Building a Customer-centered Culture

Building a Customer-centered Culture Executive Coaching — The New Leadership Solution

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hat does executive coaching have to do with a company’s focus on delivering on its promise to customers? The answer is simple, but it’s

one many executives don’t know — everything.

While many companies pay lip service to an extreme focus on

the customer experience, upon closer inspection it becomes evident that customer care is often not a top priority among the executive team. So what will it take to close the gap between words and action?

Dr. Atul Gawande, an accomplished surgeon, had been

in his profession for eight years when he noticed his performance in the operating room had reached a plateau. “I’d

like to think it’s a good thing —,” he wrote in an October 2011 article for the New Yorker titled Personal Best. “I’ve arrived at my professional peak.” This top achiever, however, was

Executive coaching is a partnership that helps senior leaders

deliver on key organizational priorities faster and more effectively.

Most, if not all, executive teams spend a great deal of time focused on cash flow trends and new revenues. Imagine the power of an

executive coach who could help the vice president of marketing and

sales strategically dominate the industry by focusing on retaining

the existing customer base. In a national study recently completed

by Premier Development Solutions and Naviga Business Services, only 55.7 percent of the 33,000 executives surveyed cited their

company’s ability to differentiate itself in the market as the way to create loyal raving fans. How many companies can you rave about?

Of all the places you visit, how many deliver service that’s over-the-

top outstanding? Chances are, there aren’t too many. Maybe they have your business simply because there’s no good alternative.

Most executives believe they have a strategic plan for cus-

never going to be satisfied with a flatline in his progress. So

tomer care, but in fact do not. Conduct an informal self-audit: what

but not in medicine — he hired a coach. He remembered

strategy? You might want to be sitting down while you perform this

he did a thing that’s common in the area of sports performance, from his days as a serious high school tennis player going

to a tournament where he played against even more advanced

players. “The kids at that level were playing a different game than I

was,” he said. That’s the thing about high achievers. They’re playing a different game altogether. That’s because they’re never satisfied with a plateau — and they understand the value of coaching.

What is the value of an executive coach?

An outside executive coach can bring new ideas and innova-

tions while also challenging your team’s strategy against the best of

the best. The coach will also serve as a sounding board in powerful and confidential CEO-type private discussions. Even if your team

is really engaged and fully focused on customer care, executive

coaching represents your best chance for future and enhanced success.

The subtitle of Dr. Gawande’s article is Top athletes and singers

have coaches. Should you? Most Fortune 1000 companies think they

percentage of this year’s budget is targeted on your customer care

small exercise, because the truth can be shocking. But with today’s

internal politics, who has the moxie to step up and challenge the executive team?

The issue is that many executives suffer from limited or fil-

tered feedback, and the higher they promote, the less frequent and accurate data they receive. A 2009 Harvard Business Review article found that 26 percent of executives surveyed hire coaches primarily

as a sounding board. Outside objectivity and past executive-level experience are critically important to any senior leader who spends

a significant amount of his or her day attempting to influence others, achieve budget goals and affect organizational change.

In early 2012 the nation’s largest study of executive coaches

revealed that “the majority of coaching is designed for leadership development,” and it achieves it in these five primary ways: • Allows a leader to reflect on and learn from decisions

• Exposes a leadership behavior that may be limiting effectiveness

do. In fact, IBM retains more than 60 certified coaches on staff.

• Leads personal career development

ship talent. That’s why in a recent survey by Right Management,

• Provides a sounding board

They understand an organization will never outperform its leader-

leadership skills of individuals who have been identified as future leaders.

www.customercarenews.com

When confidentiality and performance improvement are criti-

cal, internal mentoring can only go so far. And having a strategic

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Fall 2012

86 percent of companies said they use coaching to sharpen the

• Strategically leads organizational change

advisor can pay for itself many times over, since the impact of one

strategic decision may reap millions of dollars in value during the

parameters be set up front about who is going to receive what feed-

executive will help make every employee’s work unit a great place

anything he or she shares with the coach will not be shared with

next one to three years. Additionally, having a coach for each key to work.

Obviously, the fit between an executive and a coach is invalu-

able to establishing the trust essential for achieving optimal

performance. Among the helpful traits of an executive coach are

years of senior level-experience of their own, candor, and excellent

interpersonal skills. Experience is critically important when select-

the talents and skill levels of direct reports are common during the coaching process so the executive can delegate more effectively — another reason confidentiality is a top priority.

In the 2012 national study done by Premier Development

to developing their leaders. To make matters worse nearly 40 per-

The majority of

the phone, in person or by use of webcam. More than 90 percent

executive ing

of

all

coach-

relationships

start with one or two

assessments that reveal

the leader’s strengths and

surveyed gave themselves a failing grade in their planned approach cent of executives said less than half of their organization executes

its plan of top priorities consistently. The right coach can absolutely

help leaders execute at a higher level. More than 60 percent of executives that completed the national study scored the value of executive coaching as “very high.” Before making a decision so

valuable to your career success, look for a coaching firm that offers experience, a coaching system, past referrals, a track record of execu-

tive success, experience in developing talent and a great fit for your personality. As Dr. Gawande wrote in his article, “Coaching done

well may be the most effective intervention designed for human performance.”

In his book, First Break all The Rules, Marcus Buckingham

developmental

presents his research, which proved that organizations with the

a powerful diagnostic

higher customer loyalty. But before even picking up the phone to

needs. Think of it as

tool, a kind of leader-

ship MRI, if you will.

Great

assessments,

in combination with

excellent interpretation

skills, enable executive

coaches to know the

highest levels of engagement were more likely to have 56 percent

contact an executive coach, make sure you take a hard look in the mirror and ask yourself, “Am I coachable?” Do you know how to systematically create a culture obsessed with customer care, or could

you use a little help? Are you consistently measuring engagement

in your company? Do you understand how to strategically measure your “customer experience?”

At the end of the day, customer care is a leadership decision.

leader from the inside

If your dollars are going to billboards and advertising, why isn’t it

In the past 10

advertising for you? A coach with a proven track record can help

out.

years, a team approach has

arrived

on

within your budget to develop a workforce of raving fans to do your transform cultures one executive at a time. CCN

the scene, adding a new dimension in executive coaching. The

John Lankford is a Master Business Advisor and the founder

many egos, strengths and styles present in a department or group.

after keynote speaker, author and former syndicated business

concept is similar to that of individual coaching, but caters to the

Fall 2012

often a stumbling block to leaders. Therefore, conversations about

members of your lead-

coaching is done on

A little more than half of respondents (55.7 percent) said they were satisfied with their value proposition.

not about adding to those responsibilities. In fact, delegation is

Solutions and Naviga Business Services, 39.8 percent of executives

ership team.

Overall, what percentage of your organization executes its plan of top priorities consistently?

anyone. Executive coaching is about helping the executive with all

ing a team of outside

experts to coach key

Less than 50%

back. A high level of trust is not negotiable. Any CEO must know

the issues already on his or her plate, and any in the future — it’s

Bringing an executive coach on board

Often, differing communication styles could represent one possible

dynamic that prevents organizational alignment and success within a team.

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Whatever the details of the arrangement, it is critical that

of Premier Development Solutions. He is a highly sought columnist whose business expertise has been tapped by the New York Times and CBS. Lankford can be reached at john@premierdevelopmentsolutions.com.

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