Group Coaching continues to increase in popularity for coaches and clients alike. Grounded in our core coaching competencies, group coaching brings the coaching conversation into a small group context. It is an intimate conversation space, focused on goal setting, deepening awareness around key issues, taking action, and Group Coaching is the Future in Coaching. Group coaching is used much more often now -- and for many reasons, including increased impact and revenue. Group coaching quickly leverages the untapped wisdom, support and networking among clients, employees and peers.
Group coaching links professionals together to make their work more effective. This coaching opportunity may be formal or informal and could include peers with a common interest or people from different organizations who want to collaborate to increase effectiveness. One example may be the managers of different lines of business, who may not be on a team, but want to meet to share lessons, learned, best practices, and create efficiencies through shared knowledge.
Giants Alive Group coaching offers a thorough assessment, feedback and coaching process, tailored to meet the group's needs. The program is available via face-to-face delivery at your location.
The Benefits of Group Coaching:
Group coaching clients benefit from the peer learning with others, commonly referred to as the collective wisdom of the group. This peer learning is often as important as the interaction with the coach. Many clients find the process "less on the spot", giving them more time to reflect and integrate their insights. GAS group coaches step back and create a strong process framework for the coaching to emerge from.
Coaches may find that group coaching is a powerful way to leverage their time and resources, enabling them to work with more clients over less time, potentially at a lower price point per person.
Organizations may find benefit due to the scalable nature of the process, opening up communication between silos or group members in different parts of the organization. Over time these relationships create a valuable network across an organization. Group coaching can also be positioned as a training follow-on, supporting learners to with the transfer and application of their learning, creating an on-going accountability structure. Group coaching is an on-going conversation, which supports change over time.
What group coaching looks like?
Group coaching is taking many forms globally, given that it is driven and shaped by the various needs of different client groups. The group coaching conversation can feel "wide and broad" rather than the deep, deep dive of an individual coaching conversation.
Example #1: A group coaching program for female leaders exploring work life issues - on-going in person corporate sessions over several months.
Example #2: Group coaching for new managers as follow-on to leadership training, with conversations occurring monthly over a year.
Example #3: A three month bi-weekly program offered virtually (by phone) for business owners, with a mix of small group and individual coaching calls.
Key considerations:
Lead from your core coaching skills - Group coaching is an extension of the coaching process. Coaches will want to lead from their core coaching skills, as well as remembering the importance of curiosity, holding your clients resourceful and complete, focusing on action and awareness along with accountability.
Spend time getting to know your group members - Just as in one-on-one coaching, in group coaching the relationship between coach and clients (plural in this case) is foundational for success. In group coaching there are multiple agendas at play, rather than just one.
In the lead up to my group coaching processes, I usually hold pre-program phone conversations with each group member. I use this call to answer any questions they may have, as well as to learn more about them, find out what brought them to the program and learn about their goals and success measures for your work together.
If you cannot connect with people before the start of the program, you will want to ensure this happens during the first group coaching conversation. The first group coaching session should also identify, or confirm, the topic or theme areas the coaching will look at, or use as anchors. Unlike a 1-1 conversation where it is common to have the individual client set the agenda that day, it can be useful to have an anchoring theme each session which group members use to ground their thinking or focus each week. For example, one week of a group coaching program for business owners may focus on business vision, or values. For leaders an anchoring theme may be strengths as a leader. These common themes anchor and focus the conversation.
Recognize that different group members will have different styles. There will be multiple personalities and style preferences within your group. Consider where preferences lay in terms of visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning styles, or those that learn by seeing, hearing or doing. You will also want to learn about individual group members preferences in terms of how they prefer to process (verbally, in reflection, fast or slow). Vary your approaches accordingly.
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