The importance of coaching

It has been revealed that employers who do not offer to coach to their staff would risk their employees further performance as well as productivity.

Research from City & Guilds Group showcased the importance of this aspect of training to the UK workforce, as their research showed that 79% of UK professionals say they consider coaching useful for adopting new technologies and ways of working.

76% of employees believed that coaching is helpful when going through periods of change in terms of roles and other career opportunities, while 79% said it’s useful for learning new technologies and ways of working. In addition, as businesses begin to see staff from five generations working side-by-side, 64% of the respondents said that coaching has already become important in facilitating intergenerational working.

John Yates, Managing Director, City & Guilds Group, commented on this research, saying “The nature of work is evolving, and organisational change is becoming an increasingly common theme in UK businesses; whether they’re growing, shrinking, or adapting to new technologies. At the same time, we are also witnessing huge changes in the workforce, with intergenerational working and career hopping becoming new norms. With unpredictable times ahead and ongoing change presenting challenges to businesses, employers need to encourage and support staff at all levels of the organisation – to maximise their individual performance, as well as that of the business.”

Coaching is a crucial part of boosting productivity in the office, when people are moving between roles or chasing other career opportunities, this is such an important trend in the office for employers to pick up on. Changing roles can mean that many people often face new challenges,  often means facing new challenges, and amongst the respondents that had changed role in their company, over a quarter (27%) report taking four months or more to work to the best of their ability afterwards, with an additional 10% taking seven months or longer.

Gary Shewan, Learning & Development Consultant, Legal and General, said “Embedding a culture of coaching is a key component of our Talent Development Programme and continues to have a positive impact on Legal & General. Involving managers at all levels to support the programme has meant that learning and development is very much in line with business needs, resulting in a step change in how learning and development is perceived across the organisation with staff recognising the need for continual learning – which is so important if individuals, teams and the company as a whole is to keep up with the pace of change. Not only has retention improved, but employee engagement continues to improve, and we can also see a measurable improvement to performance as delegates are able to implement projects worked on during the programme to deliver customer benefits and business efficiencies.”

The research put together also showcased that companies who decide to not coach their staff could leave their employees feeling demoralised and undervalued. As when asked the question of why these respondents didn’t receive coaching, the most common answers were lack of investment at 33%, taking staff for granted at 31%, and leaders showing disinterest in staff taking 22% of the results.

City & Guilds Group surveyed over 1,000 UK professionals on their thoughts and experiences of coaching in the workplace. The research demonstrates the benefits of coaching for companies as they adapt to the future world of work, highlighting the potential risks faced by employers that don’t harness this powerful tool for change.