It’s a well-known fact that strong companies have focused, decisive, and confident leaders. But such leaders are seldom born that way. They must be formed, cultivated, and refined through rigorous effort and on-going self-improvement.

Executive coaching services, (sometimes referred to as “leadership coaching services”) work to guide and advance this process by empowering executives, and the companies they lead, to attain higher levels of achievement and success.   

 

How coaching empowers executives

“Empower” is “the ability or authority to give someone or something the power to do something.”  An empowered executive is therefore a business leader who’s able to effect change and influence the actions of other people.   

Empowerment implies that an executive’s skills, strengths and competencies are recognized, cultivated, strengthened and expanded. Ideally, the goal of every executive coaching session is empowerment, even if the coachee (the person being coached) is challenged in serious or fundamental ways by their coach. 

By recognizing and leveraging their inner strengths, the coachee can retain a sense of empowerment long after the coaching engagement concludes.  

Executive coaching can also empower leaders by improving their level of emotional intelligence, hindering any tendencies towards egoism or unprofessional behavior, building self-awareness, and instilling a sense of genuine confidence to lead in an authentic way.

In short, executive coaching enables leaders to better understand the challenges and opportunities they face and to clarify the skills they need to grow and succeed. Coaching further helps leaders overcome fears of uncertainty when making decisions, and to stand by those decisions. Indeed, coaching offers a powerful pathway for leaders to develop a sincere belief in their own capabilities.  

 

Why executive coaching is important to business growth  

Executive coaching is based on the premise that when leaders improve and develop, their organizations tend to follow suit. An effective executive coach works with a leader to hone in on what matters most when considering what to work on to further their growth, which will in turn benefit the organization as a whole.

Executive coaching also helps CEOs and other executives build their communication skills, foster professional relationships, and work better with others. Such strong people skills are critical to building competent and cohesive executive teams that,  in turn, empower employees at every level of the organization.  

Retaining talented and productive employees is an ongoing challenge for many companies. One of the biggest ways organizations can minimize turnover and retain valuable employees is to cultivate a better workplace culture, and leadership plays a huge role in that.

This is another area where executive coaching makes a big difference. By fostering self-awareness, as well as awareness of the company’s strengths and weaknesses, coaching helps leaders positively influence their company’s culture, which may lend to retaining contented and productive employees.

 

The benefits of executive coaching 

The benefits of executive coaching include improved emotional intelligence, elevated clarity, and greater resilience. Executives who work with coaches may also develop their own leadership coaching skills by seeing it modeled effectively. In turn, they can apply those coaching skills to their management staff or employees.

Among other benefits executives can derive from working with their executive coach are:

1.Increased recognition of collective and individual strengths.

Executive coaching helps leaders assess their business’s collective and individual strengths and weaknesses. This knowledge can lead to identifying and correcting an organization’s weaknesses while simultaneously amplifying strengths. 

2. Enhanced abilities to deal effectively with change. 

Executive coaching can help a leader better prepare for changes that are constant and inevitable in any active business. Coaching eases and facilitates the change process.  

3. Improved strategic focus

An executive coach supports leaders to be clear about which opportunities they should seize for themselves and their organizations to accelerate progress against competitors and within their industry. 

4. Genuine leadership confidence

When leaders feel empowered and confident, they make better decisions and encourage their employees to trust in their guidance. Confidence building is a tenet of executive coaching.

5. Uncovering blind spots in their leadership approach

Executives might like to think they are very aligned with how they see themselves versus how others see them. There are times when that’s not totally accurate. Many coaching engagements include actions like employee engagement surveys, one-on-one meetings, and 360s to help leaders better understand how they are seen by others.

6. Building a better company culture

Although executive coaching might seem like an individualized service, it can in fact quickly translate throughout the company, helping executives become change agents to reinvent or revitalize stagnant or unsatisfactory workplace cultures. 

•••

 Becoming an effective leader can be a lengthy journey, and, as with any such journey, it’s important to have a competent guide to lead the way. Executive coaching can be that guide, with clarity, confidence, and empowerment the ultimate payoffs for the executive.   

Executive empowerment is a core part of our service offerings. To learn more about our coaching services, view them here. If you  Please submit any questions or meeting requests via our Contact Form.  

Featured photo sourced from Pexels which can be found here and secondary photo also sourced from Pexels can be found here.