If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together
-African Proverb
We are perpetually interconnected: to people, systems in place, the environment, and the universe that existed before any one of us came into existence. No matter who we are or what we do, there is an inter-dependability that connects us to others. Sometimes, it’s hard to see or understand this interconnectedness. Nonetheless, it exists and shapes how we show up in our everyday lives. But why am I talking about interconnectedness? Because systemic team coaching revolves around exactly that.
In our webinar series Future of Coaching, Coacharya Training Director and ICF’s Master Certified Coach Cindy Muthukarapan and Ram Ramanathan, Coacharya Founder, and ICF-MCC Coach talked about the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of Systemic Team Coaching in organizations. The conversation was focused on why systemic team coaching is more effective and fruitful from the ROI perspective.
What is Systemic Team Coaching?
To put it simply, systemic team coaching aligns the individual to their teams, which in turn then gets aligned with the organization. And this is the reason I started by talking about interconnectedness. If people are not brought together, they will never be on the same page. That can be a major impediment to the growth of an organization and the webinar discussion proved it. Here are a few of my takeaways and some things I am reflecting on:
- Individual coaching has tremendous potential but will that really bear results if the working environment isn’t conducive to coaching? As Ram talked about this, he pointed out that in his experience, there was either resignation or regression in such situations. Either people no longer worked in the same organization, or they fell back into the same patterns. Hence the need to work with teams and bring people together.
- Systemic team coaching in organizations aims to bring people together and make them talk among themselves. It is also important to establish a psychologically safe environment where people feel comfortable opening up and talking about their experiences. As Ram said, there should be no place for any critical or nasty comments. In a systemic team coaching scenario, people are encouraged to be appreciative of each other so that the space is secure, non-judgmental, and people don’t feel wary of airing their concerns.
- It is of utmost importance to listen to and pay attention to the voices of the outliers. People who differ from or go against the general opinion of the group need to be taken seriously and their views taken into consideration. More often than not, this is the channel through which the transformation really happens.
- Systemic team coaching works with individuals with respect to who they impact and the people affected by them. This is why, as Ram said, bringing as many stakeholders’ views as possible, is significant. Be it the leaders in the company, the investors, clients, staff, or the larger community, each person should have a say for the intervention to bear fruits.
I would encourage you to watch this webinar to know more about why systemic coaching is the next big thing and the need for organizations to bring teams together. Please do share your thoughts with us on CoachNook or in the comments below.
Ram and Cindy have an upcoming course on Systemic Team Coaching starting on 9th March. This course meets the education requirements for ICF Advanced Certification in Team Coaching (ACTC)Certification.
Webinar: Exploring Systemic Team Coaching in Organizations
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This session is also available as audio-only on our podcast. Listen below or find Coach to Lead wherever you listen to podcasts.
