Enhancing the impact of

business coaching
Critical factors to focus on

Issues and benefits of benefits coaching

Various sources have found a positive relationship between business coaching and
performance success. Its wide deployment among leaders across the career spectrum is
ample testimony to this. Seasoned pros, those on the first rungs of the leadership ladder
and everyone in between have reaped the benefits.
Even though coaching is expanding across the globe, doubts remain about the overall
value of the practice. It is therefore critical to gain additional insight into business coaching
and how it can be best implemented to maximize its effect.
Lack of a clear definition obviously doesn’t help. And this can be at least partly
attributed to the fact that coaching has origins and links with different domains that
include social sciences and various fields of psychology. Business is only one part of
the equation.
Not being recognized as an independent discipline gives rise to a host of ambiguities and
uncertainties. For a start, people remain unsure about the requisite skills needed for
business coaching. And issues about regulation clarity and expected outcomes serve to
exacerbate concerns. Vagueness is often the norm, in regard to both the definition of
coaching and indicators of success. Many claims about its effectiveness are based on
anecdotal evidence rather than that which is empirically proven.
Notwithstanding such concerns, coaching has considerable scope to provide essential
guidance and support that can help clients to:
䊏 more efficiently manage their learning;
䊏 fully exploit their potential;
䊏 improve performance; and
䊏 develop both personally and professionally.

Much of this might be attributed to the positive psychology assumed to underpin business
coaching. That the practice overlaps with consulting and therapy is likely significant too.
Enhancements to physical and mental health facilitate greater levels of fulfillment, wisdom
and creativity among beneficiaries.

Aspects that can increase effectiveness

Previous work has ascertained a range of factors with potential to shape the ultimate
effectiveness of coaching. Chief among them are the existence of:

j j
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䊏 a coach with relevant experience and in possession of qualities and skills that include
empathy, warmth, honesty, discretion, calmness creativity and organization;
䊏 high levels of effort, motivation and a confident attitude among individuals being
coached; Competence is also important;
䊏 a well-defined coaching process in terms of actions, priorities, timelines and
identification of ‘blind spots’. Also, the approach to dealing with any awkward issues
that arise must be constructive; and
䊏 a supportive environment where goals are clear and properly targeted and aligned.
Arguably the most crucial component is the relationship between coach and client. To this
end, mutual understanding, respect and trust are paramount if positive interaction is to
occur. Friendship can often develop but this sometimes functions as the proverbial double-
edged sword. Occasionally, coaches may need to deliver a warts-and-all appraisal that
highlight shortcomings. But closeness can get in the way and persuade them to adopt a
kid-glove approach instead. Problem is, this does the client few favors in respect of his or
her development going forward. So maybe keeping things at a more professional level is
the most sensible approach.
Get it right though and coaching can make a substantial impression in various aspects of
personal development. For example, individuals who benefit from coaching can become
better equipped to: manage stress, handle conflict, increase their flexibility, delegate
appropriately, and be more creative and accountable.

Study and findings

Additional insight into key issues is provided in a study by Wiginton and Cartwright (2020)
involving current and former clients of a leading US coaching organization. Participants
represent different levels of leadership in companies operating within various industries.
Even without coaching, it was acknowledged that most managers could expect to make at
least minimal improvement to their capabilities as they acquired experience. The
effectiveness or otherwise of coaching was therefore measured by any perceived
enhancement beyond this minimal level.
Clients were positive about the experience and expressed a willingness to recommend their
coach to others. However, it might surprise some observers that duration of coaching had
no bearing on any of this.
In terms of impact in different areas, the strongest was found in leadership development. It
was notable that other “soft skills” strategic clarity and short-term decision-making also
benefited significantly. The authors likewise noted the positive influence in the business
areas of customer satisfaction and employee engagement.
The only area showing a weak correlation between coaching and outcomes was financial
results. Given the importance of assessing the return on investment (ROI), some analysts may
be concerned about this. But most participants did believe that the return on coaching did
exceed initial investment in this instance. However, this assertion comes with the caveat that

Not being recognized as an independent discipline gives rise

to a host of ambiguities and uncertainties.

VOL. 35 NO. 5 2021 j DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING IN ORGANIZATIONS: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL j PAGE 23
 Many claims about its effectiveness are based on anecdotal
evidence rather than that which is empirically proven.

conclusions were based on perception and opinion rather than objective criteria. It is thus
clear that more tangible measures are needed if the outlay on coaching is to be justified.

Comment
The review is based on: “Evidence on the impacts of business coaching” by Wiginton and
Keywords:
Cartwright (2020), published in Journal of Management Development. Business coaching
Business coaching,
Leaders, can generate positive results in various key areas for firms involved. By focusing on factors
Relationships, identified as having scope to most impact on overall effectiveness, companies should be
Performance able to justify investing in the practice.

Reference
Wiginton, J.G. III and Cartwright, P.A. (2020), “Evidence on the impacts of business coaching”, Journal of
Management Development, Vol. 39 No. 2, pp. 163-180, doi: 10.1108/JMD-09-2018-0266, ISSN 0262-
1711

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