How Coaching Cultures Create Conditions for Belonging to Emerge

This thesis explores how coaching-centric organizational cultures create conditions for workplace belonging to emerge. Using constructivist grounded theory methodology, the study analyzed semi-structured interviews with five individuals who experienced coaching cultures and five human resources professionals involved in culture-building initiatives. The findings offer a heuristic framework to interpret how coaching-centric cultures may shape belonging. The core insight proposes that when non-directive coaching becomes embedded as cultural infrastructure, it functions as a systemic leverage point through which belonging emerges as an organizational capability. Five interconnected forces support these conditions: mutually reinforcing feedback loops between psychological safety and coaching, leadership as cultural architects, sustained learning and development investment, relational practices embodying coaching principles, and coaching identity becoming crystalized. The study positions belonging as an emergent property of the coaching culture, offering practical implications for organizations seeking to cultivate workplace cultures where individuals experience belonging.