Coaching is an essential skill for managers and leaders because it helps them improve their skills and develop professionally. It also allows managers and leaders to better understand their employees, the company, and the company's overall objectives. Coaching has been shown to have a powerful and positive impact on self-confidence, well-being and work performance. When a manager receives professional training, their team members also benefit from the mentoring, leadership development, and coaching culture that the manager brings to the organization.
Workplace coaching helps create stronger bonds within an organization's teams. Coaching helps employees to feel more comfortable with their leaders and, therefore, to feel free to seek help in case of problems. When leaders have strong training skills, everyone benefits. In fact, organizations whose leaders have developed coaching skills are 130% more likely to achieve better business results and 39% more likely to achieve better results for employees, such as engagement, productivity and customer service.
The most important attribute of any coach is that they want to help the person or people they are training to learn. A good coach doesn't see himself as an expert capable of solving all the problems and having all the answers. Instead, they see themselves as people who support the learning process. The coach doesn't say it, but asks for permission to make suggestions and ask questions, while respecting the person being trained.
On the other hand, it can be frustrating for a manager to try to advise employees whose problem doesn't require it. Having a manager assume the role of coach will also help employees stay motivated and focused on their goals. If the coach knows them well, for example, when they are in a line management relationship, it can also be useful for them to complete it, focusing on the coach. It shows no respect for the opinion of the person being trained and is unlikely to lead to a productive coaching relationship.
On the other hand, when you provide appropriate training to managers in this area, you help them develop the right training skills to benefit the organization. This is highlighted again in a Gallup study that found that only two out of 10 managers instinctively know how to train employees. A manager must recognize situations that require training and those that require a different approach. Training employees in the workplace to achieve performance, rather than managing them, makes them more engaged in their work.
The coach provides a committed experience, bringing insight, perspective and a growth mindset to the coaching relationship. Managers and leaders engage their employees in formal “seated training” sessions or informal “on-the-go” sessions. Great, successful managers and leaders are making consistent efforts to improve their training skills. This way, managers across the organization can have the opportunity to develop their training skills and get the best out of their teams in the long term.
While many employers hire outside coaches to work with staff, it's also a good idea to include coaching in the company's leadership methodology.
