Coaching should send the message '' THINK AHEAD'' THE NEXT LEVEL OF SUCCESS

 

FEEDBACK OR THE WAY FORWARD ?

  what are the right techniques for managers coaching on-the-job?

Feedback is the life-blood of a managers task to coach on the job. Giving coachees effective feedback on their performance may seem like a tough job, but it does not have to be. By focusing on the delivery of the right information in the right setting, you can make the process more relaxed and effective for both you and your coachees. here are some tips to help take the "sting" out of giving feedback.

 

1. CREATE THE RIGHT SETTING.

All performance feedback should be conducted in a private, one-on-one setting, behind a closed door, without interruptions. Never give feedback to an coachee in a setting where other coachees may overhear you, such as in the break room or the hallway. Feedback on the coachee's performance should be private between you and the coachee whom it concerns. This is a simple rule, but many leaders underestimate the value of privacy in dealing with their coachees, and risk damaging the trust of the coachee-manager relationship.

Interruptions can be as threatening as a lack of privacy to an coachee in a one-on-one feedback session. If you do not give your coachee your complete and undivided attention, you are sending a clear signal to him or her the   conversation is not all that important to you. Turn off your cellphone, and put up a sign outside the door instructing people not to interrupt.

 

2. LISTEN TO THE  COACHEE'S VERSION.

One of the most effective and oft-neglected - tools of feedback is self-feedback. This is when the coachee is given a chance to comment on his or her own behavior and productivity. This technique is highly effective for a number of reasons: coachees are likely to be tougher on themselves than you are on them, and they will also work harder to improve in areas they disclose personally.

The best way for the coaching  manager to incorporate self-feedback is to create a two-way conversation centered on each of the performance topics. In this situation, a Manager will ask the coachee for her opinion, then the Manager will give his own opinion. Managers should always give their opinions last, to avoid influencing the comments of the coachee.

For example, if the topic of conversation is production units, and the required metric is 300 units/day, the Production Manager might ask the coachee, "How well do you feel you are meeting your daily performance target?" The coachee then has the opportunity to evaluate herself, as well as to identify any problem areas up front. The Manager may then agree with the coachee's interpretation of her success, or point out times where the coachee is not meeting the daily expectation of 300 units/day.

 

3. ADDRESS PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS HONESTLY AND DIRECTLY.

Performance issues, if left unaddressed, they tend to grow worse and multiply. Performance discussion would be better if they are given in small doses, very informally and context specific  Any serious issue should be addressed with the coachee as soon as it is noticed, preferably the same day. Manager should take the coachee aside, describe the observed problem behavior, and then ask the coachee why it happened. The Manager will then want to re-state the performance expectations for the job.

For example, 

if a Manager observes an coachee repeating an error at work she should take the coachee aside immediately and describe the observation, then give the coachee a chance to explain why, by saying "I have noticed that you have repeated the same mistake again  this week. What is going on?"

It is important Manager should only try to correct behavior they have personally observed, not behavior they have heard about word-of-mouth from other coachees. This situation can create tension and suspicion among a work team. If a Manager has not observed a performance problem directly, it should not be addressed in performance feedback. It’s like bursting of a dam…. If the issues is kept under covers for 365 days and on D-day is downloaded like a tonne of bricks.

 

4. COMMUNICATE EXPECTATIONS CLEARLY.

Many leaders feel comfortable saying "Be on time in the morning," or "Be sure to finish your work before you leave today," but rarely are these statements interpreted the same way by everyone. One coachee may interpret this as "…is my contribution measured in minutes or is it   measured in results….???" Performance expectations need to be delivered in a concise, clear manner, without questionable interpretations, especially when there is a problem. Numbers, dates, productivity units, metrics and   standards are helpful to include when communicating performance expectations to an coachee. A Manager should clearly specify "The expectations are that call reps will take 15 calls per day" is much more concise than saying, "You need to take more calls." The more specific you are, the less misinterpretation that is likely to occur.

 

5. EMPHASIZE INCLUDE THE POSITIVE.

Negative feedback can be wrongly used to reinforce the message, "this is just the way you are". Harping upon the past  can reinforce personal stereotyping and negative self-fulfilling prophecies. but showing the way forward can reinforce the possibility of change. Feedback on the past can reinforce the feeling of failure. Many Manager are so concerned about correcting their coachees' mistakes they tend to overlook their positive achievements altogether. Be sure to point out what the coachee is doing right. It is important to recognize coachees for their accomplishments to keep them motivated.

It can be more productive to help people be "right", than prove they were "wrong." Negative feedback often becomes an exercise in "let me prove you were wrong." This tends to produce defensiveness on the part of the receiver and discomfort on the part of the sender. Even constructively delivered feedback is often seen as negative as it necessarily involves a discussion of mistakes, shortfalls, and problems.

Another common mistake is to overwhelm coachees with a long laundry list of areas to improve. A better approach is to identify two or three of the most critical areas to improve, and allow the coachee to focus on improving these. As the coachee improves in these areas, you can work together on identifying and fixing the other, less-critical issues.

  

6. GIVE FEEDBACK ON THE WAY FORWARD

Successful people tend to have a very positive self-image. Successful people like getting ideas that are aimed at helping them achieve their goals. They tend to resist negative judgment. We all tend to accept feedback that is consistent with their positive self image. Humans reject or deny feedback that is inconsistent with the way we see ourselves. Coaching should send the message '' THINK AHEAD''  THE NEXT LEVEL OF SUCCESS

 

The way forward approach is based on the assumption that people can make positive changes in the future.  Forward-looking  constructive feedback is supposed to "focus on the performance, not the person". OTHERWISE it is  taken personally (no matter how it is delivered). Successful people’s sense of identity is highly connected with their work. The more successful people are, the more this tends to be true. The way forward approach cannot involve a personal , since it is discussing something that has not yet happened!

 

7. KEEP THE DIALOGUE  FREQUENT AND INFORMAL.

Most companies do official performance reviews at least once per year, but coachees cannot go a whole year before they hear how they are performing in their jobs, especially new coachees. Even if it is not a formal performance review, coachees should receive casual but specific one-on-one feedback on their performance once a quarter at a minimum, monthly if possible. 

A new coachee needs to hear feedback weekly, perhaps even daily, until she feels comfortable with her daily tasks and responsibilities. An coachee who has been around for awhile still needs to hear performance feedback more frequently than once a year, whether there are problems or not. Good feedback motivates coachees, and problems will get fixed sooner rather than later. 

  NOW, GIVE ME YOUR FEEDBACK… ON THIS ISSUE of managers coaching on-the-job; we could have a compendium of best practices in executive coaching  of Indian companies-to know how they  invent & reinvent ways to develop  their employees.

 

Best of luck

Dr Wilfred Monteiro