Executive coaching is seen as a way to retain senior management and help recruits settle in, writes Fiona Reddan

IRISH COMPANIES are increasingly turning to executive coaching in an effort to retain senior management and help senior recruits make an impact quickly.

Anecdotal evidence suggests turnover rates at executive level are about 25 per cent and, while the economic slowdown may stem the flow of senior managers leaving their jobs within the first two years, high turnover rates are likely to remain problematic.

Recruitment of senior managers and executives can be expensive, costing up to 50 per cent of first-year salary in terms of headhunter fees, the time it takes to hire someone, sign-on incentives and relocation expenses.

When that person then leaves the company, the costs associated with their departure can be as much as five times their annual salary when spread over the cost of training and development, productivity losses and rehiring.

There is also the intangible cost of the impact such a departure has on the reputation of the organisation, its effect on team morale and the disruption it causes to customer relationships.

To combat this, companies are turning to executive coaching to encourage recent hires to remain committed to their new organisation. Eibhlin Johnston, managing director of thinkCoaching, says an executive's decision to leave an organisation is generally a long drawn-out process and the early intervention of coaching is more likely to result in the retention of the employee.

"The coach acts as an impartial sounding board for the executive, looking at the options available and addressing the perceived 'need' to leave the organisation," she says. "Quite often these perceived challenges can be addressed for both the executive and the organisation, resulting in the retention of both talent and intellectual knowledge."

Garrett O'Keeffe, chief operating officer of First100 Ireland, believes the first 100 days are crucial in establishing an executive's performance level and in determining whether they will stay with an organisation.

His company provides a consultant to act as a "companion on the journey" for a recruit at senior management or director level. He has worked with more than 150 senior managers in Ireland, providing them with the tools to ensure a successful first 100 days and, ultimately, a successful first 12 months.

"Many organisations make large investments upfront in getting the right people in place, but few, if any, pay attention to the critical early period of the appointment," he says.

"The first 100 days have a major determining factor on overall performance and impact in the first 12 months and beyond."

Senior recruits face a number of challenges, according to O'Keeffe. "Typically the challenges facing leaders at this early point in their career (whether they are internally promoted or externally recruited) include: coping with time pressure and an intense learning curve; a tendency to focus on immediate firefighting and task-driven priorities; the need to quickly forge new relationships; an inclination to neglect the bigger picture; a lack of know-how or cultural savvy; and inheriting legacy issues from their predecessor," he says.

O'Keeffe adds that, surprisingly, one of the biggest challenges facing executives when they start a new role is confidence. "It's amazing: even the most senior people you work with have a confidence issue," he says. "They have that little voice in their head going, 'how did you get here and how are you going to be able to cope? You're going to get caught out'."

A First100 coach aims to keep people focused on their strategic priorities, by meeting them four times during their first 100 days in a new position and establishing how they can meet their targets.

The coach also acts as an independent sounding board, as the recruit may not be comfortable discussing certain issues internally at such an early stage.

"When someone starts a job, they don't want to admit to their boss or peers that they might be struggling in a particular area, so having a coach gives them the ability to discuss ideas they couldn't do with their boss or peers," O'Keeffe says.

But does executive coaching actually work? O'Keeffe says that, in general, the people he has worked with get promoted at an accelerated rate and, instead of leaving a company within 12 to 18 months, they are getting promoted and moving up within the organisation.

"The feedback from organisations has been hugely positive," says O'Keeffe, "with many saying they got a return on their investment of four times the original investment."

First100's coaching programme costs €16,000.