Coaching gets sharper when your coaches understand the world your members are operating in. The "state of the state" is the document you (with our help) share with the cohort of coaches to brief them on what is happening in your business, what the program is trying to accomplish, and where you want coaching to land. This guide walks through what it is, when it is useful, and how to put it together.
Coaching is confidential between member and coach. That is the product. What is not confidential is the world the member is operating in: the company strategy, the cultural moment, the framework the program is built around, the leadership context, the priorities the member is being measured against.
When your coaches know that context, they coach better. They ask sharper questions, they reference your framework when relevant, and they help members translate growth into the specific moves that matter at your company. When coaches do not know that context, coaching can drift into general leadership work that does not ladder into your program's goals.
At a certain threshold of members, we can initiate the state of the state to help close that gap.
What it is. A short briefing document, prepared by you with our help, that gives the cohort of coaches the business and cultural context they need to coach your members well. It travels through Mento to every assigned coach before chemistry calls begin and is updated at key moments through the engagement.
What it is not. A workaround for confidentiality. The state of the state is about your business, your culture, your program, your framework. It is never about specific member content. Anything from inside a coaching session stays between member and coach.
Three moments where we recommend a state of the state:
1. Program launch (initial address). Before chemistry calls start. This is the foundational briefing: what your business is doing, what the program is trying to build, who is in the cohort, what the cultural norms are, what success looks like. Coaches read it before they meet any of your members.
2. Mid-engagement updates. After a baseline review or pulse data review where we surfaced themes worth coaches knowing. Or after a major business moment (leadership change, reorg, acquisition, product launch, IPO prep, layoffs) that meaningfully shifts the world your members are operating in.
3. Custom moments tied to your program. If your program is built around a specific framework (skills model, leadership competencies, performance assessment), the state of the state can include the framework itself and the specific focus areas your members are working on.
You will not need one at every touchpoint.