Working the Coach Approach into Your Leadership Style
As a manager, you shoulder the responsibility of leading your team to accomplish big, hairy goals. When deadlines are tight, your gut instinct may be to get it done quickly as possible. So, you use a directive style to tell employees exactly what to do, leaving little room for error. While this may be appropriate for entry level staff or new team members, it is likely an ineffective approach for experienced team members eager to further develop their problem-solving skills. Today’s leaders should develop a repertoire of tools they can call upon depending on the situation. Coaching is one of those key skills. Managers can start to build this competency by using these recommendations.
- Pause before responding. Historically, managers were promoted because they had subject matter expertise in a specific area. A phenomenal engineer was tapped to lead a team. A star salesperson was pulled from the ranks to oversee a region. Times are a-changing. As a result of rapid innovation and technology advances, today’s managers may lead teams who have more knowledge in a specific area than they have. In this case, managers should take a different approach when employees come to them with questions or problems. Instead of jumping in to solve a problem or direct an employee, managers should pause. Listen to the facts of a situation. Allow time for the employee to explain and process their thoughts before you chime in.
- Avoid the question, “why?” Questioning is at the heart of a coach approach. After giving the employee the floor to thoroughly explain, managers can practice this technique by asking questions to help the employee sort out their thoughts. Dig into the what, where, who and when of a situation. Often, the individual will identify a solution out loud during the discussion. Bingo! One note of caution – use the “why” question sparingly. It tends to put people on the defensive. Instead of opening up during the conversation, they build walls to protect themselves from being blamed for an error.
- Start with spot coaching. Managers may hesitate to start coaching because they believe the time commitment is too great. A leadership study conducted by Daniel Goleman concluded leaders were least comfortable using coaching in their managerial style and described it as “slow and tedious work.” The truth is that using coaching techniques are not limited to formal and lengthy meetings. You can apply this framework in conversations that take place throughout the day – in a team meeting or while discussing a project in passing. Start by disregarding the assumption that you know the answer, and act on your curiosity. Your inquisitive example is a great model for other team members as well.
One of the outcomes of the past 18 months of market instability is that employees are reevaluating how work fits into their lives. Employees are looking for more from their workplace: more support, more resources, more flexibility. One of the people they are seeking more support from is their manager, and managers must be agile to meet the needs of team members. One way to exercise your flexibility is to add a few new techniques to your managerial toolkit – building your coaching muscles is a great place to start!
Originally featured in UBA’s October 2021 HR Elements Newsletter.
