Some organizations use annual reviews to discuss goals and improvement areas. Others have these kinds of discussions all year long. Companies that have a coaching culture have ongoing mentoring and feedback baked into their daily operations.

According to Angela Lee, an author at Torch, a coaching culture is one in which employees and bosses take a similar approach to developing and interacting with others. They prioritize helping other people grow in the context or work.

The benefits of a coaching culture are many, she says, including improved employee engagement, better collaboration and enhanced creativity. How can you go about building this kind of culture? The key is to start by asking a series of questions.

In this issue of PromoPro Daily, we share the questions Lee recommends asking to bring a coaching culture to life at your promo company.

1. How will a coaching culture help us reach our organizational goals? It’s important to understand what you want to accomplish and how coaching can help you achieve larger organizational goals. Like any big change, you need buy-in. Lee says that when you can show the ripple effect of coaching, you can create a solid business case for it.

2. Who will have access to coaching and what form of coaching is the most appropriate for your organization? Coaching comes in all kinds of forms, including:

  • Executive coaching
  • High-potential coaching
  • New manager training
  • Career coaching for all employees
  • Group coaching
  • Drop-in coaching

According to Lee, the type of coaching you select should be influenced by your goals and the outcomes you’re hoping to achieve.

3. How will we build coaching into the culture? Some points to consider include how your promo company trains leaders and these leaders’ expectations. Each organization has its own unique coaching culture. To be successful, Lee says you need to understand what is inherent about your own culture and work with it, not against it.

4. How do we get critical mass to ensure that we’re building a coaching culture? One important way to drive awareness and adoption is to involve your senior leaders. Lee recommends also establishing a budget for ongoing coaching programs. Look at the big picture and commit to investing over the long term.

Developing a coaching culture at your promo company takes time and effort, but it can totally transform your team’s performance. Get started by asking the four questions above.   

Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: Angela Lee is an author at Torch, a leadership development platform.