Advice

Coaching self assessment

Coaching uses one-to-one conversations and guided questioning to unlock an employees inner potential. Coaching targets high performance and improvement at work and usually focuses on specific skills and goals. Although it may also have an impact on an individual personally in carrying out their day to day activities in key identified areas such as social interaction and confidence. In turn it helps managers deal with change and find solutions to business problems through conversations. It’s an effective way of creating a high performance culture in an organisation.

The characteristics of coaching can be any or several of the following:

• It is essentially a non-directive form of development.


• It focuses on improving performance and developing individuals’ skills.


• Personal issues may be discussed but the emphasis is on performance at work.


• Coaching activities have both organisational and individual goals.


• It provides people with feedback on both their strengths and their weaknesses.


• It is a skilled activity, which should be delivered by people who are trained or certified. (However, line managers can be responsible for coaching others when trained in basic coaching skills)