Why Now Is the Time to Invest in Your People

Written By Glenn Tibbles

Why Now Is the Time to Invest in Your People

As the pandemic stretches on, work-from-home burnout is growing. Stress and financial anxiety are high, and many people are burning the candle at both ends, taking fewer breaks and less time off to recharge, fearing their job could be in jeopardy if they slow down.

The truth is, being overworked doesn’t lead to increased productivity. In fact, it does the opposite. Given the circumstances, the best thing company leaders can do to help employees adapt to this new environment, avoid burnout and rediscover the joy in their work is to provide them with opportunities to advance their career path or career desires.

The Case for Coaching

As a company leader, you want to do right by your employees. By putting them first and viewing their development as an investment vs. an expense, you can help them relate to your organization’s goals, meet key performance metrics, and build critical leadership and resilience skills that will help them work through these challenging times without sacrificing their mental health and wellbeing.

A 4-Step Process to Effective Coaching

Coaching should be approached like any other strategic goal. Execution requires commitment, a qualified coach, a plan to obtain results, and a straightforward process for follow-up and evaluation. Follow each step in the process, and you’ll be well on your way to steering your team away from burnout and towards personal and professional success.

Step 1: Establish Commitment

Commitment requires clarity and buy-in from both the organization and the individual being coached. Be clear on what you’re asking your employee to commit to and ensure they know why they’re doing it.

Organizational commitment may look like establishing formal coaching opportunities for:

  • Onboarding

  • Learning and development

  • Leadership development

  • Employee wellness/wellbeing

While individual commitment may look like:

  • Showing up to sessions on time and in focus

  • Being honest, coachable, non-judgmental

  • Being able to admit when there is a lack of clarity of understanding

  • Celebrating wins

  • Being responsible for results

Step 2: Choose a Qualified Coach

There is no exact blueprint for a good coach in a business environment. However, here are some questions you may want to ask if hiring an external coach.

  • What is your coaching experience?

  • Do you have any formal training or certifications in coaching?

  • What is your coaching specialty?

  • What is your coaching process?

  • What types of organizations do you work with most often? And, at what levels?

  • What types of assessments can you deliver?

  • How will we measure success?

Step 3: Establish Goals and Develop a Coaching Plan

Your plan should include clear goals and objectives that are tied to specific, measurable outcomes that benefit both the individual and the organization. To increase accountability and commitment, include a clear agenda, process, timelines and measures of success.

Step 4: Outcome Measurement and Development Plan

Assess progress, outcomes, and accomplishments throughout the coaching engagement and be sure to give specific and timely feedback.

  • What is the individual doing well?

  • What needs improvement?

  • Why is the change important to the individual, team and organization as a whole?

At the end of the coaching engagement, co-create a go-forward strategy and joint action plan that will achieve the desired results for the individual and the organization. We find that working on bite-sized changes and improvements in 30, 60 or 90-day windows is most effective.

Ready to unlock your organization’s leadership potential? Contact Cenera today!

Led by Cenera’s professionally trained, accredited coaches, we help leading companies develop executives, senior leaders and high-potential employees. Aligning individual goals with strategic objectives, Cenera’s Coaches unlock potential, supporting leaders on their journey to develop the skills to think, act and influence strategically. Contact us today to book a consultation.

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Glenn Tibbles

A successful career with experience in the airline, corporate trust, not-for-profit, and human capital consulting fields has given Glenn Tibbles a unique understanding of the challenges faced by both individuals and organizations in managing change, as well as attracting and retaining top talent. A partner with Cenera, Glenn leads the Executive Search and Executive Coaching practice areas. With extensive management and consulting backgrounds, he assists our clients with their human capital challenges and needs. Throughout his career, he has honed his leadership, executive and management skills, primarily in the areas of human resources, administration, contracts, insurance, sales and profit, and loss. Glenn is a graduate of the University of British Columbia, an alumnus of the U.S. State Department’s International Visitor Program, and an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. He is a Chartered Professional in Human Resources (CPHR), a Society for Human Resource Management Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) and is also a Past President of the Human Resources Association of Calgary. Glenn is a Senator on the University of Calgary’s Senate and has served on many corporate and volunteer boards.

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