Coaching can undoubtedly give great results but when it’s embraced as part of an organisation’s culture, performance can soar. So how do you make it part and parcel of the culture?
Evidence proves that line managers are pivotal in motivating, inspiring and engaging their teams to perform, so it makes sense to help them invest in this vital role. Being a Coach is one of the key roles I believe managers need to embrace in order to unlock the best performance from others – and help keep them there.
That’s because the role of Coach has a lasting influence well beyond each input of coaching: it can help keep employees willing to deliver even when change and uncertainty throws them a new set of challenges. It’s this willingness and agility to keep performing, no matter what, that sets great cultures apart from good cultures – and the impact is rewarded all the way to the bottom line.
But let’s be realistic: being a coach is a tough call for those managers who are mainly used to be held to account for performance metrics and targets. It can also be a pretty terrifying prospect if they don’t feel they have the confidence and expertise to do it!
Formal coaching and qualifications are one thing, but what I’m talking about is the daily, consistent actions that managers can commit to in order to engage their people to perform. Coaching is about building a culture that says we recognise just how important it is that people can learn from each other, learn from the things they find hard, easy, motivating, draining or challenging.
But it takes commitment: it needs to be role-modelled by leaders and managers who believe in its worth by showing they do it.
All too often, managers rush off to their next meeting without sparing a few minutes to give some insightful feedback to a team member, coaching slots are squeezed into transactional discussions about day-to-day operations and coaching appointments are postponed or cancelled in order to accommodate an urgent client request. The result is, at best, a vanilla conversation about what’s going on with no clear purpose and outcome. For both parties involved, it can be a frustrating experience that ultimately leaves both sides less convinced of the investment they have both made.
If you want managers to raise the stakes and get coaching delivering for them as well as their people, encourage them to do the following;
But perhaps the most important element when it comes to Coaching is asking our managers how well they really know their people. It’s only when we dig deep to really explore what makes someone’s heart beat a faster can we hope to unlock that extra purpose and meaning that inspires them to perform. And once you know how to engage someone to perform, amazing results follow…
**You can hear Jane speak in-depth on the subject of How to create a coaching culture on Wednesday 1st October at the World of Learning Conference and Exhibition at the NEC.**