Benefit 1: Efficiency and productivity improve.
Think about your average day. How much hand holding and micro management are you doing? How much time do you spend giving direction and answering questions people should know the answers for? Could you quantify the amount of time you spend doing that? Is it 10%, 25% or 50%+ of your day?
If you find yourself being directive for most of the time, you need to learn to coach. Coaching is a way to develop your employees so that they know the answers to the questions. Developing employees so that they can make decisions independently and safely will move projects forward. Your business will benefit when the financial goals of the company are reached by project success.
Investing your time in coaching is a far better use of your time, because it develops employees to be self sufficient and productive, saving time and money for the company.
Effective coaching will increase your trust in employees that they are taking their projects in the right direction for measurable results.
Benefit 2: Aspiring leaders emerge.
How are you filling your current leadership roles? Are you finding that you have to move less experienced performers into leadership roles before they have the necessary leadership foundations?
Coaching 1:1 with your laggers and with your high performers will move them all towards greater competency than any crash course on productivity or leadership. The value you can impart through coaching goes far beyond didactic lecturing.
Development comes from the shifts in perspectives, insights and understanding of the specific demands within specific roles that emerge from coaching. These insights can be applied in broad and diverse situations. These are skills that leaders need and cannot always be taught. They emerge from effective coaching.
Benefit 3: Motivation.
When has a leader motivated you? Did that happen because they told you to be more motivated, or was it because an interest was sparked inside you?
Coaching done well ignites passion and enthusiasm. It allows people to see their own potential beyond their current position or limitations. It is a way to inspire creative thought and a willingness to take on challenges.
If you are interested in learning more about coaching as a manager, download the outline of my upcoming online coarse teaching managers how to coach.