was, and how coaching

aligns with his leadership philosophy. Using the Director's interview data, this section

explores his experiences with coaching and his expectations of introducing a coach

approach leadership initiative to the study group.

The Director initially described his past experiences with coach training and the

implementation of coaching in the workplace as a process of addressing issues of

employee under-performance. As the Director's experience evolved his view of coaching

changed, as demonstrated in the following quote:

They [former employer] did coaching, but it was based on non-performance. When I joined Belus it was the same kind of thing, how to deal with difficult people, how to go through the disciplinary process, and it was biased towards that. I suppose through all this process there is a realization that there is more to coaching than that. There is coaching for development, there is coaching the person themselves, so I went through an exploration of that... coaching is more than correcting non-performance, coaching is about getting high performance, and coaching is just not about can you meet numbers. (DR)

Through a continuous process of self-exploration and learning, the Director felt that there

was more to managing people than achieving objective or numerical results.

When the Director discussed his leadership philosophy and how coaching

contributes to leadership, his expectations for the coach training program became evident.

For example, he stated:

There's a huge debate on what leadership is and isn't. But basically it's making the most of the human resource that you have... You try and make an environment that's a learning environment, that's a lot of fun and where people can explore and develop themselves fully; the [organizational] results will follow... [coaching is] fundamental to leadership because it's the only way you'll


get to know people. You'll see that one of the big things in an employee survey is that "my boss doesn't know me"... Managers need to know about people on a human level, not as this object that has to produce ... numbers. (DR)

The Director's leadership philosophy and expectation of the coach training is to

develop a leadership culture within his region where each individual is recognized as a

whole person with individual strengths, experiences, and values. The Director's vision

was that training his management team in coaching techniques would give them the

ability to become better leaders. The intended goal of the program was to give managers

the ability to harness the full potential of all employees for the mutual benefit of the

organization and the people it employs. For this culture to flourish, the Director, on

several occasions throughout his interview, emphasized that managers must stop

objectifying their people and truly get to know them as individuals.

The Director then offered an example to illustrate his vision of applying coaching

in an organizational context in an effort to influence company measured employee

satisfaction and engagement criteria:

We have an E sat [employee satisfaction and engagement] survey and what people are looking at is, ok here's an E sat survey and we [the organization] need to improve it. The way we're going to improve it is we're going to look at things like processes and structure and that kind of thing, we're not looking at the other part of the coin which is what the individual brings into the workplace.... So to me it's more of coaching the individual and using his god given talents...if you've got a person who's in the right place and has got the god given talent and [the manager can] get him to fully utilize those talents, then what you'll find ... all your KPFs [organizational key performance indicators] and everything else will fall into place. (DR)

It was important to outline the Director's vision for coaching within his team to

establish the context for the coaching program. Much of the themed research findings

discussed in the remainder of this chapter provide insight into how this coach training


program has contributed to the leadership practices and competencies of the participant

managers.

Manager Coaching Perceptions and Understanding

Previous Coaching Programs

The first phase of this project, consisting of participant interviews, explored the

eight manager's experiences, training, and self-perceptions of coaching in the workplace.

The majority of participants described their previous coach training, both within Belus

and within other organizations, as being primarily focused on problem solving or

employee discipline, and not people development. To illustrate this point, one participant,

when asked what types of coach training he had received in the past, commented as

follows:

Really nothing that's been effective. There were some [Belus] courses...and the biggest thing I've found on most of those is that it is coaching from the stand point of dealing with problem employees rather than coaching from an overall, so it's not coaching, it's how to handle discipline. (12)

A majority of the participant's voiced similar perceptions of workplace coach

training. Here is another example of a manager's previous coach training experiences,

"Prior to this I've had the coaching supervisory training in ... It was more of the normal

style of management... [focusing on] discipline and structure, you know, normal

management stuff (18). The HR participant's description of past organizational coaching

initiatives closely aligns with, and also validates the Nets Ops Managers experiences,

"From a company and an HR perspective, it [coaching] has been more focused on

progressive discipline, focused on when people aren't performing well" (HR). A common

theme when describing previous management training from both Belus and other

organizations was the underlying assumption that employees are broken, and therefore,


require fixing through manager modeling and molding (i.e. coaching). From the data, it

can be summarized that managers were trained to identify bad behaviour and then use

disciplinary coaching techniques to change the behaviour by telling employees how,

where, and when to improve their behaviour.

Prior to the implementation of the current coaching program, there was confusion

among participants as to what coaching meant and when it should be applied. One

manager, when he described a coach approach, sounded skeptical and apprehensive.

Based on his past experiences within Belus Net Ops this manager linked coaching to past

Emotional Intelligence Training as well as the company's generic employee review

process. He described his attempt at making sense of these various concepts in the

following way:

Some of the other coaching processes that have come through [Belus] have been specifically about emotional intelligence and this one has not. So emotional intelligence was, I think, a really important thing to understand the background but it's a struggle because there are too many intelligences. It's a struggle to keep all of those things in your mind. The Coaching for Success [employee review process] program was structured around that, or that was the framework they used. Daniel Goleman's Emotional Intelligence... All of the competencies, competency model. It's a huge program and I was completely bought into it. I read the books and I thought it was based on a fairly valid model. So I wasn't skeptical about it at all and wanted it to succeed but it was just too cumbersome to implement along with our day-to-day work. (II)

From his account, this manager attempts to connect coaching with other organizational

training initiatives, including the employee review process, has resulted in concept

confusion.

One could summarize that previous workplace training and the introduction of

processes centered on various coaching techniques may have been too cumbersome for

some managers to learn and practically apply within their leadership role. As an example,


one participant described his perceptions of previous coach training as follows: "I had

difficulty with the consistency of the coaching programs over all, every year the schedule

was changing and the tools were changing. To me the challenge was inconsistency" (FG).

Current Coaching Program

As participants described the current coach training and its fundamental

objectives, there was more clarity and similarity to the responses. When exploring the

participant's views on coaching after the recent training, the data clearly reflects that the

current program taught coaching skills that were more people centered than previous

Belus training. When describing the use of a people focused coach approach one

participant stated,

It's trying to train you [the manager] not to solve the problem but to draw out the resolution from the person you are trying to coach.. .it is a good reminder to not solve the problem, let them [the employee] solve it. (15)

Another manager's account of coaching had a similar message,

[Coaching] focuses on your own self-awareness and how you relate with others.. ..to me it is about understanding that everyone is their own unique individual. [Coaching] has much more of an individual focus on trying to get the best out of that person. (16)

To further illustrate how the recent training influenced some participant's view of

coaching, another manager explained, "The coach approach to me is listening to what the

other individual is trying to do, wants to do, or perceives of the situation. That is the

benefit of listening. Also, not painting your coaching session with your own pre-biases

(13)".

The interviews revealed that the coach training being studied had a significant

influence on changing the perceptions and understanding of workplace coaching. To

summarize this point, one focus group participant commented,


The [previous] internal so called coaching programs were around dealing with discipline or with people that we didn't feel were performing at the level we felt that they should be performing at. Where this [present coaching program] has, in my mind, given us a more of a well rounded coaching tool as far as different applications and I utilize it more. (FG)

Previous to the current coach program, the consensus among the study group was that

organizational training had referred to coaching as a strategy focused on employee

discipline and/or telling employees how to improve their performance.

It is also interesting to note that of the eight mangers interviewed, only one

participant failed to describe their present view of coaching as a leadership approach

which inspires people to perform to their full potential. Even after the training, one

manager replied that his perception of workplace coaching had not changed and to him

the coach approach involved: "the four pillars of: teaching, training, instruction, and

sometimes discipline (14)". With 18 years of successful management experience to his

credit working in an engineering environment, it is not difficult to understand why this

manager's view of coaching remains reliant on the past. Based on his career description

at the beginning of the interview, the participant has enjoyed a long successful

management career in telecommunications so there may be a lack of motivation for him

to want to develop alternate leadership skills. Additionally, he may not see the need to

use a different management approach especially if his current leadership style aligns with

the overall culture of the organization.


One of the prime objectives of this project was to understand how the coach

training and use of a coach approach contributed to the study group's leadership

competence. Several of the interview questions were designed to elicit data linking


leadership and coaching. Powerful themes emerged illustrating which key coaching skills

contributed to the participant's leadership practices, what the personal outcomes of using

these techniques were, and what they observed in the coachees. The leadership themes

and concepts most often did not stand alone but were intermixed throughout the

interviewee's responses and descriptive examples. The following are the most significant

coaching skills and outcomes that facilitated greater leadership capacities in the study

group as a result of participants employing coaching skills:

Skill: Listening Deeply

The coach training program emphasized that listening was a primary skill that

successful coaches must master. The majority of participants indicated that their ability to

listen was greatly enhanced by the coach training program. Participants commented that

the course teachings allowed them to greatly enhance their ability to listen beyond the

spoken word. Factors like suspending one's own thoughts, observing body language,

listening for emotion, and examining the environment in which the conversation was

occurring were noted as important listening factors. The following is an example that a

manager shared which illustrates listening deeply,

Today a guy [employee] phones me and says, "I don't think I am going to be in for a couple of hours. I might not come in until later, or not". In the middle of the night, somebody tried to break into his home. So I tried to give him suggestions on how he could secure his condo (interviewee pauses) but in that moment in time, I took a step back and tried to feel the home invasion experience. (15)

This transcribed quote highlights a key strength of listening deeply which enables

mangers to understand that people's behaviours are influenced by external and internal

variables. By practicing walking in somebody else's shoes for a minute, like this

participant did, managers realize that their perspectives and self-bias may prevent them


from truly understanding their people. Listening deeply is paramount in broadening the

manager's awareness and understanding of the people he or she leads. To support the

significance of listening, another participant commented, "I find myself being better as a

manager because I'm thinking about listening and I'm thinking about probing [inquiring]

questions (12). This manager also emphasized the power of listening, "To me the coach is

just that, it has to be 80% listening. If you're not applying it, if you're not listening it's

not going to work (17)".

Skill: Using Curiosity and Open Questions

Several of the interviewees believed that being inquisitive and curious with

people was an effective coaching strategy that inspires self-development and

accountability in people. These managers elaborated that being genuinely curious

allowed them to understand the world from the employee's perspective. When the

manager used curious questions, it enabled the other person to envision their desired

goals, examine potential roadblocks, and formulate their own action plan to achieve their

desired results.

A manager shared an example of one of his team members who was having

difficulty with a work situation and was quite upset. The manager used the technique of

inquiry to help this person understand their contribution to the situation,

I was more concerned about getting to the underlying causes and not putting him in a position in the future that left him that upset. So that's all we talked about, then we gave it a couple of days and talked at the start of the week on it [the problem]. I was able from that point, to use a bit more inquiring statements about what had happened ... and what he wanted the outcome of it to be. (12)

Practicing curiosity and inquiry was most often reported as being facilitated by

the manager using short, opened ended, unbiased questions. The training program


referred to this type of queries as "powerful questions". A majority of participants

reported the use of powerful open-ended questions as an effective coaching strategy

enabling their employees to overcome problems and find innovative solutions to personal

and/or organizational issues. One manager commented, "the powerful questions helped

with ... them formulating a plan on how they [the employee] would address it, I didn't

have to say to them "this is what to do", they answered it themselves (17).

Another manager shared an example of a coaching opportunity that illustrates the use of

powerful questions and deep listening,

I really used my listening skills, and also used powerful non-biased questions, to actually let him make the decision. Of course he sees me as the authoritarian figure who should be making the call [decision], but I actually got him to make the call through a series of probably ten questions... There may have been times and there are times where I would've just told the guy no, we're not going to do that, we're going to do this. But I used my listening skills ... and probing [powerful] questions to have a better interaction with an employee and that employee's going to be more motivated. (14)

Much of the coaching skills taught in the program, like deep listening and

powerful questions, were presented and practiced in the classroom as stand alone

concepts. In reality, many of the coaching examples recorded during the research and

presented in this chapter, are a combination of different techniques. As one manager

commented,

I have a tendency to use multiple techniques within a conversation unwittingly and unknowingly. I try and take things that I feel will work for my personality and for the individual that I am talking to at a particular time. (15)

It can, therefore, be summarized that using a coach approach is situational. The manager

needs to be aware of the situation and the individual involved, and then choose an

approach, or specific technique, or group of techniques that best match the variables

within any given situation.


Outcome: Creating Awareness

A majority of participants shared similar views of how applying a coach approach

in their day to day management roles created an opportunity for greater awareness which,

in turn, greatly enhanced their leadership abilities. Most participants described this

awareness as being of dual purpose. For example, applying coaching techniques allowed

the mangers to be more mindful of their own thoughts and perceptions. In addition,

mangers shared examples of how, through the use of coaching techniques, they were

successful in expanding the perceived self-awareness of their employees.

Manager awareness.

I would say, for myself, if you're going to look at it from a coach approach, to me that means awareness. So you have to be aware as a coach, as to how you're going to approach the situation and to know the person that you're dealing with. That coach approach would be different for every individual that you're dealing with... I can't approach somebody in XXXX the same way I would as one of the project technicians. If I did it's not going to work. (17)

This manager indicates that his awareness of the individuals on his team and their role in

the organization is important to the successful use of coaching skills. Each individual has

different priorities and communication preferences and, therefore, must be approached

differently for effective coaching dialogue to occur.

Another participant described his self-awareness as a result of the coach training

through a wider lens, "My understanding is to be more in tune or more in sync with the

people that you are coaching. A better understanding of who they are, where they want to

go, what they think of themselves and the company (18)". This manager speaks to the

value of creating awareness for the purpose of developing relationships with his team

members. The following is another quote to illustrate the power of creating self-

awareness through coaching,


To be a good coach I think you have to be self-aware. You have to be aware of your emotions, you have to be aware of the triggers, you have to be able to step back from it and kind of have a bigger look at the picture. You can't be as reactionary, and I think for somebody to be an effective coach with others I think you have to have your shit together yourself. You need to be aware of where your weaknesses are and where your strengths are and how you can make that work for that person [the coachee] to get the dynamic working. (16)

The following quote demonstrates one manager's struggle with individual

employee relationships and how his self-awareness and perceptions of his employees has

shifted as a result of the coach program,

I wasn't terribly empathetic [prior to the coach training] and I was bothered by that... Having done some more of the inquiry, and understanding where people are coming from, I feel it's made me more empathetic. At the same time, in some ways it's made me, I would say harsher, and less willing to coddle people's shortcomings.. .1 do know now, from this, that almost any of us, given the right opportunity, can usually make some gains... there is some stuff people need to work on that they just won't and they need to understand that they need to work on it. (12)

Coaching can take the stress off of manager's to own employee shortcomings and gives

the shortcomings back to the individual to manage and overcome. Coaching is a tool for

managers to give ownership for improvement to the individual in a supportive and

nurturing way, not a method for coddling shortcomings that do not result in personal or

organizational improvements or success.

Throughout the interviews, the participants spoke of an increase in mindfulness,

or being more self-aware. Mindfulness is also closely linked to the previously mentioned

skill of deep listening. The coaching training not only inspired the participants to truly

listen to their people, it also emphasized awareness of their own way of being. People

became more aware of their surroundings while also exploring inward to gain a more

holistic understanding of their internal thought processes and how they project those

biases onto others and onto external situations. Coaching definitely inspired Belus Net


Ops managers to reflect on who they are as individuals, and how they perceive others. In

addition, participants shared narratives on using a coach approach to increase their

perceived level of self-awareness in their employees.

Employee awareness.

Employees are raised and live within a social context and when they enter an

organization, it is that socialization they bring with them. Work experiences often force

employees outside of their normal social culture and into new organizational cultures and

subcultures. Managers can face challenges in shifting individuals into alternate ways of

viewing the world, especially when social behaviours have been strongly engrained. This

example illustrates how one manager used the coach approach with an employee to help

that employee reframe a difficult situation,

So all I did was kind of guided him through a conversation about, what are you looking for in the workplace, what are you wanting from the work environment? You tell me you hate coming to work, you can't stand working with so-and-so and you can't stand working with the other guy, so what are you looking for from work? We had a discussion around it and just that self-awareness and coming to terms with it and the realization - trying to get them to realize that they play a much bigger role in their own happiness than they were giving their own credit for. (16)

Other managers expanded on this notion of employee awareness by using

coaching skills to help people understand their role in the organization and impact of their

behaviours to the people they work with. One participant commented, "I think part of the

coaching process could be to try and help the guy look at the bigger picture, or get a more

correct picture (18)". Another manager added, " [with coaching] they [employees]

become more aware of their role in the team and with that hopefully somewhat more

tolerant of differences within other teammates and still see the values that are there in

other people (12)".


Inspiring self-reflection in people is facilitated by the coach working with the

coachee in a safe environment, allowing the person to express themselves without blame

or risk of punishment. The following example, which discusses the aftermath of a

workplace conflict, illustrates how the manager enabled one of his people to gain self-

awareness,

He felt some support in his position that he wasn't "wrong" for being that way... we as a company need to make sure we don't let employees get into that situation, where it gets to that point. And, in the end, it was not something that he would express back to me, but I believe it was a positive experience for him. He saw, again, that he has a tendency to see things in black and white and this helped him see more gray areas around what was there.. .That instead of seeing things from his own perspective, he was able to grasp, a little bit more, some of the pressures and tensions that were impacting from the other side of the conversation. (12)

When a manger uses a coach approach, opportunities are created for both the

manager, and the employee to expand their self-awareness. Coaching gives both

individuals involved in the coaching conversation insights into their own perceptions and

biases. Both manager and employee can focus their thoughts on the present and try to

understand the perspectives of those they impact and the results of their behaviours in the

workplace.

Outcome: Employee Accountability

Closely linked with individual awareness is the fundamental concept of

accountability. When a manager creates a leadership culture of self-awareness, his or her

employees also gain a greater sense of accountability. In a coaching environment

increased personal awareness is fostered in an effort to assist individuals in understanding

what they contribute to the workplace. Additionally, employees are given the freedom to

establish their own goals and, in doing so, they are afforded the opportunity to feel


accountable for task completion and personal goal attainment. The following statement

from one of the managers supports this concept,

If you provide people an opportunity to be at the table, for the effective change or whatever is the task at hand, you're going to get more engagement because those people are going to have either the idea themselves, or they'll be part of the creation of the idea. (14)

Instilling accountability can be facilitated by a manager through nurturing

ownership or a shared responsibility for work processes and objectives within

individuals. This manager comments on using open questions to influence accountability

in his team during a period of high workload demands,

Lately I have been trying to bounce things back to my guys because there has been sort of a frustration with multiple priorities. Not only the delivery of HSDPA, switch platforms, maintaining PMR, and just really trying to keep them on track and saying, "and what could you do better?" meaning, if it is that bad, can you fix it? Can you do anything about it? What things can you improve? (15)

Study participants recognized the importance of using strategies that give the ownership

for fixing problems back to the employee. This practice helps individuals realize their

role in issues that they are experiencing and helps managers understand the employee's

perception of fault and ownership in the workplace. Additionally, it prevents the

development of codependent relationships in which the manager puts himself in the

position of problem-solver and the employee in the position of victim to circumstances

beyond their control. Another manager added to the value of establishing accountability

within his people,

What I saw in accountability was opportunities. Opportunities that come up...seizing opportunities to make sure the initiatives are a success or seizing an opportunity to fix something that you [the employee] see as broken. So I saw all that wrapped up in accountability competency. Taking accountability for a whole general area, thinking, "how can I improve this?" ... [being accountable] becomes proactive. (II)


Many respondents talked about accountability as a "two-way street". Neither the

employee nor their manager is totally responsible for making things happen. There needs

to be a shared vision and collaboration to achieve the desired goals. One manager

commented, "they [employees] have to realize their commitment to the organization and

then if the organization gives them the importance to what they do and recognizes that

contribution back, I think in most cases, employees are engaged (16)".

Outcome: Authentic Leadership

Another leadership theme that surfaced from this research was leadership

authenticity. In several interviews, managers stressed that in order to use coaching skills

effectively, they had to be authentic; believing in themselves, and believing in their

people.

Leading the group as a manager ... the one thing that I really discovered is you have to be true to yourself and you've got to believe in what you're leading... So the biggest thing is authenticity ... let people see that you give a damn about what you are doing. (12)

To use coaching effectively managers need to believe in the strategy and truly,

inherently, believe in the coachee. If managers do not believe in the coaching philosophy,

they can try and implement the techniques but it will not be successful. This manager's

statement further explores the significance of authentically in the use of coaching skills,

I'm going to go back to what is coaching, and it's really the same answer. I have to have a genuine, heartfelt intension. I want to make that employee happy and I want to make that employee perform well, I want to make that employee the best that he can be. If I don't have that genuine, sincere belief in that employee, I can't really be effective. (14)

This same manager also cautions against applying a coach approach too often,

I think the downside [to coaching] is that you become very predictable and people see that as a systematic method, and then you start to lose credibility, it becomes


unauthentic and you as a person aren't seen as sincere person. People don't want to have techniques used on them. (14)

If a manager uses coaching leadership strategies too often, or implements coaching

techniques that appear scripted and unnatural, the coaching will be ineffective. As the

response above indicates, participants feel it is important for each manger to authentically

adopt leadership skills that fit their personal style and are a fit with their employees.

The participants embraced and saw considerable value in the coach training

program; however managers expressed concerns about the program's training methods

both in the classroom and during the follow-up tele-classes. One participant commented,

To me, this one [course] is a little too cheery. It is weird. It is definitely a different religion. I think there are some good things out of it. If I had to make a conscious effort to thank my guys every time he did something or said something they would think I was on medication. Some of the powerful questions are good. I think the response back is something that maybe you can train yourself but in the line of work that I do, in my trench work, it would not fit. It would seem phony. (15)

This manger, as well as other participants also felt that some of the coaching strategies

taught in the program did not align with their management style. Therefore, managers

should employ only the coaching techniques they believe in. Managers using methods

presented in the program that they are not comfortable with, would be viewed as

unauthentic by their teams.

Coaching and Leadership Summary

During the second phase of the research, the themed research findings to date

were presented to the focus group in a summarized form (see Appendix C). The focus

group unanimously agreed with the findings that cited listening deeply, using curiosity

and inquiry, and using powerful open-ended questions as the prominent coaching skills.

Similarly, the focus group agreed that: creating awareness (manager and employee),


employee accountability, and inspiring authentic leadership, were the most significant

outcomes of managers using coaching skills. To illustrate and accuracy of the finding,

one participant commented, "You have captured the key elements of using coaching in

our leadership roles (FG)."

Engagement and Coaching

Another significant theme that emerged from the interviews was a lack of clarity

regarding the term employee engagement. When spoke about in a leadership context,

managers found the term employee engagement difficult to define. Engagement was

found to be situational and meant different things to different people. In the context of the

annual employee survey, Belus HR describes employee engagement as a measure of

employee satisfaction and manager effectiveness, and places significant emphasis on the

quantitative employee survey results as a measure of corporate success. The intent of the

coach training was to positively influence employee engagement, but the ambiguity of

the meaning of engagement may have contributed to a somewhat less then consistent

correlation between engagement and coaching.

When commenting on engagement, one manager said, I guess the question is: what does that term mean? We have a 180 degree job and a quarter of the pie is one project, and a part of it is routine and another aspect is XXX so you deliver one thing and everybody is happy but you don't pull the results for the other projects, then you are accused of your employees not being engaged. You do really good. You maintain the network, you reduce your outages, but you didn't quite get all of the sites up and running in the projected timeline, you get the comment, your employees aren't engaged. (15)

This person equates engagement as a measure of task completion and his team's

objective performance. From his perspective, engagement, or lack of engagement has a

negative connotation within Belus Net Ops.

Another participant had a different view of engagement,


To me employee engagement means; is the person truly interested in their job, or are they just coming to work day to day, I believe XXXX referred to this as a "lunch paler", you're coming in because it's a paycheck. You're not engaged in your job, it's just something you do so that you can have a paycheck, and that allows you to do the things that you really enjoy. So you're going to get people that are like that, that's all they're there for. Their true engagement, they can't find a way to be paid to do it, so they come to work to be paid so that they can go do what they love to do, that's where they're engaged. There are people however that are completely consumed by their job and maybe overly engaged, that's the other end of the spectrum. (17)

This manager makes an excellent observation. To him, engagement means the person is

truly interested and enjoys what they do. Even if an employee does not love his job and

has passions that are outside of work, he can still be a strong performer and a valuable

employee.

Another participant offered a slightly different viewpoint of engagement, and also

linked coaching to the concept,

Employee engagement, to me, is almost a two-sided thing. It boils down to almost just giving a damn. To wanting to do the job right... To really get engaged, the employee, I think, really needs to feel loyalty to the company by being treated well and by feeling like the company, that what he is giving the company is being reciprocated. You'll still get people who don't feel that way that will do an extremely good job for you, but they are not really engaged within the company. So does coaching play a role in that? It can to the extent that you can't change people's opinions or attitudes, but I think that one of the things coaching can do is that it opens people up to other perspectives. (12)

Although apprehensive in his answer another manger described employee

engagement in terms of employee motivation,

I think that we are trying to create employee engagement. I think what we are trying to do is recognize that when somebody who can tap into what is important to them, they're going to be more engaged than somebody who is doing something that we told them or convinced them to do. (II)

A fourth respondent expanded on this humanistic view of engagement and his perspective

also linked the use of manger coaching skills with employee engagement.


I am a strong believer that we shape our own happiness and our own reason for being within ourselves. Nobody else can do that for us. I can help people come to terms with things if they are having problems, I can coach them through the situation, I can maybe get them to think about what they are wanting for themselves but that is as far as I can take them... you are really the only person in this world who can really change your life - other people can help you and guide you but you are the only one who can do it - but you have to come to that realization (16)

This evidence indicates that a manger can not force a person to be engaged or to

be coached. The findings suggest that using leadership coaching skills can inspire

different levels of perceived employee engagement. However, it is up to the individual to

understand his or her owns needs and work towards satisfying those needs. People need

to initiate personal change themselves by acknowledging the need or desire, and then

there may be an opportunity for their manager to provide guidance within a coaching

context. To further add insight into this viewpoint, this manager continued,

I think, just that realization that everybody isn't broken and they don't need fixing and that people have the answers that are right for themselves, they just maybe don't know it at the time, or maybe they are in search of that answer and they just need a little bit of guidance but they are really not broken people. People do not need every inch of their lives spelled out for them and told what they have to do to make them happy. How do I know what makes you happy? I now you fairly well, but I really don't know what makes you happy. (16)

From the interviews, it is evident that the meaning and use of the term

engagement within Belus is not clearly understood. Focus group participants commented

that, "We all have different perceptions or different definitions of engagement... It's not

the same for different people ... It is situational to different employees and situations

(FG)." However, the focus group did agree that task completion, company loyalty,

employee attitudes, and employee passions could all be considered predictors of

engagement.


The data does suggest the factors that influence employee engagement are largely

intrinsic variables, and that coaching could be used to help employees understand and

explore what their individual wants and needs are. The findings also indicate that, for

coaching to be effective, the coachee needs be a willing participant in the coaching

conversation. Coaching opportunities can not be forced on an individual by a manger

who identifies a problem with the employee that he believes could be corrected by

coaching.

The results related to the theme of engagement also prompted additional

questions: 1) Does Belus have a clear definition for what engagement means and how the

term relates to organizational objectives, and 2) Does an employee need to be engaged to

perform well? The ambiguity associated with the definition and measures of employee

engagement within Belus are beyond the scope of this project and should be considered

as a topic of further research.

Coach Training Applications and Sustainability

The coach training program positively influenced the leadership skills and

practices of all the participant mangers. The strategies that managers used to employ the

skills from the training program in their management roles had striking similarities

throughout the interview and focus group data. This section will review how the

participants most readily applied coaching skills and how coaching can be further

enhanced and sustained within Belus Net Ops.

Applying the Training

During the interviews, participants shared their perspectives on the coaching

program, and shared stories about their coaching experiences. Generated from the


narratives was a common theme that depicted how the managers applied the new skills.

To illustrate, here is how one manger described using coaching,

I am not stuck on one particular technique or method. I have a tendency to use multiple techniques within a conversation unwittingly and unknowingly. I try and take things that I feel will work for my personality and with the individual that I am talking to at a particular time. (15)

This manger indicates that he used skills and techniques subconsciously, meaning he has

already integrated specific skills that suit him and these have become a natural way of

coaching that works for him. Some of these new proficiencies may have come from the

training. It is also likely that this experienced manager already possessed some of the

leadership knowledge prior to the coaching program and the training helped reemphasize

and reinforce key leadership attributes that may have become dormant.

To add evidence to the idea that coaching reinforced already known skills in

participants, another manger commented,

What XXXX [the coaching facilitators] have gone into was the refinement of techniques... All of those techniques, I have been exposed to at various levels through different training, and common sense, since some of the first jobs that I've done. (14)

To further illustrate the notion that the coach training enhanced and built on previous

knowledge, this manager said,

I've been exposed to very similar things previously because we've had lots of training ... I was always looking for which one is right, which one is the system that works, and this, to me, seems to fall into place saying that there doesn't have to be a single system that works. You just have to have the skills and try to use them and practice them. So the epiphany for me was that you could adapt it [coach approach] to your current practices rather than start from scratch with some new system. (FG)

Another participant commented on applications of the coach training in the context of

other leadership courses he has attended,


I'll get back to what I said at the beginning where for many of these courses you'll take away certain things that apply [to leadership]... and there are certainly different aspects of all these different training courses that have become part of what I am right now. I strongly believe, as well, that age and maturity contributed to that in more ways. I go into these courses and I see the things that appeal to me and appeal to my style, and those are the things that I latch onto. (17)

This quote speaks to the notion that the adoption of coaching techniques and interest in

self development as a manager may be driven from intrinsic values and past experiences.

The data indicates that learnings are more likely to be adopted if the techniques fit one's

personality, and can be practiced in situations where the manager feels at ease developing

and applying skills that he is comfortable with.

Coaching Opportunities

Managers spoke about using coaching skills in the moment, when they felt the

situation was right, and most importantly, when they felt the other person was ready for a

coaching conversation. In an organizational context, the manager/employee relationship

is not equal as the manager has authority over his reports. Therefore participants spoke of

proceeding with caution when coaching, being mindful to not exert pressures on the

coachee to reveal personal information. The following quote is an example of this

cautious approach,

If an employee has something ... going on, they need to feel that if they want to talk to somebody about it that they can come and talk to you... That's kind of what it [coaching] looks like for me, it is making sure that I'm approachable, making sure that I'm aware of what's going on around me. So if I see something that I think needs my attention, I can talk to people about it and at the same time they can feel free to talk to me. (17)

This manager believes that in order to successfully inspire a coaching environment within

his team, it is the manager's responsibility to be approachable when people are seeking


guidance. This person also felt it was important for the employee to initiate the coaching

conversation.

Furthermore, for the coach approach to be effective, employees need to take

responsibility and ownership of their own situations. The following is a manager quote to

illustrate this concept,

I think that all coaching can do is help a person become self-aware of why they are not happy or what motivates them, beyond that, it is up to the individual. I can do things, and pump people up and send them on dinners and all of that and do this stuff as long as you want and it gets them excited and engaged for the moment, but they will always go back to their old personality traits. (16)

If a manager tries to fix employee issues by providing short term materialistic solutions

instead of helping people explore the root causes of their discontent, the negative

behaviours will, ultimately, resurface.

The findings indicate that managers were not acting as formal life coaches, with

preplanned and scheduled coaching sessions. Managers, however, did use a coach

approach and used specific coaching techniques when they felt it was applicable. This

approach can look very different within each manager/employee relationship depending

on the tools and techniques that work best for both the manager and employee. Managers

appeared to choose coaching approaches that fit their values, beliefs, styles and goals and

avoided coaching techniques that were not a natural fit.

Program Sustainability

There is no doubt that the coaching program had a significant positive impact on

the leadership culture within Belus Net Ops. Mangers reported that the program helped

develop and enhance their leadership skills. Through the use of coaching techniques,

managers perceived increased employee self-awareness, task ownership and


accountability. Understandably, the question of how to sustain the momentum and ensure

coaching remains part of the Net Ops leadership culture emerged as an overriding theme.

Once managers introduce coaching to their team, and the practice becomes

accepted, failing to use it consistently may have detrimental results. The potential danger

of not consistently applying a coach approach is illustrated by this manager,

For whatever reason you are busy, you are tired, you have a lot going on... you revert to what you used to be. And in my case ... people immediately know that difference... Once they are used to being treated with respect for who they are as a human being and they suddenly get pulled to go do something or they know they are not getting my attention, there are some people who don't get over that quickly. So once you have set an expectation about your leadership style, if you betray that expectation it can have a negative impact that you don't get over in ten minutes. (12)

This manager has embraced the coach approach as a way of being, but feared that

company demands and external influences may make it difficult to be consistent. Once a

manager sets leadership expectations with his team, reverting back to old behaviours

could result in a loss of respect for the manager and take away from the authenticity of

workplace coaching.

Participants unanimously agreed that practicing coaching techniques is essential

to maintain and further develop coaching skills. Managers expressed the need for some

form of formalized coaching reinforcement, although additional facilitator lead training

or tele-classes were not recommended. To illustrate mangers thoughts on sustainability,

here are comments from three participants: "Practice. I think I have heard as much in a

classroom as I really care to hear. I am not a psychologist, or a psychiatrist or a

professional coach" (16).

You are not going to be a better coach if you don't try coaching... I am not opposed to more training but at the end of the day it really comes down to self-discipline. It's using it. We have a lot of things in front of us that we can use that I


know I haven't embraced yet and I have to at least decide, I have to make my own mind up whether it is something for me or not (13)

I think you need reinforcement and I think you need practice, and I think that needs to be ongoing. I don't think it needs to be at super frequent intervals, but I think it needs to be annual to be really affective. (14)

The concept of practice and reinforcement was also a clear theme that emerged from the

focus group discussion. One manager commented,

I need a method of reinforcement which forces me out of my comfort zone.. .1 felt stretched and even vulnerable during the initial training... the most effective learning for me was the interaction with others, with strangers. Practicing coaching with unknown strangers .. .made me feel vulnerable and .. .stressed the skills I learned. (FG)

The HR participant had similar thoughts on the importance of applying coaching skills,

With coaching, because it's a change in our habits, our behaviors of how we communicate and how we look at things .. .Changing behavior obviously takes practice and practice all the time, so I can see that that would be a challenge with this course. (HR)

Although the managers emphasized the need for skills reinforcement, participants

struggled with how this could be accomplished. One manager commented,

I don't know that more training is the answer.... but if there was a way to somehow facilitate just almost this kind of conversation [referring to the interview setting] where you know, people can sit and talk about what they have discovered and it doesn't have to be in a large group or anything. That would be helpful because you discover things by talking so that would probably make me more effective at it. (12)

This example suggests that dialogue and sharing narratives on their coaching experiences

may be an effective reinforcement strategy for managers.

Another theme that developed from the focus group was a perceived lack of

clarity as to the objectives and measures of the program. The follow are two comments

to illustrate this conclusion,


I just need to find a reason, something measurable to do this, to carry on this road because I think that's the stage we're at. We need to find out why we want to do this and what the goal is. (FG) Is [the objective of the training] to create teams that perform better than they're performing, or are we shooting to enlighten all beings on earth [said in a humorous tone]. How do we know when we have gotten to where we want to go?

(FG)

It can be summarized from the focus group discussion that establishing clear course

objectives and measures to determine success prior to launching the training would have

helped ensure the increased longevity and sustained success of the coaching initiative.

Study Conclusions

Part I of this section outlines the study conclusion based primarily on the results

of the Manager and Director Interviews and Focus Group phases of the research. Part II

reports on the findings and conclusions from the third and final phase of data collection.

In the third research phase, the themed interview and focus group results were presented

to the Director and a Corporate HR Representative (see Appendix D Director & HR

recommendations and questions), and the implication of coaching were explored from a

wider organizational perspective.

Parti

Life Coach vs. Coach Approach

The CTI Coaching Program that the Belus's Net Ops courses were modeled after

were designed to train individuals to become life or executive coaches (The Coaches

Training Institute, 2003). The life coach model involves a client, or coachee, who has

sought out the services of a life coach. The role of the life coach is to inspire self directed

learning and personal growth within the coachee (Grant, 2001). The coach and coachee

schedule meetings where the coachee sets the agenda and the objectives of each coaching


session (Whitworth et al., 1998). Grant (2001) wrote: "The core constructs of coaching

include: a collaborative, egalitarian rather than authoritarian relationship between coach

and coachee" (p. 9).

It was clear from the research findings that participants did not see themselves as

formal life coaches, nor did they desire to be. Managers did not attempt to plan or

schedule formal coaching sessions with their reports. Managers did, however, share the

core values of coaching as taught in the coach program and viewed the techniques as

powerful leadership tools. As evidence to support this conclusion, one manager

commented,

After the training, I struggled with applying coaching in a formal setting. I felt pressure to schedule coaching sessions with my guys....it was only after speaking with XXXX did I realize that using the skills could be done more fluently and effectively during regular conversations. (12)

Only one participant (17) spoke of using coaching as part of his quarterly employee

review process. Instead, participants gave examples of applying coaching skills in a

coach approach during their day to day management role. Unlike structured life coaching

sessions where the coachee and coach meet at predetermined times (Whitmore, 2002), the

coach approach that evolved from the Belus Net Ops Training was less structured, more

situational, and more focused on coaching in the moment.

As discussed earlier in this chapter, the coach training has given Belus managers

insight and awareness into understanding people, recognizing others needs, and helping

people tap into their own strengths and values. Individual Belus managers embraced the

core coaching skills that most significantly resonated with their experience and leadership

styles. They also began applying those skills when and where they could. To illustrate the

concept of developing a coach approach, one focus group participant commented, "It is


my goal to unconsciously apply powerful coaching skills like deep listening and

mindfulness, but right now I am still at a stage where I continuously need to remind

myself to apply the techniques (FG)".

Summarized from the study findings, participants do not see themselves as

traditional life or executive coaches. The unavoidable hierarchal manager and employee

relationship, coupled with the pressures of both participants to meet required

organizational objectives, could make a life coaching relationship impractical between

manager and employee. However, managers did indicate that applying a coach approach

within their job significantly contributed to their leadership skills and also had the

potential to increased employee satisfaction to some degree.


The themed study findings indicated that the most significant outcomes of the

coach training and managers using a coach approach were: (a) creating enhanced

manager self-awareness of their internal perceptions and biases, (b) helping managers to

understand other peoples perspectives, (c) influencing a greater self-awareness in team

members, (d) creating an atmosphere of employee accountability and ownership, and (e)

inspiring more authentic leadership practices.

Coaching helped managers create a greater self-awareness, gave them the ability

to self-manage their own thoughts and biases, and emphasized the need for them to be

sincere and authentic leaders. The ability to understand oneself and to be aware of how

ones behaviours impact other people, are fundamental core competencies required for

effective leadership (Goleman, Boyatzis, & Mckee, 2002). Furthermore, the findings

indicated that through the use of coaching skills, managers inspired self-awareness in


other team members therefore enabling these leadership competencies to be displayed by

frontline employees.

By using coaching to inspire employee accountability and ownership, both the

people and organization benefit from the results. As Kouzes and Posner (1995) wrote,

Exemplary leaders enlist the support and assistance of all those who make the project work ... They enable others to act. Leaders know that no one does his or her best when feeling weak, incompetent, or alienated; they know those who are expected to produce the results must feel a sense of ownership, (p. 12)

The research results also indicated that when people are given the opportunity to

formulate their own solutions, they will be more willing to embrace change. As this study

participant commented, "if you want any lasting change, you can't force it, it must come

from within the person (16)".

Study findings emphasize the value of creating awareness within the manager and

employee. The processes of creating awareness inspired some managers and employees

to develop a deeper understanding and trust of each other. As one participant stated,

Coaching is fundamental to it [relationship building] because it's the only way you'll get to know people. You'll see that one of the big things in an employee survey, is that my boss doesn't know me ... you need to know him [the employee] on a human level, not as this object that has to produce ... numbers. You've got to get to know the person, to know what their talents are. (DR)

Building relationship with employees by seeking to understand their individual values

and beliefs, acknowledging individuals contributions, and taking the time to get to know

employees as people, are important characteristics of exemplary leadership (Buckingham

& Coffman, 1999; Kouzes & Posner, 1995). The findings from this study indicate that

learning and applying coaching skills in the workplace definitely contribute to the

development of more positive relationships, which is viewed as a vital leadership skill for

Belus Net Ops Managers.


Learning and Applying Coaching

"Learning can be thought of as a process by which behaviour changes as a result

of experience" (Maples and Webster as cited in Merriam & Cafferella, 1999, p. 250).

Research findings indicated that the coach training program was successful in

contributing to the learning of leadership and coaching skills in a team of Telecom

Operations Managers. This section will discuss why the learning was effective, what is

required for the learning to be sustained, and where participants struggled with the coach

training program.

The coaching program and adult learning.

Mackeracher (2004) wrote, "[Adults] have extensive pragmatic life experiences

that tend to structure and limit new learning. Learning focuses largely on transforming

or extending the meanings, values, skills, and strategies acquired in previous

experiences" (p. 27). From the data, it was found that managers embraced and learned

coaching techniques by combining the new coaching skills with previous leadership

experience and knowledge. As an example, one participant commented,

I strongly believe, as well, that age and maturity contributed to that in more ways. I go into these courses and I see the things that appeal to me and appeal to my style, and those are the things that I latch onto. (17)

Furthermore, the coaching techniques taught in the program were pliable and dynamic,

allowing managers to successfully apply the skills in a coach approach manner which

suited each unique situation and their management style. To illustrate this point, one

focus group participant observed, "So the epiphany for me was that you could adopt it

[coaching] to your current practices rather than start from scratch with some new system"

(FG)


The Belus Western Net-Ops managers self-organized and developed coach

approaches that could be authentically applied within their respective teams. Although

each participant embraced and applied coaching skills differently based on their internal

and external realities, common themes highlighting the most powerful skills and the

outcomes of using those techniques did emerge. The course material from previous Belus

leadership and coaching programs was reviewed during this project. Most of these

courses emphasized the need to follow scripted formulas or sequential steps when

applying coaching techniques. Much of the skills taught in the current program were

more flexible and therefore naturally evolved as the managers applied and used them.

This gave the managers the ability to take ownership and accountability of how, where

and when coaching skills were used, and ultimately contributed to the success of the

initiative. To support this conclusion, Mackeracher (2004) wrote, "Learning is facilitated

when learners can assess their own needs and select their own learning goals and

directions for change" (p. 39).

The conclusion from the findings indicate that organizational leadership training

is more likely to be adopted and learned by managers if the techniques fit their

experiences and styles, and can be practiced in situations where the manager feels

comfortable developing and applying the techniques.

Objectives and sustainability.

Although participants reported that the coach program significantly contributed to

their leadership learning and practice, study findings also indicated that the objectives for

the training were not clear. The HR representative commented,

The question that came up for me was what were the specific desired outcomes of the course, to me that wasn't clear, looking through the binder as well it is not


clear in there, as well how are they actually going to apply this in there role and at work? (HR)

Participants commented that the lack of clear direction made it difficult for them to

determine what the program objectives and milestones were. One focus group comment

included,

I just need to find a reason, something measurable to do this, to carry on this road ... We need to find out why we want to do this and what the goal is... How do we know when we have gotten to where we want to go? (FG)

From the findings, it can be concluded that managers require a planned framework which

allows them to understand the outcomes of the training, how it links to organizational

objectives, and a method of tracking or measuring the outcomes of the program. To

further illustrate the need for clear program objectives, Tannenbaun and Yukl (1992)

wrote, "Training courses should support the strategic direction of the organization, and

training objectives should be aligned with organizational goals" (p. 401).

The study findings reflect what is written in organizational training literature. For

a training program to have maximum impact and to ensure transfer of training into

learning (sustainability), the initiative must be carefully designed and planned

(Tannenbaun & Yukl, 1992). Factors including: the learner's needs and readiness level,

program objectives and measures, organizational context and culture, learner preferences

and styles, and opportunities for reinforcement and practice, all contribute to the overall

success of a training program (Tannenbaun &Yukl, 1992; Baldwin & Ford, 1988; Brown

&Duguid, 1991).

To further the discussion on learning and coaching sustainability, Baldwin and

Ford (1988) wrote: "Positive transfer of training is defined as the degree to which trainees

effectively apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes gained in a training context to the


job" (p.63). It is evident from the data that managers experienced a positive transfer of

knowledge from the coach program, despite the lack of a formal development plan. A

significant future challenge facing participants is how to continue to sustain and build

their coaching skills. As one manger commented,

I am at the point right now where I am really trying to assimilate and utilize these things ... I need to put it [coaching] into practice and be able to find a comfortable way to start to have people talk about it. (12)

Participants stressed the need for continued practice as a means to sustain and further

develop coaching leadership skills, as opposed to more facilitator lead training sessions.

Evidence to support this conclusion was provided by two managers who shared their

reflections on sustaining coaching as part of their leadership role, "I think you need

reinforcement and I think you need practice, and I think that needs to be ongoing (14)"

and "Practice. I think I have heard as much in a classroom as I really care to hear. I am

not a psychologist, or a psychiatrist or a professional coach (16)". The HR participant

agreed with the managers, "With coaching, because it's a change in our habits, our

behaviors of how we communicate and how we look at things .. .Changing behavior

obviously takes practice and practice all the time (HR)".

Although no defined reinforcement strategy was evident from the data, managers

suggested that sharing narratives and best practices would be an effective coaching

reinforcement strategy. As an example, one manager offered,

If there was a way to somehow facilitate just almost this kind of conversation where you know, people can sit and talk about what they have discovered and it doesn't have to be in a large group or anything. That would be helpful because you discover things by talking so that would probably make me more effective at it. (12)


To add support to this concept, Mackeracher (2004) wrote, "Learning is facilitated when

the learning activities provide opportunity to talk about the shared experiences" (p.38)

It can be concluded that participants in the Net Ops coaching program would have

benefited from a more clearly planned training intervention that includes desired

outcomes and sustainability interventions. Clearly defined program objectives, and a

strategy to reinforce and measure training effectiveness would have helped facilitate a

deeper level of manager appreciation and understanding of the vision. Therefore, the

introduction of a development training model for future initiatives, with defined

objectives to help participants apply and reinforce skills learned in organizational training

program, will be explored as a recommendation in Chapter Five.

Engagement and Coaching

Employee engagement has become a popular term within Belus leadership

culture; however managers struggle with its meaning and definition. From the interviews,

it is evident that the meaning and use of the term engagement within Belus was not

clearly understood. Focus group participants commented that, "We all have different

perceptions or different definitions of engagement... It's not the same for different

people ... It is situational to different employees and situations (FG)." Managers felt that

engagement is a complex concept requiring the consideration of multiple individual and

organizational variables, making it difficult to define as one holistic concept. However,

the focus group did agree that task completion, company loyalty, employee attitudes, and

employee passions, could all be considered predictors of engagement.

Therefore, this study cannot conclude that the use of coaching techniques was a

positive predictor of employee engagement. The data does suggest, however, that the


factors that influence employee engagement are largely intrinsic variables, and that

coaching could be used to help employees understand and explore their individual values

and needs. This, in turn, could lead to the potential for employees to take ownership over

aspects of their employment experience. This conclusion indicates that Net Ops (and

perhaps the entire organization) should agree on the basic definition of engagement to

serve as a common reference point and assist in clarifying the meaning and use of the

term.

Part II

Coaching Within the Broader Organizational Context

Organizational culture and the benefits of coaching.

The leadership message emanating from executives within Belus is juxtaposed to

the coach approach introduced to the Belus Net Ops managers. Participants described the

leadership culture as, "Objective driven and task focused... Just get it done, that's the

perspective from XXXX [Corporate Head Office]... It's the same on the sales side. If

you don't make your numbers, you are gone"(FG). The HR representative had a similar

description of the corporate Belus culture," Overall though I think that the leadership

culture is really, at Belus, very focused on to be a leader is about action, its about results,

and kind of doing whatever you can to get there (HR)."

Managers also found a significant misalignment between the humanistic

coaching techniques they were applying with their teams, and how other groups within

the organization managed their people and workload. As illustrated by the following

focus group comment, there are some concerns that this dichotomy in management styles


between the study participants and other functional teams may lead to communication

and relationship difficulties between Net Ops Managers and other groups,

There may be a danger in doing what we're doing because we put ourselves on a little island. One of things I've noticed is that, obviously we've done a lot of this training ... and you don't see anybody [other Belus teams] doing the same thing. You kind of feel segregated in some way by your philosophy. So when you take that approach and take it to your staff and start moving them in the same direction, and the team that they work with right beside them isn't doing that, then ... the communication ... it splits apart. For example ... between ourselves and XXXX, you see a gap starting to open. (FG)

The evidence illustrates that practicing coaching has introduced some complexities

relating to how the Net Ops practices fit into the greater organization's management

philosophy and how Net Ops works with other teams. Despite this observation, the

evidence indicates that expanding the coaching program within Belus would be

recommended.

Participants postulated that if the rest of the organization adopted a coach

approach, there would be a common language or shared leadership vision throughout the

company. To highlight this concept, the focus group commented "shared common

language creates understanding and awareness across functional groups....we would not

be segregated and could lead our team more consistently". To further expand on the

benefits of an organizational coaching culture, another manager commented, "Our

Company seems to lack meaning. I mean, do we give anything back to society... .it all

seems to be about money. Coaching could put us [the organization] in contact with a

deeper purpose." This manager speculates that fostering a people based culture may

result in Belus having a more community and humanity based culture.


The HR participant's observations of Belus leadership culture closely parallel the

other participant's views. In the following quote, the HR representative comments on

leadership within Belus and the significance of introducing coaching to the organization,

One of the key components of that leadership philosophy, I believe, is that we really need to be better at assessing our peoples assets ... Assessing them in things like ability and motivation, and obviously a coach approach really does approach that significantly well... So instead of saying just do it, its really going - well can I really just expect my people to just do it and get results... I know that that's one of the common frustrations, that people don't necessarily feel valued, they don't necessarily feel they're being developed in order to get the results that they're expected to produce. (HR)

In addition, the Director expressed his belief that coaching would provide much needed

benefits if introduced at an organizational level. In the following example, the Director

commented on how a coaching culture would influence upper management as well as

front line employees,

In order to be a good coach you have to be self aware, and if it only does that it would be a huge benefit, if the management body within XXXX [the organization] became more self aware or able to function during an emotive situation, be able to communicate and have true dialogue, and hold one another accountable without it getting emotive and territorial, then that would be a huge benefit in and of itself. The flip side of it would be the coaching of the employee base itself, it would show that people [management] care, and that's one of the big things if you look at the employee survey: does my manager care about me? That's what we usually get, so it would show that we truly care, and would also build trust. (DR)

The findings indicate that all participants see the value in further introducing and

developing coaching at a wider level within Belus. The Managers, their Director, and the

corporate HR representative all confirmed that, organization wide communications,

people-focused practices, and leadership culture would benefit from a CTI type coach

approach.


Organizational readiness.

Participants agreed with the value of introducing the CTI based coaching program

to additional Belus teams. However they questioned if other groups were ready for such a

program and whether they would embrace it as a positive leadership strategy. One focus

group participant commented on CTI facilitators presentation style, "If you want to

compare styles, the style they used didn't fit us (FG)". Another participant added,

"Clearly I think the style is mismatched. I think it partially worked for us because of the

road we've traveled with [our Director] (FG)". This manager also expressed similar

feeling about the CTI structured presentation, "To me, this one is a little too cheery. It is

weird. It is definitely a different religion" (15).

The Director also cautioned that the introduction of coaching would be difficult

within the National Net Ops Team. To illustrate the Director's experiences with coaching

at a national level, he commented,

I saw employee engagement as being addressed by [managers] being able to coach the individual to have a broader view, to be more self-aware, it's all about self awareness. I've been with my boss; I've been with my colleagues to discuss the employee survey. I've shared it [coaching program] with them. I won't say the reaction I got. It was less than enthusiastic. They're fixing the processes, they're fixing organization structure, they're fixing the objectives base, and expecting the employees to recognize that. (DR)

From these data, it appears that the Director's peers are formally entrenched in an

engineering type culture where processes and transactional leadership practices are seen

as the methods to fix employee issues and poor employee engagement survey results.

In summary, the training program had an overall positive impact on the

development and/or enhancement of the study participants leadership skills due, in part,

to their previous leadership training and experiences. Therefore, even though the CTI


approach that was used may not have been optimal, it was successful. It can be deduced

that there are significant benefits to introducing life based coaching to the wider

organization. However, the findings did indicate that future program development and

facilitation must pay specific attention to assessing and understanding participant learning

styles and readiness as well as tailoring the approach to the specific culture of the team in

an effort to achieve optimal learning outcomes.

Scope and Limitations of Research

The findings from this research project illustrated the effectiveness of introducing

a coaching program to a group of Operations Managers working within a large, high-

tech, telecommunications company. Through sharing their perceptions and experiences,

participants provided insight into how they learned and applied coaching as a leadership

strategy within their teams. The research concluded that the outcomes of the training, as

well as the recommendations generated by this project, will inspire positive change

within the organization's people and its leadership culture. The research, however, did

have limiting factors which are discussed below.

Gender and Background

The sample group was largely homogeneous. For example, all of the Net Ops

managers had similar technology based educational backgrounds and professional

experience. Additionally, all participants acquired their management experience within

the engineering and operations groups of telecommunications organizations. Only the HR

participant's gender, background, experiences, and education varied significantly from

the rest of the study group.


The HR representative was the final research participant, and her data was

extremely valuable for the triangulation of the manager group findings. Even though the

HR representative was female, and her educational and organization background was

different from the other participants, her similar perspectives should not be considered as

evidence that findings would apply to the entire organization. The study group still

represented a very distinct and small sub-set of the organization. For example, the study

results may not directly apply to a team of Belus Call Centre employees who are

predominately female with non-technical backgrounds. Nor can it be assumed that the

findings are generalizable to other manager groups in other subcultures within the

organization

Limited Sub-Culture of Study Group

Organizational culture has many varied definitions (Barney, 1986). One broad

example is Schein's (as cited in Denison, 1996) definition which is:

a pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems, (p. 12)

Based on this definition of culture, it can be inferred that the Western Nets Ops Team

who participated in the study has its own unique culture which is different from other

teams within the organization. When examined from company wide perspective, the

study group's culture is only one of many sub-cultures within Belus. This research

evaluated the results of the coaching based primarily on only one unique group, or sub

culture within the company. The level of readiness and behaviour changes experienced

within the study group as a result on the coaching initiative cannot be accurately

projected onto other organizational sub-cultures.


Other Limitations

The study findings were limited to the experiences of the managers who

participated in the coaching program and applied coaching techniques in their leadership

role. The managers provided rich data on the perceived impact of using coaching

techniques with front line workers; however the voices of the employees - the people

being coached - were not explored. Measuring the impact of the program on the coachees

could have affirmed, or substantially opposed the manager's perceptions of workplace

coaching.

Another limiting factor was the relatively short duration of participant experience

with coaching. At the time of data collection, the manager's had only been applying the

techniques for seven months. As their experience and knowledge increases over time,

their perceptions of coaching may evolve to differ from the findings reported in this

paper. In addition, there was only one form of coaching training that was being used by

all participants and while each indicated they adapted this training to their own unique

styles and situations, the results cannot be generalized to other models or approaches to

coach training.

Finally, the qualitative nature of this action research project implies that the

research findings should not be applied as generalizations beyond the study group.

Additional data would be required to accurately apply the findings to a wider population.

For example, incorporating the results of the quantitative organization wide employee

survey would have increased the research scale and have allowed more generalized

conclusions from the study findings. However access to the survey data was beyond the

scope and guidelines of this work.


In conclusion, it is important to emphasize that although there were limitations to

the research, the project conclusions and recommendations provided significant relevance

to the study group and the greater organization.

Chapter Four Conclusion

This chapter presented the findings, conclusions and limitations of a research

project which was designed to gain insight into how the introduction of coach training

influenced the leadership styles and skills of a team of telecommunications managers.

More specifically, this research sought to answer the questions: (a) How effective is the

current coaching approach being used by western regional managers in Belus Net Ops in

enhancing both those managers' leadership skills and the level of engagement of the

employees they coach?, and (b) What implications does this have for the future of this

coaching program within Belus Net Ops? Using action research and qualitative data

analysis, this project explored the impacts of coaching as a management and leadership

strategy.

The research was divided into three phases. The results of each phase were used

to inform and guide the next subsequent research segment. As the research progressed,

the project's positive organizational impacts began to emerge. Introducing community

based action research into a team of technical managers was met with curiosity and

enthusiasm. All people that were asked to participate enthusiastically agreed, and all were

eager to experience the research process and contribute to the recommendations. During

the third phase of the research, the preliminary study findings and recommendations were

shared the Project Sponsor (Director) and a Corporate HR Representative. At the time of

writing, the Director has already instituted changes based on the research


recommendations. The next chapter will further develop and offer recommendations to

positively enhance coaching and training within the organization.


CHAPTER FIVE - RESEARCH IMPLICATIONS

Introduction

This project centered on learning through community based action research. It

involved collaboratively combining the experiences and knowledge of study participants

and using that new understanding to inspire directions for innovative change (Glesne,

2006; Stringer, 1999). When describing the value of action research, Stringer (1999)

wrote, "By sharing their diverse knowledge and experience-expert, professional, and lay-

stakeholders can create solutions to their problems and, in the process, improve the

quality of... life" (p. 10). In the spirit of Stringer's words, this chapter draws on the

research themes and conclusions from Chapter Four and suggests recommendations to

reinforce the existing coaching initiative, and also offers proposals to further advance

workplace coaching within Belus.

The three main recommendation themes that emerged as a result of the research

were: a) sustaining the present coaching program with Belus Net Ops, b) designing future

leadership coaching initiatives, and c) introducing and implementing a coaching program

to a wider segment of the organization. The intent of this chapter is to suggest

recommendations and a program framework to enhance and build on the experiences of

the study participants, and to provide a strategy to introduce coaching to the National

Belus Nets Ops Team. The notions brought forward within the recommendations are

based on adult learning and organizational change theory, and represent basic

fundamental principles that should be addressed if Belus Net Ops is to be successful with

developing leadership coaching skills.


Much of the responsibility for maintaining the momentum generated by the

coaching program and moving it forward in an attempt to initiate change at a national

level within Belus Net Ops resides with the Director. The Director, who also sponsored

this project, believes that coaching is a vital leadership competency that is essential for

future organizational success. During his last interview, the Director commented on

Belus's leadership philosophy and culture,

It [company's leadership philosophy] does need to change ... I don't think that it connects people, I don't think it brings people into work. It's got to be bigger and more meaningful, create meaning in the workplace. What happens if you don't get that? I can tell you, you lose your soul and you become a place where people turn up 9-5, they go home and hit medico KPI's [key performance indicators]. The world is full of those companies; they don't have people willing to work. (DR) .

The recommendations offered in this chapter rely on the willingness and ability of the

Director to continue to lead this change initiative. The Director introduced coaching to

his management team and the study results indicated that the intervention was an

overwhelming success. This chapter's recommendations are offered to guide the Director

in moving forward on what may well be a difficult personal and professional journey. To

describe the position of the Director, Kotter (1998) wrote,

I have found that the biggest obstacles to change are not middle managers but, more often, those who work just a level or two below the CEO - vice presidents, directors, general managers, and others who haven't yet made it to "the top" and may have the most to lose in a change, (p. 2)

Overview of Conclusions

As illustrated in the Study Findings and Conclusion Sections of Chapter Four, the

manager participants found the coach training they attended to be beneficial. Participants

reported that the coaching skills taught in the program significantly contributed to and

enhanced their leadership skills. The managers surmised that expanding the coaching


program to a wider segment of the Belus Organization would result in a shared common

language amongst employees leading to an increased understanding and greater

awareness across functional groups. Study participants were unanimous in their

perception that the culture within Belus was mainly task focused. They all felt that the

needs and values of the employees were considered secondary to achieving

organizational objectives. Introducing a humanistic coaching culture was seen as a

transformational leadership strategy that could connect leaders to their people, inspire

employee accountability, and create greater self-awareness and understanding within

employees.

In addition, managers offered recommendations as to what improvements could

be made to enhance the present and future coaching programs within the organization.

Managers indicated that the coaching program they attended lacked objectives and

measurement criteria. In addition, the goals of the program were not evident at the onset

of the initiative, and are still not clear. Although participants saw tremendous value in

applying a coach approach in their management roles, they felt that a lack of program

planning may result in difficulties sustaining and further developing the coaching culture

within their teams. Also, when discussing the idea of sharing coaching with different

company departments, participants questioned the readiness of other groups to embrace

this type of program. Mangers perceived a significant misalignment between the

humanistic coaching techniques taught in the program and the current overall leadership

culture within Belus. Therefore, they cautioned that other groups may have difficulty

embracing the CTI training style and approach.


Recommendations and Organizational Implications

Leading the Way: Allowing Coaching to Succeed in Western Net Ops

Bridges and Bridges (2000) discuss organizational transformation from two

perspectives. The first element, referred to as Change, is externally focused. Change

represents the processes, practices, and interventions that are introduced within an

organization to produce change (Bridges & Bridges, 2000). In the context of this project,

the external Change element was the coaching program that the Director introduced and

had his team participated in. The Director was successful with implementing the

structured part of the coaching initiative. All his managers attended and participated in

the facilitator lead classroom sessions and follow-up tele-class. Therefore, the Change

process of implementing a coaching culture within Belus Western Net Ops is well

underway.

Bridges & Bridges' (2000) second intrinsic element of organizational change is

referred to as Transition. "Transition is internal... a psychological reorientation that

people have to go through before the change can occur" (Bridges & Bridges, 2000, p.2).

It is clear from the Chapter Four findings that most, if not all managers, have entered the

transition phase and are adopting a coach approach as a personal leadership strategy. For

example, this manager's response illustrates he has embraced the training, and has

entered a Transition state where he is working on applying the program learnings,

I am at the point right now where I am really trying to assimilate and utilize these things ... I need to put it [coaching] into practice and be able to find a comfortable way to start to have people talk about it. (12)

Most participants shared similar perspectives about the coaching program. The research

findings clearly indicated that managers understand the value of coaching and have begun


to explore using coaching techniques as a leadership strategy. However, managers are

still in the Transition phase of change and require further reinforcement and practice to

transform and sustain coaching behaviours.

Therefore, at the time of this writing, there exists considerable opportunities for

the Director to build on the momentum generated from the training done to date. There is

an opportunity to leverage the positive study results to inspire a lasting change in the

leadership culture of his team. Meaningful organizational change is typically a lengthy

process; however, if the Director acts quickly, there is evidence to suggest that short term

victories are possible and beneficial. Long-term success lies within his ability to harness

the summative effect of short-term victories, which lead to sustained cultural change

(Kotter, 1998). The following five recommendations detail these opportunities:

Recommendation One - Lead by Example

Titles are granted, but it's your behaviour that wins you respect... Leaders go first. They set an example and build commitment through simple, daily acts that create progress and momentum. Leaders model the way through personal example and dedicated execution. (Kouzes & Posner, p. 12-13).

The Director is a CTI Trained Life Coach, and understands the value of leadership

coaching. Because of his education and training, it is recommended that the Director

leads by example and consistently use a coach approach with his team. When dialoguing

with his managers, the Director should also capitalize on any opportunities to illustrate

his leadership vision and how coaching skills link to that vision. To support the value of

this recommendation, Kotter (1998) wrote, "People watch there bosses—particularly

their immediate bosses - very closely. It doesn't take much in the way of inconsistent

behaviour by a manager to fuel the cynicism and frustration of his or her direct reports"

(p.2).


Recommendation Two - Sharing Narratives

The study focus group indicated that in order to sustain and further develop their

skills they needed opportunities to share coaching experiences and to practice coaching.

As Dewey (as cited in Merriam & Cafferella, 1999) stated, "all genuine education comes

about through experience" (p. 223). Evidence to support the need for experiential

learning was provided by two managers who shared their reflections on sustaining

coaching as part of their leadership role, "I think you need reinforcement and I think you

need practice, and I think that needs to be ongoing (14)" and "Practice. I think I have

heard as much in a classroom as I really care to hear. I am not a psychologist, or a

psychiatrist or a professional coach (16)". These statements illustrated that the mangers

are ready for change and that their management styles are transitioning towards a coach

approach. They now need the opportunity and a workplace environment which provides

them with practice opportunities as well as guidance and mentorship from their Director

and from their peers. Learning a different leadership approach requires the managers to

change their behaviours (Mackeracher, 2004). As stated by the HR study participant,

"Changing behavior obviously takes practice and practice all the time" (HR).

To further emphasize the importance of practicing and reinforcing coaching skills,

the following quote illustrates the concerns a manager has about falling back on old

behaviors as he transitions to a coaching leadership style,

For whatever reason you are busy, you are tired, you have a lot going on... you revert to what you used to be. And in my case ... people immediately know that difference... Once they are used to being treated with respect for who they are as a human being and they suddenly get pulled to go do something or they know they are not getting my attention, there are some people who don't get over that quickly. So once you have set an expectation about your leadership style, if you betray that expectation it can have a negative impact that you don't get over in ten minutes. (12)


It is recommended that the Director set aside time during quarterly management

meetings to allow managers to share their stories and experiences with coaching. To

support this recommendation, Mackeracher (2004) wrote, "Learning is facilitated when

the learning activities provide opportunity to talk about the shared experiences" (p.38).

When discussing reinforcement of learning, this manager commented,

[If] people can sit and talk about what they have discovered and it doesn't have to be in a large group or anything. That would be helpful because you discover things by talking so that would probably make me more effective at it [coaching].

Learning from life experiences and sharing those narratives with fellow learners

helps reinforce behavioural change and give the learner a foundation on which to create

new knowledge (Glesne, 2006; Merriam & Caffarella, 1999). To further support the

benefits of learning through sharing narratives, Bowerman and Collins (1999) wrote,

"Through conversations and dialogue it is possible for individuals to see themselves in an

entirely new context, and to explore new avenues for action that were previously not seen

to exist. In this way, personal transformation is possible" (p.292). The managers have

participated in facilitator lead classroom and tele-class sessions and the study findings

indicate a lack of interest in further facilitator lead coaching instruction. Mangers do not

require further external training; they do however, want opportunities to practice and

learn. For the Western Net Ops team, sharing stories would be a powerful learning

opportunity particularly for remote managers who are not able to engage in frequent face

to face dialogue with their peers.

Organizational Implications of Recommendations One and Two

Much of the responsibilities outlined in these recommendations reside with the

Director. The decision to introduce the coach training program to his team was done


independent of any Belus leadership development strategies. The intervention thus far has

been a success, but more time and resources are required to capitalize on and expand this

change initiative. To illustrate Senge, Kleiner, Roberts, Ross, Roth, and Smith (1999)

wrote, "Profound change requires investment - of time, energy, and resources" (p. 43).

Recommendations One and Two require primarily motivation, opportunity and

time. The managers are mid-way through transforming their leadership style and

embracing a coach approach. They have taken the material from the training, combined

new coaching skills with previous knowledge and experience, and have applied the

techniques in a coach approach style. The managers reported that coaching significantly

contributed to their leadership skills, and they have the desire to continue coaching. It has

been postulated that when employees feel that a change initiative has perceived benefits,

the change is more likely to be successful. Senge et al.(1999), for example, commented,

"We have consistently found that direct personal benefits constitute the first source of

reinforcing energy for sustaining deep change" (P.46). Managers are now in a learning

and change cycle in which benefits are being realized, therefore, harnessing this

momentum for long-term success is imperative (Mackeracher, 2004; Senge et al., 1999).

To continue this transformation and ensure that coaching is sustainable within his

team, the Director must lead the change by consistently enacting a coach approach as part

of his leadership style on a day-to-day basis. In addition, he must create opportunities for

his managers to coach, allow them to further learn and explore coaching skills, and most

importantly, encourage them to share narratives and experiences with each other on a

regular basis. These two recommendations will have negligible impact on organizational

resources. The formal training is complete therefore no additional funding or dedicated


training time is required. The dialoguing and narrative sharing sessions can become part

of the quarterly manager meetings resulting in no additional department operating

expense.

The impact of coaching on front line staff is not known. Mangers perceive that a

coach approach is beneficial to their teams; however direct feedback from the coachees is

required to make this determination. If the Director chooses not to support the coaching

initiative in the future, it can be speculated that the present short-term gains that have

been made will slowly diminish. It is impossible to predict which individuals, if any,

would retain and continue to use coaching skills. Based on published evidence, most

organizational change initiatives fail (Senge et al., 1999; Kotter, 1998; Baldwin & Ford,

1988). Without reinforcement and leadership support, one can deduce that coaching

culture within Western Net Ops would not survive.

If the coaching initiative stops in its current phase of implementation, it may have

potentially harmful implications for the Director. Managers have invested a significant

amount of time and energy into supporting this program and developing their coaching

skills. If this initiative suddenly "falls off the radar" with no visible support or

reinforcement from the Director the message that will be heard is that it is no longer a

priority. As employees adopt and pay attention to what is important to their employer,

there would be little benefit for them to continue trying to develop skills that are not

supported or encouraged in their workplace (Weiss & Kolberg, 2003). Additionally, if

there is no long-term plan in place to sustain the program and it fades out over time, it

will be viewed as another passing fad, thus jeopardizing the success of future initiatives.


Further developing and reinforcing coaching skills with Western Net Ops will

continue to enhance the leadership skills of the participant managers. However, even

with solid local support, the findings indicated that the managers may have difficulty

working with other groups that have different leadership priorities. To illustrate this

point, the focus group said,

There may be a danger in doing what we're doing because we put ourselves on a little island. One of things I've noticed is that, obviously we've done a lot of this training since I've been a manager, and you don't see anybody around you doing the same thing. You kind of feel segregated in some way by your philosophy. (FG)

The next section of this chapter introduces three recommendations outlining how

to introduce coaching to the National Belus Net Ops Group.

The Future of Coaching in Belus

Recommendation Three - Sharing the Coaching Program

As introduced in Chapter One, Belus executives place significant importance on

the annual employee engagement and satisfaction survey, and the survey results have

consistently fallen short of corporate goals within most Belus departments, including

National Net Ops. The results also indicated that any change efforts to improve employee

satisfaction in recent years have had limited success. In addition, study participants

commented that the culture within Belus was primarily task focused. The needs and

values of the staff are considered secondary to achieving organizational objectives.

Introducing a humanistic coaching culture was seen as a transformational leadership

strategy that could connect leaders to their people, inspire employee accountability, and

create greater employee self- awareness and understanding.


Based on the responses from the study participants, their Director, and the

Corporate HR Representative, it is recommended that the Western Net Ops coaching

program be introduced to the broad organization. The next logical step would be to

leverage the knowledge gained from the western program, and implement leadership

coaching nationally within Belus Net Ops. Organizational development literature

indicates that when people are unhappy, the dissatisfaction can be a source of energy or

motivation for change (Beer, 1988). The study findings and poor employee satisfaction

results could, therefore, signify that some parts of the organization are ready to transform.

This study report encourages the Director to build on the successes of his western

coaching program and to initiate similar change at a national level. "Transforming an

organization is the ultimate test of leadership, but understanding the change process is

essential to many aspects of a leader's job. Two skills in particular - building coalitions

and creating a vision - are especially relevant to our times" (Kotter, 1998, p. 3). The

following two study recommendations align with Kotter's advice and are supported by

the conclusions of this study.

Recommendation Four - Participative Program Design

The need and motivation for organizational change is evident. The Vice President

(VP) of Net Ops has set performance goals to improve employee survey results for 2007

for his department. There is need for change, but as the following Director quote

illustrates, there is also resistance,

I've been with my boss; I've been with my colleagues to discuss the employee survey. I've shared it [coaching program] with them. I won't say the reaction I got. It was less than enthusiastic. They're fixing the processes, they're fixing organization structure, they're fixing the objectives base, and expecting the employees to recognize that. (DR)


From this data, it appears that Net Ops is attempting to improve employee satisfaction by

fixing existing processes instead of exploring new and different transformational change

options. To overcome resistance, Kotter and Schlesinger (1979) suggested, "If the

[change] initiators involve the potential resistors in some aspect of the design and

implementation of the change, they can often forestall resistance" (p.401)

For the Director to minimize resistance from his colleagues, the design and

delivery of any future coaching program for Net Ops should be a collaborative effort

(Kotter, 1998). This paper recommends that the Director, other key Belus Net Ops

personnel, and a representative from HR work closely with CTI facilitators to form a

strategic coalition of key stakeholders. The objectives of this team would be to develop a

program that takes into consideration the company's culture and subcultures, training

goals and objectives, as well as participant learning styles and team readiness. To support

this concept, Tannenbaum and Yukl (1992) wrote, "Training courses should support the

strategic direction of the organization, and training objectives should be aligned with

organizational goals" (p. 401). Engaging participates from various regions, with diverse

leadership perspectives, would foster a sense of ownership in the national initiative

ultimately contributing to its success (Kotter, 1998; McCawley, 1997).

An essential component of designing and implementing a national coaching

program involves understanding the needs and readiness of the learners (Tannenbaum &

Yukl, 1992). A prevalent criticism from the study group was that there was a distinct

mismatch between the participant group's learning style and the CTI facilitator's

presentation style. One focus group participant stated, "If you want to compare styles,

the style they used didn't fit us (FG)". Another participant added, "Clearly I think the


style is mismatched. I think it partially worked for us because of the road we've traveled

with [our Director] (FG)". Another manager who also expressed similar feeling about the

CTI structured presentation stated, "To me, this one is a little too cheery. It is weird. It is

definitely a different religion" (19).

To summarize recommendation four, it is essential that the national coaching

intervention design and implementation be the result of a collaborative effort involving

key stakeholders from both CTI and Belus. This will ensure that the program aligns with

organizational goals and assesses the readiness of the learners prior to course delivery in

an effort to maximize its effectiveness and the resources invested.

Recommendation Five - Training Program Model

Recommendations three and four are based on the study outcomes, which indicate

that there is a need to expand the western coaching program to a national level. To

initiate change on a broad scale, the Director will need to communicate and share his

vision in a meaningful way. To explain the importance of this step, Kotter (1998)

emphasized,

Leaders must convey a vision of the future that is clear in intention, appealing to stakeholders, and ambitious yet attainable. Effective visions are focused enough to guide decision making yet are flexible enough to accommodate individual initiative and change circumstances, (p. 4)

The themed research results clearly revealed that the leadership culture within

Belus is task rather than people focused. This task focused culture evolved due to the

competitive, economics-driven business environment. In order to survive in the capitol

intensive and highly technical world of wireless communications, Belus leadership has

excelled at project management and network augmentation. Within Belus's engineering

culture, mangers are preoccupied with implementing projects and unfortunately devote


little energy on transitioning employees through the changes a project imposes. This type

is change environment is not uncommon, as Beer (1988) wrote, "Change efforts to

improve the organization specify only one or two ... dimensions, usually strategy and

structure, and ignore the behaviours, attitudes, and competencies required for the new

organization to work" (p.426).

Initiating a coaching program within the National Net Ops Team is recommended,

however challenging it may be. Developing humanistic leadership aptitudes in an

engineering culture could be considered an incompatible and foreign concept to some

NetOps Managers. Therefore, when designing a national program and sharing his change

vision, the Director should capitalize on polarity management techniques which inspire

organizational change by designing processes and objectives that maximize the benefits

of contradicting deliverables (Stroh, Peter, Miller, & Wynne, 1994). In support of this

idea, Stroh et al. wrote, " Managers no longer can ignore paradoxes. The art of managing

... lies in embracing incompatible forces rather than choosing between them" (p. 29). The

future coaching program needs to be designed and presented in a manner that enhances

and aligns with the present Net Ops Culture. The program needs to explain how using a

coach approach will positively affect Net Ops' ability to achieve organizational success,

while at the same time improve the leadership skills of the department's managers.

When introducing and collaboratively designing the future program, the Director

should carefully select a program framework which will allow him to communicate the

benefits of coaching in a language that aligns with the culture of the audience. As Kotter

and Schlesinger (1979) wrote, "One of the most common ways to overcome resistance to

change is to educate people beforehand. Communication of ideas helps people see the


need for and the logic of a change" (p.400). The new program framework needs to

incorporate those areas for improvement identified by the study group including clear

objectives, goals, and outcome measures. Additionally, the presentation style of a future

facilitator should be matched to the learner group to ensure an optimal educational

experience. Recommendation five suggests a simple program planning and evaluation

framework; known as The Logic Model (McCawley, 1997), to provide a means for the

Director to introduce coaching development to his Net Ops Leadership Team in a

planned and organized manner.

Detailed analyze on the development and applications of the Logic Model

framework exceed the scope of this project. However the basic functionality of the

concept will be introduced as a recommendation for future program development. Use of

the Logic Model is suggested as a possible framework to introduce coaching, and other

possible leadership training interventions, to the organization.

Logic models are narrative or graphical depictions of processes in real life that communicate the underlying assumptions upon which an activity is expected to lead to a specific result. Logic models illustrate a sequence of cause-and-effect relationships - a systems approach to communicate the path towards a desired result (McCawley, 1997, p.l).

The Logic model is intended to be a simple communications device which answers the

following questions: a) What is the program trying to achieve and why is it important? b)

How will the programs effectiveness be measured? and c) Is the program proceeding as

planned? (McLaughlin & Jordan, 1999; McCawley, 1997).

McCawley (1997) explained the value of using Logic Models to communicate

new program plans and objectives,

By describing the characteristics of our programs that communicate relevance, quality, and impact, we foster buy-in from our stakeholders and audience. By


including these characteristics within the various elements of the logic model, we communicate to others why our programs are important to them. (McCawley, 1997, p.2-3).

The Logic Model concept and framework evolved from engineering based project

management techniques (McLaughlin & Jordan, 1999) and therefore will appeal to the

Net Ops culture. Also, "The Logic Model is the basis for a convincing story of the

program's expected performance. The elements of the Logic Model are resources,

activities, outputs, customers reached, short, intermediate and long term outcomes, and

the relevant external influences" (Wholey, as cited in McLaughlin & Jordan, 1999, p. 66).

This fifth and final recommendation, advises the use of a Logic Model to plan,

design, communicate, implement and measure the next phase of Belus Net Ops coaching

intervention. Using the Logic Model will allow the director and collaborative design team

to incorporate this project's findings and recommendation into a framework that appeals

to the existing engineering culture while maximizing the benefits of leadership coaching.

Organizational Implications of Recommendations Three, Four, and Five

Recommendations Three, Four, and Five involve significantly larger

organizational implications then Recommendations One and Two. As with the previous

suggestions, the Director will need to inspire and lead the change. When viewed from the

context of the study findings, initiating a coaching program nationally may be a

significant personal challenge for the Director. He will have to examine his own

readiness, not so much to embraced coaching, but to move out of his present leadership

role and expand his circle of influence. During the study interview, the Director clearly

illustrated his passion and vision for leadership coaching and his authentic desire to

inspire people and assist them in performing to their full potential. To share his vision


and to lead the change the Director may be required to leave his perceived zone of

comfort and initiate change that contradicts the present Net Ops leadership culture. Quinn

(2004) refers to this as entering the fundamental state of leadership. Quinn (2004) wrote,

In the fundamental state of leadership, we become less comfort-centered and more purpose-centered. We stop asking, What do I want? Since what we want is to be comfortable, this question keeps us in the reactive state. Instead we ask, What results do I want to create? (p. 21)

From an organizational perspective, this type of training program represents a

departure from previous leadership training within Belus. The review of coaching and

other management courses hosted internally over the past several years revealed courses

based on scripted formulas and/or linear processes designed to lead people. Much like the

task oriented culture of the organization, former course structure featured step by step

instructions on how to fix situation and how to manage people. If the Director chooses to

share coaching nationally, it will represent, to his peers, a significant departure from the

traditional Belus training and leadership philosophy.

There are other organizational factors that will influence this possible change

initiative. The Director will require support from his colleagues, and in particular support

from the VP of Net Ops. There will need to be release time and travel privileges for the

design and planning team members. It may be beneficial to second the Director from his

regular duties for a several months allowing him to focus on developing and

implementing the program. Belus Net Ops has invested significant time, resources, and

money in other national training programs. Based on previous initiatives, the financial

and human resource requirements for developing and implementing a national coaching

program could be easily accommodated by the department's training budget.


If the Net Ops executives fail to acknowledge and capitalize on this present

change opportunity, one can only speculate on the organizational implications. Examples

from the research interview presented below offer some possible implications if coaching

is not embraced nationally:

As presented in Chapter One, the Canadian Wireless marketplace is shifting.

There will most likely be an additional fourth national wireless service provider as early

as 2008. Based on the business events of the late 1990's, the new entrant will attempt to

entice Belus's experienced and highly trained technical staff and will also significantly

lower the present industries profit margins. The HR participant also has concerns of

employee retention and attraction based on the organizations present culture:

People don't necessarily feel valued, they don't necessarily feel they're being developed ... So we're going to have disengaged people, which obviously means that we're going to have a really hard time keeping them so the turn over is going to continue to grow. We're going to have a hard time acquiring good people because that evolves into a reputation. When it's really hard to get people, that leadership culture has to be very strong, very positive focused on people and helping them develop so that they can get to where they need to be. (HR)

The Director shared his thoughts on the present Belus organization,

I believe it's yes, it [leadership culture] does need to change ... the organization ... I don't think connects people, I don't think it brings people into work. It's got to be bigger and more meaningful, create meaning in the workplace... From a corporation, we're getting to the point where it's a place that's a bureaucratic static place, and then you start leaving behind people, people will get a job description and that's all they'll do, they won't go beyond it, people get turned off... we start losing our soul. (DR)

A manager shared yet another perspective during the focus group discussion, "Our

Company seems to lack meaning. I mean, do we give anything back to society....it all

seems to be about money. Coaching could put us [the organization] in contact with a

deeper purpose" (FG)


Belus's company mission is focused on continuous profitable growth. The

organization's main purpose for existing is to deliver industry-leading financial results

and to ensure value for company stakeholders. Senge (2006) stated that although profit is

like oxygen to an organization (meaning it is essential), our purpose as individuals and as

organizations has to be greater than simply breathing (making a profit). Profit, if made at

the expense of employees, essentially whittles away our humanity. The key to complete

organizational success is the behaviour of its leaders. Weiss and Kolberg (2003) wrote,

"Competencies at the leadership level trickle down through the organization, positively

impacting morale, motivation, commitment, and ultimately organizational results. How

employees perceive their organizational culture is linked directly to the actions of the

leaders" (p. 10).

Based on the results of this study, employees are seeking more from Belus than its

present leadership culture is offering. Participants feel that Belus is becoming an

institution focused on rules and money. This, in turn, may have detrimental effects on

employee satisfaction and engagement, employee retention, and ultimately organizational

performance. If Net Ops executives choose not to support the introduction of a coaching

program, the result may be an organization that ceases to inspire people to perform at

their full potential.

Implications for Further Research

The study conclusions and recommendations are based primarily on the

perceptions and experiences of the managers who participated in the coaching program

and applied coaching techniques in their leadership role. Workplace coaching as a

leadership strategy, and its effectiveness was explored from the manager's perspective.


The managers provided rich data on the perceived impact of using coaching techniques

with front line workers; however the voices of the employees - the people being coached

- were not explored. Further research is required to understand the impact of the

intervention from the frontline employee's perspective

An additional source of data that would compliment this project is the Belus

annual employee satisfaction and engagement survey. The survey offers significant

insight into the leadership practices of Belus managers and provides data resolution

detailed enough to enable each Net Ops Manager to view the survey results from their

individual teams. Due to the public nature of this project, and the lack of informed

consent from both the employer and the employees, the data from previous survey results

was not referenced for this project. However, significant opportunity does exist for

managers and the Director to combine the findings of this study with past and future

employee surveys to deepen their understanding of how coaching has influenced the

satisfaction and engagement of their teams.

During their interviews, managers made reference to, and compared, the present

coaching program to previous management training courses. Further research would be

warranted to explore past Belus Net Ops training curriculum to understand which courses

the students found most beneficial to improving their leadership skills and to enhancing

organizational performance. Researching the most effective programs and determining

why they were successful would provide important insight into future course planning

and development. Key learnings or competencies resulting from the various courses

could then be used to develop a comprehensive leadership curriculum for new managers,

or for a leadership reinforcement and/or advancement program for existing staff.


From an organizational development context, further research is required to

confirm what is meant by the term employee engagement. One of the study sub-questions

asked what the perceived impact of a coach approach would have on employee

engagement. Although the participants experienced benefits in employing a coach

approach in their leadership role, the link to employee engagement and how engagement

is defined was not clear. The managers, Director, and the HR participant all had their own

definition of what constitutes an engaged employee, however, they all differed

significantly according to the context in which the definition was being applied. Chapter

Two of this report researched and formulated a definition of engagement based on

academic literature which aligned with some, but not all, participant views. Therefore,

further research and communication is required within Belus to develop an organizational

definition and understanding of what employee engagement is both to the employer and

the employee.


CHAPTER 6 - LESSON LEARNED

When I made the decision to start the Royal Roads University (RRU) Masters of

Arts (MA) in Leadership Program in 2005,1 was guided solely by personal motivation

and curiosity. Attending the program was not a strategy to earn more money nor a

requirement for a promotion. The decision was about challenging myself; it was about

stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something different. I was excited about the

prospect of joining a diverse learning community and to be given the opportunity to learn

while continuing to work full time. I had a significant amount of apprehension as the time

to begin my studies approached. I considered these feelings of uncertainty as healthy and

positive. My feelings of anxiety told me that I was truly challenging myself and stepping

into the unknown.

All of my previous formal education has been based within scientific disciplines,

and I have always worked in a technical field. In technical work cultures the focus is on

achieving objective goals, completing clearly defined tasks, and measuring success or

failure through statistical analysis. The MA in Leadership Program, therefore, was a

significant departure from my normal paradigm. However, as I joined my cohort, I felt

comfortable with the program, its content, and the facilitation style. The learnings,

particularly in the first year, aligned with my personal learning preferences and interests.

The research project, however, was considerably more demanding. Community based

action research with human participants was completely foreign to me, and introducing

this type of research into a technically focused organization was a considerable challenge.

Many of the difficulties that I experienced introducing and conducting qualitative

action research seemed particularly onerous at the time. However, if I had to do it over


again, the process would be much less painful. For example, obtaining an organizational

sponsor seemed difficult if not impossible at the time. I had an idea for my project, but

had very little success in securing the support of my intended sponsor. When asked if he

would help sponsor my work, his responses where noncommittal and less than

enthusiastic. It was only after my second Residency that the foundation of this major

project fell into place.

I learned that my perceived experiences in securing a sponsor essentially were the

direct result of my lack of knowledge and experience with understanding the major

project intent and process. I had difficulties with two issues: Firstly, I had struggled with

articulating the methodology, processes, and value of action research. Secondly, I did not

clearly comprehend the overall purpose and intent of the major project. Because this type

of organizational intervention was completely alien to my potential sponsor, it was

essential for me to be able to communicate the foundation and intent of the project.

Unfortunately, my initial attempts at securing sponsorship met with disappointment.

There was no mentoring available from within the company. To the best of my

knowledge, no one has gone before me with a similar project within Belus, at least not in

Net Ops. When first introducing the concept to my Director, I was ill prepared to present

a competent and convincing proposal.

It was only after the completion of the second Residency did the missing links

come together, allowing me to communicate a clear, succinct, and compelling project

proposal to my sponsor. Viewed from the perspective of a leadership student, I saw this

major project as a gift for my sponsor, for the organization, and for my personal learning.

I was able to draw on the core leadership competencies from the MA program to


formulate a creative proposal inspired by the concepts of adult learning, systems thinking

and organizational change. The successful proposal meeting, which secured my

sponsorship, was not a formal presentation but instead unfolded as a consultative

dialogue. I was able to communicate a project plan that embraced my sponsor's

leadership vision and built on that vision to maximize current leadership development

initiatives, as well as effect change for the benefit of the organization and its people.

In hindsight, I should have waited before seeking sponsorship until I was ready. Perhaps

in organizations where action research is more common, approaching a potential sponsor

to discuss an MA Leadership Project may be appropriate and welcomed. In my case, my

initial queries were unproductive and somewhat confusing to all involved. I am fortunate

that my sponsor was open and patience, allowing me to learn and develop my research

and inquiry competencies through the early stages of this work.

For future learners performing similar research in the private sector, I would

advise that they clearly understand the conceptual foundations of action research in the

context of a private organization. Although there may be multiple methods of data

collection, some, if not all, may be protected under corporate privacy regulations, and

therefore can not be used for this type of project. Additionally, it is imperative to carry

out a comprehensive assessment of organizational and sponsor readiness with an

exploration of potential biases that could impact the project scope.

In addition, I believe it is important to emphasize for future learners the pivotal

role that my project supervisor played in helping develop the project. Because I was

working in the private sector, it was imperative to select a research question that allowed

me to thoroughly explore my research topic in the systemic context of the business while


adhering to the ethical and confidentially guidelines of the organization. The challenge

was carving out a research question that would inspire beneficial organizational change,

meet the needs of my sponsor, while not jeopardizing the company's non-disclosure and

privacy policies. For these purposes selecting the right project supervisor was

fundamental. I interviewed and chose a project supervisor who recognized the

confidentially constraints of the wireless business and understood the culture of my

organization. My supervisor was instrumental in helping me develop powerful research

questions and was the catalyst from launching my project and ensuring its success.

As the project progressed, my learning continued. I worked closely with my

project supervisor finalizing the project proposal, research protocol, and application for

ethical review. The most significant challenge was demonstrating an evidence-based

writing style while describing the inner workings of a private sector company. I adhered

to strict company non-disclosure and privacy guidelines while attempting to accurately

describe and analyze the significance of this research opportunity. Having this project

published within the public domain presented some limitations on what I could and could

not use as data sources. Although I believe this project resulted in very valuable personal

and organizational outcomes, I wonder if perhaps having an opportunity to do a similar

project within the private context of the organization alone would enable me to develop a

stronger link between the study recommendations and long-term organizational

outcomes. That said, however, the public nature of this project gave me a wonderful

opportunity to perform leadership research in a private company while balancing the

ethical needs of the organization and the study participants, and fulfilling RRU

requirements.


I entered the research phase cautiously. I was skeptical about my ability to attract

volunteers. This uncertainty quickly transformed into a feeling of confidence as all

invitees accepted their invitations to participate. So enthusiastic was the support of my

colleagues, one individual traveled six hours by car for his interview when my schedule

would not allow me to visit his city. The research was rewarding, and it was fun. I

learned a considerable amount about workplace coaching. More importantly, I was given

insight into the lives and experiences of people I thought I knew, but actually did not

know at all. That insight, first and foremost, inspired me to become more self-aware of

my own biases. For example, the contributions of my fellow managers were amazing.

They trusted me enough to share their personal and sometimes emotional perceptions and

experiences on leadership. The richness and depth of their narratives far exceeded my

expectations.

As the research and writing of the paper progressed, the work became less about

coaching and more about exploration and creative learning. My research was performed

in three separate phases, with each phase informing the next. I enjoyed capitalizing on the

cyclic and iterative nature of action research which allowed the knowledge of coaching to

evolve and grow with each phase. The process allowed the participants themselves to

guide the study conclusions and recommendations for organizational change. Similar to

the action research process, this project was another cycle of personal leadership learning.

The work inspired me to combine my intrinsic values and beliefs, my years of leadership

experience, and the core RRU leadership competencies into a holistic and meaningful

learning adventure. I am confident that the greatest impact of embarking on this learning

quest will only be known years from now.


REFERENCES

Anderson, D., & Ackerman Anderson, A. (2001). Beyond change management. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Balwin, T., & Ford, K. (1988). Transfer of training: A review and directions for future research [Electronic version]. Personnel Psychology, ¥7(1), 63-105.

Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Barney, J. B. (1986). Organizational culture: Can it be a source of sustained competitive advantage? [Electronic version]. The Academy of Management Review, 11(3), 656-665.

Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1993). Transformational leadership and organizational culture [Electronic Version]. Public Administration Quarterly, Spring, 112-121.

Beairsto, B. (2003). Multidimensional administrative interaction: A binocular model of simultaneous leadership and management. Retrieved March 18, 2006 from, https://public.sd38.bc.ca/~bbeairsto/Documents

Beer, M. (1988). Leading change. In John J. Gabarro, Managing and organizations (pp. 424-430). Boston, MA: Harvard Business School.

Beer, M. (1992). Making performance appraisal work. In John J. Gabarro, Managing and organizations (pp. 195-212). Boston, MA: Harvard Business School.

Beer, M., & Nohria, N. (2000). Cracking the code of change [Electronic version]. Havard Business Review, 78(3), 133-141.

Bowerman, J., & Collins, G. (1999). The coaching network: A program for individual and organizational development [Electronic Version]. Journal of Workplace Learning, 77(8), 291-298.

Bridges, W., & Bridges, M. (2000). Leading transition: A new model for change. Leader to Leader, 16, 30-36. Retrieved August 1, 2007 from http://www.pfdf.org/leaderbooks/121/spring2000/bridges.html

Brown, A. (1992). Organizational culture: The key to effective leadership and [Electronic version]. Leadership and Organizational Development Journal, 13(2), 3-6.

Brown, J., & Duguid, P. (1991). Organizational learning and communities-of-practice: Towards a unified view of working, learning, and innovation [Electronic version]. Organizational Science, 2(1), 40-57.

https://public.sd38.bc.ca/~bbeairsto/Documents

http://www.pfdf.org/leaderbooks/121/spring2000/bridges.html


Buckingham, M., & Coffman, C. (1999). First break all the rules: What the world's greatest managers do differently. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Canadain Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission, (last modified March 15,2007). Cellular (Wireless) Telephone Services. Retrieved May 26, 2007 from http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/INFO_SHT/tl 021 .htm

Crane, T. G. (2002). The heart of coaching (2nd ed.). San Diego, CA: FTA Press.

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1997). Finding flow: The psychology of engagement with everyday life. New York: Harper Collins.

Denison, D. R. (1996). What is the difference between organizational culture and organizational climate? A native point of view on a decade of paradigm wars [Electronic version]. The Academy of Management Review, 21(3), 619-654.

Denison, D., R., & Mishra, A., K. (1995). Towards a theory of organizational culture and effectiveness [Electronic version]. Organizational Science, 6(2), 204-223.

Dick, B. (2005). Grounded theory: a thumbnail sketch. Retrieved April 23, 2007 from http ://www. scu.edu. au/schools/gcm/ar/arp/grounded.html

Du Toit, A. (2007). Making sense through coaching [Electronic version]. Journal of Management Development, 26(3), 282-291.

Evered, R., D., & Selman, J., C. (2001). Coaching and the art of management [Electronic Version]. Organizational Dynamics, 18 (2), 16 - 32.

Fieser. J. (2006). Ethics. The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved November 25,2006 from http://www.iep.utm.edu/e/ethics.htm#H2

Grant, A., M. (2001). Towards a Psychology of Coaching. Retrieved May 6, 2007 from, http://www.psych.su.oz.au/psychcoach/Coaching review_AMG2001 .pdf

Glesne, C. (2006). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction (3r ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & Mckee, A. (2002). Primal leadership. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.

Harter, J. K., Schmidt, F. L., & Hayes, T. L. (2002/ Business-unit-level relationship between employee satisfaction, employee engagement, and business outcomes: A meta-analysis [Electronic version]. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(2), 268-279.

Hewitt Associates (June, 2005). Unpublished organization document.

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/INFO_SHT/tl

http://scu.edu

http://www.iep.utm.edu/e/ethics.htm%23H2

http://www.psych.su.oz.au/psychcoach/Coaching


Huang, M. P., Cheng, B. S., & Chou, L. F. (2005). Fitting in organizational values: The mediating role of person-organization fit between CEO charismatic leadership and employee outcomes [Electronic version]. International Journal of Manpower, 26(1), 35-49.

Industry Canada, (2007). Consultation on a framework to auction spectrum in the 2 GHz range including advanced wireless services. Retrieved May 26, 2007 from http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/smt-gst.nsf/en/sf08760e.html

Kahn, W. A. (1990). Psychological conditions of personal engagement and disengagement at work [Electronic version]. The Academy of Management Journal, 33(4), 692-724.

Kravetz, D. J. (1988). The human resource revolution. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Kotter, J. (1998). Winning at change. Leader to Leader, 10,27-33. Retrieved August 1, 2007 from http://leadertoleader.org/leaderbooks/L2L/fall98/kotter.html

Kotter, J., & Schlesinger, L. (1979). Choosing strategies for change. In John J. Gabarro, Managing and organizations (pp. 395-408). Boston, MA: Harvard Business School.

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (1995). The leadership challenge (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Langley, G. J., Nolan, K. M., Nolan, T. W., Norman, C. L., & Provost, L. P. (1996). The improvement guide: A practical approach to enhancing organizational performance. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Looi, P. W., Marusarz, T., & Baumruk, R. (2004). What makes a best employer? Insights and findings from hewitt's global best employers study. Retrieved Oct 5,2006 from http://was7.hewitt.com/bestemployers/pdfs/BestEmplover.pdf

Luthans, F., & Peterson, S. J. (2002). Employee engagement and manager self-efficacy: Implications for managerial effectiveness and development [Electronic version]. Journal of Management Development, 21(5), 376-387.

Lyneham-Brown, D. (1997). Making change the culture—the national initiative in change management [Electronic version]. Management Services 41(\0), 38-42.

Mackeracher, D. (2004). Making sense of adult learning (2nd ed.).Toronto, CAN: University of Toronto Press.

http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/smt-gst.nsf/en/sf08760e.html

http://leadertoleader.org/leaderbooks/L2L/fall98/kotter.html

http://was7.hewitt.com/bestemployers/pdfs/BestEmplover.pdf


May, D. R., Gilson, R. L., & Harter, L. M. (2004). The psychological conditions of meaningfulness, safety and availability and the engagement of the human apart at work [Electronic version]. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 77, 11-37.

McCawley, P. (1997). The logic model for program planning and evaluation. Retrieved July 25, 2007 from http://www.uidaho.edu/extension/LogicModel.pdf

McLaughlin, J., & Jordan, G. (1999). Logic models: A tool for telling your program's performance story [Electronic version]. Evaluation and Planning, 22, 65-72.

Megginson, D., & Clutterbuck, D. (2005). Creating a coaching culture [Electronic version]. Industrial and Commercial Training, 38 (5), 232-237.

Merriam, S. B. (2001). Andragogy and delf-directed learning: Pillars of adult learning theory [Electronic Version]. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 89,4-13.

Merriam, S. B., & Caffarella, R. S. (1999). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Nowak, P. (2007, May 25). National stage beckons for fourth wireless carrier. Financial Post. Retrieved June 2,2007 from http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/storv.html?id=lf9el6b3-3a39-47d9-835c-f20dl09b779a&k=10651

Ogbonna, E., & Harris, L. C. (2000). Leadership style, organizational culture and performance; empirical evidence from UK companies [Electronic version]. The International Journal of Human Resources Management 11(4), 766-788.

O'Shaughnessy, S. (2001). Executive coaching: The route to business stardom [Electronic version]. Industrial and Commercial Training, 33(6), 194-197.

Palys, T. (2003). Research decisions: Quantitative and qualitative perspectives (3rd ed.). Toronto, CAN: Nelson.

Pfeffer, J. (1998). The human equation: Building profits by putting people first. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.

Popper, M., & Lipshitz, R. (1992). Coaching on leadership [Electronic version]. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 13(1), 15-18.

Quinn, R. E. (2004). Building the bridge as you walk on it. San Fransico: Jossey-Bass.

http://www.uidaho.edu/extension/LogicModel.pdf

http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/storv.html?id=lf9el6b3-3a39-


Royal Roads University (RRU). (2007, August). Research Ethics Policy. Retrieved November 25, 2006, from http://www.rovalroads.ca/research/ethical-reviews/ethics-policy.htm

Ryan, G. W., & Bernard H. R. (2003). Techniques to identify themes in qualitative data. Retrieved January 18, 2007, from http://www.analytictech.com/mb870/readings/ryan-bernardtechniquesto identifythemes in.htm

Secada, W. G. (1989). Educational equity versus equality of education: An alternative conception. Equity and Education, 68-88. Retrieved May 21, 2007, from http://www.mste.uiuc.edu/hill/papers/equitv.html

Secretan, L. H. K. (2006). Quotes from one: the art and practice of leadership. Retrieved Oct. 10, 2006, from http://www.secretan.com/blog/resources_quote.php

Senge, P. (2006, September). Transformational leadership. Symposium conducted at the Distinguished Author Series held at the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre, Vancouver, BC.

Senge, P., Kleiner, A., Roberts, C , Ross, R., Roth, G., & Smith, B. (1999). The dance of change. New York: Doubleday.

Schein, E. H. (1997). Three cultures of management: The key to organizational learning in the 21s' century. Retrieved May 15,2007 from http://www.csus.edu/indiv/r/rengstorffi/obel52-spring02/articles/Schein3 CulturesofManagement.pdf

Shigehiro, O., Edward, F. D., Richard, E. L., & Eunkook, M. S. (1999). Cross-cultural variations in predictors of life satisfaction: Perspectives from needs and values [Electronic Version]. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 25, 980-990.

Stajkovic, A. D., & Luthans, F. (1998). Self-efficacy and work-related performance: A meta-analysis [Electronic version]. American Psychological Association, 124(2), 240-261.

Stringer, E. T. (1999). Action research (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Stroh, Peter, Miller, & Wynne, W. (1994). Learning to thrive on paradox [Electronic version]. Training & Development, 48(9), 28-39.

Tansky, W. J., & Cohen, D. J. (2001). The relationship between organizational support, employee development, and organizational commitment: An empirical study [Electronic Version]. Human Resources Development Quarterly, 12(3), 285 -301.

http://www.rovalroads.ca/research/ethical-

http://www.analytictech.com/mb870/readings/ryan-

http://www.mste.uiuc.edu/hill/papers/equitv.html

http://www.secretan.com/blog/resources_quote.php

http://www.csus.edu/indiv/r/rengstorffi/obel52-


Tannenbaum, S., Yukl, G. (1992). Training and development in work organizations [Electronic version]. Annual Review of Psychology, 43, 399-441.

The Coaches Training Institute, (2003). Co-active coaching program overview. Retrieved May 16, 2007 from http://www.thecoaches.com/coaching/

Weiss, T., & Kolberg, S. (2003). Coaching competencies and corporate leadership. New York: St. Lucie Press.

Wikipedia (last modified 19:14 hrs, May 2, 2007). Self-efficacy. Retrieved May 10,2007 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-efficacy

Whitworth, L., Kimsey-House, H. & Sandahl, P. (1998). Co-active coaching. Mountain View, CA: Davis-Black.

Whitmore, J. (2002). Coaching for performance: Growing people, performance, and purpose. Boston: Nicholas Brealey.

Zukaf, G. (1989). Seat of the soul. New York: Free Press.

http://www.thecoaches.com/coaching/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-efficacy


Appendix A: Letters of Invitation and Informed Consent

MANAGER LETTER OF INVITATION AND INFORMED CONSENT

[Date here]

Dear Potential Participant,

I would like to invite you to be part of a research project that I am conducting. This project is part of the requirement for a Master's of Arts in Leadership at Royal Roads University. My affiliation with Royal Roads University can be confirmed by contacting Dr. Nancy Greer, Project Supervisor at XXXXXXXXXX or XXX-XXX-XXXX. My research project, titled "Workplace Coaching: Developing Leadership Skills", seeks to answer the questions: (a) How effective is the current coaching approach being used by western regional managers in XXXXX Network Operations (Net Ops) in enhancing both those managers' leadership skills and the level of engagement of the employees they coach?, and (b) What implications does this have for the future of this coaching program within XXXXX Net Ops?

In addition to submitting my final report to Royal Roads University in partial fulfillment for a Master of Arts in Leadership Degree, I will also be sharing my research findings with XXXX XXXX, Director of Western Net Ops who is the organizational sponsor of this project. My intent is to provide an Executive Summary as well as the full report to XXXX outlining the impact of the current coaching program and recommendations for future and expanded coaching initiatives within the XXXXX Organization.

Participation is completely voluntary and I am approaching you as a possible voluntary participant because of your role as an Operations Manager within XXXXX and your participation in the coaching training program that was offered on October 3 to 5,2006 and the follow-up Teleclasses held April 11,25, and May 8,2007.

The first phase of my action research data collection process will consist of individual interviews with volunteer operations managers, followed with a focus group discussion with those same managers. The individual interview will consist of a number of open-ended questions and is expected to last one hour and will take place at a location in or near your office. Examples of interview questions are: (a) Tell me about a time when you used coaching in a leadership context and how the experience affected you and, (b) What were the outcomes for the person you coached? The focus group will take approximately one and a half hours and will be designed to build on the findings from the individual interviews. The focus group discussion will explore the impact of the coaching program and its implications for further use and development. The approximate total time commitment for participation in this project is three hours.

Both the individual interview and the focus group will be audio-taped and you will be given the right to request that that tape be turned off at any time. You will also receive a copy of the transcript of the interview and focus group and may request any deletions,


additions or edits to enhance clarity. Participation is confidential and anonymous. All participants will be assigned a non-identifying, unique pseudonym and all data will be stored in audio-recorded and written formats using only these pseudonyms. While participants in the focus group will not be anonymous to one another, each participant will be asked to agree to keep all discussions confidential to the group.

Results will be summarized in anonymous format in the body of the final project report. At no time will any specific comments be attributed to any individual unless your specific agreement has been obtained beforehand. All interview and focus group documentation will be kept strictly confidential and will be destroyed once the project has been completed and accepted by Royal Roads University.

A copy of the final report will be published and housed at Royal Roads University. The report will also be available online through UMI/Proquest and the Theses Canada portal and will be publicly accessible. Access and distribution will be unrestricted. To protect the identity of XXXXX, a pseudonym will be used for the organization throughout the final report.

Your participation is strictly voluntary. If you do choose to participate, you are free to withdraw at any time without prejudice. Similarly, if you choose not to participate in this research project, this information will also be maintained in confidence. If you would like to participate in both the interview and focus group phases, please sign the bottom of this letter, consenting to free and informed consent to participant in this project.

Please feel free to contact me at XXX-XXX-XXXX or via email at XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX if you have any questions or require clarity on any matters relating to my project.

Sincerely, Andy Chernoff

Free and Informed Consent

Participants Name: (Please Print):

Signature:

Date:

Researcher's Signature:

Date:


DIRECTOR LETTER OF INVITATION AND INFORMED CONSENT

[Date here]


I would like to invite you to be part of a research project that I am conducting. This project is part of the requirement for a Master's of Arts in Leadership at Royal Roads University. My affiliation with Royal Roads University can be confirmed by contacting Dr. Nancy Greer, Project Supervisor at XXXXXXXX or XXX-XXX-XXXX.

My research project, titled "Workplace Coaching: Developing Leadership Skills", seeks to answer the questions: (a) How effective is the current coaching approach being used by western regional managers in XXXXX Network Operations (Net Ops) in enhancing both those managers' leadership skills and the level of engagement of the employees they coach?, and (b) What implications does this have for the future of this coaching program within XXXX Net Ops?

I hope to meet this objective by dialoguing with you to explore your leadership vision and to learn how this philosophy links to the use of coaching skills introduced in the recent manager coaching training program.

In addition to submitting my final report to Royal Roads University in partial fulfillment for a Master of Arts in Leadership Degree, I will also be sharing my research findings with you. My intent is to provide you with an executive summary as well as the full report outlining the impact of the current coaching program and recommendations for future and expanded coaching initiatives within the XXXXX Organization.

While your participation as an interviewee is entirely voluntary, I have chosen you as a vital participant because of your role as Director of XXXXX Western Net Ops and because you were instrumental in introducing coaching training to your management team. My action research data collection process will consist of three phases; (a) individual interviews with operations manager volunteers from your team and an interview with yourself, (b) a focus group discussion with the volunteer managers, and (c) a final interview with yourself to share the focus group recommendations. Your initial Director interview will consist of a number of open-ended questions and is expected to last one hour. Examples of interview questions are: (a) Tell me about your leadership philosophy (b) How does introduction of coaching training link to this philosophy? The approximate total time commitment for participation in this project is three hours.

Information obtained through the interviews with you will be audio-recorded. You may request that the tape be turned off at any time. You will be provided with a transcript of that audio tape to review and may request that any portion be deleted, changed or added to more clearly reflect your views. The data will be stored in audio-recorded and written formats and, where appropriate, will be summarized in anonymous format in the body of the final project report. At no time will any specific comments be attributed to you unless


your specific agreement has been obtained beforehand. All documentation will be kept strictly confidential and will be destroyed once the project has been completed and accepted by Royal Roads University.

A copy of the final report will be published and housed at Royal Roads University. The report will also be available online through UMI/Proquest and the Theses Canada portal and will be publicly accessible. Access and distribution will be unrestricted. To protect the identity of XXXXX, a pseudonym will be used for the organization throughout the final report

You are not compelled to participate in this research project as an interviewee. If you do choose to participate, you are free to withdraw at any time without prejudice. Similarly, if you choose not to participate in this research project, this information will also be maintained in confidence. If you would like to participate, please sign the bottom of this letter, consenting to free and informed consent to participant in this project.

Please feel free to contact me at XXX-XXX-XXXX or via email at XXXXXXXX if you have any questions or require clarity on any matters relating to my project.




Signature:

Date:


Date:


HUMAN RESOURCES LETTER OF INVITATION AND INFORMED CONSENT

[Date here]


I would like to invite you to be part of a research project that I am conducting. This project is part of the requirement for a Master's of Arts in Leadership at Royal Roads University. My affiliation with Royal Roads University can be confirmed by contacting Dr. Nancy Greer, Project Supervisor at XXXXXXXX or XXX-XXX-XXXX.

My research project, titled "Workplace Coaching: Developing Leadership Skills", seeks to answer the questions: (a) How effective is the current coaching approach being used by western regional managers in XXXXX Network Operations (Net Ops) in enhancing both those managers' leadership skills and the level of engagement of the employees they coach?, and (b) What implications does this have for the future of this coaching program within XXXXX Net Ops?

I hope to meet this objective by dialoguing with you at the end of my research phase to share the project results and to explore how the recommendations could be implemented at an organizational level to enhance manager and leadership development.

In addition to submitting my final report to Royal Roads University in partial fulfillment for a Master of Arts in Leadership Degree, I will also be sharing my research findings with XXXXX, Director of Western Net Ops who is the organizational sponsor of this project. My intent is to provide an Executive Summary as well as the full report to XXXX outlining the impact of the current coaching program and recommendations for future and expanded coaching initiatives within the XXXXX Organization.

Participation is completely voluntary and I am approaching you as a possible voluntary participant because of your role within Human Resources, you are instrumental in manager and leadership development within the organization. The approximate time commitment for participation in this project is one hour.

Information obtained through the interview with you will be audio-recorded. You may request that the tape be turned off at any time. You will be provided with a transcript of that audio tape to review and may request that any portion be deleted, changed or added to more clearly reflect your views. The data will be stored in audio-recorded and written formats and, where appropriate, will be summarized in anonymous format in the body of the final project report. At no time will any specific comments be attributed to you unless your specific agreement has been obtained beforehand. All documentation will be kept strictly confidential and will be destroyed once the project has been completed and accepted by Royal Roads University.

A copy of the final report will be published and housed at Royal Roads University. The report will also be available online through UMI/Proquest and the Theses Canada portal


and will be publicly accessible. Access and distribution will be unrestricted. To protect the identity of XXXXX, a pseudonym will be used for the organization throughout the final report

You are not compelled to participate in this research project as an interviewee. If you do choose to participate, you are free to withdraw at any time without prejudice. Similarly, if you choose not to participate in this research project, this information will also be maintained in confidence. If you would like to participate, please sign the bottom of this letter, consenting to free and informed consent to participant in this project.

Please feel free to contact me at XXX-XXX-XXXX or via email at XXXXXXXX if you have any questions or require clarity on any matters relating to my project.




Signature:

Date:


Date:


Appendix B: Phase I Research Questions

Phase I Manager Interview Questions

1) When did you join XXXX and how long have you been a manager within the Western Region?

2) What training, if any, have you had in coaching techniques before the current training offered over the past year?

3) What do you understand a 'coaching approach' to involve and how is it different from what you would have done prior to receiving the training we all received?

4) (a)Tell me about a time when you used coaching in a leadership context and how did the experience affect you? (b) What were the outcomes for the other person?

5) In what ways do you think the use of coaching can influence employee engagement? Can you share an example?

6) In what ways has the use of coaching changed your view of your employees?

7) What are the benefits and drawbacks of continuing to use a coaching approach in your management role?

8) What to you need to sustain or further develop your coaching skills?

Phase I Sponsor/Director Interview Questions

1) When did you join XXXXX and how long have you been the Director of Western Operations?

2) .What training, if any, have you had in coaching techniques before the current training offered over the past year?

3) (a)Tell me about your leadership philosophy? (b) How does introduction of coaching training link to this philosophy?

4) (a) What were your expectations of this coaching intervention? (b) To what extent are these expectations being met?

5) In what ways do you think the use of coaching can influence employee engagement? Can you share an example?

6) (a) Tell me about a time when you used coaching in a leadership context and how did the experience affect you? (b) What were the outcomes for the other person?


7) (a) What do you see as the possibilities for a broader implementation of coaching across XXXXX and not just in your region?(b) What barriers and enablers of such a change do you see existing (c) In hindsight, what would you do differently with this training program?


Appendix C: Phase II Focus Group Themed Findings and Discussion Questions

Part 1 - Feedback on Themed Results

1) Theme: Prior to the current coaching program, the term coaching within XXXXX referred to processes which focused on problem solving or employee discipline. Also, some managers had difficulties knowing when and where to apply previous coach training? For example, managers had difficulty with the "Coaching for Success" review process.

What is more effective about the present coaching program?

2) Theme: It was discovered that employee engagement is defined differently depending on each individual manager. Managers listed; task completion, company loyalty, employee attitudes, and employee passions, all as predictors of engagement.

Does XXXXX need a clear definition of what engagement means, how it relates to organizational objectives, and how it is measured?

3) Theme: It was found that the coach training did enhance the manager's leadership skills. The most significant coaching skills included:

• Listening deeply, • Using curiosity and inquiry • Using powerful open-ended questions

Are there any other coaching skills that should be added?

4) Theme: The most significant outcomes of managers using a coach approach were: • Creating enhanced self-awareness of their internal perceptions and biases • Helping managers to understand other peoples perspectives • Influencing a greater self-awareness in other team members • Creating an atmosphere of employee accountability and ownership • Inspiring more authentic leadership practices, i.e. in order to successfully use

coaching skills, the manager needs to be consistent, needs to believe in the process and believe in their people.

How are coaching skills most effectively applied in the workplace?

5) Theme: Managers indicated that the coach training did not change their leadership style dramatically. The training enhanced or reminded managers of important skills they were already aware of from previous training and experience.


Part 2 -Additional Questions

1) What are your impressions of the CTI based training and program?

2) What are the opportunities to enhance or change the current coaching program within Network Operations?

3) How can the present coach approach be sustained and how can its outcomes be measured?

4) Describe the leadership culture within XXXXX.

5) What would be the organizational benefits of XXXXX adopting a company wide coaching culture?


Appendix D: Research Phase III - Study Recommendations and Questions

Summary of Study Findings and Recommendations: Results of the focus group discussion.

1. Finding'. Managers all agreed that the coach training reaffirmed and enhanced the use of leadership skills that they were already aware of. The coach training gave them a context and framework to apply these skills, which was viewed as valuable. Managers indicated that the coach training did not change their leadership style dramatically. Most spoke of adapting the coaching techniques to match there own style.

Recommendation: Continue to encourage managers to develop and use coaching skills that suit their individual personality and unique characteristics of their teams.

2. Finding: Managers do not see themselves as formal life coaches. The majority indicated that applying coaching skills in an ongoing coach approach vs. formal coaching sessions was most effective in their leadership roles.

Recommendation: Continue to encourage managers to develop and consistently use a coach approach as part of their day to day leadership style, making a clear distinction between the use of coaching strategies versus acting as a life coach to employees.

3. Finding: The meaning of the term employee engagement, both within Net Ops and organizationally, is not clear. Different managers viewed engagement from varied perspectives. Participants listed: task completion, company loyalty, employee attitudes, and employee passions as predictors of engagement. Furthermore, managers felt engagement is a complex concept requiring consideration of multiple individual and organizational variables, making it difficult to define as one holistic concept.

Recommendation: Net Ops (andperhaps the entire organization) should agree on the basic definition of engagement to serve as the common reference point and to help clarify future use of the term.

4. Finding: The CTI training was effective due to its interactive teaching format which allowed learners to practice skills as they were presented. In addition, mangers commented on the benefits of having students, other than Net Ops personnel, participate in the class. However, the presentation style was perceived as too dramatic or artificial at times. The majority of participants also commented that the follow-up tele-classes were ineffective.


Recommendations:

(a) Work closely with future coaching program facilitators to develop a program which matches and understands the readiness and preferences of the learners. Explore using internal leaders to develop and co-facilitate coach training.

(b) Invite participants from different functional groups, internal and external to the organization, to participate in future coach training classes.

(c) Managers all agree on the value of sustaining the coaching culture within Net Ops. Some spoke of sharing best practices (story telling was one suggestion) and other impressed a need for a coaching reinforcement program. The recommendation is to explore alternate methods, other than facilitator lead tele-classes, to reinforce and practice coaching skills.

5. Finding: Some managers were unclear about the objectives of introducing the coach training program. Participants asked how they would know if their use of the coaching skills was successful and if the program had achieved the desired results. The focus group suggested that clarifying the intent and objectives of the training may enhance its sustainability. Although not specifically related to the coaching program, the focus group indicated that a more defined or structured leadership curriculum within Net Ops may help guide and better inform the individual manager's leadership learning objectives.

Recommendations: In future training, use a program management framework to: define training program objective, illustrate how the new training links and builds on past initiatives, and outline the programs desired outcomes and measurements.

6. Finding: The focus group indicated that there would be substantial value in sharing the coaching program with the rest of Net Ops nationally and with other functional groups within Operations and Engineering. Managers stated that if other regions and/or functional groups were using a coach approach, the benefits would be a shared understanding and more open communications between teams. For example, managers find it difficult to apply an employee focused coach approach when implementing projects. Project Management is focused on implementing tasks as quick as possible in order to achieve artificially set timelines which may have little or no regard of the impact that this practice has on Net Ops people.

In addition, the finding indicated that managers see value in introducing a coach approach within the broader organizational context. The focus group described the organizational culture as task oriented and KPIfocused. Managers commented that introducing a humanistic coaching program would give people within the organization more meaning in their jobs and connect them to a deeper purpose.


Recommendations: Continue to embrace and nurture the coach approach within Western Net Ops. Share the results of this leadership coaching program with other regions and groups within the organization.

Research Phase III Director Questions:

1. What would be the implications of sharing this program to your Director Team and VP within Net Ops?

2. Would you feel comfortable sharing this program with other parts of the organization?

3. Does the organization need to change its current leadership philosophy? If yes, what will be the results if it does not change?

4. What would be the implications of the organization embracing a coach approach for its management staff?

Research Phase IIIHR Questions:

1. What is the organizations leadership training strategy?

2. How would you describe the leadership culture within the organization?

3. Does the organization need to change its current leadership philosophy? If yes, what are the expected outcomes if a change does not occur?

4. How are management leadership competencies defined and measured?

5. Describe what the term coaching means from an HR perspective?

6. Based on the results of this program, what would be the implications of introducing a similar coaching initiative to other parts of the organization?

7. What is the company's definition of employee engagement?

8. What are the organizations most significant HR challenges? Would introducing a coaching culture assist in addressing those issues?

WORKPLACE COACHING: DEVELOPING LEADERSHIP SKILLS …

Documents

Transcript of WORKPLACE COACHING: DEVELOPING LEADERSHIP SKILLS …