Course Guide

Increase Your Employee Engagement Through Coaching

A car that has its parts in their optimal condition is enjoyable to drive and performs well. The same it is with an organisation: an organisation that has its employees engaged rises above the top, performs well, and is easy to manage.

What is employee engagement?

Employee engagement is not the same as employee satisfaction and happiness.

Employees who are just satisfied with their jobs might just show up for their daily 8-to-5 work routine without complaint. They may be happy to receive their monthly paychecks but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are passionate enough to give their best in what they are doing at work. On the other hand, engaged employees go the extra mile – they do their jobs with love and passion. They are committed to the organisation and its goals and put their very best effort into their work. They don’t just work for a pay check, or for recognition or promotion, but they work on behalf of the organisation and its goals.

An article by Forbes magazine states that engaged employees lead to better business outcomes. In fact, according to Towers Perrin research, companies with engaged workers have 6% higher net profit margins, and according to Kenexa research engaged companies have five times higher shareholder returns over five years.

So how do you keep your employees engaged?

A recent study by the International Coach Federation reported that organisations with a strong coaching culture have higher employee engagement (60% of employees rated as highly engaged compared with 48% of all other organizations) (ICF, 2015).

Developing a coaching culture in your organisation builds up your employee’s emotional intelligence and creates an atmosphere of openness and accountability in your organisation resulting in engaged employees and top performing organisations.

Organisations with a strong coaching culture value coaching. Their senior executives value coaching and receive coaching themselves. Their managers as leaders coach their direct reports on a weekly basis, spending 19% of their time on coaching. Organisations with designated internal coaches do the same. Leaders who coach (and their designated internal coaches) received dedicated coach training because there is a line item in the budget for coach training as part of the organisation’s commitment to coaching as a distinct leadership development activity. Moreover, all employees in the organisation have an equal opportunity to receive coaching from either their line manager / leader or a dedicated internal coach. Evidence is emerging as to the value of providing coaching to entry-level employees since they interact directly with clients and are the front line when it comes to customer relations.

If you would like your organisation to achieve higher levels of employee engagement, consider adding coaching as a line item in your next budget so as to demonstrate your organisation’s commitment to developing a coaching culture and reaping the benefits.

If you want to incorporate coaching into your organisation and become a professional coach yourself, you can contact the Australian Institute of Professional Coaches 1 300 309 306 or email us at [email protected] . We look forward to speaking with you soon.