How Alan has built a culture of excellence through coaching

Founded in 2016 with the mission to make holistic healthcare preventive and personalized, Alan needed an organizational structure as innovative as its ambitions.

To pull this off, it was crucial to assemble an autonomous and creative collective, empowered to act as owners and taking smart risks. Thus, the team was built on a foundation of trust, anchored by five core values. Two of these values, in particular, didn't mesh with hierarchical structures:

Of course, autonomy doesn't mean there are no safeguards. Alignment and accountability are still necessary, but we don't believe these should come from managers.

You might wonder, "Who keeps the organization running smoothly then?"

It's a collaborative effort between coaches and leads, a dynamic duo who support each Alaner in developing their impact. Specifically:

If the idea of separating operational topics from individual development raises eyebrows, we get it.

For us, this decision honors one of our deepest held beliefs: coaching fuels high-performing and engaged individuals, and leads can’t do it all.

Still fuzzy? Let's delve deeper into our approach.

At Alan, growth is a team sport, hence coaches and leads work hand-in-hand to support Alaners' journey.

Success lies in open communication:

This mutual trust and transparency creates a collaborative environment where Alaners can thrive and achieve excellence.

1️⃣ First, it's a game-changer for Alaners’ development and performance, it helps:

2️⃣ Second, it’s a major boost for Alaners’ engagement and retention, by:

For Alan, coaching is a strategic investment, not a nice-to-have.

Sold on the power of coaching but not sure where to start? Here are some tips:

1. Be clear about your values: coaching works at Alan because it aligns with our core tenets of transparency and distributed ownership.

💡 Start with identifying the core values that you want to reinforce within your organization. What key principles do you want to double down on through coaching? Make sure these pillars are central to your coaching strategy.

2. Decide on a format: coaching at Alan is in-house. We develop internal talents who have a knack at making individual grow and wish to take an additional hat.

💡 Decide what coaching will look like in your company. Will you hire external coaches or develop internal talent? Will coaches be full-time roles or an add-on responsibility? There's no one-size-fits-all approach, build your own model.

3. Train your coaches: Coaching requires specific skills like displaying reflective listening, sharing candid feedback, or holding accountable, to name but a few exemples. For that, we built Alan Coaching Academy.

💡 Start with identifying employees with coaching potential and invest in training them. Will you leverage top leaders in your organization to share best practices? Will you rather rely on external support? Everything works as long as trainers are high quality.

4. Establish frameworks: coaching requires a clear structure for impactful discussions: at Alan we defined bi-weekly rhythm with systematic written preparation (otherwise, it’s canceled!)

💡 Set expectations on the what and the how to interact. Which frequency and length? Which themes and questions to ask? What preparation and follow-up to expect on both sides? Ensure a well-oiled structure to avoid random "catch-up” sessions.

5. Communicate the "why": Help everyone understand how coaching differs from managing and how meaningful it can be. At Alan, we have implemented a Coaching Gazette for that.

💡 Don’t assume that everyone will buy-in from the start. Communication and repetition will be key. Share stories and case studies of successful coaching experiences. Leverage coach referents to share testimonies and learnings to foster a vibrant community.

6. Assess and iterate: Like any new initiative, you'll need to experiment to get coaching right for your context. At Alan, we rely on peer-to-peer feedback and annual engagement survey.

💡 Implement assessment mechanisms that will provide the best insights. Will you collect feedback from both coaches and coachees? What will you measure? Think about how you intend to leverage insight to improve your model.

We won't sugarcoat it - moving to a coaching model is a big shift. It requires executive buy-in, clear communication, and a willingness to question the status quo. And it may not be the right time nor fit for everyone.

But if you're serious about putting talent development first, coaching is a powerful tool. When employees know they have a partner who's 100% devoted to their growth, they show up as their full selves, take ownership, dream big, and lift each other up.

Coaching has been a game-changer for us at Alan. It's not just a new Learning & Development initiative - it's a reflection of who we are and who we want to be.

In a world where talent is everything, we believe betting on our people is the ultimate competitive advantage.

Start with the Coaching Habit by Michaël Bungay Stanier. You don’t have time to read the full book?

Happy coaching 💜