Coaching Approach as a Sustainable Means of Improving the Skills of Management Students

Abstract

The impetus for the development of coaching as a professional managerial activity is based on the needs and requirements of a modern sustainable society. This paper aims to explore the awareness of academic students about the coaching approach and to formulate recommendations for its application in the academic environment so that students are prepared for the requirements of practice. This article focuses on the views of experts in the field of the coaching approach as a means of improving communication in the academic environment, characterizes communication skills and the coaching approach, and describes coaching models and their benefits and barriers. This research aims to survey the awareness of the coaching approach among college and university students in Slovakia and the possibilities of its application in the academic environment. The primary research was carried out by the inquiry method with 689 students. An evaluation of the questionnaire and a statistical evaluation of the established hypotheses and assumptions concerning the coaching approach were conducted. According to the survey, 468 students, representing 68% of respondents, had knowledge about coaching. Furthermore, 68% of students had or have doubts about achieving their goals during their studies. According to the results of the survey, only 24% of students had experience with coaching. Cooperation with a coach was regarded as beneficial for 76% of the students who had already experienced coaching lectures who took part in the survey. The proposition of the students was the implementation of the subject “Foundations of coaching”, which could be offered to be taught to all students at the University of Zilina, Slovakia. The students of managerial fields would benefit by enhancing their leadership skills and providing support to their working teams, completing their final thesis, searching for professional job opportunities, and also coping with everyday life and stressful situations. Finally, we suggest the organization of introductory full-day workshops in specific areas of coaching for students of management, who are future managers. This will help to raise the awareness of the coaching approach at the University of Zilina in cooperation with the Counseling and Career Center and its activities.