I’ve interviewed a lot of interesting business coaches for this podcast, and all the coaches had one thing in common. They focused on coaching a company’s owner or management, rather than working with everyone at the company.

But my guest on today’s show, Tim Drinkwater, founder of Accurate Machine Products in Janesville, Wisconsin, hired a coach to be available for all eight of his employees. He says the coaching has provided his people with helpful guidance professionally and personally and has had a positive impact on his own personal growth.

The interview really resonated with me as I personally have a number of coaches including a life coach, a podcast coach and a coach for building my LinkedIn presence.

Along with discussing coaching, Tim talked about his company’s product line and his success finding new business on LinkedIn.

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The inspiration for Accurate Machine Products’ coaching initiative came from Tim Drinkwater’s personal experience with Score.org, a nonprofit organization providing mentorship to small business owners. After working with Score mentors for about a year, Tim recognized the value of having someone to talk to and provide accountability, which led him to explore ways to offer similar benefits to his entire staff.

To find a suitable coach, he and his team interviewed several candidates from a coaching licensing organization. They selected a coach who was personable and easy to talk to, without a specific focus or platform. The chosen coach aims to help individuals sort through their life goals, making her approach more aligned with life coaching than traditional business coaching.

The coaching sessions are entirely voluntary for employees, and Accurate Machine Products covers the cost, viewing it as an investment in their staff. Interestingly, Tim himself was not among the first to sign up, admitting he was initially hesitant due to the vulnerability required in opening up.

The program is structured around monthly 30-minute phone sessions for each participant. The coach insists on a high level of confidentiality, to the extent that Tim is not privy to information about who is participating or what is discussed in the sessions, unless an employee voluntarily shares this information.

Tim told me that his coach has helped him work through various challenges and has recommended books like “The Coaching Habit” by Michael Bungay Stanier. This book has provided him with tips on listening more effectively and helping others incentivize themselves, skills he finds useful both in managing his shop and in his volunteer work with high school students.

While it’s difficult to quantify the direct impact of the coaching program on the business, Tim has received positive feedback from employees who find it helpful. He views the coaching as a way to invest in his people and improve their overall well-being, which he believes will ultimately benefit the company.

Rather than implementing more traditional team-building exercises or corporate culture initiatives, Tim sees individual coaching as a way to improve the overall work environment by helping each employee grow personally and professionally.

He summed up this philosophy at the end of the interview, telling me,

Question: If you could hire a world-class coach to help you excel in any aspect of your personal or professional life, what area would you want to improve?

This summary was assisted by claud.ai.