Once people have moved beyond initial resistance, the challenge becomes sustaining progress. This is where coaching plays a critical role. Coaching is not a separate activity from leading change. It is the way leaders turn willingness into action and action into lasting capability.

Coaching as connection

At its heart, coaching is about connection. People will only be open to feedback and support if they trust the intent behind it. That trust is built through empathy and engagement: recognising emotions, validating the difficulty of change, and showing that you are invested in their success. Without that connection, coaching risks becoming a checklist exercise rather than a genuine source of growth.

Linking coaching to ADKAR

Each stage of ADKAR benefits from effective, proactive coaching. When desire is low, coaching can help people explore what the change means for them personally and connect it to their own goals. When knowledge is missing, coaching provides clarity and direction. When ability is lacking, coaching offers feedback, encouragement and opportunities to practise. And, when reinforcement is weak, coaching helps people reflect on their progress and stay accountable.

The coach in CLARC

Within the CLARC behaviours, the role of coach is about building both confidence and competence. A communicator can explain the change. A liaison can bridge between teams. But a coach ensures people have the skills and self-belief to carry it through. Effective coaching combines guidance with empowerment — offering support, while also encouraging Associates to take ownership of their journey.

Four key tips for effective coaching during change

From experience, four elements stand out as critical for leaders who want to coach well through change:

• Empathy: understanding the perspective of the individual and meeting them where they are.
• Encouragement: providing timely recognition and celebrating progress, even when it is incremental (or hard won!).
• Ownership: helping people take responsibility for their own development and decisions.
• Empowerment: building capability through reflection, practice and constructive feedback.

These are not one-off conversations. They are continuous moves that have compounding returns over time.

Why coaching sustains change

Training programmes and announcements can create short bursts of energy, but coaching is what embeds new behaviours into daily practice. It is through coaching that people experiment safely, build confidence, and see evidence of their own growth. Leaders who make coaching part of their daily leadership style create teams that are not only able to adapt to the current change, but also more resilient for the next one.