The rise ofe-coaching

Hannah McNamara looks athow technology can be used toenhance face-to-face coaching

COACHING

It was only a matter of time heforecoaching joined the world of e-learning.In the last few years, e-coaching, orcoaching using electronic platformsand tools, has moved from heing a

solution offered as a novelty on games consolesto heing considered a viahle development optionfor organisations.

The idea of introducing e-coaching into anorganisation raises a numher of questions: Can acomputer replace the need for a live interactionwith a coach? Is it really designed to? If you'regoing to introduce a form of e-coaching, whichone should you use and what's the best way ofgoing about it?

Before addressing these questions, let us take alook at an area of the market where e-coaching isalready being used extensively.

From games console to the workplaceWithin the consumer gaming market, there arealready numerous electronic products available thatmimic the relationship between coach and coachee.These are becoming more and more advanced.

Nintendo launched the My Word Coach gamefor the DS console in 2007 as a teaching tooldesigned to improve the player's vocabulary, andoffered the player a choice of'coaches' to help him.At the end of 2010, Sony launched the Kinectsensor for the Xbox and opened a new worldof possibilities. The console can literally watchthe player and give feedback and personalisedencouragement, so fitness games such as EASports Active 2 and Your Shape: Rtness Evolvedhit the high streets in time for players' 2011 NewYear's resolutions.

With more than 8m units sold in Kinect's first60 days', the reach of electronic platforms shouldnot be underestimated. The gaming market hasshifted from being the preserve of teenage malesto being something enjoyed by the whole family.

What this means for organisations is that alarge proportion of staff are already engaged with,and actively using, a form of fully automatede-coaching - whether they realise it or not.Granted, learning a skill through playing acomputer game is quite different from beingable to learn skills such as leadership andcommunication, but what ahout goal setting andbeing held accountable?

What is e-coaching?E-coaching can broadly be defined as any form ofcoaching that takes place using electronic media,with or without the input from a real coach.

Professional coaches are now adding e-coachingto their portfolio of services, either as stand-aloneprogrammes or to add value to existing one-to-oneor group coaching programmes.

Coaching is usually employed to assist withthe development of soft skills such as leadership,time management, delegation and communication,and it can also be used to embed learning fromtraining courses by helping the learner to setgoals and follow through on the necessary actions.E-coaching is no different.

How is e-coaching delivered?Real-time e-coaching tools are:

• Instant Messenger services• Skype• webinars.

Coaching using these methods can take place in aformal coaching session or as required, providingthe coach and coachee are available at the sametime. We use Skype in my company, although theservice can be patchy from time to time and wesometimes end up reverting to the telephone. Thereason we prefer it over typed communications isthat we can talk to the coachee and get a feel forhis mood, motivation level and language. Havingthe option to use video means we are ahle to seehim and he can see us, plus we can use the chatbox to send links to relevant resources he mightfind useful during the course of the session.

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COACHING

Skype is free when accessed via the Internetand can be used for conference calls. For example,one of our clients in Dubai wanted to work withtwo coaches from our team at once — I was thereto help her set goals, become more self-aware andaddress the challenges she was facing, and mycolleague was there as a mentor providing market-specific guidance.

Through this medium we were both able tocoach her at once from separate locations and herprogress was vastly accelerated. It also helpedthat she had two people to whom she washeld accountable.

We also find that, because we travelinternationally, Skype can be used to supplementface-to-face sessions with clients. Equally, manyof our clients are senior executives who are calledaway on business at a moment's notice so usingthis media allows us to maintain the continuityand momentum of a coaching programme.

For in-house coaches in companies withmultiple locations, Skype means coaching sessionscan be held without the need for either party totravel; likewise with Instant Messenger services.

Webinars combined with online discussions canbe an effective way of sharing knowledge in theorganisation and allowing people to learn from oneanother. Webinars are relatively easy to host throughproviders such as GoToMeeting and GoToWebinarand do not involve a huge investment.

Far from being a one-way flow of informationfrom trainer to staff, this technology incorporatesmany interactive features such as poUs, chatfunctions and being able to ask the trainer/facilitator questions. When group coaching sessionsare held as webinars, there is no time taken upaway from the office and staff members at differentlocations are cormected. There is the added aspectof accountability: participants in a series of grouponline coaching sessions can be asked to reportback on their progress since the last session.

Combined with a discussion forum, individualscan come together to share experiences and learnfrom one another.

Non-time specific e-coaching tools are:• email• online discussion groups (see above)• dedicated online coaching platforms• automated self-coaching programmes.

Email is usually used to supplement live orreal-time coaching, for example when sendingexercises and links to resource materials. Withinour coaching programmes, we always includeunlimited email access between the coach andcoachee throughout the period of the engagement.It provides the coachee with a higher level ofaccess to his coach and the feeling that his coachis there for him should he need him.

Rather than creating a sense of dependencyon his coach in which the individual might feelhe needs to check with him before acting, theopposite is most often the case. Knowing theycould get help if they needed it means that peoplebecome more self-sufficient.

Anecdotal feedback from our clients tells us thatthe very act of explaining the situation in an emailmeans people often end up answering their ownquestions and they don't need to click 'send' after aU.

Dedicated online programmes are more suitedto situations in which the individual is workingtowards achieving a specific outcome. This ismore akin to e-learning with the interactivity ofhaving answers to questions submitted to a coachfor review and feedback. For example, we havedeveloped two distinct e-coaching programmesmoving the individual towards two quite differentoutcomes. Land That Job is a career coachingprogramme for middle managers planning theirnext move. Our Leadership Coaching onlineprogramme is mainly used by recently-promotedexecutives to settle into their new role quickly and

is used as a resource library for coaching exercisesbetween face-to-face sessions. Both programmesare interactive, but the career coaching programmeis designed to be a self-coaching programme aswell, without the need for an e-coach.

The technology we use gives the coach andcoachee access to a secure online workspace, whichmeans they can be more frank than they would beif they knew communications were being passedthrough email, which is less secure.

Automated coaching programmes are generallyself-study courses where the next module isreleased after a period of time has passed or onlyafter the previous module has been completed.

What is the appeal of e-coaching?Flexihility Getting someone to commit to formalcoaching sessions can sometimes be challenging,whether he is working with an in-house coachor an external one. E-coaching means he can setgoals, work through coaching resources and givefeedback to his coach at a time that suits him.Likewise, the e-coach can read and respond at aconvenient time within agreed parameters.

For the in-house coach, being able to coach byemail or via an online coaching platform means hecan manage his time more effectively and, if he isso inclined, log in from home and coach when hecan think more clearly away from the office.

External coaches providing e-coaching canwork in a more flexible way, which is particularlyappealing for parents working from home. Whereonce the hours they had available for coaching

were dictated by the school run, housework andgeneral activities, they can now coach outside ofoffice hours. For those external coaches who dooperate normal office hours, they are able to workwith their e-coaching clients between one-to-onesessions and make use of other 'down time' duringthe working week.

For part-time or home-workers, e-coachingoffers the same benefits and means they are notexcluded from the development options availableto full-time office-based staff.

This flexibility means the organisation canbenefit from cost-savings and provide coachingsupport to staff globally, regardless of the time ofday or night.

Blended learning Coaching has long beenused to help individuals and groups embed whathas been learned on a training course, so it is anatural step to add in a coaching layer to existinge-learning activities.

E-coaching is any form ofcoaching that takes placeusing electronic media,with or without the inputfrom a real coach

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COACHING

Reference1 http://blogs.

technet.com/b/microsoft_biog/archive/2011/01/14/it-s-officiai-2010-the-biggest-year-in-xbox-history.aspx

HannahMcNamarais MD of HRMCoaching.She can becontactedat hannah.mcnamara®hrmcoaching.com or on+44 (0)207939 9910

E-coaching can be combined to help staff set,and work towards, development goals. As with anyother form of coaching, it is vital the e-coach isbriefed on people's development plans, feedbackfrom appraisals and the outcomes the organisationis looking for. In this way, the e-coach can be surehe is operating within the brief he hasbeen given and supports the individual'songoing development.

Amie Crews, in-house leadership coach atSouthern Railways, says an online coachingprogramme "can act as a knowledge and resourcebase with webinars and online discussions. It canbe utilised when the client wants or needs it, andprovides a way of capturing and recording data. Ithink this is particularly useful for CPD purposes".

This point about continuing professionaldevelopment is interesting because professionalbodies have started to adjust the way they monitorthe CPD activities of their members. For example,as a chartered marketer, I am required to log myCPD each year. The process at the CharteredInstitute of Marketing has changed from fillingin a form to having access to a website on which Ican log my goals for the year, map out what I needto learn to achieve those goals and reflect on theusefulness of each activity.

Scalability and cost-savings Due to the budgetinvolved, many organisations reserve one-to-oneexecutive coaching for more senior staff. Onlinecoaching is a more affordable option in situationswhere large numbers of staff need access to acoach quickly, for example as part of outplacementsupport for those being made redundant.

Pre-written self-coaching programmes such asthe Land That Job course can be released to a largenumber of people at the same time at a fixed per-head cost. Access to an e-coach for a set periodof time can be added as an option at a rate that ismore affordable than committing to an on-goingpackage of coaching due to economies of scale.

In-house coaches can be trained to use onlinetools and provide e-coaching to staff, and will beable to manage relationships with more peoplethan through providing only one-to-one coaching.

Connection to the right coaches for the jobWhen selecting external coaches, location canbecome a large factor in the decision-makingprocess, especially if the coaching company chargesfor travel to and from the venue if they are notlocal. Online tools make it much easier to connectthe coachee to the right coach for him, regardlessof location.

When one office has an existing relationship withan external coach who is trusted and has proven hisworth, other offices can utuise his expertise.

Key tips for getting a goodresult from e-coaching• Blend it with other learning methods

• Don't expect oniine seif-coachingprogrammes to fully replace humaninteraction

• Identify which skills and topics are suitable fore-coaching and which aren't

• Test it thoroughly before rolling out to largenumbers of staff

• Work with a provider experienced in this field.

Are there any drawhacks tousing e-coaching?E-coaching is primarily designed to supplementone-to-one and group coaching, not to be usedinstead of it.

For those individuals within the organisationwho have no prior experience of being coached,use purely online programmes with caution andthoroughly explain how it works. Run a smallpilot programme first, with a few individuals, toassess how it compares with other developmentoptions. Organisations expecting to save moneyby substituting living, breathing coaches withcomputer software to stiU get the same results wiUbe disappointed.

Crews is open to the idea of using ane-coaching platform, with some caveats: "I don'tthink it should completely replace the physicalone-to-one interaction of a coach. Rather it shouldbe used as an additional tool to support the chentin between sessions."

At law firm Pinsent Masons, partnerdevelopment coach Sophie Turner says that "akey factor in the success of our partner coachingprogramme is that we have insisted on it beingface-to-face. Face-to-face enables the keyingredients of effective coaching to occur - theimpact of the signature presence of the coach andthe rapport between coach and coachee".

As an external coach I find face-to-faceinteraction invaluable. I specialise in workingwith senior people in technology companies and,ironically, they are the people who most cravehuman interaction. While my company doesprovide purely online coaching programmes, theyare for a specific purpose. My personal preferenceis to use technology to complement one-to-onecoaching at senior levels and only use itwhen appropriate.

Are we at the point where machines wül take overthe world of LScD? Perhaps, but not quite yet. TJ

TJ May 2011 www.trainingjournal.com

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