The GROW Coaching Model

 

One of the best pieces of advice I received when starting my management career was; "AJ, no matter how much you want to, you can't do it for them." I confess to learning the wisdom of this the hard way.

The GROW Coaching model is a very straightforward, easy to apply framework that all managers, regardless of experience can benefit from using when they need to develop others.

Goal - where do you want to be?
Reality - where are you now?
Opportunity - what (and who) can help you to change?
Will - when will you do it?

GROW provides a structure in which to question, explore and develop commitment in others for growth and performance improvement. It is an essential tool for any management role, and as with all people development activity you will need three things to happen.

1) Clearly highlight and gain understanding on the reason(s) why it needs to happen / the implications of it not happening

2) Offer support, but ensure an individual knows they are the one responsible for the outcome

and 3), Always document it!

The documenting part is not just for reviewing and evidence purposes, it’s also for confidence building. On later development journeys nothing says ‘you can do it!’ quite like past evidence of a person doing it before. You build a library of past learning success.

How it works:

Together you and an individual agree upon a GOAL - ‘what good looks like’. Goals should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time bound (SMART).

Next you discuss the REALITY of where they currently are and why it’s important to not be there.

Very soon you come to the more positive subject of OPPORTUNITY for growth, to what we are actually going to do to change the situation. This is always individual led, no matter how tempting it is to just say, ‘do this’ or ‘stop doing that’. A Key reason for this is that an individual must take responsibility for their solution, they must ‘own it’, and the best way to do this is let them lead the decision making process.

And finally we come to WILL. When will it happen? Without commitment and an agreed date in place you are just bouncing around ideas. That defined time frame is what makes this a plan and gives you an outcome to manage and motivate.

Here are some useful example questions to get you started:

Goal questions
* What do you want to achieve?
* What is important to you right now?
* What areas would you like to work on?
* Describe the perfect …
* What do you want to achieve as a result of this session?
* What will make you feel this time has been well spent?

Reality questions
* Where are you now in relation to the goal?
* What do you feel has contributed to your success so far?
* What skills / knowledge / expertise do you have?
* What progress have you made so far?
* What is working well for you right now?

Opportunity questions
* What are your options?
* How have you dealt with this (or a similar situation) in the past?
* What could you do differently?
* Who do you know who has encountered a similar situation?
* Can you give me 3 options to move forward …
* If anything was possible, what would you do?
* What else is open to you / us?

Will questions
* Which options are working best for you?
* What actions will you take?
* When are you going to start?
* What can I do to support you?
* How will you know you have been successful?
* How will you ensure you do it and stick at it?
* On a scale of 1 -10 how committed / motivated are you to doing it? What might be preventing a score of 10?

When development tools like GROW are applied well they yield quick, 'admin-light' and long-lasting change. When mixed with development planning and credible management information such as performance / work flow figures and customer / colleague feedback, they provide valuable insight and all the evidence you will need to inspire learner responsibility and drive on-going performance improvement.

When looking to develop or support others, G.R.O.W. coaches need to constantly be:
    •    Building Rapport
    •    Questioning
    •    Observing
    •    Listening
    •    Prompting insight and change
    •    Suspending judgement
    •    Managing assumptions
    •    Stay open-minded

One last thing: If you really feel you need to 'do it for them’, do this for them first!”

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