Distinctive Managerial, Organisational and Developmental Characteristics of Small Businesses - Essay Example

? Coaching & Mentoring ic & Contemporary Analysis [Pick the Coaching and mentoring are considered as two similar terms indicating an act of leading and sharing knowledge. Where these two terms emerged in 18th century, they have their roots in the work of classic scholars such as Aristotle and Plato. Over the time, the definitions of these two terms have evolved greatly. Critical analysis would reveal that where there are clear differences between coaching and mentoring, they do share common elements as well. A basic difference between these two terms is the purpose of each activity. Coaching is more task-oriented whereas mentoring is driven by knowledge sharing meant in a spiritual context with the purpose of developing the personality of a learner. The understanding developed through the work of Garvey et al. (2008) is further strengthened through literary explanation provided by Robert Thurman, Meredith Belbin and Rosemary Ryan. Where Garvey et al. (2008) describes how the definitions of these two terms have evolved over centuries, other three authors explain their relevance to present life. According to Garvey et al. (2008), self-realization is a foundation of coaching and mentoring. The follower has to understand his/ her inner self and then interpret the meaning of knowledge provided to them. Furthermore, they believe that coaching and mentoring are rooted in our cultural norms and values. Like Bruner stated in Garvey et al. (2008), folk wisdom is distributed through interpretations of historical events that later on form our culture; this understanding of cultural norms is further strengthen through dialogues (p.11). In order to elaborate the historical background of coaching and mentoring, frequent references to the work of Plato, Homer, Socrates and Aristotle are given in Garvey et al. (2008). It is stated that frequent questioning and critical debates lead to emergences of true knowledge. Therefore, without questioning the pre-established norms, new ideas cannot be created. While defining their work, it was found that only Plato and Aristotle have used the word mentor for a figure known for disseminating knowledge. Later on, it has been added that Aristotle has introduced a differentiation between practical and theoretical knowledge. He further introduced the concept of productive work which defines creation of something new. Careful analysis of contemporary coaching techniques would reveal that these three concepts are used frequently in present coaching and mentoring. Further referencing to Homer indicated that the word mentor was introduced into literature around three thousand years back. The word itself meant an advisor. However, Homer’s work has been highly shadowed by unnecessary criticism and relevance to gender issues without giving much attention to social norms. Garvey et al. (2008) further analyzed the literary work with reference to coaching and mentoring in 18th century. According to Fenelon, observing life events is itself a learning process that can provide positive as well as negative lessons. Presence of mentor helps in interpreting important lessons out of these events that helps in attaining better insight of life and virtues. The concept of experiential learning also stemmed out of Fenelon’s ideas of learning and development. The idea was extended by Rousseau in 18th century when he introduced the ideal class size for effective education. The present day concept of multiple students in one group headed by a single teacher was not accepted by Rousseau; in fact he emphasized on having a one-on-one interaction between the student and a teacher whereas the term teacher was replaced by mentor. Where mentor was considered as a figure of knowledge and wisdom, Louis Carccioli attached spiritual attributes to this personality. According to him, a mentor is someone who not only enriches the mind but also lights the heart. Hence, a therapeutic effect of mentoring was introduced by Caraccioli when he writes, “Melancholy, so common a complaint with the most voluptuous’ has no effect on the man who possesses reflection (Garvey et al. 2008, p.13). During the same time, a concept of female mentoring also emerged. In The Female Mentor, women referred as a society are presented with the concept of female mentor that appears to be inspired by Fenelon’s work. In the later part of the first chapter of Garvey et al., a comparison of historical concepts of mentoring was made with the contemporary concepts. The ideal figures used from classic literature were introduced by Homer who described mentor as a guardian as well as a master of civil administration and a bearer of wisdom and knowledge. Careful analysis of Homer’s description of mentor would reveal that he viewed mentor as a figure who helps in developing potential and skills. Secondly, a relationship between a mentor and a follower is described i.e. has a sense of purpose and direction. Thirdly, a mentor needs to be aware of a balance required between the learner and the organization for which he is responsible. Therefore, a mentor is required to be aware of their responsibility towards both. Fourthly, every learner has certain skills and motives and it is the responsibility of the mentor to identify and understand these two aspects of leaner’s personality and guide them accordingly. It is important to develop trust and faith in all learning relationship followed by challenge and support. Lastly, a mentor is expected to induce independence by enabling the learner to make his or her own decisions by encouraging them. Other skills required for mentoring as mentioned by Fenelon includes reflective questioning. Fenelon added that a mentor needs to develop confidence by eliminating fear of failure in the learner. For this purpose, he has to remain assertive and consistent in his effort while staying calm. Furthermore, a mentor needs to be aware of learner’s feeling and events surrounding the learning process. It is important a learner has to be inspired by the leader. Therefore, a mentor is expected to have a charismatic personality and an ability to be a role model. Furthermore, a mentor is expected to foster experiential learning as well. In addition to these basic attributes, Caraccioli added that a mentor needs to have self-knowledge leading to the enhanced knowledge of others (Garvey et al., 2008, p. 15). Furthermore, he should be sought out rather than seeking pupils. Since Caraccioli emphasized more on the spiritual side of mentoring, therefore he stressed that a mentor needs to have adequate knowledge of religion. He should also provide an amalgam of religious as well as contextual knowledge of worldly subjects to the learner. He also added that a mentor needs to be free of self-interest and must be able to deduce positive lessons from the learning experience. Furthermore, Caraccioli viewed mentor as a figure that provides knowledge based on experiences, enables learners to make decision, encourage them to read and discuss literature. Unlike Plato and Homer, Socrates projected mentor as a person dealing with a group of people which is synonymous to present day reflection of a traditional teacher. On the other hand, other classic scholars introduced mentor as a figure having one-on-one relationship with the learner where learning process does not involve direct influence of interference of others. Contemporary analysis of Brunner indicated that coaching has multiple meanings. He explained it by saying, “coaching takes many forms, from technical counselling to the psychological domination that flirts with suggestion, for this is a domain devoid of any fixed deontology. (Garvey et al. 2008, p. 18)”. In the light of this explanation, the term coach was referred to as a person who provides academic knowledge and act as a regular tutor to the students. In the 19th century, the term coach was mostly used in athletics for the teacher who assists in learning sports. It is quite relevant to our present day terminology where coach is used for teachers helping in learning of soccer and swimming etc. Another important definition of coach was given by Sir R.H. Roberts when he declared coach as a person providing knowledge of life skills. He explained it by saying, “These young ladies, although ably coached by their mother (Garvey et al. 2008, p.18). Since there is no concrete evidence illustrating that there has been major research on deriving the meaning of this term, therefore, we can deduce that coaching and mentoring a relatively new terms. Despite the basic differences between these two terms, there is an established common ground that illustrated that coaching and mentoring are dyadic relationships between the teacher and a learner. According to Simmel, coaching and mentoring give rise to a structure of pair. Where trust is a pre-requisite for this relationship, trust itself is a by-product of confidentiality and dependency. Addition of a third person may compromise this secrecy and then trust in turn. Simmel further stresses that this relationship requires to be rejuvenated through new experiences instead of repeating same experiments as it may lead to an end of relationship due to lack of interest i.e. the term used to explain this phase is called triviality. Another major difference illustrated by Simmel in coaching and mentoring is ‘presence of intimacy, friendship and mutuality’ (Garvey et al. 2008, p. 20). Garvey (1994) mentioned that there are various dimensions that can help in understanding the nature of these two concepts i.e. open/ closed, public/ private, formal/ informal, active/ passive and stable/ unstable. These dimensions help in having a subjective view of a relationship between a teacher and a learner instead of an objective one. This analysis helps in understanding the similarities and differences between coaching and mentoring. Analysis of evolution of these two terms indicates that presents day knowledge is a by-product of folk wisdom. There are various contemporary writers who have performed thorough research on coaching and mentoring. One of them is Dr. Meredith Belbin. Belbin’s work is surrounded by analysis of team functioning. He has established nine distinct roles that are opted and performed by the team members. Further analysis of Belbin’s work indicated that he has established the role of team manager or leader as that of a classic coach. Belbin is more concerned with the team functioning and stresses that no team member can work in isolation and requires help of the team members and guidance of the leader (Bosson et al. 2009). Belbin’s concept of leader is that of a person who has substantial knowledge of the task in hand, ability to develop a consensus within the team over team objectives, supervisory skills and abilities to develop trust and mutual interest within the team. However, he has used these concepts in the context of sports and corporate teams. Comparison of Belbin’s work with Garvey et al. indicated that Belbin recognizes the classic definition of the coach (Davis, 2007; Green, 2003)). Where classic theories declare coach as a master of certain skills who is responsible to enable the learner capable of performing a task, Belbin also recognizes coach as a group leader or manager who is responsible to ensure that objectives of the team members remain aligned with the goals. However, Belbin pays little attention to the separate concept of mentoring and amalgamates it within the umbrella of coaching by recognizing the importance of appreciation and guidance by the team leader (Cartwrigth, 2004). There are substantial differences between coaching and mentoring in classic literature mainly because of team structure. Belbin’s work focuses on a group development instead of individual’s. Another perspective of mentoring and coaching was provided by Rosemarry Ryan. Ryan (2012) illustrated that coaching has a significant relevance in daily activities. Be it a corporate team or a college sports team, there has to be a leader who is aware of the task in hand and ensures that the objective is achieved. For this purpose, he/ she may use a group of team members that have necessary skills and abilities to perform the task assigned. In cases where the team members do not possess the right skill set, it is the duty of the leader to teach them. Hence, it is the duty of the coach to identify the potential of the learner and then develop it accordingly. Ryan further acknowledges the contribution of classic theories while describing coaching. According to her, a coach has to challenge his team for more effective results and identify the barriers faced by them. However, unlike other scholars, Ryan believes that a role of coach and mentor can be performed by a single individual. Where coach is a goal-oriented role, same individual can develop personal relationship with the individual team member (one-on-one) relationship. Hence, a mentor is not only a person who is responsible for giving professional advices but can provide guidance with reference to personal development. Mentors can be selected on the basis of shared inspirations and values. Unlike other modern scholars, Robert Thurman acknowledges the value of spirituality for the role of mentor or coach. However, he does not recognize the differences between these two terms. Instead, he has focused more on the process of learning itself. Although, Thurman acknowledges the importance of one-on-one interaction between the leader and learner, but he relates to the classic theories by acknowledging the importance of experiential learning. Thurman further stresses that our present day experiences helps us in developing an understanding of the virtues related to life. However, this learning is driven by our knowledge of cultural norms and social values. Hence, culture and society act as a frame of reference through which life and related experiences are analyzed (Thurman, 1996; 1999; 2006). In order to have an effective mentoring experience, Thurman acknowledges the importance of radical acceptance of knowledge inflow from the mentor. Furthermore, a mentor is expected to have substantial awareness of one’s self and the needs of the learner. Practicing bias or judgment will hamper the process of learning. Thurman has managed to create a combination of coaching and mentoring in religious figures. He illustrates that religious figures like prophets not only share the message of Almighty with us but also provide knowledge and wisdom related to life and activities related to it. He explains some basic rules or principles based on religious knowledge and virtues and believes that they can be practices in professional as well as personal life. Thurman has managed to provide a definition of mentoring that includes an act of inspiring the learner and sharing knowledge with him. Coaching and mentoring are considered as synonymous terms that reflect an act of leading and sharing knowledge with the learners or followers. However, an extensive research by Garvey et al. (2008) defined that there are clear differences between these two concepts. Mentoring refers to a one-on-one relationship between the knowledge figure and the learner. Relationship itself is based on inspiration and trust. Where mentoring includes learning involving experiences of life, it also includes development of spiritual beliefs. On the other hand, coaching is more related to daily activities of life where a group of individuals are seeking knowledge from a skilled figure mastering in a certain area. There are various similarities between these two roles such as trust, mutual objectives, dependency, and requirement for encouragement however mentoring indicates a relationship having more intimacy than coaching. Analysis of classic literature and work of present day scholars indicate that coaching in its simplest form is an objective-oriented and task driven activity. On the other hand, mentoring not only includes sharing knowledge for development of skills but also disseminating wisdom related to spirituality. References Belbin, M 1981. Management Teams: Why they succeed or fail. London: Heinemann. Bossons. P, Kourdi J & Sartain, D 2009, Coaching Essentials: Practical, proven techniques for world-class executive coaching, A&C Black. Cartwright, R 2004. Managing talent, John Wiley & Sons. Davis, T 2007, Talent Assessment: A New Strategy for Talent Management, Gower Publishing Ltd. Garvey, B, Stokes, P and Megginson, D 2008. Coaching and Mentoring: Theory and Practice, SAGE. Green G 2003. Developing Teams, John Wiley & Sons. Ryan, R 2012. Leadership Development, Routledge. Thurman, R 1999. Inner revolution: life, liberty, and the pursuit of real happiness, Riverhood Books. Thurman, R 1996. Essential Tibetan Buddhism. Harper Collins. Thurman, R 2006. Infinite Life: Seven Virtues for living well. Souvenir Press Limited, Read More