MY SERVICES
Team Coaching with Shaun
The success of any organisation depends on its people, and the ability of each individual to align themselves with a common purpose or goal. This seems simple, but it underestimates the dynamics and complexities at play in teams. This is why I love working with teams, helping them to face their challenges and develop into a self-reliant unit.
In my experience, many people work in teams, but few people work on their teams. This is where I come in as a team coach. We will work together as equal partners, exploring questions and challenges such as:
- Purpose – understanding the direction of the team, agreeing on its purpose, and how the team wants to get there
- Relationships – building understanding between individual team members
- Team design – how do we identify as a team? What is our culture? What do we want to be known for?
- Accountability – how do we build accountability as a team? What do we do if no one is accountable in the future?
- Cohesiveness / collaboration – how this affects the outputs of the team. What happens if the team is fractured into different ‘camps’?
- Stakeholder relationships – understanding how the team is serving its stakeholders at the time and in the future. How does the team relate to the overall system of the organisation?
- Learning as a team – how does the team learn together? How do the members provide feedback to each other, and learn when things do not go according to plan?
Working in a team is something that many do but few people consciously consider. My role is to support the team as it grapples with the challenges it faces, bringing a fresh perspective to the situation. Throughout this process, the team gains a better understanding of how to deal with its issues and learns how to work together.
When I work with a team, I am guided by my seven key approaches to team coaching. These are:
- Engagement – the team shapes the coaching with me. This ‘binds’ them into the work and creates an attachment to it. We are equal partners in the process.
- Flexibility – I work with the energy of the team and allow things to unfold organically. There is no set ‘formula’, and I am alive to the possibilities that arise during our time together.
- Trust – my work builds and deepens trust within the team, which is fundamental to achieving our goals.
- Communication – creating awareness of communication within and outside the team.
- Space – our work takes the team out of the operational pressures and allows it to stop, reflect, explore, and identify options.
- Wider-view – seeing how the team operates in a wider ‘system’ and how it relates to others outside the team.
- Change – the coaching is future-focused and considers the possibilities of positive change for the team.
The value of the work comes from unlocking the power of the team. I provide the time, space, and safe environment for team members to have the conversations that they would not normally have. This is powerful work, and it takes courage to bring to the surface any underlying issues.
Combining and adapting my approaches to the specific needs of each team, I build the team’s capability to work through its current challenges as well as the ones they will face in the future. This is important as it means that the team can truly be independent and deal with issues as they arise, long after we finish working together.
In my experience, this approach leads to a more contented work environment where people are more positive and enjoy what they do. It benefits the team in so many ways, including:
- Aligning the team with its purpose
- Increasing collaboration amongst team members
- Driving up engagement which creates the conditions for increased team performance