Consulting vs. Coaching … A Leadership “Aha” Moment
If you could go back in time what career advice would you give yourself?
While my list would be exhaustive (lordy!), there’s one key lesson I wish I would have learned sooner … when do I deploy coaching vs. consulting?
Whether it was early in my leadership career or owning several locations, I stumbled around this for years. I wasted money and time … and lots of it.
I often thought coaching the frontline leader would solve the problem when I should have resourced the business with process and systems. In contrast, I believed that systems would solve poor and inadequate leadership.
I see this all too often. Leadership coaches are deployed into frontline businesses with the hopes of improving self-awareness, identifying blind spots, elevating team dynamics, fine-tuning mindsets and building healthy habits. It sounds great, at surface level.
Often the intentions are pure — business owners/leaders and teams believe this is the silver bullet.
But without key industry understanding and systems/process thinking, the coaching falls flat. Money is wasted, frustration builds and potential is never realized.
So, what’s the answer?
The answer lies in understanding the difference between consulting and coaching. And, most importantly, when you need one or the other … or both.
Here are a few key distinctions I have found useful over the years …
A coach enables the individual he or she is working with to solve problems while a consultant is the expert that will solve problems for the team … often through already proven systems and solutions.
Consulting is about giving common and proven solutions to problems. Coaching believes that clients have an answer they believe in, subconsciously, or are afraid to pull the trigger themselves.
A coach builds capacity while a consultant solves a problem.
With a consultant, they'll most likely do the work to resolve a targeted problem. With a coach, they’ll guide you through resolving the problem, while also showing you how to look at the problem more holistically so you can see your business in a more integrated way.
A consultant brings technical expertise to advise on solutions. A coach brings relationship expertise to support the client's solutions.
While the coach is like a miner looking for resources, a consultant is more like a delivery truck of goods that can provide what was missing.
As a business owner/leader, ask yourself what your organization needs in this season. Be honest — are you inserting systems and processes at the same rate as you are inserting leadership fables, theories and books?
Knowing when to put on your own coaching vs. consulting hat is important. Where do you personally tend to lean when in conversations with your teams? Read the situation. Does your team need a coach (capacity, development, perspective) or a consultant (systems, problem-solving, tools)?
In the same regard, knowing when to insert outside coaches vs. consultants into the business is critical.
if you ever want to chat or would like me to run you and your organization through these concepts, email me.
Also … for further reading, check out this article from Forbes … it helps further define and may spark more thought.
~~ Lauren Silich, CEO & Founder
