Given the myriad examples of successfully coached sports teams last Summer, I wonder how many of us have taken the very large hint that it may well be very worth investing in some training for your managers to help them to become coaches?
You can help your employees improve their current performance, or in the case of an already effective employee, help them become even more effective. Performance coaching is a powerful tool when managers take advantage of its usefulness.
There is no doubt about it – effective coaching can literally mean the difference between third class and world class. Look at the immediate impact a great coach can have on sports teams, and it’s no different at work! Just think Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.
So if you apply ‘sport’ thinking to your business and create a climate of learning and growth, it begs the question, just how far could your organisation go? Effective coaching benefits both the individual, the team and the larger organisation.
Benefits to your business
- Overcome costly and time-consuming performance problems
- Strengthen employees’ skills so you can delegate more tasks to them and focus on more important managerial responsibilities—such as planning
- Boost productivity by helping your employees work smarter
- Develop a deep bench of talent who can step into your shoes as you advance in the company
- Improve retention; employees are more loyal and motivated when their bosses take time to help them improve their skills
- Make more effective use of company resources; coaching costs less than formal training
Benefits to the individual
- Build valuable skills and knowledge they can use to advance in their careers
- Feel supported and encouraged by their manager and the company
- Experience the pride and satisfaction that come with surmounting new challenges
In the words of Sir John Whitmore, the pre-eminent thinker in coaching, leadership development and change, ‘Coaching is unlocking a person’s potential to maximise their growth’. So I say, ‘Get your keys out and unlock that potential!!’
If you want to know more about how to successfully coach your teams, or whether you could benefit from executive leadership coaching yourself, why not book a call and we can have a chat about it? Or why not come along to our next workshop for managers/Directors who want to become coaches; Coaching your teams to Success on Friday 24th April; Click to book on to Coaching your teams to Success Workshop
