The GROW Coaching Model

There are many coaching models which are used by coaches world over to bring structure to the coaching conversations. One which is preferred for its simplicity and easy application is the GROW coaching model. This model allows flexibility and can be used to structure both a coaching conversation as well as a longer coaching intervention.

GROW is the acronym for:

Goal

Reality

Options

Will/ way forward / wrap up

The GROW coaching model has been developed and popularized by Sir John Whitmore, a former racing car champion, sports psychologist and leading coach in UK. He is known for his famous works: “Need, Greed or Freedom” and “Coaching for Performance: Growing People, Performance and Purpose”.

Here is a description of various phases of the model:

GOAL: This phase is characterized with identifying the long term goals for coaching and the short term goals for the session. A stage to build a ‘compelling’ future.

Questions usually asked at this stage may be:

•  What do you want to achieve?
• What does success look like?
• What about this is important to you?
• How would you know you have achieved it?
• Is it realistic and achievable?
• What would happen if you are not able to achieve your goal?
• What will be different when you achieve it?

A word for the coach: Check to see the goals identified are SMART goals. They should be inspiring enough to be able to stretch the client and on the other hand on too big that the client may soon feel demotivated to achieve them.

REALITY: This phase deals with the exploration of the current reality. Before heading towards the goals it would be only prudent to take stock of the current reality.

Questions usually asked at this stage may be:

• What is happening now?
• How is that affecting you?
• Is it/ How is it affecting others around you?
• How do you know that is accurate?
• What is missing?
• What is holding you back?
• Have you done anything about it so far? If yes, what have you tried so far? What results did that produce?

A word for the coach: Try to get the client to state the reality in as focused a manner as possible. Generalizations should be avoided. Spend adequate time here as this is the place where the client will come out with the limited beliefs he/she is carrying with them.

OPTIONS: I call this the ‘creative’ stage. This stage calls for brainstorming and ‘out of the box’ thinking.

Questions usually asked at this stage may be:

• What could you do to move you one step ahead towards your goal?
• What else should you do?
• What strategies can you bring in from past successes?
• What are the costs and benefits of each option?
• Which option do you have most energy around?
• Who can help you with this?

A word for the coach: Try to get an exhaustive list of options. Usually the first few options that the client comes up with would be the ones that he/she is most comfortable doing. Hence, these would not really push them out of their comfort zone. Make them think and be careful of displaying any personal judgments (by way of words, facial expressions or voice) towards any of the explored options.

Will/Way forward/Wrap up: This stage deals with action. The client is encouraged to choose the course of action which best propels him to his goals. Deadlines are fixed. Commitment is checked and now its time for forward movement.

Questions usually asked at this stage may be:

• Which option/s do you choose to follow?
• What support do you need?
• Who could provide you with this support?
• When/ how will you approach him/her for this support?
• When will you start action steps?
• When will you achieve each of your actions?
• Is anything stopping you from moving forward on that option? What will you do about it?
• What is your level of commitment to these agreed actions?(preferably on a scale of 1 to 10: 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest)
• How can I as your coach best support you in this phase?

 A word for the coach: It is essential to build accountability here and also to check the motivation levels to ensure the client does follow through on what he commits.

 A few points:

The model has been explained sequentially but it is not always as linear as stated above in real life coaching situations. The coach and the client may move back and forth between the steps until they hear the ‘clunk’.

It is imperative for that the client is allowed to spend enough time in each phase to experience the richness of this model and any tendency to move quickly to the next phase should be refrained from.

The ultimate perk – a personal executive coach

This article appeared in The Economic Times, a leading financial newspaper of India, on 5 Jun 2009. The author: Dibeyendu Ganguly

Two years ago, Reliance Mutual Fund was in a quandary over one of its star managers. The individual in question had had quite a dream run in his eight years with the company, averaging a promotion every eighteen months and rising from relationship manager to zonal head. But now he wasn’t quite ready to move into the next level. He was great with his own team, but didn’t come across too well in larger gatherings. He didn’t communicate well. He lacked grooming. The top management felt he needed to conduct himself better. “High performers often move so fast that they don’t get a chance to absorb the softer behavioural aspects that are crucial at higher levels,” says Reliance Mutual’s HR head, Rajesh Derhgawen. “They’re so caught up with their day to day work that they have no time for introspection. They need someone to hold up a mirror, make them see clearly what their strengths are and where they’re lacking.” In what was then an unusual step, Reliance Mutual decided to make a substantial investment on its star performer. It hired an executive coach to help him evolve. The returns on the investment turned out to be high, for the company has since brought in two more coaches to help six other managers in its offices in Mumbai and Delhi. “We’re not doing it just for senior managers, which other companies do, but for middle management as well,” says Derhgawen. One of the coaches roped in by Reliance Mutual is Ashu Khanna, a chartered accountant who previously worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers and Kotak Bank. Khanna quit a regular job to become a certified corporate coach because she “enjoys helping people succeed.” “Too many people loose sight of what they want in life. The coaching process is meant to give them clarity of thought and help them make the right choices. I see myself as an unbiased sounding board. My job is to help my clients get ahead,” she says. One of Khanna’s assignments was to help a star performer learn to manage his time. The executive lead a large team, but was unwilling to delegate , preferring to be personally involved in everything. This style had served him well in the past, but had now become a problem. “My job is to help people change their perspective,” says Khanna. “In this case, the coaching was meant to shift the individual’s focus to motivating and developing his subordinates.” Borrowed from the world of sports, the concept of executive coaching is still fairly new the world over. It’s a close cousin to mentoring, which has been around longer and is an arrangement internal to the organisation. The biggest problem with an internal mentor, of course, is that he or she may not have enough time to spare, since it’s not his or her primary job. An external coach, on the other hand, is fully focused on the process, which typically consists of a two-hour session every week, stretching over 12 weeks. But external coaches don’t come cheap. Nihar Ghosh, HR head at RPG Retail, is a certified executive coach himself, but has never used coaching services in his own organisation. “A good coach would charge around Rs 40,000 for a two hour session and that’s expensive. We can’t afford it right now,” he says. In India, the biggest users of external coaching services are the multi-national subsidiaries, who have imported it as a global best practice. Not suprisingly, the headquarters of the Indian chapter of the International Coach Federation (ICF) is in Bangalore, which is home to the global IT majors. The ICF currently has 395 members and its president BS Rao says, “Most of our members have an HR background, though there are also some former CEOs who have recently joined.” Among Indian companies, the greatest demand for coaching has so far been from the members of the promoter families. Jagmohan Bhanver, head of the executive coaching arm of PeopleFirst Consulting , has handled over 80 assignments and he says that 70% have come from established Indian business families: “The request usually comes from the company’s board. Today’s promoters need coaching on how to relate to the professionals they’ve hired. The second issue I help them with is succession and handling relationships with other family members.” Given that people’s personal lives are closely meshed with their professional lives, coaching can be a fairly intense process. Most high performing individuals have problems with their work-life balance and this is invariably the cause of much heartburn . Ameen Merchant, who has spent eight years as a corporate coach, divides these personal issues into six segments — family, health, social, financial, spiritual and mental. “Along with professional goals, it’s important to help people set personal goals,” says the former pharma executive. “It could be something really simple but important to the individual. I once coached a top executive who deeply regretted giving up the reading habit because of lack of time. We set a goal that he should start reading three books a month or 40 books a year. He’s stuck to the goal and is a much happier man now.” Another individual who Merchant coached said he had lost all touch with his friends and had no social life because of his work: “At first he said he didn’t need a social life, but I could see it bothered him. As we talked it emerged that he was a shy, introverted person who found it hard to socialise. He wanted to change this aspect of his life.” Today, executive coaching in India is growing through a trickle down effect, with CEOs and senior managers who have benefited from the process passing it down. Meanwhile, the beneficiaries of the coaching are beginning to see it as more than a nice-to-have perk. As the job market tightens and the climb to the top becomes increasingly slippery, good coaching just might make the difference between making it or falling by the wayside.

“Throwing Sheep In the Boardroom”

I attended a book launch today : “Throwing Sheep In The Boardroom – How social networking will transform your life, work and world” By Dr. Soumitra Dutta – Dean of External Relations Roland Berger Professor of Business and Technology INSEAD and Mathew Fraser, PhD – senior Research Fellow at INSEAD. The book was released by Mr.  Sunil Kant Munjal Chairman, Hero Corporate services ltd.

The invitation was extended to me very kindly by Director – All India Management Association (AIMA).

One of the reasons I went there was the title!
Twas so intriguing, I couldn`t have missed it!

The book is about the power of online social networks -MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, friendster, Orkut and countless others- and how they are transforming our lives.

The underlying argument of this book as Soumitra put it is the ” Web 2.0 ” revolution which represents an equally powerful rupture – which they call an e-ruption- in established forms of social organization. These cataclysmic changes are occuring at a time when many, empowered by new technologies are questioning core assumptions and breaking past practices.
While the Web 2.0 revolution has reached a tipping point socially, especially among the young members of “Generation V”who feel completely at ease in the online world, it is facing powerful forces of resistance inside organizations-especially corporations and government bureaucracies. The authors have tried to examine the underlying reasons behind this “fear factor”, making the case that senior managers must understand the dynamics of the Web 2.0 revolution because it will soon be sweeping through the corridors whether they like it or not! 

The book release was followed by a panel discussion – my most favourite part of the morning – with distinguished panelists : Mr. Sanjeev Bikhchandani,CEO Naukri.com ; Mr Rajeev Karwal , Founder Milagrow business and Knowledge Solutions; Mr Nikhil Pahwa, Founder and Editor- medianama.com and was moderated by Dr Dutta.I learnt a great deal today and am looking forward to reading the book. Shall post my observations soon.

What is the relationship between leadership and coaching

I never get tired of asking questions – explains exactly why I am  a Coach.

Here`s the latest I asked over LinkedIn : What is the relationship between leadership and coaching?

This is what well meaning folks had to say:

- Leader is the person who take the lead of a group try to gave them the agenda, qualify the doubts and finally motivates the group to perform an act keeping in mind the time frame as well results pertaining to it.

 

Coach is person who motivates and enlight the path as well faclitate towards our goal.
Like Dhoni acts like a coach in team as well leader to call the challenge and making final win to it……

 

-Leadership is the person that goes way beyond the followers. Then, the leader coaches a follower to achieve leadership status.
Clarification added:
The relationship is determined by whether the leader has someone(s) to coach. You have to evaluate your team – some folks are not “coachable.” A good leader will coach. And a good leader will eliminate the ‘non coachables.’ Guess my perspective is from being a Leader. I coach who can learn – I get rid of the rest.

 

-All levels of management involves coaching and mentoring others. Maybe the question should be “What is the difference between mentoring and coaching?”

One of the most important business functions is to prepare for the future combining a clear vision and a succession plan. The Leader of any team must identify their successor and mentor/coach them in areas they believe to be weak.

I don’t think there are clear relationships between Leaders and Coaches. Some great leaders are not great mentors/coaches and some are.

 

-I believe the role of leadership is to create clarity for the organization. Who are we, what do we want to accomplish, how are we doing.
True leadership also develops a legacy for when they leave the organization, a template if you will. That is the “coaching” element.
I am at the stage of my career where I believe that in addition to providing clarity to the organization one of my most important contributions is the selection and development of the next generation of leaders. That will not be accomplished by training alone, it requires mentoring and coaching.
Leadership isn’t about what you take with you- it’s about what you leave behind. I believe a leader’s greatest aspiration should be that those you have mentored and “coached” contribute at a level that you didn’t achieve.

 

-Hi there,
I had some views to share on a similar topic. Hence my thoughts here:
A Leader and Coach are 2 distinct roles behind a good team.
Leadership means a direct involvement – So he/she has to be a performer. Leader must be capable of directing and decision-making.
A Leader must also be a good coach. He must be able to lead by example and demonstrate his lead by dominating in some way. But a Leader’s role in coaching may be limited, as he can be a coach only upto his skill or expertise levels. Besides, a Leader has his hands full working on the strategem and tactical aspects. A good Leader must be good at or know about most of the things he expects of his team.

A Coach – the role implies a guiding and demonstrative approach. He/she is a dedicated and specialized member – studying the team members, to identify their strengths and weaknesses and improve their game. A coach must have some expertise and experience to delivery the knowledge, and get it practised. While a coach must have leadership skills to demonstrate the good advice and get it followed, he/ she should not be subject to pressure of performance on the field.

So in my opinion, while there are some overlaps in the roles, but some lines must be drawn; the Leader also acts as Coach, but dont make the Coach the Leader.
Clarification added :
Get some more inputs,
http://www.coachinc.com/CCU/Become%20A%20Business%20Coach/Knowledge%20Base/Leader/default.asp?s=1

and this is tangential to my above line of thought though….. http://www.emergingleader.com/article30.shtml

 

 

-A good leader knows how to coach his or her team to be good followers

 

-I believe in order to be a good leader, you have to be a good coach first. People will follow who they believe have their best interest in mind. So to answer your question, leadership and coaching are tied to the hip.

 

-Here’s the cynic answer:

Leader – someone who keeps aware of which way the herd is moving and maneuvers him/herself to appear to be in the front.

Coach – Person who used to be called “a consultant” until business stopped paying for consultants.

 

-A coach is responsible for training his players to win, one battle at a time.
A leader is responsible for choosing the right battles.

 

- I believe the commonalities are represented by three prerequisites to both leadership and coaching:
–self discipline
–self awareness
–a desire to bring out the best in oneself before attempting to lead or develop others.

Where leadership and coaching might possibly diverge is in the delivery or manifestation. One can be a leader without being in a position of authority. Leadership is best demonstrated by self action rather than words.

Coaching, on the other hand, is focused or intentional conversation designed to help the coachee honour and build on their abilities to achieve desired outcomes.

 

-Leadership inspires and motivates people to work towards a vision; coaching provides guidance and assistance on how to get there as efficiently and effectively as possible.

 

-A leader identifies the mountain to climb.
A coach motivates the team and devises strategies as to the best way of climbing that mountain.
The best coach and the best strategy would be of no use if after climbing the mountain the most efficient way you look around and sigh, ” ah! we climbed the wrong mountain”
Leadership first and then coaching.
Financial Plan first and then budgeting.
What to do in life first and then goal setting.
Destination first and then set GPS.

 

-A leader selects the place to go to and takes people on that journey – a coach ensures people can make that journey.

 

-A leader and a coach are individuals but leadership and coaching are processes. The former process is within an individual per se, the latter process, drawing it out from one or more individuals.

A leader and a coach may or may not not be the same person but leadership and coaching are the same process, that of guiding. Guiding oneself or others on relevant values, initiative, qualities and skills.

A leader and a coach are in the forefront (or ought to be) but leadership and coaching are processes in the backdrop.

Combining these to answer your question on the relationship between leadership and coaching, both are synonymous guiding processes in the backdrop.

 

-A leader can be a coach, but a leader generally leads a group and is a big picture thinker and motivator. A coach can work a person through the daily habits it takes to be successful.

 

-Leadership and coaching are distinctly different roles.

The point at which they diverge is; who sets the goals?

Good coaching is non-directive. The client sets the agenda; the coach draws from the client what they already possess (but, perhaps, don’t know it) in order to realise the goals previously identified. Sometimes, through the process of coaching, the client will shift the goals. That’s OK. The coach will continue to support the client.

As already indicated in other answers, a leader sets the agenda. People may elect to buy into that agenda to a greater or lesse extent. A leader may train followers how they can best support the goals that s/he set. A leader may attempt to re-ignite flagging entusiasm for the mission. However, if the person concerned diverges from the what the leader wants, then the leader is not interested and the relationship begins to decay.

One caveat worth bearing in mind is that “leadership” is a role, not a person. So, an individual may be a leader in one context – say, a team sport – but a follower elsewhere – say in politics.

 

-Daniel Goleman has an interesting take on this issue. He describes 6 basic styles of leadership, including coaching:

1. Coercive – demanding compliance
2. Authoritative – mobilizing people towards a vision
3. Affiliative – building relationships and promoting harmony
4. Democratic – promoting consensus through participation
5. Pacesetting – setting high standards by example and demanding the same of others
6. Coaching – delegating responsibility and developing people for success

According to Goleman, coaching is one of the most effective leadership styles – but also one of the most neglected:

“Of the six styles, our research found that the coaching style is used least often. Many leaders told us they don’t have the time in this high-pressure economy for the slow and tedious work of teaching people and helping them grow. But after a first session, it takes little or no extra time. Leaders who ignore this style are passing up a powerful tool: its impact on climate and performance are markedly positive.”

 

-In my view, Coaching is sub-set of Leadership.
Every Leader is a Coach par-excellence.
A true leader’s presence itself works as a Coach.

 

-It really depends what you put behind the words.
In my world, the leader sets directions, objectives for all to follow (Push mode); the coach will help a individual (Pull mode) solve a personal problem (how to achieve an objective, give some sens to an action, enable potential, manage difficult situations, be responsible, better self-esteem).
However both are necessary in an organization.

 
-The best leaders are also effective coaches – at all levels.

There are very good coaches who – for a variety of reasons – are limited in the ability to lead. This is often due to a limited strategic vision.

Organizations need leaders. Organizations need coaches. It is the best of all possibilities when the leaders are also effective coaches.

 
-Behind every successful leader there is a coach.
But every leader hides his coach.
Leaders do not admit they have coaches but the truth is every leader is coached. The coach becomes invisible after the leader becomes successful
Successful leaders hide their coaching.
Without coaches there are only failed leaders

 

(Names, positions and companies of respondents have been withheld for privacy. Original post can be found on LinkedIn. )

On receiving my ACC certification from International Coach Federation

Its a beautiful day as it brings with it the great news: I am now an ACC – Accredited Certified Coach (ICF, U.S.A)

When I look back at the last two years and the work which went into getting here while juggling so many plates in the air,I am proud of this achievement and wish to thank my family, teachers at my school: International Coach Acdemy (ICA, Australia), clients, readers and my awesome friends for their support.

This is a milestone in my journey and not the end. My next goals are already polished and  shining!
 
Just as the motto of my alma mater goes “Forever more and better ever”

Winning Teams

The vision of a recent coaching engagement where I was brought in as a Coach by the HR was to build a strengths based team. 

Being the ’story teller coach’ that I usually am,I shared the following story with them in one of the earlier meetings:

Lee Iacocca once asked legendary football coach Vince Lombardi what it 
took to make a winning team. The book entitled Iacocca records Lombardi’s  answer  

There are a lot of coaches with good ball clubs who know the fundamentals and have plenty of discipline but still don’t win the game. Then you come to the third ingredient: if you’re going to play together as a team, you’ve got to care for one another. You’ve got to love each other. Each player has to be thinking about the next guy and saying to himself: If I don’t block that man, Paul is going to get his legs broken. I have to do my job well in order that he can do his.  

“The difference between mediocrity and greatness,” Lombardi said that night, “is the feeling those guys have for each other.”