The Five Ps of Strategic Coaching could be transformative for businesses

Written by Amanda Hobbins and Jenny Whitfield, Consultant Coach-Mentors for The OCM

Businesses are always looking for ways to drive meaningful change, enhance performance and achieve lasting growth. One way businesses can achieve this, is by turning to professional coaching to help them overcome challenges and achieve their long-term goals. The OCM, a leading professional coaching firm, has developed a comprehensive guide to strategic coaching based on five P’s that could prove transformative for any business.

Purpose:

The first stage to consider is Purpose, the driving force behind every action. This is by far the most important stage. Having a clearly defined purpose enables organisations to set a benchmark for measuring outcomes and it ensures alignment with strategic goals at both organisational and individual levels. Considering the strategic goals is vital for understanding how coaching will achieve them. The clearer the purpose, the better the level of success.

Partnership:

Selecting the right coaching partner is essential. It is more than a mere transaction; it is about forming a close strategic alliance and collaborating throughout the programme.

Organisations can sometimes feel that once a coach or coaches have been chosen that should be the end of their involvement. But it is just the start. A true partnership, with continuous communication and feedback from both parties, makes the difference between a good coaching engagement, and a transformative approach that has organisational impact.

Planning:

Effective planning is the backbone of any successful coaching programme. By integrating regular review points and organisational context, businesses ensure that the coaching efforts remain on course, driving towards the objectives.

Patterns:

Creating consistency and insight is vital. Establishing a common model for coaching conversations creates shared understanding and direction. Identifying recurring themes, patterns and insights from the coaching sessions allows organisations to understand invaluable lessons that inform future strategies.

People

Finally, organisations need to select their coaching partner and coaches carefully and say no if they do not feel like the right fit. Often this will come down to gut instinct, but if something does not feel right at the beginning, it is unlikely to change, and this can hamper the results. Reputable coaching providers will conduct a rigorous interview process between client and coaches before finding those who are the right fit for the engagement.

It is also worth pointing out that organisations should make sure they are coaching the right people. Coaching is an investment in their people, so choosing the ones who will benefit most and create the greatest transformation for the organisation is just as important as selecting the right coaches.

Putting the Five Ps into practice at Henry Boot PLC

Henry Boot PLC, with over a century of expertise in land, property, and development, embraced the five P’s approach to strategic coaching to accelerate leadership development and drive cultural change.

Integrating one-to-one coaching with their leadership development programme, the company witnessed significant transformation. Over a five-year period, a team of 27 skilled coaches worked with over 70 leaders in the organisation.

The programme has been an enormous success and is credited by the organisation as enabling cultural change that would not have happened without it. In addition, themes that emerged from the coaching programme have now informed and influenced the strategic goals for the organisation.

The success of Henry Boot PLC implementing the five P’s is testament to how a business can achieve its full potential by fully embracing the programme.

By working with an external coaching firm and putting the five P’s: Purpose, partnership, planning, patterns, and people at the forefront, businesses are able to focus, strategize and create a clear vision for improving their business performance and success.