Designing an organization-wide transformative coaching approach

Step one: Building an accredited internal coaching pool

This first step aimed to elevate PDO’s internal coaching capabilities by offering two distinct courses for accreditation, recognized by the International Association for Coaching: ’Foundation Executive Coach’ and ‘Executive Coach’.

Aiming to stay away from a one-size-fits-all approach, both programs were specifically designed by Talogy to align with PDO’s culture and objectives. A total of 24 initial participants  underwent one of the two one-year instructor-led coaching courses, which focused on:

• Tailored curriculum: The courses consisted of customized modules, focused on the nuances of leadership within the energy sector and PDO’s specifically.

• Real-world application: Participants were encouraged to practice in real work situations within the organization.

• Ongoing assessment and feedback: Regular evaluations ensured that the coaches were meeting the high standards set by the Association for Coaching, Talogy, and PDO.

• Commitment: Each internal coach committed 250+ hours of internal coaching, 80+ hours of self-directed learning, 40+ hours of group-based training.

Step two: Rolling out the ‘Leaders as Coach’ program

After the success of the coaching accreditation program and the positive feedback from the participants, PDO invited Talogy back to be their ongoing learning partner in spearheading their strategic coaching initiatives to the present day.

Talogy designed a custom PDO ‘Leader as Coach’ course, that has already impacted over 100 leaders initially. This transformative three-day course, recognized by the Association for Coaching, teaches PDO leaders:

• In-depth questioning techniques: Leaders learned how to ask the right questions to stimulate thought and inspire solutions.

• The importance of psychological safety: Leaders learned the importance of creating a safe space for open dialogue and innovation.

• Coaching in practice: Leaders engaged in real-world coaching scenarios, receiving immediate feedback from Talogy experts to refine their skills.

• The value of becoming peer coaching: The post-course work encouraged leaders to become peer-coaches, thereby expanding the support beyond traditional mentorship.

To ensure the effective transfer of skills internally and make the benefits of this program more accessible to every leader in PDO, Talogy then designed and implemented a Train-the-trainer program for experienced internal coaches to deliver the three-day program with a high quality. It enabled the further development of the leadership through a sustainable internal delivery practice, allowing for more targeted sessions across the organization. The program operates on a recurring basis every year, continuing to empower the coaching strategy of PDO.