As a facilitator for Socitm’s coaching skills course, I often witness first hand the transformative power it has in the public sector workplace
In our fast paced and often remote work environments, traditional “push” leadership styles are proving less effective.
Instead, adopting a “pull” approach—where leaders coach their teams to find their own solutions—has become essential for real engagement and productivity.
Coaching skills matter
It isn’t just a buzzword. Coaching is a cost-effective and impactful tool for our personal and professional development.
According to the International Coaching Federation, organisations that embrace coaching see measurable benefits, including
- higher employee engagement,
- improved performance, and
- enhanced retention rates.
Managers equipped with coaching skills can create a culture of continuous learning and empowerment, which is vital in navigating today’s complex workplace challenges.
Benefits of using coaching techniques for you and your organisation
For you and your team
- Improved confidence: coaching builds confidence in how you manage relationships and problem-solving.
- New perspectives: you learn to see challenges through different lenses.
- Stronger communication skills: enhances your ability to listen actively and respond effectively.
For your organisation
- Higher engagement: people feel valued when leaders invest in their growth.
- Better retention: coaching reduces turnover by fostering job satisfaction.
- Increased productivity: teams thrive in an environment of trust and collaboration.
- Resilience: a coaching culture equips your organisation to adapt to change more effectively.
Building practical coaching skills in your workplace
Start to bring coaching to where you work with our 2-part course. It’s is designed to equip you with essential coaching techniques.
Course structure
Spread over 2 3-hour sessions, with time in between for practice, you’ll gain both theoretical understanding and hands-on experience.
This structure gives you a chance to apply what you’ve learned in real-world scenarios and return for feedback and refinement during the second session.
Key topics include:
- The difference between coaching, mentoring, training, and counselling.
- How to overcome barriers to coaching.
- Developing key skills such as active listening, empathy, and asking powerful questions.
- Practicing “pull” leadership approaches to inspire rather than instruct.
Why now?
The rise of remote work has made coaching more relevant than ever.
Leaders must navigate new challenges, such as virtual team management and maintaining engagement from afar.
Coaching provides the tools to foster connection, accountability, and motivation across distributed teams.
Final thoughts
Learning coaching skills is not just about managing others—it’s about transforming how we interact with people at all levels.
By adopting a coaching mindset, you can inspire your team to achieve more while creating a workplace culture that thrives on trust, innovation, and continuous improvement.
Come and join us
The first 2025 cohort (in February) is fully booked. It’s also running in May, July and October and spaces are available.
- 09:30 to 12:30 on Tuesdays 6 and 20 May
- 09:30 to 12:30 on Tuesdays 8 and 22 July
- 09:30 to 12:30 on Tuesday 14 and Thursday 30 October
You need just 1 of your organisation’s training points to register. New to using training points? There’s a guide for that.
Still got questions? Get in touch with the training team on hello@socitm.net
Your training journey

You can use How to be an Effective Coach as part of your own Manager Learning Journey.
It works really well with: Managing and Motivating Hybrid Teams and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion