Plan and commit
GROW model
Four questions (goal, reality, options, way forward) that take a person or a team from a vague aim to a committed next step.
- Time20 to 45 minutes
- People1 to 8 people
- Steps4
What it's for
GROW is a coaching structure, and it works for teams as well as one-to-ones. Its order matters: agree the goal before talking about the current situation, and explore options before committing to one. Skipping straight to solutions is the habit it is designed to break.
Use it for a team that knows something needs to change but can't agree what to do first.
How to run it
Goal8 min
What do we want to achieve? How will we know?
Reality10 min
Where are we now? What have we tried? What's in the way?
Options10 min
What could we do? Get several before judging any.
Way forward8 min
What will we do, who will do it, and by when?
Tips
- Reality questions should be about facts. "What happened?" works better than "why?"
- End with a commitment someone says out loud, with a date.
Where it comes from
Developed in the UK in the 1980s by the business coaches Graham Alexander, Alan Fine and Sir John Whitmore. Whitmore's book Coaching for Performance (1992) made it widely known.
Pairs well with
Objectives and key results
Set an ambitious objective and three or so measurable key results that would show you achieved it.
Who, what, when
Close a session by writing each action with one owner and a date, so decisions turn into work instead of good intentions.
Sailboat
Picture the team as a boat: wind pushes it on, anchors hold it back, rocks lie ahead, and the island is the goal.