Introduction to Performance Coaching
Not too long ago ship captains could actually whip sailors who
disobeyed orders; managers could fire workers on the spot for
virtually any reason, or even no reason at all; and students
could be expelled from school for any minor infraction of the
rules. Today, much has changed. Sailors have rights, workers
have unions, and students are asked for input in the educational
process.
The person in charge used to have unquestioned authority and
ability to command and compel. Strict obedience was believed to
be a necessity. Today, managers must focus on leading and
persuading rather than ordering and forcing. In more and more
industries today, especially retail, the never-ending supply of
job applicants has dried up. Instead of "fire and replace,"
managers must develop the skills to "improve and correct."
Leaders must learn effective performance coaching techniques and
know how to convince workers to change their behavior in order
to achieve organizational objectives.
The word "performance coaching" has been abused by some business
experts, perhaps because they are less skilled in performance
coaching techniques than they could be. Coaches in the
business world run the gamut from well-trained professionals to
rank amateurs who deal in unscientific methodologies. The true
coach is a trained expert who understands the application of
behavioral science concepts and human relations principles. It
is important for us to remember that it is possible for managers
to improve their coaching skills to the point where they can
effectively change the inappropriate behaviors of employees into
productive behaviors that drive organizational results.
One of the most critical skills a manager or executive must have
is the ability to coach others to not only reinforce positive
behaviors, but to also correct ineffective behaviors. I have
studied a dozen different performance
coaching systems and models in my professional career, but
clearly the best one I've used is an Eight Step Model created by
Drs. Steven Stowell and Matt Starcevich. It is described in
their book titled The Coach, published by The Center for
Management and Organization Effectiveness. As we explore
performance coaching in this and subsequent articles you can
gain additional information from the CMOE website.
First of all let's define what performance coaching is. It is an
interactive communication and relationship process between
leaders to team members, peers to peers, or even team members to
leaders with the purpose of exerting a positive influence on
people and/or the organization. Coaching enhances the behavior
change, motivation, performance, awareness, and development of
another person. Performance Coaching is typically an ongoing
process of building a partnership for continuous improvement.
Now, let's consider when coaching is appropriate. This is an
important discussion, because inexperienced coaches believe that
coaching only takes place when something goes wrong. I've found
eight situations when performance coaching should be considered
by managers and executives. Notice that these situations are not
all negative in nature. They are:
1. When performance improves and deserves to be rewarded
2. When performance declines and deserves to be corrected
3. When a goal is achieved and deserves to be rewarded
4. When a goal is missed and deserves to be discussed
5. When an employee exhibits an inappropriate behavior that
doesn't affect his/her performance
6. During the regular performance appraisal process
7. When the employee deserves to understand his/her career
opportunities
8. When it's just a good time to talk about how things are going
In every performance
coaching workshop I have taught I have been asked if
everyone will respond to a coach's attempts at coaching. In
other words are there some people who are not coachable or
resistant to coaching? The answer to that question is,
regrettably, yes. Here is how the numbers break down. Fifty
percent of the general population will respond favorably to a
coach's attempts at coaching. In fact, the coach doesn't
necessarily have to be highly effective or even follow the model
very closely in order to achieve moderate results. So if you
have ten employees and they are "average," or represent "general
population," and you have a little training in coaching, then
about half the time you should get at least reasonable results
from your attempts at performance coaching. Now that's pretty
encouraging! Another twenty-five percent of the general
population will respond to coaching, but it will take longer and
require greater skills from the coach. This means that as a
manager you will need to sharpen your coaching skills and
develop patience with the coaching process. Twenty percent, or
one person in five of the general population is what
psychologists label a "performance coaching challenge." These
people may respond performance coaching, but it's likely to be a
long-term process and any results you achieve may not be
dramatic. Oftentimes, coaches get frustrated and give up before
they see the results begin. Remember, these coaching challenges
are capable of behavior change. It's important to give them a
chance to improve. Patient coaches many times achieve good
results from these employees; it just takes time, skill, effort
and a little luck. The final category of five percent is a
group of our general population who struggle to even stay in the
workplace. Turnover is higher in this category than in any of
the other categories. Employees from this five percent group
cause more frustration and irritation than from any other group.
And, if there are any employees who could be classified as
difficult to coach, or even "resistant to coaching," this would
the category."