Team coaching in pairs: Research from CCMI

The aim of this research was to throw light on an area of coaching that has not been the subject of any significant investigation before. All the major authorities on team coaching recommend that, unless a team is very small, two coaches should support each other. Among the reasons: one can facilitate while the other...

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What did you learn about yourself this week?

Building the habit of reflection isn’t easy. Yet, some questions can give a much-needed prompt. Ask someone what they earned this week and they can usually remember something. Yet ask what they learned about themselves requires a much deeper level of introspection.

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What do executives think are the benefits of team coaching?

Manfred Kets de Vries, at INSEAD, the French business school, is a veteran of team coaching and an authority on the psychology of both coaching and group dynamics. His latest book, The Path to Individual and Organizational Transformation (Palgrave, 2025) contains many nuggets, but I was particularly struck by a list of 25 key benefits that executive teams perceive from team coaching. These range from identifying hidden conflict to clarifying roles and deeper understanding of team challenges, to aligning team norms with an accountability structure. It’s a valuable checklist to apply when engaging with a team, to answer the question: “What would you like team coaching to do for you as a team?”

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The potential matrix

In order to take up a challenge, we need agency (am I able to do this or make it happen) and will (do I want to do this or make it happen?) 

The potential matrix is a simple way to illustrate any dilemma we may have.

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How to make new habits stick

“Stacking” is a term that refers to linking a habit you want to create with one that you already have. For example, if brushing your teeth is a well-established routine, then doing a stretch exercise afterwards becomes an extension of that routine. Washing the toothbrush under a tap becomes a reminder or trigger to stretch.

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How teams fall foul of “illusory truths”

Illusory truth theory describes the phenomenon, by which people gradually accept a statement, which we initially reject, as true, if it is repeated often enough. To economise effort, our brains dampen down our reactions to any stimulus that is repeated, be that physical, intellectual or emotional. The downside of doing so is that we get acclimatised to things that may be harmful, including ideas.

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What does it mean to be present as a coach or mentor?

Presence is one of those words that gets used and abused for many purposes. One of the most common is as a synonym for charisma, in the sense of attracting admiration or followership. (This is in itself a corruption – the roots of charisma lie in caring for others.)

In the context of a mature and effective coach or mentor, however, presence is a phenomenon that bridges awareness and connection at three levels.

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