What is the Role of Coaching and Mentoring in Leadership Development?
Based on interviews with 50 prominent business leaders, Leading People concluded that three sets of actions are needed in order to develop tomorrow’s leaders who can reconcile the diverse aspirations of the market place and the workplace; of shareholders and wider society.
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leadership development has to be embedded into corporate culture so that it can occur as a part of everyday activity |
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second, individuals with leadership potential should be equipped with a raft of just-in-time tools - like practical tips, customised training, coaching, self-diagnostics and networking | |
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third, these individuals also seek experiences that expand their horizons beyond the current job | |
As such, coaching is about improving one’s effectiveness in the short term; and mentoring about improving it in the medium term. All leaders had coaching and mentoring at each stage of their career, even though they did not recognise them as such at the time. To quote a few examples:
I never had a boring job. Stretched jobs, yes; boring ones, no. I reported to superb guys who brought out the best in me. They were always there to help. This is hindsight, though. At the time, neither they nor I knew the influence they were having on my career.
Sir Brian Pearse
Chairman, Lucas Industries plc
Having the opportunity to have a "risk free conversation" with a trusted third party has been enormously helpful. You can bring out your doubts and anxieties without seeming to look weak or silly.... the mentors I had helped me to be "me". That has helped because I am my own worst critic and I am also terrible at role playing, which still passes for leadership development in many organisations. In this age of sound-bite leadership, it is important to harbour self doubts and discuss them... leaders must never take themselves too seriously.
Jack Wigglesworth
Chairman, LIFFE
The paradox of delayering is that it has raised the importance of mentoring in the period of uncertainty. But it has also got rid of excellent mentors - ones who understood company ethos, its policies, its clients, its key drivers.
Sir Peter Parker
Chairman, Mitsubishi Electric Europe BV
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Issues
also covered in Professor Rajan’s leadership research: What is the Difference Between Instructing, Coaching and Mentoring? What Techniques Are Being Used For Coaching and Mentoring? The key points on this subject are brought out in the self-assessment toolkit given at the end of the CREATE report Leading People. |
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