FM CAREERS - TRAINING
OCTOBER 2021 57
Workplaces are gradually
becoming digital, especially
since the onset of the
COVID-19 pandemic, which has
brought new challenges for leaders
looking to support and empower
their workforces. According to a 2021
McKinsey Global Survey, organisations
are increasingly rethinking the role
of digital technology in their overall
business strategy. For many, digital
technologies have facilitated a
hybrid approach of both o“ ice and
home working, with 85 per cent of
adults currently working from home
favouring the hybrid model for the
future (O“ ice for National Statistics).
Digital coaching can help ease the
transition to hybrid working, assisting
organisations and employees alike to
manage such a large organisational
transformation. Organisations who
implement coaching into their overall HR
strategy see significant benefits in terms
of employee wellbeing, productivity,
and collaboration. In a hybrid working
model, coaching is even more valuable,
as it is essential that employees do
not feel le behind as their company
innovates and develops.
WHY DIGITAL COACHING?
The International Coaching Federation
defines coaching as “partnering with
clients in a thought-provoking and
creative process that inspires them
to maximise their personal and
professional potential”. Coaching di ers
from specific skills training in that it
involves guiding employees in their
own personal development, rather than
directly teaching employees a skill.
Coaching generally focuses on so skills
such as communication, leadership, and
teamwork, which cannot be taught, but
rather must be fostered and nurtured.
Business transformation is an
especially important time to engage
employees in coaching so that they
can adapt quickly and e ectively to the
changes happening around them. By
implementing approaches that support
new company processes and priorities,
coaching can support organisations
in managing change e ectively. The
transition to a hybrid working model
is one of the most significant business
transformations in recent history,
making coaching absolutely essential
during this process.
As the workplace changes, coaching
changes too, with the use of technology
for coaching becoming increasingly
popular. The 2020 ICF Global Coaching
Study demonstrates that 74 per cent of
coaching practitioners have increased
their use of audio-video platforms since
March 2020, integrating seamlessly with
remote working models as coaching
can now be accessed from anywhere
and at any time. A 2011 study revealed
that there is no significant di erence
between remote and in-person coaching
in terms of building relationships and
finding solutions. Digital coaching
therefore constitutes an e ective
solution to the ongoing dilemmas of the
hybrid workplace model.
HOW CAN DIGITAL COACHING
SUPPORT HYBRID WORKING?
Moving towards a hybrid working model
constitutes a real revolution in what
the workplace means and how we
collectively relate to it. Expectations and
ways of working change, which puts a
strain on employees as adaptation can
initially be di icult. Organisations must
support and empower their employees
to make the transition to hybrid working
by focusing on wellbeing. Digital
coaching is a great way to do this, as a
2020 CoachHub survey found that 80 per
cent of coachees decreased their stress
levels by an average of 18 per cent a er
engaging with digital coaching, showing
that it is an e ective way to improve
employee wellbeing and reduce the
strain of the transition.
Another o en cited challenge of
the last two years is that widespread
working has made it more di icult
for employees to communicate.
Spontaneous o ice conversations have
been lost, and collaboration o en takes
place over email. Digital coaching can
help rebuild employee engagement as
we transition to hybrid working, with 96
per cent of CoachHub users identifying
as engaged. This is because coaching
helps employees strengthen so skills
like communication and problemsolving,
which are crucial to the process
of adapting to hybrid working.
Hybrid working and the rise of digital
technologies in the workplace has
also impacted learning and training.
Many organisations are opting to
benefit from the wealth of training
platforms and courses o ered online
for their employees, perhaps previously
inaccessible when they took place
physically. This gives organisations
access to a wider range of high-quality
training, which when combined with
coaching, brings significant results.
A Gartner 2021 study found that
employees were 1.5 times more likely
to apply a newly learned skill when they
also received post-training coaching.
This occurs because coaching helps
contextualise skills and embed them
into an employee’s wider working
life, meaning that they no longer feel
abstract or generic.
DIGITAL COACHING WORKS FOR
EMPLOYEES AT EVERY LEVEL
Coaching has moved away from being
a benefit only o ered to the C-suite
and is now recognised as a powerful
tool for career development for all
employees. Digital coaching is e ective
when it is individualised and aligned
to the specific needs and goals of the
person being coached. This is especially
important in the world of hybrid
working, as we increasingly recognise
the unique nature of every individual
employee and support their working
journey.
Hybrid working is a model that o ers
more flexibility and allows employees
to fit their career goals more seamlessly
into their lifestyle. Digital coaching o ers
a helping hand in this process through
improving employee wellbeing and
communication, as well as accelerating
performance. Additionally, digital
coaching is much more accessible
than traditional coaching, as it too fits
around employees’ lives and locations.
Whether in the o ice or working from
home, digital coaching o ers tangible,
measurable solutions for organisations
and their employees as hybrid working
becomes the norm.
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