Facilitating Work Engagement and Performance Through Strengths-Based Micro-coaching: A Controlled Trial Study

Abstract

In spite of the potential benefits that strengths-based coaching can bring to organizations, basic questions remain regarding its impact on work engagement and job performance specially among non-executive employees. In a controlled trial study, 60 employees from an automotive industry company participated in a strengths-based micro coaching program over a period of five weeks. The intervention followed a strengths-based coaching approach, grounded in the identification, development, and balanced use of personal strengths to foster positive outcomes. Mixed methods, using quantitative and qualitative measures, were taken. Both the participants and their supervisors completed pre, post, and follow-up questionnaires, and the results indicated that the intervention program was successful in increasing all the study variables after finishing the program. The results also showed the durability of the effects on the outcome variables over time (follow up). Qualitative data supported the study hypotheses. Through open questions inquiring about the outcomes of the program, the participants stated that it helped them to increase performance and well-being. Practical implications suggest that this program can be a valuable short-term applied positive psychology intervention to help employees increase their work engagement and performance and promote optimal functioning in organizations.

Coaching-Based Leadership Intervention Program: A Controlled Trial Study

“…It also extends this approach by pairing personal strengths with coaching-based leadership skills and aligning them with goal achievement. Finally, findings from this study also help to confirm that strengths-based coaching can be effective, even when the number of coaching sessions is relatively low (Theeboom et al, 2014;Peláez et al, 2019).…”

“…After the workshop, the participants went through an executive micro-coaching process based on a previous validated strengths-based micro-coaching intervention (see Peláez et al, 2019), which consisted of three biweekly 90-min individual sessions with a professional coaching psychologist external to the organization. Previous research has confirmed that coaching can be effective even when the number of coaching sessions is relatively low (Theeboom et al, 2014;Peláez et al, 2019). The individual coaching sessions aim to support participants during the development of an action plan related to the goal they set during the workshop, related to the improvement of their coaching skills.…”

Positive Psychology Micro-Coaching Intervention: Effects on Psychological Capital and Goal-Related Self-Efficacy

“…In this study, we use workplace coaching as a more comprehensive concept that integrates coaching provided to all levels of employees (specifically non-executive employees) in a work environment, in order to improve work performance and job-related skills ( Grant, 2013a ). Therefore, scientific studies on the impact of positive psychological coaching, and particularly strengths-based coaching, on personal resources of non-executive employees ( Green and Spence, 2014 ; Peláez et al, 2020 ) make an important contribution to the literature. Considering that positive psychological coaching aims to seek solutions rather than focusing on problems ( Biswas-Diener, 2010 ; Green and Palmer, 2018 ), main indicators of its effectiveness are goal attainment ( Grant et al, 2009 , 2010 ; Minzlaff, 2019 ) and specific self-efficacy to accomplish goals ( Moen and Allgood, 2009 ; de Haan et al, 2016 ).…”

Positive Psychological Coaching Definitions and Models: A Systematic Literature Review

“…and the organization (e.g., talent retention, employee engagement, customer satisfaction, financial growth etc. ; Peláez et al, 2019). It is therefore not surprising that this positively framed approach has been popularized within practice and popular psychological press as an effective organizational or talent development intervention (Stander, 2016;Haberlin, 2019).…”

“…Despite the popularity of "strengths-based"-or "positive" coaching within the literature, there is still little consensus as to how it should be defined (framed) and what the components of a "positive coaching process" should involve (Peláez et al, 2019). Various definitions or conceptualizations of positive coaching approaches exist within the literature which differ significantly from one another.…”