When I was promoted from Account Executive (AE) to Sales Development Manager (SDM) at Segment, and then hired as a Sales Manager at Fivetran, the one thing I always heard was that to be a great leader you had to be a great coach. I then looked around me, I especially observed the Senior Leaders, and I could not remember the time when they really coached me. On the other hand, I am forever grateful for the great mentoring they provided back then. As a leader myself, I tried to be intentional and coach in a meaningful way when it was possible...
What is Coaching...really?
The International Coach Federation (ICF) defines coaching as "partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximise their personal and professional potential."
Very often, due to the pace of the business, Sales Leaders are running from one meeting to the other with mainly ONE THING in mind: The Number! Coaching your team in the workplace on a regular basis can have its challenges:
ARR & Booking are the TOP priorities,
Things potentially urgent always come up,
To coach and to be coached, you need to be intentional even when the pressure is on at the end of the month!
Coaching really delivers powerful results in large measure because of (1) the Powerful Relationship developed between the Coach and the Coachee, (2) the Means and the Style of Communication used. The team member you coach acquires new skills and behaviours, not by being told what to do, but by discovering from within, stimulated by you, their Leader.
The Inner Game
Timothy Gallwey created The Inner Game Equation which captures the essence of coaching:
Performance = potential - interference
P = p - i
Coaching focuses on improving performance (P) by growing potential (p) and by decreasing interference (i).
Very often internal obstacles are greater than external ones.
Coaching is about unlocking the potential to maximize performance.
When can you coach?
They are many opportunities to coach your AEs and Managers. These conversations can be integrated into existing one-on-ones or team meetings. However, if you are really new to coaching I highly recommend you start with a one-to-one.
Because I have been obsessed with Coaching for Development, I have created my own little framework.
Coaching is a way, a style of communication, and a state of mind that puts your team members at the center to empower them to gain awareness and accelerate their growth. The goal for you, The Leader, is to engage with them intentionally on a weekly basis (one-on-ones, after customer calls, deal reviews, etc.), during the Career Development Conversations, Performance Reviews, and Crucial Conversations (high stakes, opposing opinions, and strong emotions). These conversations are all interconnected and can create synergies, a transformative awareness, and actions that will lead to a great performance.
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