Do you want to develop as a leader? Do you want to be the best version of yourself and lead your team to success? If so, it might be time for executive coaching. Executive coaching is a process in which an individual (executive coach) assists another individual (executive client) with achieving specific personal or professional objectives through conversations about what they want their life and work to look like. There are many assessment methods that may be used by the executive coach during this process if they feel it necessary; however, these assessments will vary depending on the needs of the person being coached.
1. Performance-Based Interviews
Performance-based interviews are a combination of a traditional interview and a behavioral assessment. During this process, the executive coach asks the person being coached to provide examples from their career. Within these examples, they ask for specific details around when challenges occurred in their career and how they overcame them. This allows the individual being coached to tell their story through narratives that may be re-told to others regarding work performance or behavior that is important when making decisions about future roles within an organization for example.
2. 360° Feedback Assessments
The 360° feedback process involves many people providing information about an individual’s behavior in certain situations which could include supervisors, colleagues, subordinates etc.. This data usually comes back in the form of strengths and areas for development which an executive coach may use to assess a person’s behavior and help them learn how to be a better team player.
3. Executive Coaching Assessments
An individual conducting an executive coaching assessment will look at both the areas that you are strong in as well as the areas that need growth. They may ask questions like, “where do you want to go in your career” or “what would success look like in this role”. Executive coaches use many different assessments depending on their professional background and training. Some common ones include Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), DiSC Profile, CliftonStrengths, 16 personalities etc.. These assessments provide great insight for coaches who are able to interpret the data collected through these tools effectively.
4. Psychometric Assessments
Psychometric Assessments are also known as psychological tests, they are structured questions that allow the person being assessed to respond in a manner that is consistent with how they would behave in real life. They are used because they have been proven effective by psychologists to predict future behavior of certain individuals based on predetermined criteria that may include things like extraversion (E), agreeableness (A), openness (O) etc. Results from these tests provide an insight into how individuals might act when faced with different situations, interpersonal problems, or work-related problems for example.
Many executive coaches choose to use psychometric assessments when working with executives who want to improve their performance at work or advance their career path. They are also used to highlight any type of personality conflicts an individual may be facing at work, which can typically lead to people leaving their company or role within it.
5. Homemade Instruments
Executive coaches can sometimes create their own assessments based on specific needs of an organization or individual who is being coached. These are usually created by the executive coach after they have conducted extensive conversations with the person being coached in order to get a better understanding of what aspects of their life or leadership style could use some improvement.
Getting straight to the point, this assessment tool used by executive coaches aims at knowing how well you take feedback because receiving constructive criticism about how you work is vital for your future success and development as a leader. By asking questions like “have you ever received feedback that has helped improve your performance at work” or “do you prefer working in teams where all members offer different perspectives on an issue”, an executive coach using such an instrument will be able to see if you are open to receiving feedback, to begin with.
6. Interview
An interview is a casual discussion between someone who is assessing your personality and character, usually an executive coach. These are much more informal in comparison to psychometric assessments or 360° feedback process which are much more structured in nature. An interview usually consists of questions related to past work experiences, what you see yourself doing in 5 years’ time etc. Executive coaches use these interviews to understand how individuals function when faced with certain work-related problems or challenges for example.
To achieve goals that have meaning requires consistency and commitment over a period of time. When one creates an action plan it helps the person being coached create focus around their goals by breaking them down into smaller bite-sized chunks that can be achieved along the way. Action plans are used extensively by executive coaches to help their clients stay committed and on track with achieving what they set out to do.
7. Group Assessments
Executive coaches sometimes use group assessments for several reasons such as when a client wishes to bring together select members from their team to discuss a particular issue, which is often the case when people are playing different roles (e.g., manager and subordinate) in their current organization without necessarily wanting to change these roles.
This assessment tool aims at identifying whether you expect your staff members or employees to work as part of a cohesive whole or if you prefer those who will present their opinions freely and not feel bound by other teams’ views and suggestions (a more competitive approach). It should be noted that this type of instrument should only be used when working with individuals for 12 months or longer. This assessment should also only be used by executive coaches who have had profound experiences working with clients from various cultural backgrounds as it might produce inaccurate otherwise.
8. Behavioral Observation
The behavioral observation tool is used by executive coaches who want to make sense of how their client responds in certain situations. The observations made are usually done without the client being aware of the coach’s purpose for conducting them. This assessment instrument requires a lot of attention and focus as well as an ability to look at details. To conduct this type of assessment, the executive coach will monitor your behavior during both your work-related activities or meetings with your team members or executives or even family gatherings over a predetermined period.
WHAT TO EVALUATE?
1. Level of Competence
Competence refers to one’s ability to complete the tasks required by their position. Competence also includes an individual’s knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs).
2. Leadership Style
The leadership style refers to an individual’s preferred approach when leading his or her team. For instance, some leaders are more task oriented while others are more personable.
3. Ability to Communicate with Senior Management or Leadership Team
This is a vital skill for any leader, particularly those who work in hierarchical organizations.
4. Ability to Establish and Maintain Effective Relationships with Peers, Subordinates or Employees
This refers to the individual’s ability to form good professional relationships within his or her organization. A poorly established relationship can be detrimental to both parties as it indicates that personnel are either unwilling or unable to cooperate with others who have similar objectives.
5. Personal Life/Work Balance
This refers to the individual’s ability to maintain a healthy balance between their work and personal life as well as the willingness to make such a balance possible.
6. Stress Tolerance
This refers to an individual’s ability to handle stress within certain circumstances and is usually demonstrated by the way he or she responds in such situations.
5. Self-awareness and Self-esteem
An individual’s self-awareness is demonstrated when they are able to accurately assess their work strengths and limitations without being affected by their emotions or other environmental factors.
Self-esteem, on the other hand, refers to an individual’s level of confidence within themselves. Those who have a high level of self-esteem usually have positive views about themselves and thus tend to be more productive in certain situations.
7. Problem Solving Ability
An individual’s problem-solving ability is demonstrated when they are able to come up with a solution that meets the objectives of both them and their organization.
8. Engagement in Current Role
A person’s engagement refers to their willingness to show up for work. This type of assessment is usually done by executive coaches who have the responsibility of assessing the performance of an individual already on their team or one that they are considering hiring.
9. Initiative
Initiative is demonstrated when individuals are willing to take actions without asking someone else first. Individuals who demonstrate initiative tend to be self-starters as well as highly motivated.
10. Ability to Complete Projects on Time
An individual’s ability to complete projects on time demonstrates how effective he or she might be within a given deadline and whether there would be any consequences if such deadlines were not met.
CONCLUSION:
It’s important to understand the different methods of assessments that executive coaches use. And, while it may seem like a no-brainer to hire an executive coach who does assessments you want or need, there are many variables in play that should be considered before making this decision. For example, do they have experience with your industry? Do they consider what you want from their coaching sessions and how often would you prefer them to meet with you? What is the cost for these assessment services? If any of these questions sound familiar or if you just feel overwhelmed by all the options available today, we can help!