Enhancing Performance a Case Study of the Effects of Employee

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Construction Management and Economics (February 2010) 28, 141149

Construction Management and EconomicsISSN 0144-6193 print/ISSN 1466-433X online 2010 Taylor & Francis

http://www.informaworld.com

DOI: 10.1080/01446190903460672

Enhancing performance: a case study of the effects of employee

coaching in construction practice

ALEXIS ANNE MCGUFFIN

*

and ESTHER OBONYO

M.E. Rinker Sr School of Building Construction, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA

TaylorandFrancis

Received 2 March 2009; accepted 3 November 2009

10.1080/01446190903460672

The contemporary practice of coaching in the business world entails engaging accredited professionals to

enhance the performance of employees. A key problem impeding the widespread adoption of coaching is the

lack of empirical research supporting the effectiveness of implemented programmes and the returns on

investment. The benefits of coaching are assessed from the perspective of employees. Data were collectedthrough a case study of an employee coaching programme within a large, multinational construction company.

The programme had significantly enhanced the employees personal and professional growth and

development. It had also increased their motivation levels and loyalty to the company.

Keywords:Employee coaching, enhancing performance, motivation, case study, human factors.

Introduction

Given that employee well-being directly impacts on the

long-term prosperity of any organization, forward

thinking business leaders must have a robust strategy

for human resource management (HRM). As Raiden

et al.

(2006) point out, there has been little attention

paid to managing people in construction using emerg-

ing management paradigms. This is paradoxical in this

people-oriented industry (Egan, 1998; Strategic Forum

for Construction, 2002; CITB, 2003). Managing

people is particularly difficult within this industry given

its inherent complexities. For HRM, such construc-

tion-specific complexities include handling (1) frequent

lay-offs and re-hiring of staff to match work load fluc-

tuations; (2) geographical dispersion of projects that

disrupts employees worklife balance; and (3) frequent

reconstitution of teams to fit new project requirements

(Raiden et al.,

2006).Employee coaching is a collaborative solution-

focused, results-oriented and systematic process in

which a certified business coach facilitates the

enhancement of performance and life experience

through supporting the targeted persons growth and

development (Grant, 2003; Brumwell and Reynolds,

2006). Such programmes guide individuals toward

increased awareness of how their thoughts and

emotional reactions lead to problematic behaviours in

the workplace (Bluckert, 2005). The use of a certified

coach distinguishes it from mentoring. Employee

coaching must not be confused with training, which

imparts the necessary knowledge and skills required forperforming the job. Unlike employee training, coach-

ing is a continuous process which helps the employees

to overcome the challenges faced by them at work

through investing in their personal growth and devel-

opment (Coutu and Kauffman, 2009; White, 2009).

Companies investing in coaching seek to enhance the

performance of their employees (Sparrow, 2005).

Coaching has been identified as a suitable strategy for

securing high performance during times of economic

lows (Muir, 2009). The evolving trend places more

emphasis on enhancing the performance of employees

rather than on fixing behavioural anomalies.

Despite the existence of some evidence from differentbusiness entities that have benefited from professional

coaching, it is still not a common practice within the

construction industry. Where it does occur in the

construction industry, it predominantly takes the form

of executive coaching. This is not surprising given that

coaching typically involves hiring a third party whose

compensation can vary from $200 to $3500 an hour

*

Author for correspondence. E-mail: [email protected]


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McGuffin and Obonyo

(Coutu and Kauffman, 2009). Given this high invest-

ment, the benefits of coaching have to be validated

through empirical research, which, as pointed out by

Muir (2009), Jones et al.

(2006) and Maynard (2006)

is lacking. The purported benefits of coaching remain

mostly testimonial in nature. For the coaching

phenomenon to become widely accepted, especially

within the construction industry, there is a need for

objective research. In Coutu and Kauffmans (2009)

survey of professional coaches, the field was referred to

as being in adolescence and there was a call for more

research into the effectiveness of coaching programmes.

Many studies that have attempted to evaluate coach-

ing programmes were performed by the coaches them-

selves. This introduces bias to the process. There is a

need to have coaching programmes evaluated objec-

tively by researchers without a vested interest in the

results. This paper presents the findings of an investi-

gation which does just that through a case study of an

employee coaching programme implemented by a largemultinational company. It extends Raiden et al.

s

(2006) strategies for using the ability, motivation and

opportunity model in team deployment. The objective

of this investigation was to advance their people

performance link through focusing on the impact of a

professional business coach. The next section describes

the key tenets of employee coaching. This is followed

by a discussion on how formally structured employee

coaching programmes can be used to help organiza-

tions, including those in the construction industry,

leverage their human assets for sustained growth and

profitability. This is followed by a description of the

case study method that was adopted in the research anda summary of the main findings. The paper ends with

a brief discussion which culminates in the conclusion

that construction companies can successfully use

coaching techniques at all levels in an organization to

enhance employee motivation levels thus improving

their productivity and performance at work.

The practice of coaching

Coaching programmes are generally implemented as:

executive coaching, performance coaching, life

coaching or personal coaching programmes. Although

all these approaches share the similar goal of enhancing

performance, they target different audiences thus yield-

ing different outcomes. Programmes focused exclusively

on supporting the top management are commonly

referred to as executive coaching programmes. Perfor-

mance coaching programmes are specifically directed at

finding solutions to challenges in the workplace through

engaging in work-related activities designed to identify

production methods that will achieve an optimal

balance between time and quality (Brumwell and

Reynolds, 2006).

Life and personal coaching programmes are very

similar to mentoring or counselling but use a certified

coach. The idea behind life coaching is that if behav-

ioural improvements are made within individual

employees, their performance and that of the company

as a whole will improve (Perry, 2006). This type of

coaching is similar to personal coaching, a term

commonly used for a one-on-one relationship built to

support individuals as they make choices about their

lives and their work (Thorne, 2001). Unlike perfor-

mance coaching, which focuses on improving perfor-

mance at work, personal and life coaching cover a

broader base and look holistically at the personal needs

of the individuals within the organization. Personal and

life coaches encourage individuals to step outside their

comfort zone and push themselves harder to achieve

identified goals through a mutually defined training

regime. They are typically based on a support andchallenge model which involves questioning, listening,

observing and giving feedback to the individual being

coached. These models are used to identify personal,

business and/or relationship goals, as well as to develop

strategies for achieving these goals.

Any of these different types of employee coaching

programmes can be used successfully as long as they

are tailored to company-specific needs and parameters.

They offer a better way of managing performance than

the traditional means that in many cases are based on

unstructured approaches and left at the discretion of

individual manager (Andersen et al.,

2006). In many

instances, such piecemeal approaches concentrate onimproving individual aspects and result in changes that,

in the long run, counteract one another. This is consis-

tent with Muirs (1911) position that When we try to

pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to every-

thing else in the Universe (p. 211).

The benefits of coaching

Muir (2009) pointed out that few existing quantitative

evaluations of coaching have demonstrated its effec-

tiveness and bottom-line contribution. There have

been some efforts, however, at evaluating the specific

benefits and return on investment (ROI) that have

been undertaken by companies providing coaching

experiences to their employees.

A two-hour coaching session was offered to attend-

ees of an annual weekend workshop for local govern-

ment lawyers. After this coaching experience, delegates

reported being in a positive and energized mood, with

reduced stress levels, increased motivation and more

clarity in their focus (Perry, 2006). Although there was


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no follow-up investigation of how it affected the

participants activities in the workplace, their initial

responses indicate that they benefited from the coach-

ing experience.

In a quest to improve performance in its online retail

outfit, UKs British Telecommunications (BT) hired a

third-party consulting firm to design and implement an

employee coaching programme. The implemented

programme concentrated on worklife balance for BTs

employees (Brumwell and Reynolds, 2006). Through

enhancing focus on goal achievement, innovation,

confidence and self-assessment within an employee

coaching programme, the company realized significant

improvements in personal and team performance. After

implementing the coaching programme, BT Retail

Online reported an 11.2 % increase in productivity and

capacity across its 12 000 employees. Brumwell and

Reynolds (2006) equated this to US$40 million annual

cost savings.

Booz Allens Center for Performance Excellenceconducted a study aimed at assigning a monetary value

to benefits accruing from their organizations executive

coaching programme. Because of the difficulty in

producing hard numbers for personal productivity

improvement in a service organization such as Booz

Allen, this study focused on determining the ROI for

the employees at the individual level. This was subse-

quently aggregated to estimate overall monetary

savings for the company. Through this process, Parker-

Wilkins (2006) established that executive coaching

yielded close to a 700% ROI for the company. He

acknowledged that several initiatives within the

companys organizations collectively resulted fromthese benefits. The effects attributable to coaching

were isolated through asking the participants to esti-

mate (on a percentage basis) how much of what they

had specified as the monetary benefit was attributed to

coaching, and to also state their level of confidence in

their estimates (Parker-Wilkins, 2006). Participants

also reported that coaching had increased their ability

to build, develop and contribute to high performing

teams. In addition, they reported that because of being

more confident, their business relationships had

become less antagonistic.

Employee coaching can be perceived as a means of

supporting managers in their efforts to enhance the

performance of their teams through increasing the skill

set of employees (Chidiac, 2006). Traditional training

methods result in short-term improvements because

they generally lack a strategy of following through to

make sure that the employees remain motivated in the

long term. Broad (2006) established that training

alone, without additional support, results in a low ROI

with very few learners expressing confidence that they

have actually applied what they have learned in their

daily work tasks. Employee coaching can address this

challenge. By focusing on understanding the needs of

the employees from a holistic perspective, employee

coaching provides a mechanism for securing commit-

ment to change and sustaining the momentum in the

long term (Broad, 2006).

An extensive literature search revealed a lack of

empirical research on the efficacy of coaching within

the construction industry. Making a case for employee

coaching programmes based on the experiences of

other sectors could be scoffed at by some conservative

decision makers in the construction industry. A key

contribution to the case for coaching in the construc-

tion industry would be to provide empirical evidence

that people working in this industry assign significant

value to the growth and development that occurs

within the context of employee coaching programmes.

Research design and method

The case study approach was adopted in this research

mirroring the strategy used in many HRM studies. A

case study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a

contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context

(Yin, 2003). As Raiden et al.

(2006) pointed out,

several methodologies have been used successfully in

peopleperformance research ranging from large-scale

surveys to case studies. The case study method was

particularly ideal for the research in this paper

because it was difficult to separate the issue from its

context. There are several different types of employee

coaching programmes that can positively impact onproductivity in the workplace, and the decision on the

approach to be adopted should be made based on the

prevailing culture within the organization in question.

As each organization has a unique culture, it would

have been difficult to obtain relevant data through

sending out mass questionnaires to employees in

different organizations.

The case study method is erroneously presented by

some as a strictly exploratory strategy in which nothing

can be proven; however Yin (1984, 1994, 2003) estab-

lished that using this approach could yield results that

can be generalized. Most of the traditional prejudices

against the case study strategy arise from what Yin

(2003) refers to as a common misconception that the

various research strategies should be arrayed hierarchi-

cally (p. 3). He proposes the viewing of these in an

inclusive and pluralistic manner especially since each

strategy can be used for all three purposes, that is,

exploratory, descriptive or explanatory research.

Management studies and organizational theory rely

heavily upon case studies, particularly where there are

many contextual variables (Schell, 1992). Dul and Hak


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McGuffin and Obonyo

(2008) described the case study approach as an appro-

priate and sometimes preferable research strategy for

theory testing. Their findings also established that

many propositions can be tested in single cases and that

through subsequent replication studies generalizabil-

ity of the outcomes of the initial tests could be

achieved. The bottom line is that a single case could be

considered acceptable, provided it met the established

research objective.

The aim of this research was to assess the benefits of

employee coaching. Given that it is very difficult to

measure the performance of individuals before and

after coaching (Gimson, 2006), the research focused

on determining the perceived effects of coaching on

employees within the construction industry.

The following seven objectives were defined as the

focal point for the research: (1) measuring the level of

employee enjoyment, learning and personal growth

after attending the programme; (2) measuring the level

of growth from a holistic approach including apersonal, social and professional point of view; (3)

measuring the effectiveness of the programme on

employee productivity; (4) quantifying the degree of

satisfaction with the coaching programme; (5) deter-

mining whether or not attendees felt the programme

should continue; (6) determining whether or not

attending the programme influenced the commitment

to and/or loyalty towards the parent company; and (7)

determining whether or not awareness of the availabil-

ity of the programme affects employee perception of

the company for those that have not attended.

As previously mentioned, a key problem impeding

the widespread adoption of employee coaching is lackof empirical research. Difficulties in objective assess-

ment of the coaching experience can be expected given

that the entire service is based on trust and confidenti-

ality. Disclosure by the coach is limited by their agree-

ment with each employee making it difficult for an

organization procuring their services to perform an

assessment of the ROI. Coutu and Kauffman (2009)

established that 75% of coaches do not provide quanti-

tative assessment on the impact of the service on busi-

ness performance. The research method adopted here

circumnavigated these limits on disclosure by targeting

the coachees as the main subjects of the research.

Informal dialogues with different industry-based

professionals revealed that employee coaching

programmes have not been widely implemented within

the construction industry. XYZ emerged as an example

of a construction company with an employee coaching

programme. As the value of multiple case studies is

directly dependent on replication, any additional

companies had to mirror the culture within XYZ. The

only other examples found of construction companies

that had implemented coaching programmes had

restricted participation to employees in executive

positions (i.e. executive coaching programmes).

Consequently, it was decided that primary data for the

analysis would be collected using a single case study

approach. Single-case research design is acceptable

when no other cases are available for replication. As

Yin (1994) explained, generalization of results, from

either single or multiple designs, is made to theory and

not to populations. Multiple cases strengthen the

results through replicating the pattern-matching, which

increases confidence in the robustness of the theory.

Company XYZ, being a large, multinational

company, was considered rich in variables. The

subjects targeted in the study were distributed through-

out different parts of the world. XYZs coaching

programme is open to all permanent employees at

different levels of the organizational hierarchy who have

been in employment for at least two years. Employees

can only attend one event during their tenure with the

company. Applications are initially reviewed by projectmanagers who make recommendations to the employee

coaching programme managers, the final decision

makers.

Six events, with an attendance of 40 to 50 partici-

pants, are held each year in a location in Asia Pacific,

Europe or the Americas. Each event is held over an

extended weekend lasting four days. The event is fully

funded by XYZ; this includes the cost of flying the

participants to the selected host city and covering

accommodation expenses. The coaching programme is

structured around team activities, classroom learning

and one-on-one coaching exercises, which culminate in

sessions focusing on self-examination and introspec-tion. The coaching activities focus on helping partici-

pants to discover or re-discover their strength, skills

and inner fortitude. They are designed to help employ-

ees realize their full potential in both their professional

and personal lives.

The primary data were collected through a survey

questionnaire that incorporated the seven objectives.

The survey was designed to investigate the impact of

coaching on employees who had attended the

programme, as well as its influence on employees who

had not been part of the experience, but were aware of

the programme and its availability.

Main findings

Eighty-three questionnaires were e-mailed to XYZ

employees through the liaison with the human

resources personnel in their US holding. There was a

response rate of 67.5% (52 questionnaires) which was

considered satisfactory for this research. Twenty-four

respondents were employees who had not participated


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in the coaching programme. The ages of these respon-

dents ranged from 23 to 59. The average age of the

group was approximately 32. They had been in

employment with XYZ from one to nine years. The

groups average employment tenure with the company

was 3.3 years.

Sixty-five per cent of respondents who had not

attended the programme held field-related positions as

project managers, superintendents and project engi-

neers. The rest held office-related positions including

architectural design manager, administrative assistant,

estimator and human resources coordinator. Eight

(33%) of the non-attendees had not met the eligibility

requirements of being in employment with XYZ for a

minimum of two years; the remaining 12 had applied to

attend the programme but were not selected.

The survey attracted 32 responses from employees

who had participated in the coaching programme.

Their ages ranged from 26 to 57, with the average age

of this group approximating 38 years. These respon-dents had been in employment with XYZ from 5 to 23

years. The average employment tenure was approxi-

mately 10 years. Sixty-six per cent of them held office-

related positions such as CEO, director of training, vice

president of human resources, director of preconstruc-

tion, senior accountant, senior estimator, administra-

tive assistant and human resources generalist. The rest

held field-related positions as project managers and

superintendents. They had attended coaching events

held between 2000 and 2006. The locations of the

events spanned across four continents: Australia

(45.2%), Europe (32.3%), North America (19.4%)

and Asia (3.2%). While the average number of years ofemployment with the company before attending the

programme was seven, the majority had attended after

having been employed by XYZ for two to four years.

The non-attendees perception of XYZscoaching programme

XYZ employees who have not participated in the

coaching programme perceive it as a team-building

experience which also provides an opportunity to meet

and network with peers from around the world. They

described it as a leadership development conference

where XYZ employees can focus on their personal and

professional growth. Non-attendees identified network-

ing with XYZ employees from other countries and

being able to learn from them through exchanging

knowledge as one of the key benefits of the programme.

Other benefits that were cited include enhanced busi-

ness acumen, enhanced personal growth from travel-

ling abroad and visiting new places, and the learning of

new skills in the areas of leadership and teamwork.

Seventy-five per cent of respondents showed a high

level of interest in participating in the programme.

Although 54% of the respondents felt that the existence

of a coaching programme affected their opinion of XYZ

as a good employer, only 37.5% of them stated explic-

itly that this had influenced their decision to remain

with XYZ. All of the non-attendees stated that having

an employee coaching programme made them perceive

XYZ as a people-oriented company that values its

personnel. It can, therefore, be inferred that the exist-

ing employee coaching programme has increased the

companys retention rates. One respondent explained

that the coaching programme had been an instrumental

tool in their recruitment as it demonstrated XYZs

commitment to supporting the growth and develop-

ment of the whole person.

The attendees perception of XYZs coaching

programme

All respondents who had participated in the coaching

programme were asked to rank its effectiveness in terms

of enjoyment, the actual learning that occurred and its

contribution to their personal growth. The results are

displayed in Figure 1. Respondents gave enjoyment the

highest rating followed by personal growth. Learning

was given a more moderate rating.

Figure1

Measuredlevelsofenjoyment,learning andpersonalgrowthafter attendingtheXYZ programme

The attendees were also asked to identify how the

coaching programme had affected the following param-

eters: personal life, health and fitness, family and

home, friendships, social, mental and faith.

There were virtually no negative perceptions expressedby the respondents. Figure 2 shows that the respon-

dents rated the effects on their personal life and

friendships as moderate to high. Effects on family

and home averaged a moderate rating while health

and fitness was given a neutral rating by participants.

Figure2

Measuredlevelsofthe effectsonpersonall ife,healthand fitness,familyand home,andfriendshipsafter attendingtheXYZ programme

As shown in Figure 3, the coaching programme had

a high impact on the respondents mental disposition.

The coaching programme was described as having a

moderate to high effect on their social lives. Generally

speaking, its effect on the respondents faith can be

described as neutral.

Figure3

Measuredlevelsofthe effectsonsocial, mentalandfaith relatedaspectsafter attendingtheXYZ programme

The respondents were specifically asked to describe

the effects of the coaching programme on their work

performance using several key words. The effects of the

coaching programme on the more generalized catego-

ries of business and current employment scored a

moderate rating while the financial category scored a

neutral rating. Figure 4 shows the perceived impact the

coaching programme had on more specific work perfor-

mance categories. The coaching programme was

perceived as having the greatest impact on decision

making for the respondents, averaging a moderate to


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McGuffin and Obonyo

high rating. The next most impacted area of these

descriptors was daily work tasks, which the respon-

dents gave a moderate rating. Organizational skills

and time management were both given a moderate to

neutral level of impact. Of the 32 respondents, 22

(approximately 69%) stated explicitly that the coaching

programme affected their productivity in general.

Figure4

Measuringlevelsofthe effectsontime management,organizationalskills, dailyworktasks anddecisionmakingafter attending theXYZ programme

These respondents also cited specific examples of

ways in which their productivity had been positively

affected. The programme had enhanced their business

Figure 1 Measured levels of enjoyment, learning and personal growth after attending the XYZ programme

Figure 2 Measured levels of the effects on personal life, health and fitness, family and home, and friendships after attending

the XYZ programme

Figure 3 Measured levels of the effects on social, mental and faith related aspects after attending the XYZ programme


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relationships, extended their business network and

improved their ability to prioritize their individual goals

while maintaining an accurate view of the big picture.It strengthened team building and communications

within the organization. The programme encouraged

them to take a more active approach to problem solving

and provided them with a structured approach to

personal assessment which resulted in enhanced

growth and development. It had increased their ability

to focus on goals, motivation and efficiency in time

management.

All the respondents described the coaching

programme as effective. They further added that the

eligibility requirement of two years of employment

ensured that participants were well acquainted with the

company and its culture which enhanced the benefitsderived from the experience. Consensus among partic-

ipants was that XYZ should continue providing the

coaching programme; 41% of the respondents wanted

the programme enhanced. The suggested changes and

the frequency with which they were cited are shown

below:

Increase the length of the programme (13.3%)

Implement a follow-up session to reconnect with

the group and to check on progress (46.7%)

Increase the amount of time for social interaction

between employees (6.7%)

Create a stronger connection between thecontent of the programme and the attendees

work assignments (13.3%)

Adjust logistics of the programme, for example,

the choosing of locations for the events (20%).

In total 93.5% of the attendees stated that participating

in the coaching programme had increased their desire

to remain employed by XYZ; 63% of the attendees

cited interaction with XYZ employees from around the

globe as the most important personal benefit. Another

53% cited self-reflection and evaluation as the core

benefit. The following quote from one of the respon-

dents underscores the value that the attendeesassigned to the experience.

It forces the individual to take the time to really step

back and evaluate the choices made in daily life. It helps

you sort through what you really want for your life in

the short term and long term. For me, this was

extremely beneficial because I typically operate at such

a fast pace that I rarely slow down to really think about

life on a higher level. I also found it beneficial to meet

so many other employees from different areas of our

business (from an operational and geographical stand-

point). I still keep in touch with many of my fellow

participants from around the globe.

From the foregoing, it suffices to say that XYZsemployees appreciate their organizations significant

investment in the coaching programme. The findings

of the study also revealed that the investment has paid

off through more satisfied and productive employees.

Through the employee coaching programme, XYZ has

developed a greater understanding of corporate values

among its employees which increases their pride and

confidence in the companys business plan. The

programme has enhanced the employees perception of

XYZ as being an organization with a mature people

culture. XYZ employees believe that they work for a

progressive company with genuine concern for its

employees well-being. From a management perspec-

tive, the employee coaching programme is an invalu-

able tool for managing human factors as it generates a

sense of loyalty within the employees.

Discussion

Because of the highly competitive nature of the

construction market, companies striving for long-term

Figure 4 Measuring levels of the effects on time management, organizational skills, daily work tasks and decision making after

attending the XYZ programme


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McGuffin and Obonyo

prosperity must continuously develop and enhance

successful methods for managing human factors.

Employee coaching is an example of a suitable strategy

for handling the complex issues inherent in motivating

people in a business setting. The findings presented in

the preceding section are consistent with results of

previous studies in other sectors described in the liter-

ature reviewed for this research. Although employee

coaching programmes require a substantial financial

investment, both the employees and organizations they

work for stand to benefit greatly. Employee coaching

positively impacts on productivity and employee reten-

tion within the construction industry context.

One remarkable aspect of the case study company is

that it opens the opportunity to all employees regardless

of position within the organizational hierarchy. This is

a rare occurrence across all industrial sectors. Given the

high cost of employee coaching programmes, many

organizations that have invested in it usually target high

level managers or executives. By making the programmeavailable to everyone, the case study company has devel-

oped a strong sense of belonging among its employees

at all levels of the organizational hierarchy.

A general conclusion that can be drawn from the

results of this research is that employee coaching

programmes have a significant and positive effect on

employees commitment to their organization. Interest-

ingly, such sentiments are evident even among XYZs

employees who have not participated in the coaching

events. The employees belief that they will have a

chance to attend the coaching programme at some

point during their career with XYZ has increased their

loyalty to their organization.Because the participants in the study gave profes-

sional benefits a lower rating than personal ones, it can

be inferred that from an employees perspective, coach-

ing programmes have a stronger impact on the defini-

tion of personal life strategy. Employees make a

stronger connection to the effects of coaching on their

personal growth and development. Although a few

respondents in the research expressed an interest in

being shown things that they could directly apply to

their work assignments, this would be not recom-

mended. The success of coaching programmes gener-

ally predicate on getting participants to disconnect,

albeit temporarily, from their daily work tasks in order

to think about the bigger picture. The majority of the

respondents in this research appreciated the fact that

their programme had not been tailored around work-

related issues. Organizations investing in employee

coaching programmes should address such issues as

part of continuing education through job training and

professional development courses. Employee coaching

programmes should have a separate charter if they are

to focus on embracing the whole person.

The case study companys employee coaching

programme revolved around participation in one event

outside the normal work environment. Although many

participants in this research expressed a desire for

follow-up programmes, having employees attending

such expensive events repeatedly is typically not an

option. A company wishing to continue enjoying the

benefits from having motivated employees will have to

develop a more economical follow-up strategy. This

can take the form of support groups or online forums,

which provide employees with an opportunity to recon-

nect with fellow participants to review what they

learned and the progress being made. These would also

give programme participants a way of maintaining busi-

ness networking relationships established during the

events. The follow-up strategy can also be as simple as

handing out an information packet or workbook to be

completed by past participants at reasonably spaced

intervals.

Conclusion

Presented within this paper are the findings of research

aimed at demonstrating the benefits of coaching

programmes from the employees perspective. These

findings suggest that employee coaching programmes

are beneficial to construction companies seeking to

enhance the way they manage human factors. It is

important to note that the analysis was based on a case

study of a large, multinational company. This notwith-

standing, some generalization on the potential ROI for

any construction company can be inferred especiallysince the results reported here are consistent with stud-

ies in other sectors focusing on different types of

companies.

As Perry (2006) pointed out, motivated and satis-

fied employees having less stress and greater focus are

more driven to succeed. They are, therefore, bound to

be more productive in their daily lives. Regrettably,

most construction companies operate on a limited

budget and cannot launch an employee coaching

programme similar to the one deployed by the case

study company. Such companies can experiment with

other variations of coaching programmes that can be

implemented with a smaller budget. Examples include

developing in-house coaching teams through sponsor-

ing selected people to become certified coaches as

part of their continuous professional development.

Such teams can be used to nurture the rest of the

organization.

Future research work will focus on measuring the

productivity levels of employees before and after partic-

ipating in the programme. Examples of variables to be

assessed in this future study include the number of


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149

hours worked per week in relation to the amount of

work performed, number of sick days taken and the

nature of the interactions with fellow employees, team

members and clients. Measuring these factors will

assist organizations in assigning more accurate returns

on their investments in coaching programmes.

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