L&D leaders are tasked with a tall order: continually upskilling every employee to meet the demanding needs of the business. So how can you build a learning strategy that fosters rapid and sustained skills improvement?
Group coaching accelerates performance improvements by providing an opportunity for real-time problem-solving, skill enhancement, and accountability. This dynamic approach enhances personal growth and complements formal training by enriching the overall learning journey with tailored insights and a collective wisdom that goes beyond traditional methods.
Plus, research shows that it’s highly effective:
- Business coaching has a 5.7x ROI
- Organizations leveraging coaching experience a median revenue growth of 21%
- 56% of companies reported an increase in employee engagement
Let’s take a deeper look at how group coaching can enhance your current learning and development programs.
What is group coaching?
Group coaching is a form of professional development that involves a trained coach working with a small group of individuals to work through their goals and challenges.
Envision a small community of participants, each bringing their unique perspectives and ambitions to the session. In this setting, the participants actively contribute their insights and experiences. The coach orchestrates the sessions, skillfully navigating and coaching participants to address individual challenges within the context of the group’s collective objectives. It’s a space where participants receive coaching, draw inspiration and wisdom from one another, and create a sense of camaraderie that extends beyond the coaching sessions.
What are the benefits of group coaching?
Group coaching stands out for its emphasis on addressing participants’ real-world challenges and building on their experiences. This personalized approach creates a responsive learning environment where individuals explore and navigate specific issues. It’s a flexible and tailored addition to traditional training that thrives on the authenticity of shared experiences within a supportive community.
The diversity of perspectives within the group setting enriches the learning experience, encouraging innovative problem-solving and broadening individual outlooks. Simultaneously, the shared journey builds a supportive community with peers, providing a source of encouragement and accountability.
Group coaching also enables individuals from diverse backgrounds to benefit from seasoned professional coaches who might be financially out of reach in a one-on-one coaching scenario. It offers equitable access to world-class coaches, and helps you create new opportunities and access to valuable professional development to all populations in your employee base.
Who can benefit from group coaching?
Group coaching is a learning medium that all employees can benefit from — but let’s take a look at the few of the key audiences that will find unique value in this type of development opportunity.
Senior leaders find immense value in group coaching as they grapple with complex business strategies and navigate the intricacies of managing larger teams and other leaders. The challenges at this level extend beyond routine operations, requiring a collaborative setting where senior leaders can share experiences and gain insights into higher-level organizational dynamics.
Senior leaders are often the most likely to have access to professional coaching — but with the cost-effectiveness of group coaching, L&D leaders can give access to more employee groups, such as:
Managers can leverage group coaching to complement traditional training methods. While training imparts general knowledge, coaching provides a specialized approach. Managers often struggle with similar challenges, such as navigating difficult conversations with direct reports, managing performance challenges, and communicating effectively. Group coaching allows them to navigate real-world challenges, applying insights gained from shared experiences within the group to enhance their leadership and interpersonal skills.
Individual contributors also find significant value in group coaching, benefiting from direct guidance from expert coaches and learning from the experiences of their peers. These sessions provide a space for individual contributors to explore their professional development within the context of the organization, whether it involves navigating performance reviews, finding their voice within the company, or addressing personal fears and concerns.
“High Potentials” (HiPOs) aiming for career advancement often view group coaching as a forum to identify growth opportunities, leverage strengths, and overcome obstacles on their journey to reaching the next milestone in their careers.
In essence, group coaching proves to be a versatile and effective tool for professionals at various levels, providing tailored support to address their specific needs and aspirations.
Does Hone offer group coaching?
The short answer? Yes! And let’s dive a little deeper into what it’s like.
Hone Group Coaching sessions are led by Certified Professional Coaches and are crafted to be flexible and dynamic, ensuring that each individual’s unique challenges and goals are at the forefront. With small class sizes, our coaches engage with every participant, fostering a personalized and impactful coaching experience. Plus, Hone Group Coaching offers more equitable access to world-class coaches.
With Hone, you have a lot of options to choose from when it comes to offering group coaching to your employees:
- Membership Single Sessions: This allows learners to access “coaching on-demand” as part of their Hone Membership based on topics/themes they’re most interested in, such as giving feedback, delegation, effective communication, and more. Learners also get the benefit of meeting peers from other companies and gaining insight from diverse perspectives.
- Private Single Sessions: In these sessions, learners are coached with a small group of their peers from within their company. These single sessions are often added onto existing learning programs to double click into important topics they’ve covered during the classes.
- Private Programs: This type of group coaching offers a series of sessions with a fixed cohort and the same coach for the entire program. With more time together and increased psychological safety, it allows the group flexibility to cover more topics and to dive even deeper.
Group coaching is an invaluable tool for L&D leaders to leverage in their learning strategies because it combines personalized coaching with shared learning, creating a supportive community for employees to grow together. And whether you’re seeking a one-time boost or a more extended program for your employees, Hone Group Coaching is designed to maximize access to coaching opportunities for everyone.
But don’t just take our word for it, hear directly from a Hone customer that leveraged group coaching.
Learn more about how you can unlock the power of professional coaching for all your employees with Hone.
