Alex Cannon
June 6th, 2023
Visible pathways to internal mobility can make all the difference between thinking about a role as “just a job” and viewing it as part of a career.
When thoughtfully designed, these pathways help people see where opportunities are, the skills they’ll need to pursue them, and the education programs that bridge them.
But even when pathways are perfectly clear, it can be hard to know which option to pursue — or how to pursue it — especially for someone who hasn’t had much opportunity to deeply consider what their future career could look like.
Beyond that, the realities of working and being a student at the same time are challenging no matter what a person’s educational background or career stage is.
This is where personalized coaching comes in.
“When I had my first initial conversation with my [Guild] coach, Renee, I let her know, I said ‘I haven’t been to school in over 15 years. I’m a mom. I don’t even know if I have time. I don’t even know if I’m smart enough to do this.’ And she was like, ‘Well, first off, yes you are.’”
Brandy, current College Start learner
At Guild, coaching has long been a proven success driver.
Our approach to coaching is whole-person focused, and designed to support members at every stage of their learning and career journeys through both:
- Growth coaching (i.e. 1:1 assistance throughout the learning/education journey)
- And enhanced career coaching, which is complemented by our new, self-serve Career Accelerator tool (developed by the experts on our coaching team)
Here are key ways coaching designed to support career mobility makes a difference:
1. They help your employees identify personal and professional goals — and keep the vision.
Regardless of whether a learner has prior higher education or formal learning experience, persisting through a program as a working adult learner can be challenging.
Staying motivated and focused helps learners rise to these challenges. At Guild, learners are assigned a growth coach as soon as they enroll.
Growth coaching is focused on:
- Supporting learners throughout their education journey (from enrollment to completion)
- Helping learners in identify their personal and professional goals
- Finding and nurturing what motivates them to persist and succeed
- Navigating the learning while working process
- Making connections between their motivations and goals.
Every learner has unique needs. Guild’s whole-person coaching philosophy ensures support is personalized for the learner. In addition to regular check-ins (call, text, or email, depending on a learner’s preferences and needs), when challenges arise, growth coaches help learners navigate them.
They help learners build confidence and self esteem, uncover their agency, and gain valuable time management skills to ensure they make the most of their education.
The results? 75% of surveyed learners utilizing coaching cite Guild coaches as contributors to their academic success.¹
“I did meet with [my Guild coach]… I thought she was just going to focus on school but she can help support me in every aspect. She’ll text me, ‘Hey, I haven’t heard from you … how are things going?’ No pressure, nice to have because looking at an individual holistically [and seeing] what other parts of your life could influence that learning experience – is so important.”
Logan, current Bachelor of Science learner
2. They provide consistent support and a high quality experience.
Consistency matters in coaching. It’s why no professional sports team rotates in a new coach for every game.
It’s also why, in a development context, taking a ticketing system approach to coaching isn’t coaching (that’s a call center).
To ensure a consistent, high-quality experience for all Guild learners irrespective of their enrollment, employer, or coach (e.g. in the event a coach is promoted within Guild), we’ve broadened access to coaching and introduced a certification process for coaches.
This proprietary process ensures consistent, high-quality support that is both scalable and supportive of every learner.
Guild’s approach to coaching is centered on a goal of supporting learners in ways that are responsive, attentive, and culturally appropriate. A strong emphasis on DE&I and skills creates a safe and supportive experience that thoughtfully accommodates differences in the way people learn, communicate, and grow.
“[My coach] was amazing. He checked in on me. If I started having questions, I just shoot him a text and then he would set a meeting either that day or the following day, whatever worked for me. [He would] help me work out whatever problem I was having. He called me Monday when he saw that I finished the program – he congratulated me.”
Jessica, recent Phlebotomy Technician Certification Graduate
3. They help learners prepare for the next step in their career journey.
Career coaching at Guild helps members prepare for the next step in their mobility journeys and make career transitions with confidence.
Career coaching at Guild helps members prepare for the next step in their mobility journeys and make career transitions with confidence.
At Guild, Career coaches specialize in:
- Helping members explore their career interests and internal mobility opportunities
- Developing and refining career readiness skills like resume building, interview prep and more
- Cultivating social capital by learning how to build networks and connect
- Navigating social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter effectively
Put together, these services help employees overcome common barriers to internal mobility.
Guild has enhanced our career coaching capabilities to broaden access and include specialized support to help members gain insight and develop strategies for the roles they aspire to have.
Members can also explore and gain career readiness skills through Guild’s new Career Accelerator tool housed within our platform to access self-paced multimedia career prep skills lessons written by subject matter experts on Guild’s coaching team.
Coaching built for career progression empowers employees and drives the learning and mobility outcomes that matter most.
Learn more about how Guild’s impact is making mobility a reality at America’s leading companies.
About the author
Alex Cannon
As a versatile writer and strategist, Alex is leaning into the productive tension between the future of learning and the future of work.
