Coaching for Leaders: Why Executives Need Support

Even in good times, when business is booming and employee engagement is high, executive leaders and senior-level managers face a high level of pressure. Not only are they charged with setting the direction for their organizations, but they must also foster alignment and commitment with their teams so the organization moves forward successfully.

But in times of rapid change or disruption to existing business models, the responsibilities of a leader become all the more challenging. It’s through these volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous times that inspiring leaders are needed more than ever.

Broad-Reaching Benefits of Coaching for Leaders

The Impact on Executives

Even in challenging business environments when company resources are under tight scrutiny, organizations prioritize coaching. That’s because in times of uncertainty, leaders are responsible for making strategic decisions with far-ranging impacts that may change the course or trajectory of their organizations, and coaching provides a laser-focused approach specifically targeted to supporting and developing these key people in the organization.

Our research suggests that a behavior-based approach to executive coaching for leaders helps them to find opportunity in the face of great challenge and integrate key skills into their daily interactions. 

Overall, coaching for leaders has been proven to result in:

• Better, more sustained, and accelerated learning,
• Development of critical thinking skills,
• Improvement in team leadership performance, and
• Increases in leaders’ self-awareness so they can use their strengths more effectively and manage their areas of weakness.

Through coaching, leaders are better able to tap into the powerful learning opportunities that arise from hardships and disruption they encounter. In addition, coaching for leaders can help executives manage stress and better prioritize their own emotional wellbeing in the face of uncertainty, thereby increasing their effectiveness. Coaches can help leaders maintain 4 areas of resilience — physical, mental, emotional, and social — so they have the strength they need to make tough decisions and to model resilient behavior for their people.

The Impact On Teams 

Coaching has a ripple effect that positively impacts the entire organization. 

When an executive enhances their ability to lead with clarity, it paves a path to sustainable organizational change. Specifically, when a leader is well-equipped to handle a crisis, they, and by extension, their entire team can regain focus and energy.

Lastly, as coaches engage with leaders, they’re transferring skills and encouraging their clients to use these same skills with their direct reports and peers in the organization. Therefore, coaching can go beyond impacting the individual leader, reaching the entire organization.

This white paper explores why, even in challenging business environments, executive coaching remains important. It explains the benefits of coaching for leaders during times of disruption, and the benefits, both to executives themselves and their teams. It also looks at the reasons why businesses prioritize coaching and rely on it as a tool to carry their organizations into the future. Learn more about executive coaching for leaders and how it can provide needed support and inspire change.