Work is a team sport. Teams perform best when they learn and improve together. Managers don’t just direct work; they coach their teams to get better and better at what they do.
Within the Resilience-Building Leadership Professional (RBLP) framework, this is the essence of workplace coaching. Leaders coach their teams through the cycle of experiencing, reflecting, deciding, and acting together, the continuous process that defines the Team Learning competency domain.
While the International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching as a partnership that helps individuals unlock their potential through reflection and inquiry, RBLP workplace coaching differs. Workplace coaches are part of the team, not outsiders. They are experts in the work being done, responsible for both performance and learning. Their coaching takes place within the flow of work, helping teams continually improve their collaborative operations.
The Purpose of Workplace Coaching
The purpose of workplace coaching is to help teams get better and better at what they do.
Coaching is how leaders transform everyday work into a learning experience. Managers guide their teams through the experiential learning cycle:
This process doesn’t take place in a separate meeting or through an external consultant. It occurs in real-time, as part of the team’s natural rhythm. Coaching is how leaders lead learning.
Every team’s daily work produces experiences that can — and should — be learned from. Leaders coach by helping their teams stay aware of how they’re performing while the work is underway. They observe, offer feedback, and connect actions to purpose.
Example: A logistics team is managing a large shipment under tight deadlines. The manager notices coordination issues between drivers and dispatchers. Instead of intervening reactively, the leader takes note for a post-shift reflection session, coaching with an eye toward future improvement.
RBLP vs. ICF: ICF coaches are external to the work. They facilitate personal reflection in retrospect. RBLP workplace coaches are embedded within the team. They share responsibility for results and utilize their expertise to help the team identify patterns and learn as the work progresses.
After the work is done, reflection begins. Leaders coach by facilitating honest, constructive conversations that examine what happened and why.
Because workplace coaches are insiders, they bring contextual understanding to the discussion; they know the systems, challenges, and pressures firsthand. Their insight ensures reflection stays grounded in real-world experience, not abstract theory.
Example: After a product release, a manager leads a team debrief. The conversation uncovers how last-minute design changes disrupted timelines. Because the leader knows the process intimately, they help the team pinpoint where communication has broken down and how to rectify it.
RBLP vs. ICF: ICF coaches guide individual clients toward self-awareness and personal insight. RBLP workplace coaches guide collective awareness and team insight. Their expertise in the work helps focus reflection on practical, actionable improvement.
Coaching moves from insight to action when teams make decisions about what to change. Leaders coach by helping the team prioritize, align, and commit to their goals.
Because they understand the work, workplace coaches help translate learning into operational decisions. They know what’s feasible, what resources are available, and how proposed changes will affect outcomes.
Example: A project team identifies that unclear roles slowed delivery. The leader, an expert in the project’s workflow, coaches the team to redesign responsibilities, ensuring alignment across functions.
RBLP vs. ICF: ICF coaching is intentionally non-directive; the coach doesn’t provide expertise or advice. RBLP workplace coaching is directive when necessary. The leader uses professional knowledge and team insight to guide decision-making and build collective ownership of improvement.
Learning becomes real through action. Leaders coach by supporting the team as they put new ideas into practice, track progress, and learn from the results.
Because workplace coaches are part of the team, they don’t step away once a decision is made; they’re right there as the team acts, reinforcing accountability and celebrating progress.
Example: A sales team adopts a new customer engagement strategy. The manager works alongside them, offering real-time feedback and helping the team adapt quickly. Each success and setback becomes a new source of learning.
RBLP vs. ICF: An ICF coach typically observes from outside the system. The RBLP workplace coach is integrated into the system, actively participating in the process, guiding improvement from within. Their coaching continues indefinitely as the team cycles through the experiential learning process of experiencing, reflecting, deciding, and acting.
RBLP workplace coaching is not about delivering advice; it’s about developing capability. Effective coaching leaders:
These leaders help teams build the discipline of continuous improvement, learning how to learn together.
When workplace coaches consistently guide teams through the learning cycle, each team’s progress contributes to the organization’s collective growth. Shared lessons become shared practices. Because workplace coaches are insiders and experts in the work, their coaching produces practical, sustainable improvements that spread across teams. This is how Team Learning becomes Organizational Learning, how experience turns into culture.
Q1: What is the purpose of workplace coaching in the RBLP framework?
To help teams get better and better at what they do through continuous learning and improvement.
Q2: What makes RBLP workplace coaching different from ICF coaching?
ICF coaching focuses on individual clients and is conducted by an outside facilitator who guides reflection through inquiry. RBLP workplace coaching is conducted by the team’s leader, who is a member of the team and an expert in the work. The goal is collective learning, not individual insight.
Q3: Why is expertise essential in workplace coaching?
Leaders must understand the work to guide meaningful reflection, informed decision-making, and effective action. Coaching without context misses the nuances of real-world performance.
Q4: How does workplace coaching strengthen resilience?
By creating a rhythm of continuous learning and improvement that builds confidence, adaptability, and shared problem-solving capacity.
Q5: How do RBLP-certified leaders apply coaching day-to-day?
They integrate coaching into everyday operations, facilitating reflection after tasks, helping teams make informed decisions, and guiding action toward improvement.
Workplace coaching is a way leaders help their teams improve and excel at their tasks. It’s leadership in action, embedded within the team, grounded in expertise, and focused on learning.
Unlike ICF coaches, who stand outside the system, RBLP workplace coaches are part of the team. They share the mission, understand the work, and coach from within. Through experience, reflection, decision-making, and action, they help teams transform daily work into continuous improvement and, in turn, continuous improvement into resilience.
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