A Research Paper By Gigi Tsontos, Social Work Leaders Coach, UNITED STATES
The Coaching Role in Social Work Development
The field of social work has long held the importance of professional integrity, social workers promoting peace, and nonviolence, holding required qualifications and competencies, taking responsibility to care for themselves, and working with integrity are integral to the field. To ensure these competencies and practices social workers must invest in continued education and development. As the practice of coaching has expanded, its role in the field of social work has become increasingly important. The coaching role assists the social worker to develop awareness and gain insight providing a link to self in practice that is missing in traditional education or ongoing practice and supervision.
This paper will define social work and coaching and how they relate, explore the role of coaching in social work development, the social worker as a coach, the workforce retention through coaching, review key coaching skills, and the link to social work practice. In conclusion, this will link specifically, to leadership the social work profession must work toward leadership throughout organizations and systems.
Coaching vs. Social Work Defining
To understand the role of coaching in social work development, defining each according to their oversight associations. The International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching as
partnering with Clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.
While the practice of social work as noted by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is the
professional application of values, principles, and techniques to help people obtain services, counseling, and psychotherapy with individuals, families, and groups: helping communities or groups provide or improve social and health services.
Both professions are based on values and ethical practice decisions, they are engaged in client-centric work and in supporting an individual or group to grow. Key differences include the general type of clientele served in coaching may be corporate, executives, etc., while social workers tend to focus on underserved populations and coaches on executives. Additionally, both coaching and social work are focused on client-centered work without judgment. Social work does prepare and utilize resources to connect the client to their goals while in pure coaching we tend to focus on clients using their own tools and resources.
With the similarities and differences in mind, social workers can use coaching as a means of supporting clients, but the main intention should be for professional and personal development. Utilizing a coach to support a worker’s goals, overcome difficulties, work through problems, and connect with colleagues, supervisors, and communities, enhances their capacity to provide effective and outcomes-based services no matter their level of work
The Role of Coaching in Social Work Development
As part of the Social Work ethical principles, social workers are required to explicitly continue to develop their skills. This is clearly stated in the National Association of Social Work code of ethics requires social workers to maintain competencies:
Value: Competence
Ethical Principle: Social workers practice within their areas of competence and develop and enhance their professional expertise. Social workers continually strive to increase their professional knowledge and skills and to apply them in practice. Social workers should aspire to contribute to the knowledge base of the profession. (NASW, 2020)
Developing social work practice is an ongoing journey. Traditionally, social work professionals utilize courses, supervision, and team reviews to hone skills. Hernandez and Douglas (2022) note that “Coaching is currently being used in a number of social work fields of practice to support the transfer of learning, practice implementation efforts, leadership development, and organizational processes.” The core functions of coaching in social work tend to focus on “transferring learning to practice, implementing evidence-based practice, skill building, problem-solving and staying on track, and modeling behaviors.” (CBCFR, 2017)
The Connection Between Coaching and Social Work Practice
As in learning and developing the social worker as a professional, the use of coaching in the practice of social work as part of the toolkit will also enhance the outcomes for the clients and communities. The International Coaching Federation and the National Association of Social Workers have established core competencies that align.
The NASW Code of Ethics outlines the values (competencies) key to the practice of social work.
Value: Service
Ethical Principle: Social workers’ primary goal is to help people in need and to address social problems (NASW, 2020)
Value: Dignity and Worth of the Person
Ethical Principle: Social workers respect the inherent dignity and worth of the person.
Value: Importance of Human Relationships (NASW, 2020)
Ethical Principle: Social workers recognize the central importance of human relationships. (NASW, 2020)
Value: Integrity
Ethical Principle: Social workers behave in a trustworthy manner. (NASW, 2020)
International Coaching Federation focuses on four core coaching competence areas:
Foundation: demonstrated ethical practice and embodied coaching mindset.
Coaches must both understand and apply ethics and standards while being open, curious, flexible, and client-centered. (ICF, 2021)
Co-creating the relationship: establish and maintain agreements, cultivate trust and safety, and maintain a presence.
Coaches must collaborate with the client to create a plan of working together, elicit trust and safety in the coaching work, and be focused and present with the client. (ICF, 2021)
Communicating Effectively: Listens actively, and evokes awareness.
Coaches must utilize active listening and support the client in new learnings. (ICF, 2021)
Cultivate Learning and Growth: Facilitates client growth.
Coaches must partner with the client to move learnings to actions while allowing the client to lead. (ICF, 2021)
As noted in the outlines of both ICF and NASW the core of both is ethical practice. The two practices provide an ethical outline defined as competencies or ethical values. The two practices unite to create client-centric work that relies on building trust by partnering with the client. In Social Work values the client supporting their destiny understanding they have the knowledge of self and their needs. Starting where the client is and listening to their needs. A very simple example is in the following case study:
Client A is a single parent, working two jobs with two children. The client has no washer or dryer at home and spends hours at the laundry mat late at night with the children sleeping on the benches. The social worker asks Client A what is it that would help. Client A says there is a washer and dryer in my apartment. The children can sleep in their beds and I can rest as well. It would support us so much.
If the social worker does not listen or start where the client is they may share their views and some other solutions. Ethically and with the knowledge that the client knows best Social Worker focuses on helping Client A attain a washer and dryer.
Much like this example, a coach, would support this client in finding the underlying concerns and feelings, and learning from those.
Coaching Models Supporting Social Work
Utilizing coaching models to support social workers in developing their skills is additional support that should be more widespread. The various models that can support a social worker are GROW, CLEAR, skill building, FLOW, and others (CBCFR, 2017)
GROW:
Goal, Reality, Options, Will is used in leadership coaching. simple and because it was action and outcome-focused. Created by Sir John Whitmore, the model is meant to be transformative. (Kelly, 2020)
CLEAR
Contracting, Listening, Exploring, Action, and Review are used in business. Created by Peter Hawkins, this model is an extension of GROW with an additional review of progress. (HotPMO)
Skill Building Coaching
This is noted by CBCFR to focus on developing a worker’s skill in a specific area.
FLOW
focuses on intrinsic awareness. Csikszentmihalyi’s model focuses on 8 areas of mental awareness. (Flow Coaching Institute)
Other Models:
The ICF focuses on coaches utilizing skills and markers to coach the person, not the problem. Coaches use a variety of techniques to meet these ends including the ICA Flip It Tool or various tools specific to a coach’s niche.
Coaching the Social Worker:
With the goal to focus on the social worker as a coaching client, developing skills, overcoming blocks, enhancing communication skills, and developing leadership advances, supports the worker from their own knowledge, ideas, and desires may be reflected in any of these or other coaching models. The coaching process allows the social worker to utilize their own internal knowledge and beliefs to find their path, develop their practice, and overcome obstacles or barriers in personal and professional life. Traditionally supervision or coursework focuses on external learning points which in conjunction with the internal practice of processing and finding the social worker’s direction will enhance and develop the social worker.
Utilizing coaching methods provides the social worker with personalized focus directed by the social worker without the task focus. This creates a space for the social worker to define their goals within their specific practice area and can be used in micro (direct practice), mezzo (community), and macro (leadership/administration) practice development.
In micro or direct practice, a social worker’s focus may be to support the individual client in their journey, experiencing transference, and hitting roadblocks with client development. A coach may use a technique like Flip IT to reframe and bring awareness to what is blocking the worker in their interactions with the client and/or giving up the need to control.
In Mezzo or community-based practice, the social worker struggles to connect to the community leaders or to effectively support community member development. A coach creates the space for this worker to dive into understanding their blocks.
Macro or administrative/leadership roles are much like those in the executive coaching realm. Supporting leaders in developing and problem-solving. As the social worker
Coaching for Workforce Retention
A key indicator of successfully implementing the coaching development model is workforce retention. Utilizing a coaching approach to develop leaders at all levels creates space for social workers to develop no matter their title. Providing group and individual coaching within organizations, the social sector, or human service sectors where social workers work can help retain a high-quality workforce.
Employees are more likely to stay in an organization if they feel cared for. (O’Connor, 2022). Social work organizations (healthcare, education, nonprofits, etc.) utilize individual, team, and leadership coaching to support team members.
“Research has shown that there is a strong correlation between employee development and retention rates. According to a recent study, 70% of employees indicated that they would consider leaving their current job to work for a company that has a reputation for prioritizing employee development and learning. This highlights the importance of investing in employee development as a way to attract and retain top talent in today’s competitive job market. Additionally, a survey by LinkedIn found that 94% of employees would stay at a company longer if it invested in their career development.” (hppy, 2022)
The Social Worker as Coach
A core value of social work is to engage the client in their decision-making is mirrored. in coaching practice. The social worker’s core competencies include an understanding of human behavior, the use of empathy, and reflection. Combining these competencies with the skills of active listening, being present with the client, establishing trust, and other ICF competencies provides additional evidence-based practice for the social worker to practice client-centered social work.
As noted above, both practices provide client-centric practice. The social worker at any practice can utilize coaching techniques to focus on the client’s needs and allow the client to direct the work. Social Workers focus questions on the client without judgment with key insights to help the client direct their own decisions and plans. Much like Client A above.
Coaching by Social Workers
A famous social worker, Brené Brown says
Vulnerability is not winning or losing; it’s having the courage to show up and be seen when we have no control over the outcome. Vulnerability is not weakness; it’s our greatest measure of courage.
Coaching by social workers within their work and for their development is useful. Specifically, in coaching practice, assisting social workers with their capacity to lead and communicate effectively and to ensure ethical practice. The coaching methods support the social work profession through the development of the worker and their client.
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