I know that if someone doesn’t receive coaching they could fail. I’m trying to get my managers to understand that. Can you help me?
This reader is talking about the need to train the trainers, the managers. She’s quite correct that if employees don’t get the coaching they need, their performance could suffer. There are many types of failure, including employees quitting in frustration because they don’t get the support they need. Building a thriving organization includes teaching managers how to be well rounded developers of the employees who work for them.
Often in small businesses managers are promoted from the ranks, or brought in from the outside because they have specific functional skills the firm needs. Being expert at how to do something is not the same as knowing how to develop people. A well trained manager knows how to get the most out of every person working for them.
There are four stages of development: the education stage, the training stage, the coaching stage and the delegation stage. Most people are good at one of these stages, and tend to apply that form of support in most, if not all, situations. A well trained manager can observe and assess the employee they’re working with, figure out what stage the employee is at, and appropriately apply the correct form of support for that stage.
To figure out what an employee needs, assess the employee in terms of both motivation and skill. Use a rating of 1 (low) to 4 (high). Ask, how motivated is the employee to tackle this task? If the motivation is high, either train or delegate. If the motivation is low, coach or educate.
Then ask, how skilled is the employee at performing this task? If the skill is low, either educate or train. If the skill is high, coach or delegate. Put both assessments together, and you can pinpoint which form of support the employee needs.
Let’s start with the employee who has little or no skill performing a specific task. Talk with the employee about why it is important to master this task. Discuss how performing in this area can lead to job success and personal satisfaction.
Next comes training. Now the employee is motivated, ready to engage. At the same time, he or she still lacks the skill needed to produce the desired outcome. Training is all about repetitive movements, building muscle memory, until the task is performed correctly.
Once skill is built up, focus on coaching. Let the employee attempt the task, then discuss what worked and what didn’t. This stage of development can be frustrating. As the employee takes on more complex versions of the task, things can go wrong. Encourage the employee to keep at it, until they can perform correctly over and over. If the employee gets stuck, take a break and do something else for awhile, then come back.
In the coaching stage many managers make the mistake of stepping in to show how to do the task. The correct action is to step back and let the employee figure things out. Keep encouraging and supporting. But resist the temptation to step in.
The last stage is delegation. The employee shows up, performs the task correctly. Now the manager needs to get out of the way. Let the employee go forward on his or her own.
There can be severe consequences for organizations where managers lack the ability to lead. Employees don’t want to be stuck in a situation where they consistently under perform. Employees who have to endure criticism rather than support can get worn out. Struggling when an objective eye and a supporting word could result in breakthrough can result in frustration and resentment. No wonder that over 60% of employees surveyed said they plan to look for a new job when the economy turns back up.
This owner needs train her managers to lead. Progressing through the four stages of development with each manager, she needs to correctly assess which stage the manager is at. And then she needs to apply the correct form of support, until the manager is able to lead on his or her own.
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Andi Gray is president of Strategy Leaders Inc., www.StrategyLeaders.com, a business consulting firm that specializes in helping entrepreneurial firms grow. She can be reached by phone at 877-238-3535. Do you have a question for Andi? Please send it to her, via e-mail at AskAndi@StrategyLeaders.com or by mail to Andi Gray, Strategy Leaders Inc., 5 Crossways, Chappaqua, NY 10514. Visit www.AskAndi.com for an entire library of Ask Andi articles.
