The Recession's Impact on the Reasons Executive Coaches are Retained

A recent survey of 140 leading executive coaches conducted by Harvard Business Review found that the reasons companies engage coaches have changed. Ten years ago, most companies called coaches in to help fix toxic behavior at the top. Today, most coaching aims to develop the capabilities of top performers. The survey found that the top 3 reasons coaches are engaged are:

Develop high potentials or facilitate transition: 48%

Act as a sounding board: 26%

Address derailing behavior: 12%

The survey statistics are relatively congruent with the executive coaching services within our consulting practice. What is surprising for us, however, is that coaching has increased in our practice in those 3 categories due to the recession, rather than decreasing, as it has for many firms.

While the recession has increased our executive coaching clientele, it has also brought new issues and challenges for clients. Following are 11 areas of added focus our clients are currently seeking our assistance with:

Needing to develop and practically apply solid management and leadership skills - now.

Stress management practices and solutions - both at work and in personal relationships.

Dealing more effectively with ambiguity - individually and in assisting those they manage and lead.

Become more aware of the multiple facets of their own behavior and those they lead - and use that knowledge and wisdom to make better decisions.

Manage the tension of the opposites - operating tactically for short-term results while strategically building for the near and long-term future.

Although painful, stop bargaining and make the hard choices and difficult decisions within their organizations.

Lessen the tendency to react, and instead focus on finding new creative opportunities and solutions for their companies.

Overcome a "crisis of confidence" in one's abilities to handle current economic, market, and organizational complexity.

Develop skillsets for leading and managing non-stop change.

Emotionally and intellectually "process" the hopes and expectations that haven't worked out as planned - in order to move forward in a new viable direction.

Learn how to negotiate conflict better - as differences of opinion within senior teams is intensifying resulting in a collective diffusion of resources, nerves, and effectiveness.

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