Transformational coaching leadership in uncertain times

The changes facing us today and in the future are rapid, radical and inescapable. They require innovation at all levels of an organization. Innovation at the product level, structures, processes and systems as well as in the way we lead. To be successful in this, collective intelligence is the new capital and transformational coaching leadership is an important leadership style to use.

So what exactly is transformational coaching leadership? Why is it so important? What is it based on? And, is it teachable? More on that in this article.

Suddenly the world looks different

Changes we face today, or that we initiate ourselves, are accelerating and having a greater impact on many levels than in our last century. To change is to transform. Looking at the changes of the last 20 years, and now in the covid-19 period, they can be called radical. Suddenly the world looks different.

You don’t have to be an expert to (pre)see that in this century technical and digital advances will bring and have already brought major breakthroughs in our lives. The days of steady and incremental growth of the past 100 years are over. For example, consider the advances in the auto industry with self-driving cars. Medical science; how a cardiologist can perform heart surgery without opening the rib cage. Climate change. Not to mention social media, and its impact on our self- and human perception. Never before has a digital platform caused so much polarization in a society. And there are thousands more examples.

Collective intelligence

In the coming years, these changes and growth will go by mega leaps and bounds. An organization, in order to continue to exist, must go along with this. In this regard, collective intelligence is the new capital of an organization. The more you “know” and the more fluently you can process information, the better and more prosperous the collective will be. Collective intelligence is an intelligence of a team/organization in which everyone is involved and contributes voluntarily (because they want to and do not have to) to the synergy of a team/organization.

In other words collective intelligence is the sum of the four coefficients: the physical, intelligent, emotional and spiritual. All of these coefficients include “knowing. While we generally use only the IQ of a team/organization. In collective intelligence, knowledge, skill, social and emotional aspects are present, seen and utilized. Tuckman in his model of the phases of team development talks about the ‘performance phase’ or ‘high performance’, which is similar to this.

An example of collective intelligence

A beautiful and seemingly simple example of collective intelligence is the conversation between Diederik Gommers (IC doctor) and Famke Louise (influencer) at the table on the Jinek talk show. The talk show topic was the countermovement of a group of Dutch celebrities against the RIVM measures. Famke was one of them and received a negative charge from the media. And it was precisely Diederik Gommers who reached out and connected with her. He gave her a sincere invitation to engage in conversation together. Knowing that Famke represents a large group of her youthful followers that he wants to reach. He sees the intelligence of that group, there is information there that is important to consider in decisions. Beautiful and strong example of transformational coaching leadership and using the collective intelligence.

SPEAK WITH PURPOSE, NOT WITH IMPULSE

Leadership in a collective

A collective, for example a team in an organization, is a learning community. What is crucial in a learning community is a leadership style that pays attention to individual talents and a high degree of tolerance for mutual differences (diversity, inclusion and belonging). So there is no striving for conformity. The trick here is to keep the common goal in mind. We call this type of leadership transformational coaching leadership.

Learning and leading in our information age

In our current economy, learning is essential. This is because the changes in our environment are so rapid that what is seen as innovative today, is ‘old school’ tomorrow. An environment in which ‘learning and growing’ is the context benefits speed and flexibility. We also see this in (team) coaching where it is important that the team or individual can achieve their goals most effectively in a learning environment.

Learning in our contemporary information age, however, means first “unlearning. It requires breaking free from “we’ve been doing it this way for years. This is because our brain is programmed to listen for confirmation of what we already know.Humans, by nature, always serve the known and the safe and are therefore less likely to be open to the unknown. Nothing human is alien to us. To step into that world of the unknown and learn there, a safe and familiar learning environment is important. ‘Active listening‘, being open and detached from your current paradigms is essential to creating such a learning environment.

As a transformational coaching leader, you are trained or it is your talent to “actively listen,” and from transformational coaching leadership, safety and trust are provided.

Transformational coaching leadership, what exactly is it?

Transformational coaching leadership looks at innovations and then not just in products, but in all layers of an organization, such as structures, systems and so on. Transformational coaching leadership has an all-encompassing people approach, whether intelligent, physical, emotional or spiritual. The four coefficients we talked about earlier. Transformational leadership is not so much a different way of thinking, it is much more a different way of looking and linking actions to that. Looking differently at a team/organization, looking differently at the current mission, principles, structures, people view, systems, processes and even the entire chain.

Transformational coaching leadership is a form of coaching where personal and professional development are highly valued and where diversity, inclusion and belonging are the starting points. In summary, transformational coaching leadership leads to new possibilities, innovation, professional and personal development rather than just rearrangement of the old, of what is already there.

Know more and learn more about coaching leadership

Want to learn more about transformational coaching leadership? Download the free eBook: Transformational Coaching Leadership. Or learn the most important basics right away during the 3-day Coaching Essentials training .

Our Leadership and Co-Creation coaching course is developed around three pillars and from the philosophy of transformational coaching.

• The ‘doing’ of coaching (competency development)
• Systems thinking in teams and organizations
• Personal development

In it, in addition to the core coaching competencies of the International Coaching Federation, you will learn to develop yourself as a coaching transformational leader, coach and human being. Are you curious how this can change or strengthen your leadership? Feel free to contact us. The coffee is ready.