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RAISING THE BAR: SPORTS COACHING MAXIMIZES MANAGERIAL PERFORMANCE

When sportspersons are in trouble and require assistance they actively seek the help of coaches. Over the decades, techniques in sports coaching have been developed, refined and implemented to produce world class athletes and sportspersons.

Curiously, industry has been slow to adopt these proven sports coaching techniques to boost the performance of their managers?

There are two broad reasons for this reluctance to seek coaching:

Firstly, managers are uncomfortable in seeking coaches because it implies that they need help. Coaching, by definition, is a methodology that provides help when things go wrong and managers usually do not like to admit that mistakes have been made that require external assistance.
Secondly, when managers do admit that a mistake has been made they tend to adopt 'creative defensiveness' methods to explain the error by transferring the problem to another person(s) or situation. Again, in this case, the need for coaching is cleverly avoided.

In the sports arena there are numerous situations that have a parallel in the business environment. And, unlike management professionals' sportspersons face the disadvantage of having to cope with these situations in micro-seconds or the game will go away from them. It is help manage these situations that the coach plays a critical role.

Champion sportsmen, like Andre Agassi, Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan have attributed their phenomenal successes to having a coach. At the highest level of sport the emphasis is less on coaching technique and tactical play - it is assumed that the player already has these skills in abundance. The focus is on the mental aspect of the game, which is the critical parameter that can make the difference between winning and losing.

Similarly, in the business world experienced managers with strong academic backgrounds (supplemented by technical/managerial courses) are able to manage tactical/strategic issues but often their performance suffers in pressure situations as they are unable to handle the mental stress. Over a sustained period this builds up into a pressure point and the quality of decision making suffers. By sustained intervention an external coach can assist in enhancing the performance of the individual and achieving a work-life balance

The How of Coaching
Various coaching techniques are used for performance enhancement and some of the better known models are GROW, Transformational Coaching, Pyschosynthesis and The Inner Game (also known as Non-Directive Coaching).

In the context of this article, it is interesting to find that amongst the most widely practiced models is "The Inner Game." Timothy Gallwey, a tennis coach, academician and corporate consultant is the creator of the "The Inner Game" methodology where he has applied techniques found in sports coaching, specifically tennis coaching, to enhancing performance in the workplace.

Corporate managers, like sportspersons, often struggle with the fact that their performance rarely equals potential. Whatever they do, they feel it can be done better, even the simplest of tasks. Gallwey's Inner Game model seeks to bridge the gap between potential and performance in the workplace by adopting techniques that have successfully worked in the sports arena.

Gallwey's Inner Game techniques have shown - often dramatic - improvements in performance at the work place.

The Coach's role
In coaching there is an inherent difference with most other professions. If the result of coaching is a high level of performance - the winning of a game or the achievement of a life goal - it is not the coach who wins but the individual or team being coached. The coach cannot score an ace, kick the winning goal or defend the goal post. The coach cannot run the winning race, meet the quarterly target, achieve the bottom line or design the product. In fact though coaches do not set foot on the playing field they are often paid top wages for the perceived impact on the individual or team performance.

It is thus an indirect profession. In effect an evocative profession. The coach often does not need to impart knowledge, advice or wisdom. What he or she must do is speak, and act, in such a way that others learn and perform at their best.

The Executive Coach's role is, therefore, not a typical one. Ideally he/she should be a third party, industry professional with varied experience who creates a safe environment to share business insights and information and to help untangle tough company issues.

Coaching in Indian industry
Indian business has been slow to adopt the use of external coaching as a performance enhancement methodology. To some extent, unlike in the Western countries, the lack of awareness about sports coaching techniques comes in the way of appreciating the benefits and adopting coaching as a powerful tool for maximizing performance in the workplace.

As awareness increases about the benefits of external coaching as a performance enhancement tool, it is strongly recommended that Indian managers draw lessons from sporting excellence and introduce external coaching as a means to reducing employee attrition levels and improving morale in the workplace.

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