A coaching framework, where the coach guides the clients to successfully achieve their goals, can be effectively applied to leadership roles in Southeast Asia. According to Arne Blom, Executive Coach of Arne Blom Executive Coaching, a significant challenge for leaders in the region is adapting to the fast pace of technological change while upholding strong family values. He emphasizes that leaders must cultivate fairness and trust within their teams, empowering employees to generate ideas from the bottom-up, while maintaining the ultimate decision power. “So as trust connects leadership and the teams, we can put idea generation down the hierarchy; it doesn’t have to come from the top,” he said. In Blom’s experience as a coach who has lived in nine different countries, he believes that there are no differences between countries when it comes to dealing with people, as everyone has the same basic needs. Therefore, the coaching framework, which thrives on the fact that coaches do not tell people what to do but help them to decide for themselves how to achieve their goals, can be applied universally in any organization. “Living in nine different countries, you realize that everyone is the same,” he said. The coaching framework is about establishing trust and using the coachee’s perspective to ask questions. Team coaching is a new model that focuses not on individuals within the team but on the team as a whole, addressing it as a holistic entity. The coach uses tools to create awareness of where the person or team wants to go, fostering a drive for change, with the coached being the source of their own energy and the driver for change. Leading as a coach however, is different. “When we are leading as a coach, we are supporting the team for growth; the leader is the driver for change,” said Blom. He cited a research which surveyed people in 62 countries found that individual behaviour is quite similar across the globe. “People are the same everywhere,” Blom said. “We all have the same basic needs: love, security, fun, and happiness.” “Coaching is about doing what you need to do, to be who you want to be, to get what you want to get,” he said. In other words, coaching is a holistic process that involves proactive steps (doing) towards self-improvement (being) to achieve desired results (getting). Blom noted that the goal in coaching someone, whether it be a team or an individual, involves gaining awareness of the current situation, as the coachee is the driver for change. Trust, awareness, goals, and change are crucial. The team decides how they want to work together. “A coach has to avoid judgment, avoid bias, and just apply curiosity to others,” Blom explained. The goal in coaching someone includes three components: awareness, mindfulness, and action. Blom said that when it comes to action, “We usually do things automatically without thinking, which is why it’s so difficult to change things,” so awareness is a key factor in changing our actions. The other factor is mindfulness, which finally leads to action. “If leaders in Southeast Asia let go of their limiting beliefs, everything will change,” he said. One of these limiting beliefs is the idea that their staff cannot be trusted to generate ideas. Leaders in Southeast Asia face unprecedented challenges due to rapid technological advancements and changing dynamics. “I worked in companies for more than thirty years. Companies using past data to make predictions is like looking at the rear-view mirror when driving a car, which is bound to cause a crash,” he said. Leaders need to trust their teams, allowing them to come up with ideas. It’s important to have the right people with the right skills to face new challenges. Family values are central to many companies in Southeast Asia, promoting collaboration and consensus. Moreover, companies seeking to expand in the region must comply with certain constraints like ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) and digitalization. “My hope is that they gain experience with decision-making and see the impact of cultural change,” Blom said. The essence of a coaching framework lies in empowering leaders to trust their teams, fostering innovation, and making informed decisions. By helping leaders let go of their limiting beliefs, we can drive significant change in leadership, idea generation, trust, and decision-making in Southeast Asia.