Professional Facilitator - Matt Cartwright
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We are a leading Facilitation Company helping business, groups and organisations achieve better, simpler, faster, clearer and lasting outcomes.   

We improve the process, performance and produce more  value in your business, group meetings, customer experiences, and stakeholder engagement.

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SHIFT HAPPENS...JOB CUTS and More...

29/8/2012

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SHIFT HAPPENS

“If we don’t shift our intention, direction and action we will end up where we are headed”

SHIFT HAPPENS.  So… start accepting it. Let go of trying to stop the change or slow it down. There are likely to be 7 billion other similar stories just like yours, they just have different characters and plots but the same underlying message. Everyone you talk to is sick of change.  One approach is to be more effective rather than be affected by it. 

Are you working in a stuck or non-stuck environment?    If not….get yourself into a Teflon Team.  Stop sticking to old habits, old processes, old teams, old whining and shift.   There is a lot of bad press around the economy, job cuts, poverty, famine and war.  It is serious, so get serious and SHIFT into gear.  

Use all the gears to leverage your mindset and workplace to where it needs to shift. 

In many facilitation exercises we talk about the current and future state, the important bits are in the middle…”the action state”…or the “shifting state.”  The shifting state delivers targeted action, lots of it and regularly. Guess what? SHIFT happens.  Most if it starts within the mind then shifts into behaviour.

 “SHIFTING” is what I coined some time ago.  It’s a deliberate process of shifting thoughts, behaviours, attitudes to develop a more adaptable, resilient and optimistic view in a shifting world.  It’s a holistic process that deals with complex systems and aims to understand and respond to them with more agility and sustainability. 

STRAINING…..Have you noticed how workplaces over-process, over-engineer, over-produce, over-change and over strain?  It’s time to get over it…don’t you think? 

UNDERSTANDING YOUR SHIFT

Whenever we change one type of behaviour or situation, we are losing as well as gaining something.  In order to sustain real and lasting change in the workplace we need to change ourselves first.  Everyone can shift.  Shifting is challenging and requires effort but not straining.  The juggling act is “knowing,” that is, knowing not to get caught up in everyone’s emergency, urgency or dramas.  Of course we must balance what’s important and necessary. How you view or feel about a situation is always your choice. 

So…SHIFT YOURSELF to think and do what matters most.  Be more effective, be lateral, be creative, be a SHIFTER.  Don’t get caught up in the change, we have limited influence and control over what people decide to change in the workplace but we can shift our focus.



Journey well,
Matt Cartwright

Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results 
© Copyright 2008 -12 
     


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6 Needs of Staff and 10 Free Coaching Challenges

19/3/2012

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6 Needs of Staff and 10 Free Coaching Challenges

I have yet to work on project or coach a workplace team where the underlying root cause of all problems hasn’t been related to people, process and roles and their responsibilities. 

I have also observed the following to be true. That is, there are at least 6 basic human needs to help with people in projects or people going through workplace change.  What I have found is that employees look for: 

1.     certainty
2.     variety
3.     significance
4.     connection
5.     growth
6.     contribution


This isn’t always easy to find for the employee when you have limited power or influence.  Think about it from the employee’s perspective.

As a manager or business leader there will be tests. It's not always about the mark you achieve its learning and applying the process. Lasting results requires continuous action. Habitual actions lead to be progress.  Research also shows that people who have well-formed goals, written down are more likely to achieve those who do not. Up to 95% more likely.

Coaching Challenge for Frustrated and Fed Up workplace managers, supervisors or leaders.

1.     What might you be contributing to the workplace situation that causes others frustration?
2.     How are you helping the workplace team address the 6 basic human needs?
3.     Who in the workplace needs more of your assistance?
4.     How will you measure your contribution in assisting others in their success?
5.     To be more effective than you currently are at work what will you do more of?
6.     To be more effective than you currently are at work what will you do less of?

Okay, break it down into:

1.     What behaviours need to change?
2.     What attitudes need to change?
3.     What thoughts need to change?
4.     What processes need to change?

Imagine if you had on your own coach to help you or your team achieve greater success.

  • What might be the outcome?
  • What would that outcome give you?
  • What is holding you back from getting a coach?
Journey well,
Matt Cartwright

Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results 
© Copyright 2008 -12 
  
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Beware Executive Coaching is a Business Nightmare, Protect your Investment

13/3/2012

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Beware Executive Coaching is a Business Nightmare, Protect your Investment 

On a Google search 12 March 2012 I searched on the following terms and this is what I found...

Executive Coaching Training 17,400,000 results
Executive Coaching 7,910,000 results Worldwide
Executive Coaching 4,880,000 results Australia


Good luck everyone, me included….

I’ll tell you why.  I’ll also share some insights with you into the future of how to avoid the traps of hiring coaching services and coaching training.  If you’re hiring coaching services or a coach please send me questions, I’ll try and answer them to protect your investment and business.   I’ll even review proposals and programs. 

I started my own coaching and facilitation business in 2007.  I also provided team development programs as a smaller part of my business structure to increase my research base for team coaching.  In the 5 years I’ve seen an enormous shift to coach training, coaching services and corporate areas providing what seems to be the same service.  I commend them for getting up to speed with latest trends in people and business performance.    

When I finished an accredited program in the Australian education sector, (not an online US course), I was not fully prepared for executive coaching or business coaching.  When I questioned other coaches who had undergone coaching certification through big US training programs, neither were they.  There has been no tertiary sector degree course offered in Business Coaching.  However, Life coaching which has been cleverly marketed for just over decade.   Life Coaching quickly morphed into business and executive coaching. Why? More of your money…...  

Oh, it reeked of fake and phoney start-ups…. Scary and I wondered what the bleep….I had got myself into.  

I aspired to being one of the best in the industry and started consulting with University of Sydney to find out more to progress the professional status.   It was clear coaching, business coaching and coaching psychology was changing rapidly.  It was becoming a free for all approach and here we remain today.

As a result in 2008 -09, I undertook a review of training schools through direct contact and also a meta-analysis of the literature from business, organisational psychology, organisational development, management, vocational education and coaching.  My business needed a proven scientific basis.  I came from a professional management and clinical background where everything needs to be proven by research and opinion was never entertained.

In 2009 -10, I conducted and independent business review of a government panel of coaching providers.  Of the panel of providers credentialed or certified coaches were less than 10%, charging out rates from $250 - $695 per hour.  Wow… I was shocked to think our public taxes could be used so recklessly.

Within those 2 years I developed the evidence based framework Australia Coaching Excellence Framework (ECEF).  

ECEF was developed for Australian corporate, small business and not for profit sector.  Have you noticed how many coaching programs use US or overseas based frameworks?   Just check whatever you choose aligns to your business structure.  

ECEF was developed as a scalable, replicable, transferable and measurable model to whatever organisation that you worked in. 

Today in 2012, the Australian coaching industry is saturated with a lack of research, standardisation, rigorous governance and quality control.  It is an unregulated industry.  It is concerning that there are no state or national registration boards.  

Let’s face it you wouldn’t go and get an unlicensed electrician come in and wire up your house.  And, you wouldn’t send your child to school to be taught by a non-registered teacher.   

If you were an accountant, physiotherapist, teacher, nurse, psychologist or architect you will be practising under tight controls of regulation, tertiary education, legislation and competency frameworks to protect the public and business sector. 

Today, 2 years later as I surf the web I sense that the business perception of coaching is still a fad and business owners are wary of HR, trainers and consultants.   I somewhat agree with their reticence and why the perception has come about. 

Risk for your business

My concern for you is that the perception is likely to be around for some years unless the industry is radically regulated.   We have many international councils, federations and such as International Coaching Federation, European Coaching Federation and a plethora of University Business and Management Schools and small training providers running coaching programs etc. scrambling for your business dollar.  

Who is protecting your business from rogue coaching organisations and rogue coaches?

Bottom line folks, executive or management coaching is not the silver bullet alleged to be.  Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.  Coaching can and does work.   On the flipside it also has its place and if not used correctly has no benefit at all.    

Coaching is one link in your business performance process.  

So why do I blog about it?  

Well times are changing. The corporate world and small business needs guidance and protection.  I’ve sat back and watched and seen the lack of ROI.  Although you can be credentialed, and certified, I’ll be honest have a look at the ICF website it’s pretty basic, and you can still be certified and practice using non-standardised practices. 

There is no watch dog in the industry…. Enter at your own risk and beware of the dogs

Okay so what now?

Sorry to be killjoy at my own party?  Well what it means to you is that many consultants, facilitators, trainers now call themselves coaches or have coaching programs to offer.  It means you have more risk to manage.  It won’t change, it will grow, so get smart when you’re hiring.  Find out from someone who can provide the risk management and protect your coaching investment. 

We are so concerned about the risk to businesses that our business provides a range of services to protect your investment into coaching.

Protect your Coaching Investment 

Our Consultancy Services include:

1.      Qualifying prospective coaches and organisations to protect your investment
2.      Acting on your behalf and risk stratifying coaching engagements
3.      Assisting you select and negotiate your coaching services and fees
4.      Assessing the quality, rigour and value of coaching training services that you are 
         considering
5.      Reviewing the performance of the coach/s to ensure they deliver on agreed performance 
         targets
6.      Reviewing, auditing and assessing breaches of professional conduct and ethics

I remain positive that coaching is a process to bring about performance. Don’t to get me wrong. It has enormous benefits.  Just get the right service.

Our company continues to provide coaching services to key clients.   We select our clients just like they select us.  Why, because we see it as business partnership not to be entered into lightly.

All the best on your search. Remember not everyone needs a coach, but they can perform better with one….

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright

Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results 
© Copyright 2008 -12 
 

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    “We all want to see change in the world, but first we must change ourselves”

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