| Book Description
This is the 13th year
and the 6th version of this book being a vital resource for those
who are willing to develop coaching as a contemporary leadership
skill. It has just been updated in January 2012 to keep it current and vital. It presents the powerful process called Transformational
Coaching as a comprehensive and systematic way to plan, organize,
and conduct coaching conversations. It de-mystifies into easy to
understand and follow steps, thus making it a communication tool
for leaders and their teams to coach in all directions – Up toward
one's Boss, Down toward one's Direct Reports, and Laterally to one's
Peers. Huge benefits accrue to the organizations where this becomes
a cultural norm…and a true "coaching culture."
In the spirit of keeping
"The Heart of Coaching" a vibrant and contemporary
resource for our readers, we offer this Fourth Edition
where we do several important things.
The Foundation Phase:
We changed the term in the second bullet from Set “Context” to Set “Course” to more clearly indicate “where we are headed”. The five main components still apply but the term is more consistent with other language in the workshop. In the Learning Loop (now called the Feedback Loop) the word “context” included there is the only time “Context” appears.
The Learning Loop—renamed the Feedback Loop:
By changing the name from “Learning” Loop to “Feedback” Loop, we directly describe what actions are the focus of the conversation. The heart of the coaching conversation is dialogue that is used to deliver feedback that leads to learning. One could actually call the phase it any of those three names—the Dialogue, Feedback or Learning Loop. We think “Feedback Loop” is the most clear.
The companion model that is used directly in the Feedback Loop is The Results Cycle. This is truly a “Feedback Map” to guide the details of the feedback, encouraging specific, not general feedback.
We also have specified that instead of describing “sharing perceptions” of behavior, that is it even more clear to state “Describe Behavior.” Again, we more clearly indicate exactly what is being suggested to do—deliver feedback.
To even more explicit, we have stated as the secondary part of the second main bullet is to add action verbs: Reinforce Progress and Identify Opportunities. These give it clarity and punch.
In the third bullet, we added the word “Experience” to what is explored through the questions that are asked. The coachee's engagement and “buy-in” will never be fully realized unless the coachee feels fully part of the conversation.
The fifth bullet has been “tweaked” to reflect that the accountability that is being explored, needs to absolutely be mutual, and is not about the future, but the current situation that is being discussed.
Forwarding-the-Action Phase:
The first bullet emphasizes that the vision for success really needs to be the shared vision of both parties.
We combined the “Offer Support” into the step of Clarifying Action Commitment, and defining the Follow-Up Plan. This feels more timely to Identify the support alongside the actions for which the support is offered.
The final bullet now more clearly takes the form of a short, collaborative debrief of “what worked, did not work so well, and how would we change on conversations in the future.” Then as the final, powerful concluding step, appreciate the person, the process, the willingness, and anything else that signifies the relationship is growing and/or the conversations are improving. Heartfelt appreciation is key.
From the back
cover of the fourth edition:
The
Compelling Vision of a High Performance Coaching Culture
The premise of this book
is simple. As coaching becomes a predominant cultural practice,
it will create a high performance working environment where…
…all members of the culture
courageously engage in candid, respectful coaching conversations,
unrestricted by reporting relationships, about how they can improve
their working relationships and individual and collective work performance.
All have learned to value and effectively use feedback as a powerful
learning tool to produce higher levels of personal accountability, professional development,
high-trust working relationships, continually-improving job performance,
and ever-increasing customer satisfaction.
Transformational Coaching
is the requisite skill for today’s leaders, managers,
and supervisors who choose to enhance their personal effectiveness
and the performance of those they lead.
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