Who needs a coach?

I know you are thinking about the football coach. My thinking is not far from yours because like it or not, that is an important discussion at this time too. But come to think of it, a coach is a coach, no matter the nature of coaching. Therefore, though we would like to deal with the issue of coaching from a broader perspective, we can’t help drawing similarities between the football coach and the employee coach.

Finally, the African Nations Cup is over. By yesterday, the trophy would have been won by either Egypt or Cameroon. Nigeria playing with 11 seemingly able-bodied men lost to a 10-man Ghana team in the quarter-finals. Looking at how we started the competition, that looks like a great achievement, but considering our pedigree, it was a complete humiliation. Why did it happen? I have heard a number of reasons, but two are very prominent. The first is that the players were not committed enough and the other is that tactics was poor, which is down to coaching ability. The usual administrative failure that has to do with how the NFA manages the game has not been mentioned as major to the defeat this time around. Infact, according to Idah Peterside, the media officer of the Nigerian team, “For the first time in 10 years of my dealing with the association, they provided everything humanly possible for us but it was just unfortunate that things did not just go right.”

That is a plus for Sani Lulu and his team on managing things. Which is not to suggest that they passed on all counts. On players’ commitment, I don’t need anyone to answer for me. I saw a bunch of players who played each game as if there was nothing at stake. But listen to Idah Peterside again; “The team should be seen as a team for the future and should and now the result is what we are witnessing. It is sad that we lost out, but then the players should not be blamed for the defeat and ouster but the coach.”

Who is a coach and why do we need their services? In the business world of today, team leaders are being asked to include the additional role of coaching to their responsibilities. One of the major tasks of the HR practitioner now includes the training of organisational leaders as coaches. Eric Parsloe, in his book, The Manager as Coach and Mentor, defined coaching as; "a process that enables learning and development to occur and thus performance to improve. To be a successful Coach requires a knowledge and understanding of process as well as the variety of styles, skills and techniques that are appropriate to the context in which the coaching takes place"

The Coach must have deep knowledge and experience in the field in which he intends to exercise coaching. He may not necessarily be a high flyer himself, but must have the capacity to influence his students, which will include high flyers to make decisions. This is because coaching is a two-way relationship designed to benefit both the individual and the organisation. As the individual employee begins to work out his programme of self-development, he has the responsibility to seek knowledgeable people within the organisation who can teach him the content, tactics and style of the profession. At the organisational level, coaching is closely linked with organisational change initiatives in order to help staff to accept and adapt to changes in a manner consistent with their personal values and goals. Thus, enhancing morale, motivation and productivity and reduce staff turnover as individuals feel valued and connected with both small and large organisational changes.