11 Why Coaching? Why Now? The landscape of business has changed dramatically. Expanding technology, changing populations and a much larger playing field for both opportunity and competition on a global scale. All industries have been challenged to keep up with the ongoing changes, while simultaneously paying attention to growth. Indeed, if you are in healthcare, government, manufacturing, education, services or non-profit you have likely already seen a host of new technology and rapidly changing systems that require your business environment to be agile, innovative, responsive and adaptable. One of the most notable areas of change in recent decades has been the shift from algorithmic work to heuristic work. In other words, the shift from routine, repetitive measurable work, to work that involves critical thinking, analysis and creativity. It has been determined at the time of this writing that 70 percent of current job growth in North America is in heuristic work. Rapid growth in this area is also seen throughout Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia. Experts see heuristic work only growing, given the need for a rapid and creative response to the evolving business environments. In algorithmic work environments, the old “carrot and stick” or “reward and punishment” worked well, but researchers have found that this approach can be devastating in a heuristic environment. What is more effective for this emerging environment is competency in soft skills. This has become critical for leading a heuristic workforce. Using these skills proficiently allows leaders to tap into employee’s built-in and unique motivation systems. This catalyzes creativity and enhances the heuristic work on which agile, innovative, responsive and adaptable business environments now depend. Enter Coaching Coaching is a must have leadership competency. Taking a coach approach to leadership means mining the very best from others by partnering with them to discover their unique motivation system and strategizing with them to work in alignment with it. Taking a coach approach also means asking others to stretch beyond their comfort zones and leverage their strengths in a variety of areas such as change, creativity, decision-making, communication and even conflict. Having people work in alignment with their unique motivation system and stretching beyond what they would ask of themselves is imperative to creating an organizational culture that is agile, innovative, responsive and adaptable. PART TWO THE CASE FOR COACHING PART TWO - THE CASE FOR COACHING
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