What are the benefits of coaching?
Coaching has been shown to have an effect on 5 key individual outcome categories, according to an analysis of research conducted by the University of Reading:
“Our findings suggest that the answer to our question (whether workplace coaching was effective in terms of delivering individual learning and development) is yes, and our analyses indicated that coaching resulted in a number of key positive effects for learning and performance outcomes” – Jones, R. J. et al
The Institute of Coaching also cites that more than 70% of people who receive coaching benefited with:
“Coaching provides an invaluable space for personal development. For example, managers are frequently presented with employees struggling with low confidence. The traditional approach would be to send them to an assertiveness course and hope this addresses the issue. In the short-term, the employee learns new strategies for communicating which may improve confidence. Unfortunately, in isolation these courses rarely produce a sustained increase in confidence. Although external behavior may change; it needs to be supported by changes in their internal thought processes. This is often where coaching is most effective.” – The Institute of Coaching
Coaching has a particularly positive impact on women in leadership. Sally Bonnywell’s study of 1-2-1 coaching of female leaders published in the International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentorship further showed coaching had a positive impact in the following areas:
“The overall finding is that the experience of coaching was reported as supporting the development of female leaders in many and varied ways, including enabling the development of skills and capabilities as well as progression in their roles… female leaders also emphasised that the coaching supported them with self and personal identity development, relational ability and transformational learning. This research adds an additional dimension to the limited extant literature regarding coaching as a developmental support to female leaders” – Sally Bonnywell
An analysis conducted by the Henley Business School assessed the impact of coaching on 3 main areas:
- Affective outcomes: such as the coachee’s attitudes, emotions and motivations
- Skills-based outcomes: for example competencies and leadership skills
- Results outcomes: showing performance improvement of the individual, team and organisational
“The evidence clearly indicates that there is a need for coaching to support employee learning and development in the demanding business environment and that coaching is an effective methodology at enhancing a variety of outcomes in the workplace including bottom-line results.” – Henley Business School
Interestingly, this study has shown a positive impact on all three areas, with the highest impact on results – even more so than the impact of managerial training interventions.
It is clear that coaching is more than a mystical space to feel good
Studies show coaching makes a positive difference to how people feel internally, relate to others, and work through everyday difficulties, as well as showing improvements on other practical aspects of life, such as performance and competencies.
But will coaching work for anyone? And if Sanctus coaching is so different from business and personal coaching, do we know the impact Sanctus coaching has on our clients?
Does Sanctus Coaching work?
Given that Sanctus Coaching has a unique flavour – blending personal & professional development with proactive wellbeing support – how do our coaching interventions compare to traditional executive and personal coaching?
From feedback data collected from our own pool of 1,493 Sanctus coaching clients, 95.3% rated their coaching experience as 8 and above out of 10.
When asked whether the coaching session improved their mental health:
Beyond the data, the quality of our coaching is a key concern for us at Sanctus, and to know the specific impact our sessions have on our clients. Here are some anecdotal feedback from our client-pool, about how Sanctus Coaching has benefited them in a range of areas:
New perspectives
“By giving me a new perspective or simply having me voice my feelings and experiences my Sanctus coach continues to give me the support I need to overcome struggles and grow personally as well as professionally.”
A breadth of topics that can be covered
“I appreciate the diversity of topics we can cover based on my needs at the moment of the session. Interesting tools which help me gain perspective and which I can use on my own.”
Changing role and staying motivated
“Sessions help me transition between roles and stay motivated, vent the stress, discuss uncertainties with a person who has a different perspective and will keep my concerns confidential. I feel supported and more secure.”
Confidence, self respect, and self assuredness
“The session had a huge impact. My confidence, self respect, and knowing what I want is all returning. I was a little lost but feeling more like my ‘old self’ again, which is exactly what I needed.”
Different ways of doing things
“It made me think about different ways of doing things I hadn’t considered before and I’ve come out of it feeling positive and hopeful.”
Proactive wellbeing upkeep, stress and anxiety management
“We worked on clear actions I could work on in moments of stress, and was advised on how to use new techniques. Was great to discuss what I am experiencing. It takes the stress away from feeling like you’ve got to join an endless waiting list to get help.”
Getting unstuck
“I feel more optimistic about where I am and where I’m going. I don’t feel like I’m stuck in one place and know how I can move forward.”
Space and time away from the day to day
“I had been feeling quite stressed and overwhelmed, having the opportunity to take time out of my day to speak to my Sanctus coach was really valuable.”
Find out more about what people get out of Sanctus Coaching:
