HRANB Newsletter

As a very early riser (aka freak) I typically would use the first few hours of the day to put finishing touches on presentations. I remember being especially excited about a succession planning presentation I had prepared. Not just because it happens to be a passion of mine but because I had cleverly used analogies of some famous hockey trades to illustrate the concept of long term people planning: “building bench strength and developing rookies”...ahem, as you might have guessed my executive team, at the time, was made up of hockey playing males – all they talked about was hockey and I was always “outnumbered” as a non-hockey playing female hmmmmph!

As usual, on presentation day, I was pressed for time, and in walked our Marketing Manager: Jamie. Jamie was as brilliant as she was beautiful and could be counted on to offer astute strategic big picture thinking yet held an impressive reputation for incredible execution – she “had it all” and was considered a “star” performer. Yet...that morning she wasn’t shining as brightly as usual, in fact, she looked downright unhappy - then it hit me- she had been looking like that for some time and in my frantic state of marathon presentation preparation didn’t pick up on the signs. Not known to be up early, she was at my door at the break of dawn, causing my HR senses to tingle: she had that “I’m thinking of leaving” look.

I put my presentation aside and cautiously asked what was wrong and listened to Jamie recount how one of our team members had taken credit for her idea. I recall her saying that it wasn’t the first time and felt that all of her energy was spent in areas she really didn’t enjoy. She also complained that she was simply “sick and tired” of what she called “the head games” and wished that she could just do her job and not have to worry about politics. She confessed she had started to think that our company was not a fit for her.

Back then (when you didn’t have to check your emails) we called what Jamie went through “plateauing”, or “career rut”, or “burnout” or “hitting the corporate wall” or “reaching the glass ceiling” etc....All of these formal or slang type references described the same phenomenon that can plague any executive. It’s a time when the illustrious shine of an executive’s bright future naturally dims and appears to stagnate or seemingly doesn’t move as relatively fast as it had. The proverbial corporate ladder they once leapt ahead on, sometimes at the turbo speed of 4 rungs at a time, suddenly appears like it has been suspiciously wiped down with WD40. This happens for natural reasons: flattening of companies providing lateral growth (lattice instead of ladder), having to cope with new work/life balance issues (personal changes – marriage, children), corporate politics, and just simply stuff that used to motivate us no longer does.

Notwithstanding generational differences, changes in values happen in all of us and corporations need to be mindful that these changes affect employee engagement and motivation. Out of seemingly nowhere: key employees can suddenly appear despondent and less tolerant with corporate politics, impatient when dealing with difficult co-workers, and generally critical of the direction the company is taking and frustrated that corporate infrastructures no longer meet their personal needs. It is truly a formidable time. A time when some decide to leave for another company, some change careers, and even others begin their own company. For those, however, who “stick it out”: work through the plateaus, develop resilience for corporate challenges, learn survival tactics for corporate politics – they are the ones poised to go the distance, so to speak, and take on higher leadership roles within companies.

Providing support to “stick it out” or trek through these tough, Plateau Reaching Career Ruts no longer needs to reside solely behind the walls of the HR department, halting projects (ahem, or preparation for succession planning presentations) because employees take up residence in your office and sequester you into coaching sessions. What can occur now, in advance of even any warning signs appearing, is retention of a Corporate Coach to strategically target competency development: especially in the areas of “Executive Level Preparation”. This type of development can become part of an overall company retention strategy where the newest and latest Corporate Coaching support is offered to your developing Stars like Jamie.

In other words, I could have given Jamie some of my time to explain natural ebbs and flows of career evolution (which I had) and share my own self deprecating corporate political game playing stories (which I had and for some reason hearing how I screwed up curiously cheers everyone up hmmmmph!) But what I didn’t do then, that I would do today, is line her up with a corporate coach. A corporate coach could re-acquaint her with career goals and “equip” her for the challenges associated with the next level of growth: the company and her own.

Coaching programs have traditionally been targeting executives or “problem employees” but now Coaching is as agile as are our employee differences and can be customized to meet all sorts of developmental opportunities. According to statistics from the International Coaching Federation: “the amount of money that an organization typically spends to send an employee to on off-site conference is equivalent to how much a coach would cost for one year for that same employee. The results from coaching are usually much more dramatic, affecting everything from productivity to team building and employee engagement.”

Coaching can address competencies requiring particular focus such as executive maturity, or individuals who are technically brilliant but can appear almost socially inept or in supporting employees with “boardroom resiliency” and improve interpersonal effectiveness. Other popular areas include addressing the seemingly elusive “Work/life balance” or softening a dictatorial leadership style. The most popular of all has been in the adjustment from worker to Manager, or from Manager to Leader and even supporting leaders to sharpen their Coaching techniques.

In times like now when it makes sense to outsource so we can better focus on what needs to get done and in times like now when engagement and retention of talent is so critical - hiring a coach is fast becoming the best solution.....

ok, ok.... so perhaps my hockey laden executive team knew more about succession planning than I thought as they naturally seem to know that “behind every great player there is a great coach”!

Monique Brennan, BA, MSc., CHRP is Founder of the Coaching Consortium Co. Located at 18 Botsford St., Moncton, NB. Should you want more information on how coaching can support your position, your company or yourself or if you are a coach who would like to be connected to clients call (506) 388 – 0011 or email Monique @ mqcoach@nb.sympatico.ca.