An exciting and challenging prospect awaited Richard Cook at the Office of Fair Trading – he was taking on the new role of Head of Enforcement Policy and Liaison. “I don’t want to be mediocre, that would be easy”, said Richard. “I want to make a difference”.
In an attempt to achieve this, Richard embarked on a series of six, one-to-one sessions with Anne. During each 2-hour session, customised to his needs, Anne helped Richard to look in detail at his strengths and to identify those needed in his new role.
Richard had previously been on a leadership and development course so was naturally quite sceptical about these coaching sessions. His biggest worry was that he would learn nothing new and it would turn out to be a waste of time. But the reverse was the case. “The benefits from one-to-one mentoring were significantly greater than from the group sessions I did,” said Richard. “The focus was very much on me, my role and my needs.”