Prepare yourself to be a Leader- Coach : The GROW Model

A well coordinated, efficient and effective team is any leader’s dream. A leader can play a role of a coach and create the dream team rather effortlessly.

As "coach", you will guide your team members to solve problems innovatively, make better decisions, learn new skills, grow both in professional and personal domain.Very few leaders in India are fortunate enough to get formal training as coaches, most of them do not. A lot depends on personal beliefs and casual tea table conversations.

One of the proven and tested approach to step into the role of a coach is what is called the GROW Model.

GROW is an acronym standing for
Goal
Current Reality
Options
Will

GROW model is a simple, positive and effective framework for structuring a coaching session.Devised by Sir John Whitmore,it provides an easy and effective framework for coaching individuals and teams.

Step 1 : Goal Setting
Coach Leader and team agree on specific objectives. This is the most crucial step - if you lose your way, you lose your destination. The Goals should be specific, succinct and measurable and time bound. The coach leader asks specific questions to make sure the goal is in the best interests of the team and the organization.

Step 2 : Assessing Current Reality
The team needs to have a realistic grasp of the starting point. Is the desired objective a realistic goal - what are the chances of achieving it?

Step 3 : Explore Options
The coach - leader guides the team in thinking of a number of ways of achieving the goal. The team decides which way to pursue. As the coach leader, your role is to help to help them explore possibilities so that the team can decide which option is best.

Step 4 : Will / Wrap Up
The team will be geared to go for the goal if they are excited and motivated by it. Coach- Leader ensures the commitment of the team. The challenge is to take a willing commitment and not an enforced commitment. This is what differentiates a leader from a coach – leader.

The art of asking questions is key for effective implementation of GROW model.

In the next post I will talk about ‘Art of Asking Question’ .

Designing Leaders and not just Managers

Quite often when I interact with an individual in a leadership role, I am tempted to point out –‘Hey, this is not leading, this is managing …’ and every time I have to control my temptation. As an executive coach, my role is to help the person explore and discover insights and not spoon feed him/her.

An article in HBR says, “Most corporations today are over managed and under-led.”I completely agree with this and am sure you would also agree.

I feel organizations today need to develop their capacity to exercise leadership. Successful companies don't wait for leaders to come along… They actively seek out people with leadership potential and expose them to career experiences designed to develop that potential. They choose their leaders by Design and not by Chance.

Careful selection, nurturing, encouragement supported by personal growth engagements like Executive Coaching / Leadership Coaching will help bright and committed executives play important leadership roles in today's complex business environment.