The second year of the Burditt Lectures saw entrants raise the bar even higher. Liz Hall reviews the top two winning entries at the awards ceremony in London
This year’s Burditt Lectures Alumni Awards saw winner Brigid Russell’s essay turned into a book, while runner-up David Ramsey’s, which featured a speaking wardrobe, was enacted by professional actors for the benefit of delegates.
It was the second year of the awards, held at the end of the Academy of Executive Coaching (AoEC)’s annual conference on 9 November 2012, and the quality of contributions was even higher, according to Peter Burditt, who sponsors the event.
“The bar was definitely raised this year in terms of the quality of the essay contributions. I was humbled by the clarity of thinking and in the dedication to best practice evidenced by the submissions. I was inspired, moved and educated…in very different ways. Having been a practising coach for 17 years, through reading the essays I realise how much there is still to learn. As Myles Downey said: “There are no rules, but you’ve got to know them.”
Burditt was one of the judges at the Grange St Paul’s Hotel, London, with Coaching at Work’s Liz Hall and the Association for Coaching Global’s CEO Katherine Tulpa. The theme was: “When is coaching therapy and when have you combined both with the same client?”
Russell came at it from a strong research angle, including anonymised case studies using public sector leaders.
Burditt said, “Brigid’s was an extremely well written and well researched paper, a sincere document which intelligently explored the question. It posed some good questions like: “What is it that might make coaching feel like therapy?” and “What is the client’s perspective?”
It also considered both the systems and intra-psychic perspectives and the ethics of whether her client really wanted to be a leader in a climate of ever-decreasing resources.
“She introduced and discussed the power of compassion, referencing the work of Adam Kahane: “To keep moving forward we need to be able to keep ourselves upright to self correct. We need to be able to prevent ourselves from going so far with our power that we lose touch with our love or so far with our love that we lose touch with our power.”
Ramsey combined experiences from coaching clients who felt trapped, in a story called ‘The client, the coach and the wardrobe’. The third prize (£500) went to Ursula Franklin.
What were the judges looking for?
Peter Burditt: We at the AoEC are continually interested in knowing what is really working for our clients. We want to be able to move beyond the textbook in terms of what has worked in the past to what is working now. While psychotherapeutic and psychological tools form the bedrock of the AoEC’s coach training, we are ever mindful that coaches are not practising psychotherapy, and neither are our clients expecting it.
We do, however, have evidence that facilitating deeper transformations in our client’s awareness supports longer term and beneficial changes for them and their lives. We also believe happy and enriched individuals contribute to happier, healthier and more resilient institutional cultures.
I was looking for authentic coach/client experiences, evidence of innovation, grounded research and, above all, evidence of the coach’s awareness of what was going on, both in the forefront and background of the session(s) referred to, together with evidence of re-iterative learning and co-created experiences in the coaching.
Katharine Tulpa: Relevancy for where coaching is now, while being able to look at self, the coaching relationship and the impact they are having on the coaching.
Someone who understands the broader context, and the influences this is having, and who is able to adapt and flex accordingly, to what is needed most at any given time.
Equally, someone who shows reflective practice, and understands what is underpinning his/her coaching philosophy and practice, while showing all the additional skill sets of great coaching.
Finally, looking at this selfishly, a submission that I could read, feel inspired by, and learn from. Quite a tall order, then!
Liz Hall: I was looking for rigour and depth of research around the topic/question; critical thinking; humility and preparedness to be honest and open about learning, supported by at least one case example from entrants’ own practice.
The judges
Peter Burditt Senior executive coach and founder, Strategic Development Consultants
Katherine Tulpa CEO, Association for Coaching Global
Liz Hall Coach and editor, Coaching at Work
The winners
1st prize (£3,000)
Brigid Russell, ‘Coaching the person – in the context of complexity and uncertainty’
When I coach leaders in the public services who are facing unprecedented levels of uncertainty, ambiguity and complexity, I know that there are times when, for some, coaching feels like therapy. So, in practice, this is not about clear-cut definitions.
‘How and when have I combined coaching and therapy with the same client?’ In addressing this question, I consider the similarities and differences between coaching and therapy – in service of exploring the client experience of coaching and the impact of this coaching within their particular context….
In many cases, the coaching client simply needs a place in which to tell their story, to hear themselves talk through their thoughts and emotions out loud, to be truly heard and respected, and not judged. As a coach working with leaders in the public service, this is truly humbling. There seems to be something missing for many clients in their experience of the organisational context and…a person-centred coaching relationship has the potential to feel ‘therapeutic’. I believe this is where…coaching can create a psychologically safe space for the client.
2nd prize (£1,500)
David Ramsey, ‘The client, the coach and the wardrobe’
I have found in these relationships that as their coach I am using what I believe to be techniques, such as Gestalt coaching, use of metaphors, powerful questioning and listening at level three, that can easily be used and interpreted as therapy, as much as they can be used and interpreted as coaching.
I am, however, left asking myself “so what?”, when I think about the question for this lecture. After all, does it really matter if it’s coaching and/or therapy as long as the client improves performance, seeks out ways to improve behaviour and generates an overall feeling of greater wellness, happiness and satisfaction?
I’m also left reflecting on what I have heard before about coaching being focused on the present and the future, while therapy is focused on the past. As a coach, I work with all three dimensions and find that exploring the past (ie, what has worked well?), the present (ie, what options do you have in front of you now?) and the future (ie, if there is one change you think you can make, what would it be?), ultimately helps the client. That is my goal as a coach – to help the client.
Coaching at work, volume 8, issue 1