Description
One of the advantages to working in healthcare is that offers multiple career paths that lead to jobs paying family-sustaining wages. But that doesn’t mean everyone is familiar with the various positions and pathways available. That’s why career coaches and counselors are so vital. They assess workers’ interests, expose them to possible careers, and help them navigate the process to gain the necessary skills and credentials to reach their goals. Coaches also offer guidance and crucial support through academic, professional, and personal challenges.
Process
The data shows that coaching positively impacts retention and support worker advancement. Coaching not only connects frontline workers to opportunities and resources to advance, but also helps them feel valued and supported in the workplace – both of which are important elements of a good job. Here are a few considerations to help implement an effective career coach function.
- Assess organizational needs. Whether coaching is provided by internal staff or an external partner, coaches should be attuned to which positions are currently or will be in high demand. Use labor market information and internal data to connect individuals’ interests to key positions, which mutually benefits the organization and workers.
- Assess Individual Interests. One of the primary roles of a career coach is to help workers identify interests, skills, and career paths. Administer individual assessments to determine staff readiness and educational needs. Leverage partnerships to build essential skills and educational opportunities.
- Build a toolbox. Coaches are most effective when they have the right tools and resources to help workers succeed. Career exploration tools, workforce analytics, transparent career pathways and maps, and supportive policies maximize counselors’ effectiveness and impact.
- Invest in managers. Managerial buy-in can greatly influence the success of a workforce development program. They play a pivotal role in assessing employees’ skill and interests, encouraging them to take advantage of opportunities to improve, train, develop a career path. They also help staff deal with and overcome common barriers to success. When supervisors to adopt a coaching style of leadership, they take on a problem-solving, rather than punitive approach. This contributes to a culture that supports continuous learning and growth for all employees.
- Leverage partnerships. If your organization doesn’t have the capacity to hire a full-time coach, explore partnering with a community-based organization. Strong industry partnerships are often able to employ a career coach who serves multiple employers.
- Collect data. Career coaching has the potential to positively impact two common organizational priorities: retention rates and recruitment costs. Be sure to gather baseline metrics before implementing a career coach to fully measure business impact. Share the results with senior leaders to bolster the case for additional or continued operational support.
CareerSTAT Members Implementing This Practice
Resources
How to Adopt a Coaching Mentality and Practice, Madeline Mcneely and Michelle Ehrenreich, Harvard University, 2019.
A blog with tips on how to develop a coaching leadership style.
Coaching in a Business Environment, SHRM.
Provides an overview of coaching in a business environment. The article discusses the value of coaching and describes some of the practical techniques and tools used in the practice.
Career Navigation System Guidebook, Guest, James, Bennett, Steven, and Guest, Bill, 2017.
Step-by-step guidance for practitioners that defines and specifies components of demand-driven, competency-based career pathways. Available on Amazon.com
PHI Coaching Approach®, PHI National.
A training curriculum to help shift organizational norms and embed coaching skills throughout long-term healthcare organizations.
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