When a company decides to implement change, it is not unusual for them to hire a change professional to serve as a coach during the process
. It is not always clear for the company or the coach as to how best set the coaching process in motion. One method that often generates good results is what is sometimes called the draft method.
The draft method has something of a noble history in America. Possibly the greatest attempt to implement change in American history was the establishment of a new government. The final form that this attempt took, after the failure of the Articles of Confederation, was the Constitution. The Constitution itself was developed using the draft method.
In effect, a subcommittee was formed to create a draft. James Madison went off and wrote up what he considered to the proper form for the new government. He brought this back and it served to shape the debate at the Philadelphia Convention. This draft was revised and amended and ultimately took shape as the original Constitution.
What lesson can be drawn from this for the coach involved with a company that is seeking to implement change? When a group of intelligent and articulate people, such as those who gathered for the Philadelphia Convention or those who work at the executive level for a company, are confronted with a blank sheet of paper, it can be difficult for them to generate something new.
This is where the coach can step in and speed up the process. The coach can develop of a draft of what they see as the necessary changes or steps that need to be performed so the company can implement change. This draft can then be taken back to the executives who can use it to shape their conversation and decision making. Rather than starting with the blank paper, they merely have to analyze the proposal the coach presents. This can dramatically speed up the process and simultaneously reduce conflict.