Session Title:

Coaching for a Better Grasp of the Situation – by the Coachee

Facilitator:

David Verble & Jim Luckman

Session Abstract:

Coaching can take two basic forms. One is Coaching for Correction which involves giving someone else feedback and direction how to improve performance. The second is Coaching for Development of the coachee’s capabilities. If that capability is problem solving the coaching is focused on the coachee’s thinking and using questioning to prompt him or her to be more precise and systematic.

Coaching for Correction seems to come natural to us. Coaching for Development is more of a challenge for two reasons. First it is difficult for most of us when presented with a problem that some else owns not to immediately begin thinking of ways to solve. Second it is our tendency as problem solvers to make assumptions about what we know and jump to solutions – which are exactly the behaviors we need to coach others to move away from to become more effective problem solvers.

Ed Schein, the organization and culture psychologist , tackled the challenge of how to help someone else better grasp situations in his book “Helping.” There he describes a practice he calls Humble Inquiry. It consists of asking questions that prompt the others to answer based on what they know rather ones that direct them to what the coach thinks they need to know. Humble Inquiry is an essential practice for creating problem solving cultures because it helps other develop their capability for sound problem solving thing by letting them think and learn for themselves.

This session is designed to create opportunities to practice and build capability for doing Humble Inquiry at two levels. First, you will practice using Humble Inquiry questions to help others be more aware of what they know and what they need to know. Second, you will develop skills for asking the right questions at the right time to help others fully grasp the conditions of their problem situations.

Facilitator Bio:

David Verble applied his organizational skills at Toyota’s Georgetown, KY, plant where he worked in management and organizational development during the facility’s startup phase and beyond. During his 10 years at Toyota, David became the manager of Human Resource Development at Georgetown and then manager of Human Resource Development for North American Manufacturing at Toyota’s manufacturing headquarters in Erlanger, KY. Before his tenure at Toyota, David was responsible for organizational development as assistant to the Dean of the College of Education, University of Kentucky. He currently aids companies implementing lean through Lean Transformations Group.

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Jim Luckman has had the unique experience of leading three separate lean transformations, as a Plant Manager, as a Director of a Research and Development Center, and as a CEO of a small start-up company. Jim is the Past President and CEO of iPower Technologies, a company serving the distributed generation market of electrical power. Luckman has worked in the auto industry for 34 years working at Delphi Automotive (formerly part of General Motors). Jim current efforts include leadership coaching, application of lean in R&D and application of lean to software development. He currently coaches companies interested in company-wide lean transformation. Jim is a partner in Lean Transformations Group, LLC