Spiral Dynamics Integral
An explanation of Spiral Dynamics Integral (SDi) courtesy of Clare Graves, Don Beck, & Ken WIlber. A must read for those involved in human development work.
Executive Coaching
NLP Practitioner Training
Leadership Coaching
Coach Training
Monday, June 27, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
The power of vulnerability
The power of Vulnerability - presented by Brene Brown - well worth a watch.
Executive Coaching
NLP Courses
NLP Practitioner Courses
NLP Practitioner Training Courses
NLP Training
Coach Training
Executive Coaching
NLP Courses
NLP Practitioner Courses
NLP Practitioner Training Courses
NLP Training
Coach Training
Friday, June 3, 2011
Youth Self-Leadership Development
Unleashing Youth Self-Leadership - Waking up, Grown up
Recently, we were asked by one of our clients - Griffith City Council - to run an Unleashing Youth Leadership program for the 3 High Schools there in Griffith NSW (Griffith High School, Wade High School and Marian Catholic College).
With a group of some 30 students, we ran the 3-day course earlier this week (May 30, 2011).
The course was extraordinary - made so by the vibrancy of the participation by the students, who threw themselves into the program - in service of unleashing their best selves.
We had an absolute ball as trainers - we normally only get out to play with professional adults - working with these young adults was a real treat for us :)
Here's some of the feedback from the participants and their teachers:
Don Dixon, Deputy Principal, Wade High School - Griffith
"I spoke to most of the students who attended the 'Unleashing Self-Leadership for Youth' program (earlier this week) today, who could not speak more highly of it. I don't think I have come across a response which has been as consistently overwhelmingly positive as their response to this course. Additionally I have spoken to at least two of the students parents and they were as equally impressed with one parent commenting on the conversation it generated at the dinner table at night.
Thanks a lot for giving the students the opportunity to participate in something which has really had a huge impact......'life changing' was a comment I heard a lot. We certainly hope to be involved if it happens again."
Amelia Kennedy - Student Marian Catholic College
Thank you Jay and Joseph! My entire view of life prior to sitting down with you has been changed - positively (for the better). I am now accomplished, or believe I can be accomplished in everything I do, and the only real challenge will be putting what I have learned here into practise.
Before the course I was pretty emotionally unstable, having experienced many mood swings and all that kind of stuff - generally really down on myself. Now I can look past all that and not even stress at an exam! WOW! Achievement!
Tristan Agostini, Student Marian Catholic College
This has been one of the best experiences of my life. I don't usually do anything like this, but I am so glad that I didn't refuse. It has helped me understand myself and others much better - and it has helped me as a person.
Lauren Jenkins, Student Marian Catholic College
Over the past 3 days I have learned so many life skills - and I am extremely thankful to have. I am going to take everything away and use it in my everyday life - to make things better, not only for myself, but also for my family and friends.
I am going to strive to achieve my absolute best, because I know I can and I believe I can. I am not going to judge and evaluate people on first impressions - and I will take into consideration that we all have different personalities, and I will begin to look at situations from other people's perspective, rather than just my own. Thank you for this amazing experience.
Laura Panarello, Student Marian Catholic College
I really enjoyed the experience of working with Jay and Joseph - especially about learning about myself and how to find self-leadership. The indirect confidence I have gained from this program (along with everything I have learned), I know I will take and use for the rest of my life. I am so grateful to have this opportunity. Leadership is to use your power to make others powerful - and that's what I plan to do :)
Francesca Madaflari, Student Marian Catholic College
This course was well worthwhile. It gave me a great experience with different people and groups. It helped me open up, have belief in myself and encouraged me to see that I am already being my best. Useful tools that will help me achieve, lead and make life what I want it to be, because I have the POWER!
Fapiola OOifalelahi, Student Marian Catholic College
I was really moved and touched by what I learned in these 3 days. I'm really thankful for this opportunity. Everything that I learned, I will remember for the rest of my life. I am very happy and I will do all I can to be better - and live my life the way I want.
Jarrod Hill, Student Marian Catholic College
I would like to sincerely thank everyone that was involved in the program. It is something that has changed my outlook on life and will forever be with me. Thank you again.
Sabastian, Student Marian Catholic College
This experience was very beneficial and worthwhile for a number of reasons. Firstly, this has boosted my confidence so much and I am able to talk to a wide audience with no fear. Secondly, I have enjoyed meeting new people and thirdly - I have learned about self leadership, the matrix and the Enneagram. Thank you very much.
Stephen Savige, Griffith High School
What the program didn't do is release my inner leader. What it did do is show me the process and methods needed in order for me to go and find that for myself.
Nicole Jaffrey, Griffith High School
I feel empowered by what I have learned here and feel as if I would possibly not be able to succeed in life if I did not get to complete this program. I am generally pretty judgemental and this program has taught me not to be. It has also helped me understand why I am the way I am and how I can improve me. Thanks heaps!
Hilary Geddes, Griffith High School
I found this program thoroughly enjoyable and eye-opening. It's important to walk into this with an open mind to get the most out of it.
But thank you very very very much!
Kirstie, Griffith High School
It was good to see & understand more about myself & the way we are & why we are like this. I also enjoyed seeing that we are the ones that possess the power in our lives & our lives are merely aspects of what we perceive them to be.
I will remember this training for a long time & I will take the things I've learned & achieve my goals & help others achieve theirs & have confidence & believe in myself.
Fletcher Josling, Wade High School
Thank you for teaching me how to broaden my horizons and have a new perspective on life - I'll be able to deal with situations better in the future.
Elise Delpiaro, Wade High School
This course has, in a way, shaped my future - I am now aware of my way of being, how I interact with others and how I can achieve my full potential in life.
Thanks! :)
Ben Sekali, Griffith High School
This has given me an insight to a new perception. It has made me realise that what changes is our interior, our way of thinking, rather than our exterior. The power to change comes from the inside, and can affect people's views and future outcomes. That chair, is a chair … or is it? ;)
Elizabeth Chilvers, Wade High School
What an incredible 3 days! I have opened my eyes, finally. I feel like I understand myself so much better. I can understand why I am the way I am, and others are too. I feel like I can change the world. That you so so much for this experience!
Laura Andreazza, Wade High School
Thank you so much for this experience. I really feel as though I can do anything, I am confident and I really don't care what people think of me any more. I know that I can create and control my life, there is no reason to ever have to wish my life away because from now on, I am absolutely going to live life and love it!
Thank you for waking me up and giving me that!!
PS I will miss not seeing you two every day - you always made me smile!
Brianna DeValentin, Wade High School
After participating in this program, I know that I am now able to take and apply all this knowledge in the real world, at home and with my friends.
Elijah McKellar Qasi
This workshop was superb. Other workshops that I have been to get serious straight away and then you go off and play a game which is unrelated.
The workshop has really inspired me and I'm so glad that I was chosen. It is not just about leadership but LIFE!!! and I think that this program should be run every year to a wide range of students who can then pass on the knowledge to others.
Jordan Joyce, Wade High School
This was one of the most interesting and unique experiences I have ever been involved in. It was a pleasure to be involved and I will use all the concepts I have learned as I make my way through life.
Michael Fattore
I believe that this is a very beneficial program as it helps you realise and tap into these thoughts about us in general and helps us find the true meanings about our lives and techniques and the new technologies which help us develop our self-leadership skills. The three days were very enlightening and help bring new views on our lives.
Jake Aramini
Very fun- I learned lots!
Highly recommended to teenagers!
Tom Shannon
I believe that this coaching thing will be extremely beneficial to my life. I did not expect the things we learned were going to be taught to us and that made it good. The things they talked about at first confused me but then I started to realise what they meant and I though that it was brilliant. I will remember this for a very long time and it will impact my life.
Jessica Meredith
I liked doing the training, because it was unique and not like any other leadership training I have experienced. I believe that I have changed and learned more about myself and can't wait to use what I have learned in my future life in reality.
Ramandeep Kaur
I now have the belief that I can achieve anything in my life. It is no longer a thought and I truly believe in myself. I will achieve my dreams and no one will stop me. I will not only reach my potential but also help others achieve theirs by being a leader!
Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Leadership Coaching
Executive Coach Training
Courses in Coaching
Recently, we were asked by one of our clients - Griffith City Council - to run an Unleashing Youth Leadership program for the 3 High Schools there in Griffith NSW (Griffith High School, Wade High School and Marian Catholic College).
With a group of some 30 students, we ran the 3-day course earlier this week (May 30, 2011).
The course was extraordinary - made so by the vibrancy of the participation by the students, who threw themselves into the program - in service of unleashing their best selves.
We had an absolute ball as trainers - we normally only get out to play with professional adults - working with these young adults was a real treat for us :)
Here's some of the feedback from the participants and their teachers:
Don Dixon, Deputy Principal, Wade High School - Griffith
"I spoke to most of the students who attended the 'Unleashing Self-Leadership for Youth' program (earlier this week) today, who could not speak more highly of it. I don't think I have come across a response which has been as consistently overwhelmingly positive as their response to this course. Additionally I have spoken to at least two of the students parents and they were as equally impressed with one parent commenting on the conversation it generated at the dinner table at night.
Thanks a lot for giving the students the opportunity to participate in something which has really had a huge impact......'life changing' was a comment I heard a lot. We certainly hope to be involved if it happens again."
Amelia Kennedy - Student Marian Catholic College
Thank you Jay and Joseph! My entire view of life prior to sitting down with you has been changed - positively (for the better). I am now accomplished, or believe I can be accomplished in everything I do, and the only real challenge will be putting what I have learned here into practise.
Before the course I was pretty emotionally unstable, having experienced many mood swings and all that kind of stuff - generally really down on myself. Now I can look past all that and not even stress at an exam! WOW! Achievement!
Tristan Agostini, Student Marian Catholic College
This has been one of the best experiences of my life. I don't usually do anything like this, but I am so glad that I didn't refuse. It has helped me understand myself and others much better - and it has helped me as a person.
Lauren Jenkins, Student Marian Catholic College
Over the past 3 days I have learned so many life skills - and I am extremely thankful to have. I am going to take everything away and use it in my everyday life - to make things better, not only for myself, but also for my family and friends.
I am going to strive to achieve my absolute best, because I know I can and I believe I can. I am not going to judge and evaluate people on first impressions - and I will take into consideration that we all have different personalities, and I will begin to look at situations from other people's perspective, rather than just my own. Thank you for this amazing experience.
Laura Panarello, Student Marian Catholic College
I really enjoyed the experience of working with Jay and Joseph - especially about learning about myself and how to find self-leadership. The indirect confidence I have gained from this program (along with everything I have learned), I know I will take and use for the rest of my life. I am so grateful to have this opportunity. Leadership is to use your power to make others powerful - and that's what I plan to do :)
Francesca Madaflari, Student Marian Catholic College
This course was well worthwhile. It gave me a great experience with different people and groups. It helped me open up, have belief in myself and encouraged me to see that I am already being my best. Useful tools that will help me achieve, lead and make life what I want it to be, because I have the POWER!
Fapiola OOifalelahi, Student Marian Catholic College
I was really moved and touched by what I learned in these 3 days. I'm really thankful for this opportunity. Everything that I learned, I will remember for the rest of my life. I am very happy and I will do all I can to be better - and live my life the way I want.
Jarrod Hill, Student Marian Catholic College
I would like to sincerely thank everyone that was involved in the program. It is something that has changed my outlook on life and will forever be with me. Thank you again.
Sabastian, Student Marian Catholic College
This experience was very beneficial and worthwhile for a number of reasons. Firstly, this has boosted my confidence so much and I am able to talk to a wide audience with no fear. Secondly, I have enjoyed meeting new people and thirdly - I have learned about self leadership, the matrix and the Enneagram. Thank you very much.
Stephen Savige, Griffith High School
What the program didn't do is release my inner leader. What it did do is show me the process and methods needed in order for me to go and find that for myself.
Nicole Jaffrey, Griffith High School
I feel empowered by what I have learned here and feel as if I would possibly not be able to succeed in life if I did not get to complete this program. I am generally pretty judgemental and this program has taught me not to be. It has also helped me understand why I am the way I am and how I can improve me. Thanks heaps!
Hilary Geddes, Griffith High School
I found this program thoroughly enjoyable and eye-opening. It's important to walk into this with an open mind to get the most out of it.
But thank you very very very much!
Kirstie, Griffith High School
It was good to see & understand more about myself & the way we are & why we are like this. I also enjoyed seeing that we are the ones that possess the power in our lives & our lives are merely aspects of what we perceive them to be.
I will remember this training for a long time & I will take the things I've learned & achieve my goals & help others achieve theirs & have confidence & believe in myself.
Fletcher Josling, Wade High School
Thank you for teaching me how to broaden my horizons and have a new perspective on life - I'll be able to deal with situations better in the future.
Elise Delpiaro, Wade High School
This course has, in a way, shaped my future - I am now aware of my way of being, how I interact with others and how I can achieve my full potential in life.
Thanks! :)
Ben Sekali, Griffith High School
This has given me an insight to a new perception. It has made me realise that what changes is our interior, our way of thinking, rather than our exterior. The power to change comes from the inside, and can affect people's views and future outcomes. That chair, is a chair … or is it? ;)
Elizabeth Chilvers, Wade High School
What an incredible 3 days! I have opened my eyes, finally. I feel like I understand myself so much better. I can understand why I am the way I am, and others are too. I feel like I can change the world. That you so so much for this experience!
Laura Andreazza, Wade High School
Thank you so much for this experience. I really feel as though I can do anything, I am confident and I really don't care what people think of me any more. I know that I can create and control my life, there is no reason to ever have to wish my life away because from now on, I am absolutely going to live life and love it!
Thank you for waking me up and giving me that!!
PS I will miss not seeing you two every day - you always made me smile!
Brianna DeValentin, Wade High School
After participating in this program, I know that I am now able to take and apply all this knowledge in the real world, at home and with my friends.
Elijah McKellar Qasi
This workshop was superb. Other workshops that I have been to get serious straight away and then you go off and play a game which is unrelated.
The workshop has really inspired me and I'm so glad that I was chosen. It is not just about leadership but LIFE!!! and I think that this program should be run every year to a wide range of students who can then pass on the knowledge to others.
Jordan Joyce, Wade High School
This was one of the most interesting and unique experiences I have ever been involved in. It was a pleasure to be involved and I will use all the concepts I have learned as I make my way through life.
Michael Fattore
I believe that this is a very beneficial program as it helps you realise and tap into these thoughts about us in general and helps us find the true meanings about our lives and techniques and the new technologies which help us develop our self-leadership skills. The three days were very enlightening and help bring new views on our lives.
Jake Aramini
Very fun- I learned lots!
Highly recommended to teenagers!
Tom Shannon
I believe that this coaching thing will be extremely beneficial to my life. I did not expect the things we learned were going to be taught to us and that made it good. The things they talked about at first confused me but then I started to realise what they meant and I though that it was brilliant. I will remember this for a very long time and it will impact my life.
Jessica Meredith
I liked doing the training, because it was unique and not like any other leadership training I have experienced. I believe that I have changed and learned more about myself and can't wait to use what I have learned in my future life in reality.
Ramandeep Kaur
I now have the belief that I can achieve anything in my life. It is no longer a thought and I truly believe in myself. I will achieve my dreams and no one will stop me. I will not only reach my potential but also help others achieve theirs by being a leader!
Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Leadership Coaching
Executive Coach Training
Courses in Coaching
Monday, May 9, 2011
Unleashing Leadership - Leadership Self Actualisation - Feedback from participants
Hi there.
Jay here.
At the heart of The Coaching Room's corporate offering is our "Unleashing Leadership - Leadership Self Actualisation" program.
Below is some participant feedback from our recent programs. If you would like to speak with any of our clients about their experience, we would like you respect their privacy and make contact through us.
Naomi Brugger, Griffith City Council
I just wanted to pass on my gratitude to you & Joseph for the session in Griffith. I am dreaming about the training every night & can't stop thinking about it during the day! I even went to the library today & got The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell & have promised myself that I will read 2 chapters at minimum per day.
It's been a long time since I have been this excited, enthusiastic & inspired when it comes to work - and the first time I have felt that I have the ability & confidence to inspire & positively influence my team - thank you both for giving that to me.
I hope to have the opportunity to work with you both again and until then, here's one last thank you!
Peter Craig, Griffith City Council
Excellent program! I owe Jay and Joseph for a life changing experience
Cristal Davies, Executive Officer, Newcastle Airport Limited
I thoroughly enjoyed the program, thanks so much for my new found self belief as a leader. Priceless!
Leadership Development
Executive Coaching
Executive Development
Leadership Coaching
Executive Coach Training
Courses in Coaching
Jay here.
At the heart of The Coaching Room's corporate offering is our "Unleashing Leadership - Leadership Self Actualisation" program.
Below is some participant feedback from our recent programs. If you would like to speak with any of our clients about their experience, we would like you respect their privacy and make contact through us.
Naomi Brugger, Griffith City Council
I just wanted to pass on my gratitude to you & Joseph for the session in Griffith. I am dreaming about the training every night & can't stop thinking about it during the day! I even went to the library today & got The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell & have promised myself that I will read 2 chapters at minimum per day.
It's been a long time since I have been this excited, enthusiastic & inspired when it comes to work - and the first time I have felt that I have the ability & confidence to inspire & positively influence my team - thank you both for giving that to me.
I hope to have the opportunity to work with you both again and until then, here's one last thank you!
Peter Craig, Griffith City Council
Excellent program! I owe Jay and Joseph for a life changing experience
Cristal Davies, Executive Officer, Newcastle Airport Limited
I thoroughly enjoyed the program, thanks so much for my new found self belief as a leader. Priceless!
Leadership Development
Executive Coaching
Executive Development
Leadership Coaching
Executive Coach Training
Courses in Coaching
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Kathryn Schulz: On being wrong | Video on TED.com
This is a wonderful talk on the vulnerability of be OK with being wrong. In our view it is an essential for the new leader to be able to embrace their humanity and surrender to their vulnerability. This video is well worth the time.
Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Leadership Coaching
Executive Coach Training
Courses in Coaching
Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Leadership Coaching
Executive Coach Training
Courses in Coaching
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Local Government Cultural Change Case Study
Local Government Case Study
THE COACHING ROOM, AN EXECUTIVE COACHING AND LEADERSHIP TRAINING FIRM, HELPS GRIFFITH CITY OFFICIALS IMPROVE THEMSELVES AND THEIR DECISION-MAKING
“Certainly, as an organisation we weren’t necessarily in very good shape … we thought we were but we had room to improve. After training by The Coaching Room, we went on a very long journey and we’re in a much better place now.”
KERRY SEFTON, Group Manager, People & Systems, Griffith City Council, City of Griffith, Australia
“The Coaching Room became involved - in training and coaching - like we had never experienced before and 100+ employees from across all levels and sections of Council experienced the unique techniques required to get staff thinking and changing the way that we worked together - the change has been astounding - we have taken the 1st steps on our journey of change”.
Peter Brooks, General Manager, Griffith City Council, City of Griffith, Australia
INTRODUCTION
The legislative and governing Councils in Australia and the administrative teams that assist them are not unlike the boards of directors of major corporations or non-profits found around the world. They are a group of individuals, elected, appointed or hired, who each bring their knowledge and expertise to the table to govern and manage as one. The individual’s and group’s decisions affect others and have a direct correlation to group success and therefore, on service to customers, both internal and external. This, in turn, positively or negatively affects patrons and constituents and their views of the service provided, both perceived and real.
Among the optimal-performing in government and business, this means pragmatic and collaborative leadership by individual members in an organisation as well as the group as a whole.
THE CHALLENGE
In the case of the Griffith City administration in New South Wales, this wasn’t the case. The senior management team, charged with putting City Council decisions into practice and ultimately managing the city employees who carry out policy on a day-to-day basis, could sense they were not meeting the high performance standards they had set for themselves. Administration and delivery of municipal services and the decisions guiding these efforts were limited by the senior management team’s self-described inability to work well together. Silos, those vertical protectors of turf and self-interest that stifle action in the most promising of organisations, had been built by team members to the point that it was difficult to work optimally as, yes, a team. Talent and commitment certainly weren’t lacking among team members, but they believed a more cohesive group with targeted and focused leadership was needed to move their organisation and the community forward.
“We thought we could do better,” says Kerry Sefton, Group Manager, People & Systems for the Griffith City Council. Self-analysis, that harsh diagnostic which improves those who heed its call to action, helped Griffith’s senior management team see that its ability to lead was adversely affected by a lack of strategic planning and decision-making. Those, in turn, were being hampered by a lack of understanding of senior management team members of their individual strengths and weaknesses and how to work effectively as a unit.
There was, in a nutshell, the need for Griffith senior management to be visionaries and leaders, not just managers. They also needed to break free of the restraints created by that ever-paralyzing mantra – “We’ve always done it that way.”
“Most of the people here had come up through the ranks, so they were task managers, and now they’re in senior management, where you have to think strategically; more about the big picture,” Sefton says.
But, as with most households, businesses and governments in today’s world economy, financial resources were limited. Griffith’s senior management members knew they needed to take steps to improve their team, and in so doing, the community. They also realised they would need help from an outside advisor if they truly were to achieve formative change. However, funds were limited for the type of soul-searching and guidance they knew would be necessary.
THE SOLUTION
The City of Griffith turned to the expert coaches and change agents at The Coaching Room. Here, they found people who understand that for positive change and growth to occur, people and organisations must look at their present states of being to effectively drive that change. Coaches Joseph Scott and Jay Hedley helped individuals decipher individual and group dynamics, showing them how their behavior and ways of doing things were directly affecting administrative outcomes and maintaining the status quo.
The Coaching Room’s facilitators deftly guided the City of Griffith’s senior management team through the evaluation and training that set its members on a solid course toward enlightened and effective leadership.
With guidance from Scott and Hedley, the Griffith administrators took a hard look at who they were and where their organisation stood. This self-analysis provided a snapshot that would provide the impetus for change toward a new leadership and management model. Outlining the elements of good leadership and the characteristics of effective leaders, The Coaching Room guided the Griffith management team on a journey of self-discovery and self-determination.
“Where did we want to go; what kind of leaders did we want to be?” explains Sefton. “The coaching took us through that … The Coaching Room helped us through sticking points so that we enabled ourselves to develop and grow. We are now approaching issues and decisions as a team, which we definitely weren’t doing before.”
Using The Coaching Room’s “Translation Quadrants”, “Axes of Change” and the “Matrix” methodologies – designed to break down the status quo quickly to bring change that is integrated, lasting and based on issues unique to an organisation – Griffith’s senior management team’s members for the first time developed an overarching vision for their organisation. A guiding set of values soon followed, leading to fundamental change in how the organisation’s members perceive not only themselves, but also their group and its role in leading the organisation and community.
It may sound like an easy step-by-step process, but change is always hard, and the more it is needed, the more difficult it often can be. The Griffith project was no different. Resistance to change among individuals of the management team slowed the process, but here, The Coaching Room’s proven methods of maintaining team members’ focus on the impediments to improvement – keeping the status quo using long-held beliefs and methods – while encouraging transformation from within garnered the desired results.
“This is radical change for us,” says Sefton. “We wouldn’t have had these conversations prior to coaching from The Coaching Room.”
THE RESULTS
What The Coaching Room facilitators helped Griffith team members uncover came as no surprise, although the magnitude of the challenges it presented did. “We weren’t being open and honest with each other. We weren’t supporting each other properly,” says Sefton. “We were working in silos and that’s not helpful for anybody – for ourselves, our team, our organisation and certainly not for the community. So, that’s where we were and that was quite a fundamental revelation … we didn’t realise how negative the impact was in that way of working.”
Griffith senior management team members, Sefton happily admits, are now open with their opinions and constructive in their disagreements. They are committed to working collaboratively to solve problems and address issues, something that was not possible, she says, prior to The Coaching Room’s evaluation, coaching and advising. Those silos, so stifling to growth and change before, are gone.
“Each one of the (new set of) values really means something to us, and that is where we are taking in the whole organisation with the new approach. So, I would say that has been the most fundamental change and the foundation for the values is our vision and all the meaning that is behind it,” Sefton says. “It’s now not just one section of the City Council that says this or this. It’s going to have to be the whole Council. We are as one.”
Because of The Coaching Room’s guidance in identifying issues and finding solutions, the Griffith team now eagerly looks to the future for itself, its employees and the community it serves. Fresh approaches to collaborative problem solving have cast off the “always-done-it-that-way” mentality. Senior management is expounding the benefits of The Coaching Room’s coaching, conducting its own in-house training sessions based on what administrative team members have learned. These results, too, have been impressive.
“We’ve never had that many compliments of staff saying, “That was wonderful,” Sefton, says. “It is helping the staff individually, at home, with their friends and at work.”
ABOUT THE CITY OF GRIFFITH AND ITS GOVERNMENT
Griffith, a major regional center of about 25,000 people, is the Seat of the City of Griffith local government area. The city is five to six hours drive from the metropolitan hubs of Sydney and Melbourne. Roughly 400 employees come under the management umbrella of the City Council of Griffith.
TESTIMONIALS
Peter Brooks
General Manager, Griffith City Council
For all Local Councils in NSW (and Councils in other States) there is a strong requirement (both legislative and moral) to develop long term community strategic plans - these are labelled different strategies in different States - the real issue is whether the right attitude & culture exists in Council - both staff and Councillors to ensure that genuine community consultation and then excellent service delivery happens. To ensure that these 2 occur we at Griffith City Council wanted to be an employer of choice so we had the right staff with the right culture and attitude to deliver genuinely; a Community Strategic Plan that reflects community requirements and to deliver services in a customer focused manner.
The Coaching Room became involved in training and coaching like we had never experienced before and 100+ employees from across all levels and sections of Council experienced the unique techniques required to get staff thinking and changing the way that we worked together - the change has been astounding - we have taken the 1st steps on our journey of change.
Kerry Sefton
Group Manager, People & Systems (HR), Griffith City Council
When I arrived at GCC in January 2009 I identified that the (then) Manex Team mainly discussed operational matters with the strategic planning only evidenced at the annual budget setting time. There was little dialogue between the functions as to how we could assist each other or what pressures different sections were under. The silo mentality was well and truly ‘a way of being’, which wasn’t helpful to either the individual areas or to GCC in general. I found the GCC vision and set of values in the GCC management plan, these had to be searched for as no one could tell me what they were.
I was also aware that staff were treated inequitably, with little consultation within the Manex team or consideration of the impact of how individual employees were treated and how this would be perceived within the organisation. As though some rules applied to some sections but not others. The impact this has on my team in listening to valid grievances has been disheartening to say the least. There was and still is a perception that ‘if your face fits’ you’re OK and will be looked after. This is not a healthy way of being for an organisation that wants to provide the best possible services it can to the community.
The causes of this were:
1. The term ‘ this is the way we do things here’ prevailed, large numbers of employees with very long service; small town mentality, Council is a major employer in this city, many staff are related to each other by birth and marriage and therefore do not want to rock the boat as this could affect life outside work.
2. A lack of strong management to challenge the status quo, staff being recruited into positions without due diligence checks that they are competent to do the job, therefore large on-going catch up training programs required.
3. Poor/weak Leadership, decisions made on a Friday not upheld on a Monday, leading to a lack of trust and direction. Inconsistencies even between the senior management staff. This also reinforced the lack of trust between the Group Managers.... squeaky wheel, lack of co-operation.
4. No defined vision for the Council, therefore what is our purpose, what are measurable outcomes? Difficult to produce departmental strategic plans as there wasn’t anything to align them to.
What was made available to us by The Coaching Room was a process and a language that we could learn in order to communicate with each other and start to break down the barriers. The process covered a definition of leadership, what it is and is not, an identification that most of us are managers and not leaders and an awareness of what it would take to coach us to be leaders – ie. What sort of leader did we want to become? An opportunity for self-growth through group and one to one coaching. An opportunity to discover various models of behaviour and decision making to assist with strategic thinking.
The results have been phenomenal. We have learnt a new language and are able to communicate more easily. The Leadership training teased out of us what our long-term ambitions are as individuals, as a team and where we want to take GCC in future. Through the Leadership training we have developed a set of values which we are working on embodying and a vision to become ‘An Employer of Choice’, neither of which we had before The Coaching Room came on board.
We also have available to us a set of business models to run our strategic decisions through to identify if they are valid and feasible, seen from the position of four different quadrants. The Group Coaching has given us a safe place to open up and express our concerns about each other and how individual behaviour is perceived by the Group and could be perceived by the staff and does this ‘serve’ the values we have set for ourselves. The Enneagram (personality profile) has given us an awareness of how each member is likely to react and therefore another tool for communication and understanding from another’s perspective. How we can both harness this energy but also support each other and not exploit traits. I believe the one-to-one coaching is an essential element for embedding what was being learnt as a group, how as individuals were we resisting or supporting the process of change and what we needed to change within ourselves for progress to occur. The one-to-one coaching helped us to get ‘unstuck’.
Where are we now? As an organisation we have a set of values and a vision that we can share with staff, through the mechanism of the staff survey we can draw up a series of actions to embrace the vision and turn it into a reality. The Coaching Essentials Program which has been delivered to almost 100 staff has had a huge impact and is the beginning of breaking down the silo mentality and communicating across functions and departments. Through this program staff learnt about the Map/Territory Distinction and the Four Quadrants and now have a greater depth of understanding when interacting with other colleagues. There’s a ‘buzz’ around the place that did not exist before and staff are pushing the new Team ExL for change.
As a group we are definitely more honest with each other, more supportive, wanting to be more strategic.
I myself, I feel happy that with The Coaching Room, I have been able to introduce the opportunity of change into GCC, but it is going to take all of us to maintain the momentum, make change happen and turn the vision into reality.
The results have been superb, fantastic, and revolutionary... It’s been a big year.
I have become more confident in accepting myself as I am, learnt aspects of what has been holding me back and which behaviours have not been serving me well, but also that I have value, the one to one coaching has opened up a range of opportunities for me. I have really accepted the value of ‘showing up’ and being totally open with people and feel liberated...
Max Turner
Group Manager - Business, Cultural & Financial Services, Griffith City Council
Pre our coaching and training, the old management executive team (Manex) were stuck in a rut so to speak in terms of thinking and acting strategically. We were focussing more on operational issues and ensuring that our own “turf” was protected. All of this produced an air of disengagement and distrust of each other in certain cases.
We were not working together as a unified team and the rest of the organisation sensed this in our approach to managing and leading the staff within our different areas. We were not effectively dealing with the key issues facing us. Causing this was:
1. A lack of trust in each other to deal with the harder issues and leaving it up to each other to confront with those issues.
2. Self-interest in regards to protecting our own areas of operations.
3. A lack of openness and honesty in communicating with each other on some of the key issues facing the organisation and how they would impact on us, possibly individually.
For The Coaching Room to come in and see how we were operating (and failing) from a completely neutral and new perspective, was exactly what was required. The Coaching Room provided an opportunity to tell us how it was and get feedback from a totally external perspective. It also provided us with a mechanism to start communicating to each other in an open and constructive environment, ie a facilitative approach which is assisting in breaking down some of the reserve and hesitancy in bringing out the real issues that had been stopping us from operating and leading in the best way possible.
The results are greater awareness of each other’s strengths and weaknesses. A greater understanding of what each of our personality types are through the tools, principles and models learnt in the Coaching Essentials program. The Coaching has been invaluable on both a group and one-on-one session basis - ie. Working as a group has given us a shared experience in working together to develop and define what the organisations core values are and also a greater ability and understanding of what it means to work together towards a common and shared set of goals.
The one-on-one sessions have been most valuable to me on a personal development side of things and has helped me in prioritising workloads, communicating with people better and facing up to and resolving issues that have been previously difficult to deal with as effectively and as timely as I felt were necessary or required. I feel more confident and self assured in my ability to be an effective leader for the organisation as I move forward with the coaching and training and that I have the ability to keep developing and improving for myself going forward.
It has been invaluable to me and I look forward to each session coming up. I had not thought that the coaching would have had the impact it has had on me and feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to have this level of coaching both from a Team ExL perspective and personally. The Coaching Room and in particular Joseph and Jay have provided the expertise, challenges and honest evaluation that we needed to improve both as a team and as individuals and which is an ongoing process.
Alison Balind
Manager, Communications & Community Development, Griffith City Council
Prior to undertaking the sessions with the Coaching Room, Griffith City Council’s management executive, while functional, was not a particularly cohesive unit. The general feeling of the group was to protect each department’s own interests rather than taking a step back and dealing with issues from a strategic level. As a result, some decisions were not made in a holistic fashion and this led to an air of distrust that was extremely counter-productive. While there were some ‘alliances’ within the group, the silo-mentality persisted. It was a particularly unhealthy environment that filtered through the whole organisation.
Upon reflection, self-interest was the main cause that maintained the status quo. This can be evidenced by the practices that were employed across a range of council functions from recruitment to budgeting processes. It was the case that people protected their own patch before considering any other area. While it may not be the view of others, that is very much my view and experience.
Engaging The Coaching Room was like turning on a light when you are standing naked in front of a mirror – the flaws were on show for us all to see and while the image in front of us was familiar, it was not really the prettiest picture we had seen. By firstly acknowledging as a group that there was something going wrong, the initial steps towards effecting change were made. But it is still fairly early and we have some way to go before the change I believe we are hoping for will be evidenced throughout the whole organisation.
Working in-group sessions and with one-on-one coaching, the opportunity to identify what, specifically, are the barriers to change were made easier to identify. Gaining a better understanding of how people’s perceptions are developed and learning – or more importantly remembering – what our areas of responsibility are, has been crucial.
While it is a constant process to remember the information and models presented throughout all of the sessions, it becomes easier with practice – like everything. The Manager-as-Coach training program helped to cement some of the earlier learnings for me because revisiting them throughout that process provided a little more clarity. Right now, I feel that I am more balanced within myself – while I still struggle with the time management stuff, that’s my issue – but I find there is less fluctuation in my moods and I am much more comfortable within myself as a leader.
It was an outstanding opportunity and I am grateful to Joseph and Jay (and Kerry) for their efforts with Team ExL but more importantly with me. They have opened the door to a better understanding of why I have done many things in the past and I find I am challenging myself daily to be a better me – or more specifically the real me.
Dallas Bibby
Group Manager Operations, Griffith City Council
Manex (as it was then termed) had realised that there was a culture throughout the whole organisation where staff were stagnant, unwilling to accept change, disgruntled, conflicting with management and their fellow staff members, with many thinking they lacked direction.
This was seen as a reflection on Manex as not providing good Leadership. Manex was seeing itself as disjointed and not having team orientated goals with departmental conflicts, mostly due to competition for budget. This selfish, silo mentality meant that we often forgot the organisational goals that we should have been pursuing.
Most of the time, self centredly, we were protecting our departments from resource constraints, as there was not enough to go around. My main issue was that we were always building new things and accepting new developments, without due consideration to the ongoing maintenance which would result in more pressure on staff as the numbers in the Operations were not increasing. Also we realised we needed to engage the rest of the staff with change management.
By introducing The Coaching Room it bared our souls and exposed the individual baggage that was not serving the Manex team and us well. Some of my baggage was long standing, building up from many trials and tribulations and experiences in the past. We were not genuinely operating as a team and therefore getting the best results for the organisation and the staff.
Group sessions and especially the sharing circles made us all open up to give a better understanding to the other team members of how we feel and showed the reasons why we acted in our own particular way. The models have given me a better understanding of the inner me, some bad, some good, but this now is allowing me to make improved judgments. The 1:1 coaching resolved that I should accept what is and move on rather than linger in the past and worry about lost opportunity.
I believe with setting our 5 Values, that the team is embracing them, with myself although probably previously utilising Honesty, Love and Passion, I am now working with increased Integrity and hopefully showing greater Inspiration. The team now has evolved into Team ExL with all showing love to each other and being considerate of the constraints of other members. The organisation is transforming with staff mostly more comfortable to deal with as they can see that Team ExL is genuinely listening to them.
There is still ground to cover yet and we need to refresh each other regularly.
The process has certainly made me more comfortable with what I am and has allowed me to develop into an improved contributing team member of Team ExL. The process has been very good and my thanks are extended to Jay and Joe for their achievement in bringing Team ExL team members together as a genuine team and introducing change management to GCC.
Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Leadership Coaching
THE COACHING ROOM, AN EXECUTIVE COACHING AND LEADERSHIP TRAINING FIRM, HELPS GRIFFITH CITY OFFICIALS IMPROVE THEMSELVES AND THEIR DECISION-MAKING
“Certainly, as an organisation we weren’t necessarily in very good shape … we thought we were but we had room to improve. After training by The Coaching Room, we went on a very long journey and we’re in a much better place now.”
KERRY SEFTON, Group Manager, People & Systems, Griffith City Council, City of Griffith, Australia
“The Coaching Room became involved - in training and coaching - like we had never experienced before and 100+ employees from across all levels and sections of Council experienced the unique techniques required to get staff thinking and changing the way that we worked together - the change has been astounding - we have taken the 1st steps on our journey of change”.
Peter Brooks, General Manager, Griffith City Council, City of Griffith, Australia
INTRODUCTION
The legislative and governing Councils in Australia and the administrative teams that assist them are not unlike the boards of directors of major corporations or non-profits found around the world. They are a group of individuals, elected, appointed or hired, who each bring their knowledge and expertise to the table to govern and manage as one. The individual’s and group’s decisions affect others and have a direct correlation to group success and therefore, on service to customers, both internal and external. This, in turn, positively or negatively affects patrons and constituents and their views of the service provided, both perceived and real.
Among the optimal-performing in government and business, this means pragmatic and collaborative leadership by individual members in an organisation as well as the group as a whole.
THE CHALLENGE
In the case of the Griffith City administration in New South Wales, this wasn’t the case. The senior management team, charged with putting City Council decisions into practice and ultimately managing the city employees who carry out policy on a day-to-day basis, could sense they were not meeting the high performance standards they had set for themselves. Administration and delivery of municipal services and the decisions guiding these efforts were limited by the senior management team’s self-described inability to work well together. Silos, those vertical protectors of turf and self-interest that stifle action in the most promising of organisations, had been built by team members to the point that it was difficult to work optimally as, yes, a team. Talent and commitment certainly weren’t lacking among team members, but they believed a more cohesive group with targeted and focused leadership was needed to move their organisation and the community forward.
“We thought we could do better,” says Kerry Sefton, Group Manager, People & Systems for the Griffith City Council. Self-analysis, that harsh diagnostic which improves those who heed its call to action, helped Griffith’s senior management team see that its ability to lead was adversely affected by a lack of strategic planning and decision-making. Those, in turn, were being hampered by a lack of understanding of senior management team members of their individual strengths and weaknesses and how to work effectively as a unit.
There was, in a nutshell, the need for Griffith senior management to be visionaries and leaders, not just managers. They also needed to break free of the restraints created by that ever-paralyzing mantra – “We’ve always done it that way.”
“Most of the people here had come up through the ranks, so they were task managers, and now they’re in senior management, where you have to think strategically; more about the big picture,” Sefton says.
But, as with most households, businesses and governments in today’s world economy, financial resources were limited. Griffith’s senior management members knew they needed to take steps to improve their team, and in so doing, the community. They also realised they would need help from an outside advisor if they truly were to achieve formative change. However, funds were limited for the type of soul-searching and guidance they knew would be necessary.
THE SOLUTION
The City of Griffith turned to the expert coaches and change agents at The Coaching Room. Here, they found people who understand that for positive change and growth to occur, people and organisations must look at their present states of being to effectively drive that change. Coaches Joseph Scott and Jay Hedley helped individuals decipher individual and group dynamics, showing them how their behavior and ways of doing things were directly affecting administrative outcomes and maintaining the status quo.
The Coaching Room’s facilitators deftly guided the City of Griffith’s senior management team through the evaluation and training that set its members on a solid course toward enlightened and effective leadership.
With guidance from Scott and Hedley, the Griffith administrators took a hard look at who they were and where their organisation stood. This self-analysis provided a snapshot that would provide the impetus for change toward a new leadership and management model. Outlining the elements of good leadership and the characteristics of effective leaders, The Coaching Room guided the Griffith management team on a journey of self-discovery and self-determination.
“Where did we want to go; what kind of leaders did we want to be?” explains Sefton. “The coaching took us through that … The Coaching Room helped us through sticking points so that we enabled ourselves to develop and grow. We are now approaching issues and decisions as a team, which we definitely weren’t doing before.”
Using The Coaching Room’s “Translation Quadrants”, “Axes of Change” and the “Matrix” methodologies – designed to break down the status quo quickly to bring change that is integrated, lasting and based on issues unique to an organisation – Griffith’s senior management team’s members for the first time developed an overarching vision for their organisation. A guiding set of values soon followed, leading to fundamental change in how the organisation’s members perceive not only themselves, but also their group and its role in leading the organisation and community.
It may sound like an easy step-by-step process, but change is always hard, and the more it is needed, the more difficult it often can be. The Griffith project was no different. Resistance to change among individuals of the management team slowed the process, but here, The Coaching Room’s proven methods of maintaining team members’ focus on the impediments to improvement – keeping the status quo using long-held beliefs and methods – while encouraging transformation from within garnered the desired results.
“This is radical change for us,” says Sefton. “We wouldn’t have had these conversations prior to coaching from The Coaching Room.”
THE RESULTS
What The Coaching Room facilitators helped Griffith team members uncover came as no surprise, although the magnitude of the challenges it presented did. “We weren’t being open and honest with each other. We weren’t supporting each other properly,” says Sefton. “We were working in silos and that’s not helpful for anybody – for ourselves, our team, our organisation and certainly not for the community. So, that’s where we were and that was quite a fundamental revelation … we didn’t realise how negative the impact was in that way of working.”
Griffith senior management team members, Sefton happily admits, are now open with their opinions and constructive in their disagreements. They are committed to working collaboratively to solve problems and address issues, something that was not possible, she says, prior to The Coaching Room’s evaluation, coaching and advising. Those silos, so stifling to growth and change before, are gone.
“Each one of the (new set of) values really means something to us, and that is where we are taking in the whole organisation with the new approach. So, I would say that has been the most fundamental change and the foundation for the values is our vision and all the meaning that is behind it,” Sefton says. “It’s now not just one section of the City Council that says this or this. It’s going to have to be the whole Council. We are as one.”
Because of The Coaching Room’s guidance in identifying issues and finding solutions, the Griffith team now eagerly looks to the future for itself, its employees and the community it serves. Fresh approaches to collaborative problem solving have cast off the “always-done-it-that-way” mentality. Senior management is expounding the benefits of The Coaching Room’s coaching, conducting its own in-house training sessions based on what administrative team members have learned. These results, too, have been impressive.
“We’ve never had that many compliments of staff saying, “That was wonderful,” Sefton, says. “It is helping the staff individually, at home, with their friends and at work.”
ABOUT THE CITY OF GRIFFITH AND ITS GOVERNMENT
Griffith, a major regional center of about 25,000 people, is the Seat of the City of Griffith local government area. The city is five to six hours drive from the metropolitan hubs of Sydney and Melbourne. Roughly 400 employees come under the management umbrella of the City Council of Griffith.
TESTIMONIALS
Peter Brooks
General Manager, Griffith City Council
For all Local Councils in NSW (and Councils in other States) there is a strong requirement (both legislative and moral) to develop long term community strategic plans - these are labelled different strategies in different States - the real issue is whether the right attitude & culture exists in Council - both staff and Councillors to ensure that genuine community consultation and then excellent service delivery happens. To ensure that these 2 occur we at Griffith City Council wanted to be an employer of choice so we had the right staff with the right culture and attitude to deliver genuinely; a Community Strategic Plan that reflects community requirements and to deliver services in a customer focused manner.
The Coaching Room became involved in training and coaching like we had never experienced before and 100+ employees from across all levels and sections of Council experienced the unique techniques required to get staff thinking and changing the way that we worked together - the change has been astounding - we have taken the 1st steps on our journey of change.
Kerry Sefton
Group Manager, People & Systems (HR), Griffith City Council
When I arrived at GCC in January 2009 I identified that the (then) Manex Team mainly discussed operational matters with the strategic planning only evidenced at the annual budget setting time. There was little dialogue between the functions as to how we could assist each other or what pressures different sections were under. The silo mentality was well and truly ‘a way of being’, which wasn’t helpful to either the individual areas or to GCC in general. I found the GCC vision and set of values in the GCC management plan, these had to be searched for as no one could tell me what they were.
I was also aware that staff were treated inequitably, with little consultation within the Manex team or consideration of the impact of how individual employees were treated and how this would be perceived within the organisation. As though some rules applied to some sections but not others. The impact this has on my team in listening to valid grievances has been disheartening to say the least. There was and still is a perception that ‘if your face fits’ you’re OK and will be looked after. This is not a healthy way of being for an organisation that wants to provide the best possible services it can to the community.
The causes of this were:
1. The term ‘ this is the way we do things here’ prevailed, large numbers of employees with very long service; small town mentality, Council is a major employer in this city, many staff are related to each other by birth and marriage and therefore do not want to rock the boat as this could affect life outside work.
2. A lack of strong management to challenge the status quo, staff being recruited into positions without due diligence checks that they are competent to do the job, therefore large on-going catch up training programs required.
3. Poor/weak Leadership, decisions made on a Friday not upheld on a Monday, leading to a lack of trust and direction. Inconsistencies even between the senior management staff. This also reinforced the lack of trust between the Group Managers.... squeaky wheel, lack of co-operation.
4. No defined vision for the Council, therefore what is our purpose, what are measurable outcomes? Difficult to produce departmental strategic plans as there wasn’t anything to align them to.
What was made available to us by The Coaching Room was a process and a language that we could learn in order to communicate with each other and start to break down the barriers. The process covered a definition of leadership, what it is and is not, an identification that most of us are managers and not leaders and an awareness of what it would take to coach us to be leaders – ie. What sort of leader did we want to become? An opportunity for self-growth through group and one to one coaching. An opportunity to discover various models of behaviour and decision making to assist with strategic thinking.
The results have been phenomenal. We have learnt a new language and are able to communicate more easily. The Leadership training teased out of us what our long-term ambitions are as individuals, as a team and where we want to take GCC in future. Through the Leadership training we have developed a set of values which we are working on embodying and a vision to become ‘An Employer of Choice’, neither of which we had before The Coaching Room came on board.
We also have available to us a set of business models to run our strategic decisions through to identify if they are valid and feasible, seen from the position of four different quadrants. The Group Coaching has given us a safe place to open up and express our concerns about each other and how individual behaviour is perceived by the Group and could be perceived by the staff and does this ‘serve’ the values we have set for ourselves. The Enneagram (personality profile) has given us an awareness of how each member is likely to react and therefore another tool for communication and understanding from another’s perspective. How we can both harness this energy but also support each other and not exploit traits. I believe the one-to-one coaching is an essential element for embedding what was being learnt as a group, how as individuals were we resisting or supporting the process of change and what we needed to change within ourselves for progress to occur. The one-to-one coaching helped us to get ‘unstuck’.
Where are we now? As an organisation we have a set of values and a vision that we can share with staff, through the mechanism of the staff survey we can draw up a series of actions to embrace the vision and turn it into a reality. The Coaching Essentials Program which has been delivered to almost 100 staff has had a huge impact and is the beginning of breaking down the silo mentality and communicating across functions and departments. Through this program staff learnt about the Map/Territory Distinction and the Four Quadrants and now have a greater depth of understanding when interacting with other colleagues. There’s a ‘buzz’ around the place that did not exist before and staff are pushing the new Team ExL for change.
As a group we are definitely more honest with each other, more supportive, wanting to be more strategic.
I myself, I feel happy that with The Coaching Room, I have been able to introduce the opportunity of change into GCC, but it is going to take all of us to maintain the momentum, make change happen and turn the vision into reality.
The results have been superb, fantastic, and revolutionary... It’s been a big year.
I have become more confident in accepting myself as I am, learnt aspects of what has been holding me back and which behaviours have not been serving me well, but also that I have value, the one to one coaching has opened up a range of opportunities for me. I have really accepted the value of ‘showing up’ and being totally open with people and feel liberated...
Max Turner
Group Manager - Business, Cultural & Financial Services, Griffith City Council
Pre our coaching and training, the old management executive team (Manex) were stuck in a rut so to speak in terms of thinking and acting strategically. We were focussing more on operational issues and ensuring that our own “turf” was protected. All of this produced an air of disengagement and distrust of each other in certain cases.
We were not working together as a unified team and the rest of the organisation sensed this in our approach to managing and leading the staff within our different areas. We were not effectively dealing with the key issues facing us. Causing this was:
1. A lack of trust in each other to deal with the harder issues and leaving it up to each other to confront with those issues.
2. Self-interest in regards to protecting our own areas of operations.
3. A lack of openness and honesty in communicating with each other on some of the key issues facing the organisation and how they would impact on us, possibly individually.
For The Coaching Room to come in and see how we were operating (and failing) from a completely neutral and new perspective, was exactly what was required. The Coaching Room provided an opportunity to tell us how it was and get feedback from a totally external perspective. It also provided us with a mechanism to start communicating to each other in an open and constructive environment, ie a facilitative approach which is assisting in breaking down some of the reserve and hesitancy in bringing out the real issues that had been stopping us from operating and leading in the best way possible.
The results are greater awareness of each other’s strengths and weaknesses. A greater understanding of what each of our personality types are through the tools, principles and models learnt in the Coaching Essentials program. The Coaching has been invaluable on both a group and one-on-one session basis - ie. Working as a group has given us a shared experience in working together to develop and define what the organisations core values are and also a greater ability and understanding of what it means to work together towards a common and shared set of goals.
The one-on-one sessions have been most valuable to me on a personal development side of things and has helped me in prioritising workloads, communicating with people better and facing up to and resolving issues that have been previously difficult to deal with as effectively and as timely as I felt were necessary or required. I feel more confident and self assured in my ability to be an effective leader for the organisation as I move forward with the coaching and training and that I have the ability to keep developing and improving for myself going forward.
It has been invaluable to me and I look forward to each session coming up. I had not thought that the coaching would have had the impact it has had on me and feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to have this level of coaching both from a Team ExL perspective and personally. The Coaching Room and in particular Joseph and Jay have provided the expertise, challenges and honest evaluation that we needed to improve both as a team and as individuals and which is an ongoing process.
Alison Balind
Manager, Communications & Community Development, Griffith City Council
Prior to undertaking the sessions with the Coaching Room, Griffith City Council’s management executive, while functional, was not a particularly cohesive unit. The general feeling of the group was to protect each department’s own interests rather than taking a step back and dealing with issues from a strategic level. As a result, some decisions were not made in a holistic fashion and this led to an air of distrust that was extremely counter-productive. While there were some ‘alliances’ within the group, the silo-mentality persisted. It was a particularly unhealthy environment that filtered through the whole organisation.
Upon reflection, self-interest was the main cause that maintained the status quo. This can be evidenced by the practices that were employed across a range of council functions from recruitment to budgeting processes. It was the case that people protected their own patch before considering any other area. While it may not be the view of others, that is very much my view and experience.
Engaging The Coaching Room was like turning on a light when you are standing naked in front of a mirror – the flaws were on show for us all to see and while the image in front of us was familiar, it was not really the prettiest picture we had seen. By firstly acknowledging as a group that there was something going wrong, the initial steps towards effecting change were made. But it is still fairly early and we have some way to go before the change I believe we are hoping for will be evidenced throughout the whole organisation.
Working in-group sessions and with one-on-one coaching, the opportunity to identify what, specifically, are the barriers to change were made easier to identify. Gaining a better understanding of how people’s perceptions are developed and learning – or more importantly remembering – what our areas of responsibility are, has been crucial.
While it is a constant process to remember the information and models presented throughout all of the sessions, it becomes easier with practice – like everything. The Manager-as-Coach training program helped to cement some of the earlier learnings for me because revisiting them throughout that process provided a little more clarity. Right now, I feel that I am more balanced within myself – while I still struggle with the time management stuff, that’s my issue – but I find there is less fluctuation in my moods and I am much more comfortable within myself as a leader.
It was an outstanding opportunity and I am grateful to Joseph and Jay (and Kerry) for their efforts with Team ExL but more importantly with me. They have opened the door to a better understanding of why I have done many things in the past and I find I am challenging myself daily to be a better me – or more specifically the real me.
Dallas Bibby
Group Manager Operations, Griffith City Council
Manex (as it was then termed) had realised that there was a culture throughout the whole organisation where staff were stagnant, unwilling to accept change, disgruntled, conflicting with management and their fellow staff members, with many thinking they lacked direction.
This was seen as a reflection on Manex as not providing good Leadership. Manex was seeing itself as disjointed and not having team orientated goals with departmental conflicts, mostly due to competition for budget. This selfish, silo mentality meant that we often forgot the organisational goals that we should have been pursuing.
Most of the time, self centredly, we were protecting our departments from resource constraints, as there was not enough to go around. My main issue was that we were always building new things and accepting new developments, without due consideration to the ongoing maintenance which would result in more pressure on staff as the numbers in the Operations were not increasing. Also we realised we needed to engage the rest of the staff with change management.
By introducing The Coaching Room it bared our souls and exposed the individual baggage that was not serving the Manex team and us well. Some of my baggage was long standing, building up from many trials and tribulations and experiences in the past. We were not genuinely operating as a team and therefore getting the best results for the organisation and the staff.
Group sessions and especially the sharing circles made us all open up to give a better understanding to the other team members of how we feel and showed the reasons why we acted in our own particular way. The models have given me a better understanding of the inner me, some bad, some good, but this now is allowing me to make improved judgments. The 1:1 coaching resolved that I should accept what is and move on rather than linger in the past and worry about lost opportunity.
I believe with setting our 5 Values, that the team is embracing them, with myself although probably previously utilising Honesty, Love and Passion, I am now working with increased Integrity and hopefully showing greater Inspiration. The team now has evolved into Team ExL with all showing love to each other and being considerate of the constraints of other members. The organisation is transforming with staff mostly more comfortable to deal with as they can see that Team ExL is genuinely listening to them.
There is still ground to cover yet and we need to refresh each other regularly.
The process has certainly made me more comfortable with what I am and has allowed me to develop into an improved contributing team member of Team ExL. The process has been very good and my thanks are extended to Jay and Joe for their achievement in bringing Team ExL team members together as a genuine team and introducing change management to GCC.
Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Leadership Coaching
Friday, March 4, 2011
Leadership & Intentionality - Creating Intentional Leaders
The undiagnosed virus
Most leaders are managing more than leading.
As leadership heats today's leader burns up in details.
Today's leader focuses on the what, rarely on the why (the what is important) and never on the why the why (why the why is important).
If you find yourself or your leaders showing symptoms of the above maybe you are suffering from the 'Intention Deficit Virus'. A seemingly contagious dis-ease that thrives throughout many organisation's culture.
We believe that this virus is a by-product of yesteryear's management efficiency outlook, that most leaders have failed to move through. You may be wondering why leaders struggle with this. Well, let’s take a look...
Have you ever thought or said to someone... ‘You know I think I might have a cold, I’m not sure as I don’t have any obvious symptoms, but I just don’t feel right’. You may also have noticed that your performance at work or maybe in the gym just wasn’t there. Yes? That is exactly how the ‘Intention Deficit Virus’ affects organisations and its leaders. It just goes on undiagnosed.
Diagnosis
The ‘Intention Deficit Virus’ is as it says, a deficit of intention. Suffered by the leader through failing to distinguish between what the leader is attending to and the intention behind the attending.
Yet, here is where it the virus gets smart, as viruses do once we diagnose them, and try to rid ourselves of them. The Intention (at first view) may seem fitting even admirable - The organisation 'needs me to do this' or 'we don’t have the resources to have others doing this, so I will add value by supporting this need'. Though this simply creates a fertile environment for the virus to replicate and grow.
The first step in becoming aware of our intentions is part of the way to ridding ourselves of the deficit virus. However, just knowing our intention is not the cure...
We need to ask:
• What - am I attending too?
• How - is this displaying leading or leadership?
• Why - am I doing this?
This is where we have to jump logical levels, to go meta, above the current line of inquiry, because of course there is intention in all attention.
What we need to ask to be 'healthy' (intentional) leaders is:
• What is the quality of my intention?’
• What do I intend with what I attend to or give my attention to?
• What is the intention of my intention?
The Cure (not the band...)
As you start to ask yourself these questions, you start to become a healthy leader again. You begin to once again see the bigger picture. You have a great big why with which to lead with.
With a big enough why, the what will start to be done by the people tasked with the 'what' namely 'Managers'. In fact as we look at the formula of management and leadership in these terms, we can broadly say:
• Management = Attention
• Leadership = Intention
As managers ask 'what and how?' the leader’s role is to ask or know 'why?' . This is the exploration of intention.
So I ask you as a leader:
• What are you going to apply 'your why' too?
• What are you doing right now that is suffering from the 'Intention Deficit Virus'?
• How much value to the bottom line of your business do you think you could add if you textured your leadership with intentional intentions? Given that - from this perspective - what would you be attending to?
• How much more of an effective leader can you sense yourself as being as you realise you can now rid yourself and eventually your organisation of the 'Intention Deficit Virus'?
Living and Leading with intentionality and on purpose forms a significant part of our leadership coaching and leadership training programs… maybe its time you got a check up with us!
Coaching
Leadership Coaching
Management Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Most leaders are managing more than leading.
As leadership heats today's leader burns up in details.
Today's leader focuses on the what, rarely on the why (the what is important) and never on the why the why (why the why is important).
If you find yourself or your leaders showing symptoms of the above maybe you are suffering from the 'Intention Deficit Virus'. A seemingly contagious dis-ease that thrives throughout many organisation's culture.
We believe that this virus is a by-product of yesteryear's management efficiency outlook, that most leaders have failed to move through. You may be wondering why leaders struggle with this. Well, let’s take a look...
Have you ever thought or said to someone... ‘You know I think I might have a cold, I’m not sure as I don’t have any obvious symptoms, but I just don’t feel right’. You may also have noticed that your performance at work or maybe in the gym just wasn’t there. Yes? That is exactly how the ‘Intention Deficit Virus’ affects organisations and its leaders. It just goes on undiagnosed.
Diagnosis
The ‘Intention Deficit Virus’ is as it says, a deficit of intention. Suffered by the leader through failing to distinguish between what the leader is attending to and the intention behind the attending.
Yet, here is where it the virus gets smart, as viruses do once we diagnose them, and try to rid ourselves of them. The Intention (at first view) may seem fitting even admirable - The organisation 'needs me to do this' or 'we don’t have the resources to have others doing this, so I will add value by supporting this need'. Though this simply creates a fertile environment for the virus to replicate and grow.
The first step in becoming aware of our intentions is part of the way to ridding ourselves of the deficit virus. However, just knowing our intention is not the cure...
We need to ask:
• What - am I attending too?
• How - is this displaying leading or leadership?
• Why - am I doing this?
This is where we have to jump logical levels, to go meta, above the current line of inquiry, because of course there is intention in all attention.
What we need to ask to be 'healthy' (intentional) leaders is:
• What is the quality of my intention?’
• What do I intend with what I attend to or give my attention to?
• What is the intention of my intention?
The Cure (not the band...)
As you start to ask yourself these questions, you start to become a healthy leader again. You begin to once again see the bigger picture. You have a great big why with which to lead with.
With a big enough why, the what will start to be done by the people tasked with the 'what' namely 'Managers'. In fact as we look at the formula of management and leadership in these terms, we can broadly say:
• Management = Attention
• Leadership = Intention
As managers ask 'what and how?' the leader’s role is to ask or know 'why?' . This is the exploration of intention.
So I ask you as a leader:
• What are you going to apply 'your why' too?
• What are you doing right now that is suffering from the 'Intention Deficit Virus'?
• How much value to the bottom line of your business do you think you could add if you textured your leadership with intentional intentions? Given that - from this perspective - what would you be attending to?
• How much more of an effective leader can you sense yourself as being as you realise you can now rid yourself and eventually your organisation of the 'Intention Deficit Virus'?
Living and Leading with intentionality and on purpose forms a significant part of our leadership coaching and leadership training programs… maybe its time you got a check up with us!
Coaching
Leadership Coaching
Management Coaching
Executive Coaching
Coach Training
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Cognitive Flexibility - The Stages of Ego Development and Leadership
Cognitive Flexibility - Stages of Ego Development - Adult Development
By Peter Holliday - Integral Executive Coach at The Coaching Room
“What are you trying to tell me? That I can dodge bullets?
“No, Neo. I'm trying to tell you that when you're ready, you won't have to”
Neo and Morpheus, The Matrix
Introduction
As a coach I am consistently blessed with the opportunity to work with individuals from varying backgrounds, assisting deep transformation on both personal and professional levels. I firmly believe through this work that separation of these two domains is impossible; your Way of Being in the world is with you both at work and at home. Your Way of Being knows no context except to help you function as best you can inside the world of what can sometimes be your own limiting beliefs and structures. But this functioning can be expanded by developing your cognitive flexibility. In this paper I will be outlining the stages of flexibility, how they are measured and how they can be used in within certain settings and applications.
For the purposes of this article I will be looking at how cognitive flexibility affects the ability of leaders and executives to transform both themselves and their company, and maybe even the world around them. In order to do this I will be framing this concept within the stages and levels of ego development as proposed by Dr Susanne Cook-Greuter (Cook-Greuter, 1985). I have found that the Nine stages of Ego development as measured by her SCT-i (Sentence Completion Test – Integral ) nearly perfectly reflect ad embody the progressive stages of cognitive flexibility as they emerge in human beings. While some people have issues with their whole self being reduced to a certain set of distinctions, (which I can wholeheartedly agree with in some instances); it is remarkable how often the Ego Development framework and client are in complete agreement.
Flexibility by definition
Flexibility is the ability to expand and contract according to a certain set of arising conditions or circumstances, and then resume original shape or form. It is also thought of as being not locked in or rigid, but in some ways malleable, and so it is the same for cognition or functioning in the cognitive domain . In terms of thinking, it is the ability to do a large number of things at one time, and to act in a very situational manner. By this I mean the ability to respond appropriately to the conditions as they arise as opposed to reacting. In another words, other than trying to make the situation fit your map, it’s adjusting yourself to fit the conditional requirements arising around you.
Several studies (Cook-Greuter, 1985) (Torbert & Rooke , 2005) (Rooke, 2001) indicate that cognitive flexibility (also known as ego development) is a major, if not the major, determinate in developing successful leaders that can actually sustainably transform companies. Jim Collins now famous book Good to Great (Collins, 2001) is a fine example of just how much difference a leader with a high degree of mental flexibitly can really make to an organisation . It is of interest to note that ALL of the CEO’s that led their companies to greatness in this book over the length of the study reflected the capacities of the later and more developed stages of ego development, and extremely high levels of cognitive positioning.
Levels of flexibility
To a large degree, an individual’s ability to position themselves into situations in different ways or perspective is limited by their world-view. A person’s world-view is literally their map for navigating the outside world, and often incongruity between this internal navigation system and the outside world is the source of constant tension, as the map is not the territory, and an inability to understand or embody this understanding is what leads leaders and executives into constant trouble. The ability to adapt to situations and be flexible in your interaction with the outside world and the other humans inhabiting it is not a simple you either have it or you don’t affair, it progresses in stages.
Level of flexibility- increasing | Characteristics | Strengths | % of Research Sample
1. Opportunist
- Pre-Conventional
- Egocentric
- Wins any way possible. Self-oriented; manipulative; “might makes right.”
Good in emergencies and in sales opportunities.
- 5 %of research sample
2. Diplomat
- Conventional
- Ethnocentric
- Avoids overt conflict. Wants to belong; obeys group norms; rarely rocks the boat
- Good as supportive glue within an office; helps bring people together.
- 12% of research sample
3. Expert
- Conventional
- Ethno-Centric
- Rules by logic and expertise. Seeks rational efficiency.
Good as an individual contributor
- 38% of research sample
4. Achiever
- Conventional
- Ethno-Centric
- Meets strategic goals. Effectively achieves goals through teams; juggles managerial duties and market demands.Well suited to managerial roles; action and goal oriented.
- 30% of research sample
5. Individualist
- Post-Conventional
- World-Centric
- Interweaves competing personal and company action logics. Creates unique structures to resolve gaps between strategy and performance. Effective in venture and consulting roles.
- 10% of research sample
6. Strategist
- Post-Conventional
- World/Cosmo-Centric Generates organizational and personal transformations.
- Exercises the power of mutual inquiry, vigilance, and vulnerability for both the short and long term. Effective as a transformational leader.
- 4% of research sample
7. Alchemist
- Post-Post Conventional
- Cosmo-Centric
- Generates social transformations. Inte-grates material, spiritual, and societal transformation. Good at leading society-wide transformations.
1% of research sample
Expansion
Each of the stages above represents stages of development that correspond to increasing levels of mental cognition and flexibility. You can see from the chart above, levels of flexibility range greatly, but in general the greater depth, span and degree of flexibility, the better. The greater the altitude of your world-view, the larger your ability to navigate certain situations or problems. The ability to be flexible in various leadership or executive situations is something that does and can be developed over time with the right injunction and or practice.
Although there are seven rough stages listed above correlating to executive positions in which they are most readily found, there are four main or general levels or switch-points that mark a substantial increase in flexibility and world-view. These switch-points mark increases in being able to register or see both inter-connectivity and the ability to hold perspectives of other people as if they are your own, before making a choice or decision. You can see how profoundly this capacity would affect people in leadership positions. The four main switch-points relate directly to the amount of people that an individual’s perspective can hold or relate to in the following ways:
Stage 1 – Ego-Centric – it’s all about me and what I want – A 1st person perspective
Stage 2 – Ethno-Centric – It’s about me and my group and people that I can relate to - Family, Religion, Race – a 2nd person perspective
Stage 3 – World-Centric – What’s good for all of us as a global population - a 3rd person perspective
Stage 4 – Cosmo-Centric – What’s good for all people as a global family and the universe in general - a 4th to 9th person perspective
Each of the stages above builds on the one below it, and some sense provides the foundation for the new, higher reality to emerge, given the right challenges or conditions. Some people grow through all 5 stages during their life, others remain at one stage for their entire life. It seems that a certain amount of the reasons for growth and change are as much nature as they are nurture.
Applications – Theory to Practice
Now that we have explored the stages of flexibility in reference to worldview it seems only reasonable to now explore the application of this in the real world.
Functional Fit – an Integral approach to Human Resourcing
Functional Fit is simply placing a person in a role that fits that person’s level of flexibility or degree of cognitive development. For example I would not employ some one at the Expert level (Stage-3) of consciousness in a leadership role. As leadership is about going outside the boundaries and Experts (Stage-3) rely on the systems and liner thinking as their cognitive map boundaries and they need rules to function. So in this sense there is a certain amount of ethics implied in Functional Fit, as it takes into consideration two or three immediate allowances, such as:
• An Expert placed in this situation would suffer undue anxiety at constantly being in a position requiring work in a sphere outside their developmental capacities
• What they create in this sphere would be bounded by restraint of the conformity, and their deep desire to fit and hold the status quo in the pre-existing frameworks; as opposed to going beyond them
• Experts by nature operate from a craft or linear style logic, and tend not to respond to situations but rather to react. So you could see how having a CEO or leader in this position that reacts to a market without considering the outcome could have undesired results for many companies
Further matching examples for instance would be for a role in sales. Someone at the Achiever (Stage 4) level makes perfect sense, as they thrive on competition and the ability to obtain financial success, and so the job role equals the developmental match, brining about performance in that given role…it is a Functional Fit...
Again Leaders and CEO’s that change the game nearly always test at the higher levels of flexibility,(at least Stage-5 and above-usually Stage-6), and the ones that don’t, do not bring about sustainable transformation; just short term rearrangement for personal gain. Thinking about how their choices impact the world is just not on their radar.
So from these very basic examples we can see how much more efficient it is to employ people to roles that are developmentally specific to the employee’s level of cognitive flexibility . For an extended and far more detailed description of this matching process and the dilemma of incorrect matching please consult: Organisational Transformation requires the presence of leaders that are Strategists and Alchemists (Rooke, 2001).
Applying Levels of Flexibility to Type – Using personality profiling correctly
One of the most common things we hear from HR specialists and employment agencies is “but we do personality testing!”. Personality testing and developmental assessment however are not the same thing.
A useful way to think about this is Vertical vs Horizontal. Personality profiling tools like Myers Briggs or the Enneagram are a horizontal approach to profiling. Developmental stage level is vertical. As an example, you can have an entire room of INFJ’s (Myers Briggs) or any other Myers Briggs type for that matter but all a different stages of development. So even though they are all the same type, depending on their development, they will all behave very differently. A person at the lower stages of the spectrum will be behaving in a way that self serves them in to a position of getting what they want out of the situation. While another person of the same type but at the higher end of the spectrum will be focused on how he can create world peace. Both people are exactly the same type but behave extremely differently.
So with just one simple example you can see the relevance of developmental profiling as an addition to horizontal personality profiling. In my opinion they should always be used in conjunction.
In my work as an Executive Coach I have found the one profiling tool that successfully integrates both horizontal and vertical stages into a more comprehensive overall profile is The Enneagram - specifically the particular type of the Enneagram modelled by Riso and Hudson at the Enneagram Institute (Riso & Hudson , 2010). This specific profile integrates the levels of development into levels of health, which closely correspond or mirror the levels of cognitive flexibility.
This almost seamless integration of both the vertical and horizontal axis of personality typing is why we at The Coaching Room we use the Enneagram in all of our coaching sessions. We find it the easiest and most accurate integrated profile for allowing us access to a client’s world in the shortest amount of time. While the Enneagram doesn’t cover all the bases, it does give you a fantastic starting point without having to combine multiple profiles.
Conclusion
At The Coaching Room one of the most consistent things we are continually asked to facilitate in executives or leaders is a shift in their degree of cognitive flexibility or level of development, “I want to go to the next level”. For a shift in a way of being or level of development we often recommend Integral style Coaching.
Integral Coaching combines the use of a rigorous subject/object theory methodology with ongoing developmental practices; specifically designed and tailored to each client based on their unique AQAL constellation and way of being in the world. Through the ongoing adherence to these practices the client is nurtured and supported into first tasting, then embodying, their New Way of Being in the World, at the next level. Coaching Room Coaches are well-educated tour guides, helping guide clients through the cartography of their new mental landscape.
Bibliography
Wilber, K. (Performer). (2011). Integral Spirituality - A Deeper Cut. S. True.
Wilber, K. (2000). One Taste - daily relfections on integral spirituality . shambhala.
Collins, J. (2001). Good to Great. Harper Business.
Cook-Greuter, S. (1985). Ego Development - The nine levels of increasing embrace . paper , integral Institute , psychology .
Riso, D., & Hudson , R. (2010). The Enneagram Institute. Retrieved from The Enneagram Institute: www.TheEnneagramInstitute.com
Rooke, D. (2001, October ). Organisational Transformation requires the presence of leaders who are alchemists and strategists . Oraganisations and people , 4.3 .
Torbert, W., & Rooke , D. (2005, April ). The seven transformations of leadership. The harvard business review.
Footnotes:
1. The SCT-I is a 36 item unfinished sentence questionnaire, adapted from, what was the pioneering work of Jane Loevinger’s original Washington University Sentence Completion Test.
2. Cognitive is a term that is widely used and for the sake of all involved could use with a firm definition, as it seems to mean different things to different people. In integral theory it is used not in reference to thinking per see but in context to the ability to take perspective of both self and other. A clear distinction between this definition and that of linear deductive thinking could alleviate a lot of the confusion encountered when different people use this term.
3. It is worthy to note that Skills are important as well, and just having a highly flexible mind is not purely enough to make great leaders. I am simply suggesting that at the leadership level of large companies business skills are at about the same general capacity.
4. It is the belief of many of the theorist referenced in this paper that one stage of development or flexibility stage takes about 5 years to pass through. The only thing that has been quantifiably proved to accelerate this process has been mediation, or any form of Subject/Object injunction. Recently Integral Coaching and it’s continual use of metaphors as a way of employing the Subject/Object method during coaching sessions, while focusing on holistic development. This new technique offers a new and as yet un-qualified potential to shorten this developmental time frame.
5. It is worthy of mention that several theorist’s such as Ken Wilber include a possible 6th stage that is referred to as Kosmo-Centric. The K in Kosmo-Centric alludes to the fact that other realities may in fact exist, and takes these into account, the allowance of other energetic realms associated with altered states, such as – Subtle, Causal and Non Dual. A more in depth focus of these possible states of being can be found in (Wilber, 2000) (Wilber, Integral spirituality - A Deeper Cut, 2011)(Wilber, Intergal Spirituality - A Deeper Cut, 2011).
Executive Coaching
Executive Coaching Sydney
Executive Coaching Melbourne
Executive Coaching Hobart
Leadership Coaching
Leadership Development
Coaching For Executives
By Peter Holliday - Integral Executive Coach at The Coaching Room
“What are you trying to tell me? That I can dodge bullets?
“No, Neo. I'm trying to tell you that when you're ready, you won't have to”
Neo and Morpheus, The Matrix
Introduction
As a coach I am consistently blessed with the opportunity to work with individuals from varying backgrounds, assisting deep transformation on both personal and professional levels. I firmly believe through this work that separation of these two domains is impossible; your Way of Being in the world is with you both at work and at home. Your Way of Being knows no context except to help you function as best you can inside the world of what can sometimes be your own limiting beliefs and structures. But this functioning can be expanded by developing your cognitive flexibility. In this paper I will be outlining the stages of flexibility, how they are measured and how they can be used in within certain settings and applications.
For the purposes of this article I will be looking at how cognitive flexibility affects the ability of leaders and executives to transform both themselves and their company, and maybe even the world around them. In order to do this I will be framing this concept within the stages and levels of ego development as proposed by Dr Susanne Cook-Greuter (Cook-Greuter, 1985). I have found that the Nine stages of Ego development as measured by her SCT-i (Sentence Completion Test – Integral ) nearly perfectly reflect ad embody the progressive stages of cognitive flexibility as they emerge in human beings. While some people have issues with their whole self being reduced to a certain set of distinctions, (which I can wholeheartedly agree with in some instances); it is remarkable how often the Ego Development framework and client are in complete agreement.
Flexibility by definition
Flexibility is the ability to expand and contract according to a certain set of arising conditions or circumstances, and then resume original shape or form. It is also thought of as being not locked in or rigid, but in some ways malleable, and so it is the same for cognition or functioning in the cognitive domain . In terms of thinking, it is the ability to do a large number of things at one time, and to act in a very situational manner. By this I mean the ability to respond appropriately to the conditions as they arise as opposed to reacting. In another words, other than trying to make the situation fit your map, it’s adjusting yourself to fit the conditional requirements arising around you.
Several studies (Cook-Greuter, 1985) (Torbert & Rooke , 2005) (Rooke, 2001) indicate that cognitive flexibility (also known as ego development) is a major, if not the major, determinate in developing successful leaders that can actually sustainably transform companies. Jim Collins now famous book Good to Great (Collins, 2001) is a fine example of just how much difference a leader with a high degree of mental flexibitly can really make to an organisation . It is of interest to note that ALL of the CEO’s that led their companies to greatness in this book over the length of the study reflected the capacities of the later and more developed stages of ego development, and extremely high levels of cognitive positioning.
Levels of flexibility
To a large degree, an individual’s ability to position themselves into situations in different ways or perspective is limited by their world-view. A person’s world-view is literally their map for navigating the outside world, and often incongruity between this internal navigation system and the outside world is the source of constant tension, as the map is not the territory, and an inability to understand or embody this understanding is what leads leaders and executives into constant trouble. The ability to adapt to situations and be flexible in your interaction with the outside world and the other humans inhabiting it is not a simple you either have it or you don’t affair, it progresses in stages.
Level of flexibility- increasing | Characteristics | Strengths | % of Research Sample
1. Opportunist
- Pre-Conventional
- Egocentric
- Wins any way possible. Self-oriented; manipulative; “might makes right.”
Good in emergencies and in sales opportunities.
- 5 %of research sample
2. Diplomat
- Conventional
- Ethnocentric
- Avoids overt conflict. Wants to belong; obeys group norms; rarely rocks the boat
- Good as supportive glue within an office; helps bring people together.
- 12% of research sample
3. Expert
- Conventional
- Ethno-Centric
- Rules by logic and expertise. Seeks rational efficiency.
Good as an individual contributor
- 38% of research sample
4. Achiever
- Conventional
- Ethno-Centric
- Meets strategic goals. Effectively achieves goals through teams; juggles managerial duties and market demands.Well suited to managerial roles; action and goal oriented.
- 30% of research sample
5. Individualist
- Post-Conventional
- World-Centric
- Interweaves competing personal and company action logics. Creates unique structures to resolve gaps between strategy and performance. Effective in venture and consulting roles.
- 10% of research sample
6. Strategist
- Post-Conventional
- World/Cosmo-Centric Generates organizational and personal transformations.
- Exercises the power of mutual inquiry, vigilance, and vulnerability for both the short and long term. Effective as a transformational leader.
- 4% of research sample
7. Alchemist
- Post-Post Conventional
- Cosmo-Centric
- Generates social transformations. Inte-grates material, spiritual, and societal transformation. Good at leading society-wide transformations.
1% of research sample
Expansion
Each of the stages above represents stages of development that correspond to increasing levels of mental cognition and flexibility. You can see from the chart above, levels of flexibility range greatly, but in general the greater depth, span and degree of flexibility, the better. The greater the altitude of your world-view, the larger your ability to navigate certain situations or problems. The ability to be flexible in various leadership or executive situations is something that does and can be developed over time with the right injunction and or practice.
Although there are seven rough stages listed above correlating to executive positions in which they are most readily found, there are four main or general levels or switch-points that mark a substantial increase in flexibility and world-view. These switch-points mark increases in being able to register or see both inter-connectivity and the ability to hold perspectives of other people as if they are your own, before making a choice or decision. You can see how profoundly this capacity would affect people in leadership positions. The four main switch-points relate directly to the amount of people that an individual’s perspective can hold or relate to in the following ways:
Stage 1 – Ego-Centric – it’s all about me and what I want – A 1st person perspective
Stage 2 – Ethno-Centric – It’s about me and my group and people that I can relate to - Family, Religion, Race – a 2nd person perspective
Stage 3 – World-Centric – What’s good for all of us as a global population - a 3rd person perspective
Stage 4 – Cosmo-Centric – What’s good for all people as a global family and the universe in general - a 4th to 9th person perspective
Each of the stages above builds on the one below it, and some sense provides the foundation for the new, higher reality to emerge, given the right challenges or conditions. Some people grow through all 5 stages during their life, others remain at one stage for their entire life. It seems that a certain amount of the reasons for growth and change are as much nature as they are nurture.
Applications – Theory to Practice
Now that we have explored the stages of flexibility in reference to worldview it seems only reasonable to now explore the application of this in the real world.
Functional Fit – an Integral approach to Human Resourcing
Functional Fit is simply placing a person in a role that fits that person’s level of flexibility or degree of cognitive development. For example I would not employ some one at the Expert level (Stage-3) of consciousness in a leadership role. As leadership is about going outside the boundaries and Experts (Stage-3) rely on the systems and liner thinking as their cognitive map boundaries and they need rules to function. So in this sense there is a certain amount of ethics implied in Functional Fit, as it takes into consideration two or three immediate allowances, such as:
• An Expert placed in this situation would suffer undue anxiety at constantly being in a position requiring work in a sphere outside their developmental capacities
• What they create in this sphere would be bounded by restraint of the conformity, and their deep desire to fit and hold the status quo in the pre-existing frameworks; as opposed to going beyond them
• Experts by nature operate from a craft or linear style logic, and tend not to respond to situations but rather to react. So you could see how having a CEO or leader in this position that reacts to a market without considering the outcome could have undesired results for many companies
Further matching examples for instance would be for a role in sales. Someone at the Achiever (Stage 4) level makes perfect sense, as they thrive on competition and the ability to obtain financial success, and so the job role equals the developmental match, brining about performance in that given role…it is a Functional Fit...
Again Leaders and CEO’s that change the game nearly always test at the higher levels of flexibility,(at least Stage-5 and above-usually Stage-6), and the ones that don’t, do not bring about sustainable transformation; just short term rearrangement for personal gain. Thinking about how their choices impact the world is just not on their radar.
So from these very basic examples we can see how much more efficient it is to employ people to roles that are developmentally specific to the employee’s level of cognitive flexibility . For an extended and far more detailed description of this matching process and the dilemma of incorrect matching please consult: Organisational Transformation requires the presence of leaders that are Strategists and Alchemists (Rooke, 2001).
Applying Levels of Flexibility to Type – Using personality profiling correctly
One of the most common things we hear from HR specialists and employment agencies is “but we do personality testing!”. Personality testing and developmental assessment however are not the same thing.
A useful way to think about this is Vertical vs Horizontal. Personality profiling tools like Myers Briggs or the Enneagram are a horizontal approach to profiling. Developmental stage level is vertical. As an example, you can have an entire room of INFJ’s (Myers Briggs) or any other Myers Briggs type for that matter but all a different stages of development. So even though they are all the same type, depending on their development, they will all behave very differently. A person at the lower stages of the spectrum will be behaving in a way that self serves them in to a position of getting what they want out of the situation. While another person of the same type but at the higher end of the spectrum will be focused on how he can create world peace. Both people are exactly the same type but behave extremely differently.
So with just one simple example you can see the relevance of developmental profiling as an addition to horizontal personality profiling. In my opinion they should always be used in conjunction.
In my work as an Executive Coach I have found the one profiling tool that successfully integrates both horizontal and vertical stages into a more comprehensive overall profile is The Enneagram - specifically the particular type of the Enneagram modelled by Riso and Hudson at the Enneagram Institute (Riso & Hudson , 2010). This specific profile integrates the levels of development into levels of health, which closely correspond or mirror the levels of cognitive flexibility.
This almost seamless integration of both the vertical and horizontal axis of personality typing is why we at The Coaching Room we use the Enneagram in all of our coaching sessions. We find it the easiest and most accurate integrated profile for allowing us access to a client’s world in the shortest amount of time. While the Enneagram doesn’t cover all the bases, it does give you a fantastic starting point without having to combine multiple profiles.
Conclusion
At The Coaching Room one of the most consistent things we are continually asked to facilitate in executives or leaders is a shift in their degree of cognitive flexibility or level of development, “I want to go to the next level”. For a shift in a way of being or level of development we often recommend Integral style Coaching.
Integral Coaching combines the use of a rigorous subject/object theory methodology with ongoing developmental practices; specifically designed and tailored to each client based on their unique AQAL constellation and way of being in the world. Through the ongoing adherence to these practices the client is nurtured and supported into first tasting, then embodying, their New Way of Being in the World, at the next level. Coaching Room Coaches are well-educated tour guides, helping guide clients through the cartography of their new mental landscape.
Bibliography
Wilber, K. (Performer). (2011). Integral Spirituality - A Deeper Cut. S. True.
Wilber, K. (2000). One Taste - daily relfections on integral spirituality . shambhala.
Collins, J. (2001). Good to Great. Harper Business.
Cook-Greuter, S. (1985). Ego Development - The nine levels of increasing embrace . paper , integral Institute , psychology .
Riso, D., & Hudson , R. (2010). The Enneagram Institute. Retrieved from The Enneagram Institute: www.TheEnneagramInstitute.com
Rooke, D. (2001, October ). Organisational Transformation requires the presence of leaders who are alchemists and strategists . Oraganisations and people , 4.3 .
Torbert, W., & Rooke , D. (2005, April ). The seven transformations of leadership. The harvard business review.
Footnotes:
1. The SCT-I is a 36 item unfinished sentence questionnaire, adapted from, what was the pioneering work of Jane Loevinger’s original Washington University Sentence Completion Test.
2. Cognitive is a term that is widely used and for the sake of all involved could use with a firm definition, as it seems to mean different things to different people. In integral theory it is used not in reference to thinking per see but in context to the ability to take perspective of both self and other. A clear distinction between this definition and that of linear deductive thinking could alleviate a lot of the confusion encountered when different people use this term.
3. It is worthy to note that Skills are important as well, and just having a highly flexible mind is not purely enough to make great leaders. I am simply suggesting that at the leadership level of large companies business skills are at about the same general capacity.
4. It is the belief of many of the theorist referenced in this paper that one stage of development or flexibility stage takes about 5 years to pass through. The only thing that has been quantifiably proved to accelerate this process has been mediation, or any form of Subject/Object injunction. Recently Integral Coaching and it’s continual use of metaphors as a way of employing the Subject/Object method during coaching sessions, while focusing on holistic development. This new technique offers a new and as yet un-qualified potential to shorten this developmental time frame.
5. It is worthy of mention that several theorist’s such as Ken Wilber include a possible 6th stage that is referred to as Kosmo-Centric. The K in Kosmo-Centric alludes to the fact that other realities may in fact exist, and takes these into account, the allowance of other energetic realms associated with altered states, such as – Subtle, Causal and Non Dual. A more in depth focus of these possible states of being can be found in (Wilber, 2000) (Wilber, Integral spirituality - A Deeper Cut, 2011)(Wilber, Intergal Spirituality - A Deeper Cut, 2011).
Executive Coaching
Executive Coaching Sydney
Executive Coaching Melbourne
Executive Coaching Hobart
Leadership Coaching
Leadership Development
Coaching For Executives
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)