Team coaching as a driver for change buy-in
Team dynamics
The challenges of embracing change
Many people see change as a simple process: set up a working group to define what needs to be done, when and by whom, and then implement the plan. So why do employees find it hard to implement these plans?
And what should managers do when their teams fail to implement them? Is professional coaching the right thing to do?
The success of a transformation project depends on two factors:
- Ensuring that all teams understand the changes
- Getting everyone on board with these changes
Are your teams well prepared for the changes?
Team coaching, or collective coaching, can be a highly effective tool for encouraging people to embrace change:
- Clarification of objectives and expectations: It allows the team to understand why the change is necessary and how it could help them achieve their shared long-term objectives. This can strengthen the team's motivation and commitment to change.
- Improved communication and collaboration: it enables the team to work together more effectively to achieve the objectives of the change (with less resistance to change, and greater involvement in the change process).
- Identification of obstacles and challenges : This enables the team to anticipate problems that may arise and find solutions to overcome them.
- Building confidence and resilience: More confident in its ability to meet the challenges of change, the team will be better able to cope with the challenges and setbacks that may arise during the change process.
Our approach to helping people embrace change
Changing an organisation, whatever the purpose, is first and foremost about changing people. But the plans put in place for change are generally focused on making the change happen, rather than on getting teams to evolve. This is because it's easier to plan change than to support employees during its implementation.
Successful organisations are those that succeed in aligning transformation with a culture of transition support for their employees, with precise and appropriate operating methods, while remaining at the service of their customers.
This is why my team coaching (as company coaching) often aim to identify how individual resistance to change can be transformed into a collective dynamic for change.
The benefits of my group coaching
- As a professional coach, I take into account the emotional aspects of change, in addition to the individual adjustments needed to create a stronger, more effective team. How do teams feel and experience change? Where are they on the change curve? What do they need to move forward on this curve? What are they missing or what have they missed?
- I work in French or English.
- I propose a targeted approach that complements other transformations underway in the organisation, to leverage their effects. Where appropriate, I combine team coaching sessions and workshop facilitation with individual coaching.
- Teams are more motivated and more loyal to collective challenges,
- The effects of team coaching are far more profound than those of training or team-building, because the work is directly linked to the business, which is itself geared towards the rewarding achievement of objectives.
- The methodological framework for coaching is guaranteed by a contract and by my compliance with the ethical commitments of the International Coaching Federation, in particular regular professional supervision, coupled with intervision between certified peer coaches.
It should be noted that these team coaching sessions can be effectively combined with an individual approach for certain team members, which may include a personal development component, for example.
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What is resistance to change?
Resistance to change is an inevitable process, whether individual or collective. And it has nothing to do with the relevance of the project or the strength of the change. Resistance to change is natural, because it involves moving away from a known and mastered situation towards an unknown and not yet mastered situation. It is encouraged by a lack of team cohesion.
What are the main reasons why transformations fail?
There are two main reasons for this:
The first is that support for change is often limited to simple training, for example in new tools, new processes or new internal procedures. This is a first step, but it does not take sufficient account of the way in which people approach change, or of their natural reluctance to change. First and foremost, we are all looking for a balance - and any change calls this balance into question. This is what Michel Crozier and Erhard Friedberg develop in their book L'acteur et le système, Le Seuil, 1977. "Resistance to change is the reasonable and legitimate expression of the risks that change entails for those involved.
The second is managers' resistance to change. Some managers I meet think that only their teams need to change. Or they don't realise that they themselves are resisting change. They don't realise that, as leaders, they too need to evolve if they are to manage change. Because the absence of intention condemns change to failure. This is what differentiates change of the "applying a new organisation" type from the desire for genuine transformation. Organisational change cannot succeed without leadership support.
What are the negative effects of changes that are poorly supported?
The most common are :
- Loss of sense of mission
- Loss of confidence in the company
- Reduced motivation and commitment to work.
What are the main phases of a transition?
In his book, Managing Transitions, William Bridges explains that transition is a psychological process in 3 phases:
- The end - it's time to abandon the old perspectives
- The neutral phase - a sort of 'no man's land' between the old reality and what the future holds for us
- A fresh start - Starting afresh with a new energy, a new vision, a new identity.
What is successful team coaching?
A team coaching Successful team coaching enables a team to work together more effectively to achieve its objectives. This obviously requires new practices, but here are a few key characteristics of successful team coaching:
- Successful team coaching starts with a clear definition of the team's objectives. Objectives should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound (SMART). The coach helps the team to identify and clarify these objectives to ensure that all team members adhere to the objectives, and to the resulting changes.
- Successful team coaching must include an honest and constructive assessment of the team's current situation. The team coach must help the team to identify its strengths and weaknesses, to stimulate what we call good team dynamics.
- The team coach must help the team to draw up a concrete action plan to plan and implement actions, detailing tasks, responsibilities and deadlines.
- Skills development can include training sessions, team-building exercises and communication enhancement activities.
- Team coaching can include regular monitoring and evaluation of the team's performance. The team coach can help the team to measure progress against defined objectives and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
