A Model of Coaching for Renewal (pdf)

from The International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching, Volume VI, Issue 1, January 2008.

by Diane Newell and Mike Munro Turner

Abstract

The understanding of and narrative about leadership has been shifting. From expecting leaders to know or find out the right way to direct an understandable and engineerable organisation, we have moved to exploring a leader's role in shaping meaning for a fluid, organic organisation. From investigation of the traits that good leaders show, the competences they need and the behaviours they should adopt, we at Jericho Partners have developed a more integral consideration of how leaders "are" - how they successfully bring their whole and unique selves to others to create insight, inspiration, and vision and ultimately change.

As our concept of leadership moves from task to identity our focus on the leader's development shifts. No longer is it enough to grow expertise, knowledge, skills and behaviours. Now we are demanding that leaders constantly review and revise who and how they "are" as well as what they do. We have developed a named this process of growing who and how you are "renewal".

Our model comes from asking questions about what supports and what hinders the growth process. We wanted something to help us to identify the skills, capabilities, mind-sets and practices that nurture individual renewal, and to investigate the ways leaders support organisational renewal through their identity and relationships. We needed something which was both change focussed and relational, and so the 'axes' of our model are from 'here and now' to 'future' and from the internal (I or We) and the external (You or It). These two axes create a four-quadrant map which describes the four territories where leaders of renewal work. These four territories of renewal are Insight, Readiness, Authentic Vision, and Skilful Action.