An article for Coaching at Work about coaching the senior leadership team of a school on a voluntary basis.

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INTERNATIONAL COACHING WEEK: WHAT’S IN IT FOR THE
COACHES?
Dorothy Nesbit
Word count (including title and excluding “about the author”):
1,293 words
EACH YEAR, THE INTERNATIONAL COACH FEDERATION sponsors
International Coaching Week as an opportunity for coaches to educate
the public about coaching whilst giving something back. In this
article, Dorothy Nesbit looks back on a two-year project undertaken
by fourteen volunteer coaches and asks: what did the coaches get
back?
Adopting a school: about the project
Sitting together at the end of a training programme in which we had
all participated, we asked: “How shall we keep in touch?” We were a
group of coaches who, in addition to our primary professional
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interests, shared a passion for education. “Why don‟t we adopt a
school?” I mused. The idea took hold, we found a partner school and
were soon offering coaching to senior leaders at Normand Croft
Community School in West London.
As well as our primary aim - to stay in touch with each other in the
context of our interest in education - we saw the opportunity both to
develop our coaching skills and to give something back. Our partner
school also had clear aims for the project. The School‟s Head Teacher
at the time, Lorraine Manford, told us: “Sometimes what needs to be
done is bigger than what you can do on your own. I knew that I had
to build a strong leadership team which would take us into the future.
This project came at the right time for the school”.
How well did the project meet its aims?
How well did the project meet our aim to stay in touch? Whilst our
core offering to the client was a half hour coaching call each week -
for which no contact with colleagues was needed - the project
provided multiple opportunities to collaborate, from a monthly team
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Tel: 020 8318 4555
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conference call (which provided a regular opportunity to discuss
progress and agree next steps) to additional roles (such as team
leader, team administrator and team coach) which naturally involved
a great deal of contact with colleagues.
For some of the coaches, the nature and quality of our interactions
went beyond keeping in touch, helping to develop our skills and to
deepen our relationships with each other. Anthony Landale, our team
coach, put it this way: “It lifted my morale to be working with
independent minded coaches from a wide range of professions. It
helped my own development and working with a peer group was
rather like getting ongoing supervision”.
Developing our coaching skills was an aim for at least some of the
coaches involved. Arif Jiwany, doctor and coach, reported that his
participation enhanced his self esteem and his confidence in his skills
as a coach – a comment echoed by a number of team members.
Some coaches reported the development of specific skills, including
Basia Kapp, teacher and coach: “I think I learned patience and
improved my ability to listen with my mouth shut”.
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Tel: 020 8318 4555
Mob: 0774 789 8450
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Our third aim was to give something back in an area for which we had
a particular passion. Kenny Tranquille, coach and nutritionist,
described his experience in this way: “It‟s amazing the effect that
coaching an individual can have across the organisation. Pin-pointing
key players in the school and providing coaching support was a really
good strategy for change. I had a real sense of putting something
back - contributing to a school that was going through a lot of change
at the time”.
What were the additional benefits to the coaches?
Kenny‟s comments point to benefits for members of the coaching
team which went way beyond our original aims, including the
opportunity to experience the power of coaching as a tool for
organisational change. Sarah Sparks, executive coach, noticed how
the work we were doing had an immediate impact on the morale and
effectiveness of the staff, whilst Arif Jiwany saw the project as an
opportunity to learn how best to engage with organisations at a
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Tel: 020 8318 4555
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systemic level. This included learning about the conditions needed on
both sides to work in ways which create sustainable benefits.
Many team members reported benefits in the area of leadership and
teamwork. The organisation of the project required as much time as
the coaching, for example, and this was a significant learning for
team members who had to work out what roles were needed and to
establish the boundaries of their own contribution. Kenny Tranquille
learnt how much he values working in a team: “When you run a
small business you can be on your own a lot. Through this project I
discovered how much I enjoy working in a team and I‟ve since made
a point of setting up teams in a number of areas of my life”.
Many of the benefits experienced by team members had direct
application in establishing and maintaining themselves as coaches
and included benefits to their businesses. Coming to coaching from a
background in consulting, for example, I learned the value of my
project management skills in a coaching context when I took on the
role of team leader. These are skills I have used since to lead teams
of coaches on behalf of clients. Sarah Sparks used her experience
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creatively to set up a volunteer coaching initiative at a plc. This had
the double benefit of providing coaching support to her colleagues
whilst helping them to draw on direct experience so that they could
more easily sell coaching to potential customers.
Some learnings were more personal to each coach. Sarah found, for
example, that she had less energy for the project than she
anticipated despite it being a good cause. She has since used this
learning to guide her choices. As team leader, working as a volunteer
encouraged me to delegate more and to learn to say “no”.
How has the project benefitted coaches over time?
Since we completed the project in 2006, some coaches have used
their experiences directly in the field of education. Janet Wright, who
went on to work extensively in this field, told me: “The work with
Normand Croft was very fortuitous, giving me insights into how
schools work which have been invaluable to my dealings with the
DofE”. Allison Mitchell, author of Time Management for Manic Mums,
was also moved to continue her involvement: “The experience
Learning for Life (Consulting) Ltd
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Tel: 020 8318 4555
Mob: 0774 789 8450
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inspired me to become a school governor at a local school where I
served for five years. Although my core business is helping „manic
mums‟ to manage their time I‟ve subsequently done a lot of work in
the education sector”.
All the coaches valued the opportunity to develop their coaching skills
whilst also making a difference to our partner school. Allison Mitchell
summarised a more general view when she said: “This was a
fabulous opportunity to work with a team of first rate coaches on real
issues that made a tangible difference in the school community. As a
newly qualified NLP coach the project provided many opportunities for
supervision and feedback which in turn gave opportunities for growth
and learning. It was a superb opportunity to be inspired and to learn
from a diverse group of coaches”.
Top tips for your pro bono coaching
 International Coaching Week is an opportunity to meet your needs
as well as to contribute to others. Ask yourself what would
energise you and then go for it.
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London SE13 6BT
Tel: 020 8318 4555
Mob: 0774 789 8450
E-mail: dorothy@learningforlifeconsulting.co.uk

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 Establish the boundaries of your offering as early as possible.
Decide what you want to offer ahead of time and be ready to say
“no” to requests for more.
 Think about what you want from your coaching client(s) as well as
you want to offer them. What commitment do you need from
them to make the coaching worthwhile?
 Offering coaching on a pro bono basis can provide rich
opportunities to learn at all levels of experience.
About the author
Dorothy Nesbit, executive coach, cultivates leadership potential with
rigour and compassion, nurturing authenticity, ease and outstanding
performance. Sign up to her newsletter at
www.learningforlifeconsulting.co.uk or to her blog at
http://twitter.com/DorothyNesbit
Learning for Life (Consulting) Ltd
14 Albion Way
London SE13 6BT
Tel: 020 8318 4555
Mob: 0774 789 8450
E-mail: dorothy@learningforlifeconsulting.co.uk