Tough Times for L&TD - Are Manager Coaches The Way Forward? - May 2010

The latest Learning & Talent Development Survey from the CIPD was released last month. Interviewing 724 (largely UK) respondents in 27 sectors, it presents key findings in the areas of employer support for learning, talent management, coaching, training spend and importantly, the impact of the 2009 recession on the industry.

According to the survey, the skills gaps in UK organisations have not changed materially in recent years (we're sure that's not a reflection on the value delivered by L&TD investments in prior years!). Respondents cited the following skills as being in critical demand in their organisations:

* Business acumen/Commercial awareness (51%)
* Leadership skills (65%)
* Performance management (dealing with underperformance) (71%)
* Leading & managing change (68%)
* Strategic thinking
* Accelerating change
* Front line people management skills (55%)
* Communication/interpersonal skills for younger employees (school leavers/grads)
* Project/programme management skills, especially in the voluntary/community sectors

Although the demand for core skills is very much in evidence, funding for skills development has been badly impacted by the recession. No surprise when two thirds of respondents reported that their economic circumstances have declined in the past 12 months and unfortunately, L&TD is often deemed to be 'discretionary spend', one of the first to be cut when times get tough. In response to business difficulties, it seems that many organisations took swift action to reduce:

* expenditure on all forms of external training (including conferences and other professional events)
* spend on training per employee, from £300 p/head in 2008 to just £220 p/head in 2009
* L&TD headcount

This doesn't mean that L&TD activity stopped - quite the reverse in fact, with even more responsibility being devolved to inhouse delivery teams. Many organisations also switched to more cost-effective alternatives to external training, such as eLearning and coaching by line managers.

In terms of eLearning, the survey reports that L&TD professionals are increasingly sceptical about eLearning, giving it a lower value rating compared to other L&TD practices. The case study from the Borough of Newham illustrates one of the challenges faced by many organisations in realising returns on their eLearning library: "many staff commented that they did not have time to complete or properly consider the package due to pressures of work and so rushed the package at the last minute".

For Coaching however, the picture is very different: when delivered by line managers, it's seen as one of the most effective of all L&D practices. Coaching's certainly grown in popularity, with 82% of organisations offering it to their staff. Rather surprisingly, only a third of organisations have a formal system in place to evaluate its impact.

The CIPD comes to the conclusion that the biggest change facing L&TD in the next 5 years is that greater responsibility for staff development will be devolved to line managers. However, there is a significant risk "for managers to be further empowered without the relevant skills development to support it."

At Matchett we believe that it's important that organisations build a strong L&TD capability inhouse. Good, effective coaching by line managers is a critical part of that capability and contributes hugely to the creation of a meaningful learning culture and high performing teams. For organisations it's very attractive as a learning intervention because:

1. There is no cash outlay
2. It offers a flexible, 'just-in-time' approach to skills development
3. It can be delivered in the workplace, even at-desk
4. Adults respond best to 'facilitative' rather than 'directive' learning

However, before everyone dives in, a few of words of caution.

First, the term 'coaching' is often used interchangeably with 'mentoring'. We take the view that a coach deals with a person's tasks and responsibilities, has a specific agenda or development approach, and has a focus on improving a person's job performance. A mentor however deals with someone's personal career, has no specific agenda, and focuses only on the individual - not a good fit with line management. As someone writing on the web said "Mentors are like lovers and mistresses. Whether someone has one or not is very interesting, but nevertheless, none of your business!"

Second, a clear distinction needs to be made between coaching and psychotherapy. Coaching is categorically not 'therapy' by a different name, (even though the underpinning theories, such as cognitive behavioural therapy can be applied in an organisational context). It should not aim to address the root causes of deeply personal problems like poor motivation, lack of self-confidence and low self-esteem. Whilst it's perfectly possible for a person who has underlying issues to see a real benefit from skills coaching (even if the underlying issues are not resolved), it may become obvious during the sessions that what's needed is a psychotherapeutic intervention. When boundaries between coaching and psychotherapy are blurred, they create a potential minefield for the unskilled line manager (not to say the HR department...).

We share the view of the CIPD that line managers have an important role to play in staff development, and believe it is critical that those managers are given both the skills and the frameworks if they are to succeed as Coaches. There's simply too much at stake.

If you would like to find out more about how we’ve supported our clients in developing their managers as Coaches, please contact us online or on +44 (0) 1295 814200. We also offer 3 standard Coaching courses which can be viewed on our website: Coaching Light Bite, Coaching & Mentoring, High Performance Coaching.