Your leadership team is skeptical about executive coaching benefits. How can you change their minds?

Model it. Do it yourself. Sign on with a coach and then share your experiences with your team. It’s as simple as monkey see monkey do. They’re not skeptical. They’re afraid. Show them it’s not scary.

I was involved very early on in the evolution of the executive coaching profession as the CEO of a business that pioneered executive coaching at the BBC, Channel 4, The Guardian and several UK government departments and agencies. Part of the hill we had to climb was the mindset that only failing executives need coaching. Also, HR would often use coaching as a tool for exiting executives. In the Olympics and the soccer Euros, sports organisations (the source of modern executive coaching) continue to demonstrate how coaching transforms the success of individuals and teams. The impact of coaching on individual, team and organisational performance of top executives is confirmed by quantitative research. Numbers don't lie!

Do you think Carlos Alcaraz could have won Wimbledon without the insights of a great coach? Coaches offer solid expertise + ROI. They're observers + sounding boards who bring out your best performance. But in the business world, the word "coaching" can trigger some funny reactions. Is it therapy? A motivation-booster? Will the coach expect me to share embarrassing personal anecdotes? To get the leadership team on board, "normalise" coaching with comparisons to fitness or nutritional coaching -- or sports coaches from back in high school. Think of reliable mechanics or doctors. They're experts who explore your symptoms, ask the right questions, and suggest solutions for consideration. They all simply want to see you at your best.

Implementing executive coaching for senior stakeholders yields significant ROI. It enhances leadership skills, improves decision-making, and drives organizational success. Coached executives are better equipped to handle challenges, foster innovation, and build cohesive teams. This leads to increased productivity, higher employee engagement, and stronger financial performance. Investing in executive coaching not only develops individual leaders but also creates a culture of continuous improvement, ultimately delivering substantial returns for the organization.

I highly recommend to involve the leadership team by providing them clarity on the process, criteria for selection, credentials of the coaches in addition to success stories. Moreover, sharing details about the modalities, pace and co-conctructive aspect of coaching will set clear expectations and provide a sense of partnership and owenership.

To engage a team in executive coaching and overcome objections, use the Ledge, Disrupt, and Ask tool (by Jeb Blount).The Ledge provides a response to manage initial rejection, and all reactions. The Disrupt breaks the team's pattern with surprising statements, and creates engagement. Eventually comes the Ask, when a requests appears for the desired outcome. For example, if they say they're happy with their current approach, acknowledge it and ask "How about we schedule a brief meeting to see if there's an opportunity for further improvement?" When time is an issue, ask "When would be a more convenient time for a quick discussion?" By practicing these steps with the team together, you can overcome objections and foster openness to coaching.