How do I Coach an Employee?
The term coach is associated with on-the-job training, but the role of coach involves more than training, albeit that is part of the responsibility. Besides training, as coach, you are responsible for:
- Acting as a role model.
- Hiring the best employees.
- Creating a work culture in which employees have reason to be motivated.
- Clarifying expectations—both micro-expectations associated with particular jobs and macro-objectives tied to the organization’s overall strategy and mission.
- Providing feedback on your employees’ behavior that will put them on the right performance track before counseling is needed.
- Providing the training and resources employees need to improve their performance.
- Praising, praising, and praising some more to reinforce positive performance.
Tell Me More
As a coach, you will meet with employees, as you do in your counseling role, but your intent is to provide feedback to help your employee raise the level of his or her performance. Your goal is to make that average or good worker into an outstanding worker by looking, with him or her, at mistakes as learning opportunities.