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coaching

Snowflakes and Employees

by Kelly Ketelboeter on December 17, 2010

As I watched the snow falling yesterday I couldn’t help but notice the beauty of each individual snowflake. So intricate.  So delicate.  So inspiring. And each flake so different. As my mind wandered to leadership I discovered a connection to employees. Each employee possesses their own beauty. Their own intricacies. They are delicate in their own right. Working to inspire and make a difference for the people around them. And how each employee is in fact so different.

Often times leaders try a blanket, one size fits all approach when working with employees. Failing to see how different each employee is. Failing to recognize that each employee is motivated in different ways. Failing to understand how to communicate with each employee. Failing to recognizing the beauty of their diversity.

Employees need to be led, coached and approached differently. As leaders we need to meet them where they are at, not where we are at. We need to provide information, feedback and motivation to meet the individual needs of each employee. Employees bring unique experiences and perspectives to the work place. They bring different levels of knowledge. They learn differently, they listen differently and they care about different things. As a leader it is our job to discover what each individual employee needs to be successful. We must then use that information as we help lead them to success for and within themselves.

There are however, a few things that must be consistent across the board no matter what employee you are working with. Effective leaders consistently coach, train, recognize, reward and hold everyone accountable to the standards, goals and expectations for performance and within the organization. How you provide this information and the opportunities to do so will be different. Employees must first understand the standards, goals and expectations. It is then up to us as a leader to teach them, provide feedback, celebrate the success and ultimately hold them accountable. This is how you create an equitable work environment. Treating everyone with the same one size fits all approach doesn’t create equity, encourage engagement or recognize the individuals that make up our team.

Just as each falling snowflake is unique, I encourage you to remember the uniqueness that each employee brings to your organization. To achieve high levels of success we must capitalize on that uniqueness by treating each employee as an individual.

We would love to hear your thoughts. Should leaders treat all employees the same? How do you create equity in your organization or on your team?

Until then enjoy the snowflakes or the sunshine depending on where you are!

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Your Leadership Legacy

by Jen Kuhn on October 4, 2010

If you are in a position of leadership, formal or informal, you have a tremendous responsibility.   This is not a burden, it’s an honor; one to be taken seriously.

At the end of this day, everyday, what type of legacy will you leave?  I was inspired by the blog of Tim Sanchez (aka @DeliverBliss) to compile some leadership quotes to inspire you to embrace your role as a leader.  Please take a moment to reflect upon the impact you are having on those around you.  Leave a legacy worthy of emulation.

  • Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right thing. ~P. Drucker
  • Leadership is action, not position. ~D. McGannon
  • You must do the thing you think you cannot do. ~E. Roosevelt
  • The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team. ~J. Wooden
  • Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. ~MLK, Jr.
  • Nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear. ~A. Camus
  • The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy. ~MLK, Jr.
  • You don’t get paid for the hour.  You get paid for the value you bring to the hour. ~J. Rohn
  • How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong.  Because some day in life you will have been all of these. ~G.W. Carver
  • You will face many defeats in life but never let yourself be defeated. ~M. Angelou
  • If you want to build a ship, don’t herd people together to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea. ~A. de Sainte Exupery
  • Standing for right when it is unpopular is a true test of moral character. ~M. Smith
  • “Do-so” is more important than “say-so”. ~P. Seeger
  • Humans are ambitious and rational and proud.  And we don’t fall in line with people who don’t respect us and who we don’t feel have our best interests at heart.  We are willing to follow leaders, but only to the extent that we believe they call on our best, not our worst. ~R. Maddow
  • You are responsible for the talent that has been entrusted to you. ~H-F. Amiel

These are just a small sampling of quotes.  What quotes inspire you?  We’d love for you to add to the list…

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8 Steps to Take Before You “Whack” That Employee

by Kelly Ketelboeter on June 29, 2010

It's not that easy!

The time has come.  There’s no more denying it.  You have put up with it for way too long.  It’s finally starting to hurt your team, your results and your customers.  You have finally come to the conclusion that holding out hope is a fruitless process.  It’s time to…GULP… fire that under-performing employee and get rid of your problems once and for all!

Before you can “whack” Suzy Q you head to HR, as every good manager does.   And the conversation probably goes a little something like this…

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HR has thrown a flag on your play to have Suzy Q removed.  You realize you have to go back and put up with her for at least another 30 days.  A lot of managers have found themselves in this same predicament at one time or another.  You want Suzy Q off your team.  You have put up with her for long enough.  And while that may be true, you need to show that you have given Suzy Q every opportunity to turn her performance and behavior around.   After all, its only fair to give Suzy Q that chance.

Many managers have a tendency to ignore poor performance.  Sometimes they do it because of excellent performance in another other area.  Sometimes they do it because they don’t want to confront the employee.  Sometimes they do it because the don’t know what to do or how to do it.  And sometimes they do it because dealing with a poor performer is better than dealing with no one at all.

When we ignore poor performance we are actually endorsing that performance. We are telling that employee and others on our team that level of performance is acceptable.  The minute you see performance starting to slip you owe it to your employee, yourself and your team to take the necessary steps to turn it around.  So what do you do?  Well the following coaching behaviors are a good place to start.  You can use any of these skills or a combination of these skills.  When it comes to coaching a one size fits all approach won’t work.  The key is to start somewhere.

1. Reiterate the expectation.

Before you can address a performance problem you must make sure the employee actually knows the expectation.  When discussing the expectation with the employee, talk about the behaviors that are necessary to meet or exceed the expectation.  HR wants to know that this step has been accomplished before the “whacking” can begin.

2. Focus on behavior.

Now that you have reiterated the expectation and discussed appropriate behaviors, you want to look for the absence or presence of those behaviors.  The key here is to focus on what you see the employee doing or not doing in regards to the expectations, not the person.

3. Point out the positive.

When you see or hear the employee meeting or exceeding the expectation, let them know.  People learn what to do and what a good job looks like when they receive positive reinforcement.  When pointing out the positive be sure to be specific, focus on the behaviors and then discuss the impact of those behaviors.

4. Set goals.

Goal setting is a powerful way to include the employee in the process of fixing the problem.  After all you aren’t the one with the problem, the employee is.  And you can’t fix it, the employee has to.  Follow the SMART goal setting process for the expectations or goals that the employee is not meeting.  Make sure the employee develops a specific action plan and discuss what you will do to support them.

5. Celebrate progress.

Even if the employee hasn’t achieved the goals or met the expectation yet, don’t wait to give them feedback.  Celebrate the progress, they are making towards the goals and exceeding the expectations.  This will add fuel to their fire.  Don’t wait for perfection.

6. Coach them on the fly.

Some of us are guilty of having a meeting, setting goals with an employee and then putting it to the side for the 30 or 60 day waiting period.  Well, out of sight, out of mind.  You have got to follow-up with that employee.  You can coach them on the fly in 2 – 5 minutes.  Focus your coaching questions around their goals.  Discuss what’s working for them, what challenges they are faced with and what they will do to address those challenges.  Help the employee discover what they need to do for themselves.

7. Have a coaching intervention.

A coaching intervention is something you want to do before the verbal and written warnings.  Not only do you want to give the employee a chance to change their behavior, you also want to show HR you have taken the necessary steps to address the performance.  A coaching intervention is a formal meeting to reiterate the expectations, focus on the behavior, outline the consequences and develop an action plan.  That way when you get to the verbal warning it won’t be a surprise to the employee.  It also makes that process so much easier because you have already done most of the work.  Often times I have found that I didn’t even need to escalate things to a verbal warning.  Some people just need to know the consequences of their behavior and that they will in fact be held accountable.

8. Hold them accountable.

I love that old saying, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink the water.”  Or something like that.  As a coach, there is only so much you can do to help your employees performance.  Ultimately you must hold them accountable for that performance and their choices.  This means pointing out the positive if they are making progress towards or have achieved their goals and setting new goals.  It also means taking the next step in your progressive disciplinary process if the behavior has not changed.

Don’t wait for that last straw that breaks the camels back.  Coach your employees every day.  Have honest conversations about their performance.  Help them see and achieve their potential.  Most of all, be prepared the next time you go to HR and show them that you have done everything you can to help Suzy Q.  And go to sleep at night knowing that ultimately, it’s up to Suzy Q if she wants the job or not.

What other advice would you give a manager before they can “whack” that employee?  We would love to hear from you!

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Take Me to Your Leader

by Jen Kuhn on May 11, 2010

Leadership is (fill in the blank).  You can’t.  Neither can I. 

Despite articles, books, blogs and opinions written about leadership, what is often left unsaid is that leadership is over-defined.  Yes, there are characteristics that one might apply to a strong (or weak) leader.  There are behaviors one can observe, mentors one can model, quotes one can use and examples one can site.  I tend to agree with most of what I read about quality leadership and what that embodies.

Therefore, I would like to add a perspective on leadership by simplifying the definition to four dominant traits/characteristics/behaviors (fill in the blank!).  Consider a compass.  There are four primary directions: North, South, East and West.  And just like leadership, even something as precise as a compass has varying ways of defining and discovering North: there is True North, magnetic North and grid North.  No wonder I need GPS AND Mapquest to get me where I’m going!

So imagine that there are four primary elements of leadership, with varying degrees of direction.  Just like I might be traveling North-East to get to my destination, one can also move their leadership needle along the compass.

The Leadership Compass:

Moral Direction

In order to be an effective leader, one must have a moral compass.  Do the right thing because it’s the right thing to do.  Ah, the challenge.  Sometimes the right thing to do may have a negative impact on the bottom line.  The right thing may involve confronting an employee who is not meeting the standards and expectations of your organization.  The right thing may be to change a policy so it benefits both the consumer and the company.  The right thing may be the difficult thing to do.  Varying degrees of this compass point include: honesty, integrity, ethics, conscientiousness, virtuous, honorable, humane, compassionate and noble, to name a few.  How does your moral compass impact your leadership decisions?

Inspirational Direction

Another trait I would place on my leadership compass is the ability to inspire others.  Quality leaders, no matter their position within an organization typically make others want to do and be more.  They serve as an example of possibilities and dreams and courage.  Inspiring others at this level is a gift and a challenge.  Varying degrees of this compass point include: leading by example, encouraging, intriguing, motivating, refreshing, dynamic, persuasive and uplifting, to name a few.  What leader has made an inspirational impression on you?

Emotional Intelligence Direction

In Daniel Goleman’s article he discusses emotional intelligence as a quality of an effective leader.  This is often ignored when it comes to the promotional processes of many organizations.  Typically, one gets promoted into a leadership position because they are either highly effective at their current position, or they’ve been with the company for 78 years.  Neither of these reasons have to do with leadership; rather, they apply to job knowledge and longevity.  As Mr. Goleman points out, some varying degrees of emotional intelligence include: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills.  What are your guiding principles when choosing a leader within your organization?

Effective Communication Direction

There are multiple ideas, visions and expectations that a leader must communicate within their organization.  The ability to do so effectively can mean the difference between: success or failure, motivation or discouragement, buy-in or complaints, collaboration or sabotage, understanding or confusion. In order to effectively communicate, a leader must have a handle on all other elements of their leadership compass.  Some additional degrees one would find: open body language, approachability, willingness to accept and receive feedback, ability to see and verbalize the “big picture”, positive recognition, holding people accountable, recognizing effort, keeping people in the loop, authenticity and many more.  What opportunities do you have to communicate more effectively?

So there you have it…my leadership compass.  Each direction allows for further definition and corresponding behaviors.  What would you add to this compass?  What direction are you taking your organization????


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I Don’t Have Time to Coach!

by Kelly Ketelboeter on April 26, 2010

If I had a nickle for every time I heard a leader say, “I don’t have time to coach my employees”, I would be a rich woman.  Well I don’t and I’m not!

I hear this common, let’s call it what it is, excuse from leaders every day.  Some might say to these leaders, “we make time for the things that are truly important” or “you can’t afford not to make time.”  While I agree with these folks and have probably said it myself more times than I would like to admit, I think we need to address the underlying issues.

I believe there are three key causes that prompt the excuse, “I don’t have time to coach my employees.”

1. It’s not a priority.

On our list of things to do, we tend to avoid or push to tomorrow things that are not important to us.  Let’s take exercise as an example.  I am not a fan of exercise at all.  I know the benefits, I know how to do it and I want to do it.  I am your classic example of working out hard for one day and then hanging it up for a month before dusting off my gym shoes and trying it again.  For a long time exercise was not a priority for me.  I always found something else to focus my effort and energy on instead of lacing up my shoes and getting busy.  It was easy to avoid exercise and I often told myself, “I don’t have time.”  It wasn’t until I sat down, set goals, selected a set time to work out and committed to doing it that I made exercise a priority.  I shared my goals with others and they helped hold me accountable.  I got up every day, laced up my shoes and worked towards my goal.  All of sudden guess what, I had time to exercise.  I just had to make it my priority.

As a leader you have to ask yourself what’s my priority?  Where do I spend my time?  How do I spend my time?  How does that help my team?  How does it help my employees?  What small change can I make today to make coaching employees a priority?  Once you choose to make something a priority your behaviors will follow.

2. The leader is uncomfortable.

When I started my daily exercise regime it was uncomfortable.  I was uncoordinated as I did my step aerobics, I had no idea if I had the right form for my lunges or squats, I felt like a fish out of water.  I had to push through my discomfort every day.  And guess what, I started to get it and what was once uncomfortable is now comfortable.

Human nature is to be as comfortable as possible.  Sure we like to challenge ourselves but when it becomes uncomfortable we often retreat to what we know.  The truth of the matter is that discomfort is a function of growth.  If you are comfortable, you are not growing.  As a leader, you have to admit to yourself and be okay with the fact that you are a work in progress.  You don’t have to be perfect at everything just because you’re the boss.  In fact, the more your employees can see that you are challenging your own comfort zone and that you aren’t perfect, they will begin to do the same.

The key here is to get moving.  The only way to combat discomfort is to face it head on.  What will you do today to challenge your comfort zone?  Once you challenge yourself and act on that challenge ask yourself, what worked for me?  Also ask, what didn’t work for me?  And finally ask, what will I do next time?  Yes, there is a next time.  Leadership is not an event it’s a journey.

3. The leader doesn’t know what to do or how to coach employees.

The fact of the matter is a lot of leaders do know what to do and do know how to do it, it just isn’t a priority.  If that’s the case no amount of training or mentoring is going to help.  Begin by making coaching and the development of others a priority.

Some leaders though have been promoted through the ranks and all of sudden they are in charge.  Yet they have had very little training and/or mentoring on how to coach and lead employees.  That’s okay.  Realize you aren’t always going to know everything or know how to do everything.  Your job is not to be perfect, it’s to make progress in your development and help others make progress everyday towards the organizations goals.  If it’s knowledge you need, then go get it.  Don’t wait for someone else to provide it.  Take charge of your career!

Realize that coaching doesn’t have to be a long drawn out process.  One where you sit down with the employee behind closed doors and coach.  While sometimes coaching is a sit down meeting, that’s not the only form of effective coaching.  In fact, on-the-fly coaching is often more effective and can be done more frequently.  And get this, it doesn’t take much time once it’s a priority and you challenge your comfort zone.

If you don’t know what to do, start by focusing on positive reinforcement.  Get out of your office and observe your employees.  As you are observing pay attention for the things that are on-target in their performance.  Then tell them about it.  Be sure to focus on the behaviors you observed and the impact of those behaviors.  Employees learn from the things they do well and when you take the time to point out the positive they will repeat these behaviors.

Another on-the-fly coaching technique is to ask your employees questions.  Find out what their greatest challenge is.  Ask what excites them.  Ask them what their goals are for today.  Ask questions related to your mission, vision and core values.  Ask questions and then listen.  By asking questions, you are engaging in a conversation about performance in a non-threatening manner.

These are just few ideas to help combat the excuse of, “I don’t have time to coach my employee’s.”  Excuses don’t change results.  If you want to enhance the performance of your team and employees realize it starts with you.  Make it a priority.  Challenge your comfort zone.  Recognize that often times you do know what to do and how to do it and if you don’t, take a class, read a leadership book, find a mentor.  It’s up to you.

What advice would you a give a leader who says, “I don’t have time to coach.”?

What other factors do you think contribute to this all too common excuse?

What on-the-fly coaching techniques do you use to coach your employees?

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Perfection or Progress?

by Kelly Ketelboeter on April 8, 2010

There are perfect games in baseball.  Just check out Chicago White Sox player Mark Buehrle.  There are perfect 10s in diving.  Greg Louganis comes to mind. There are perfect routines in gymnastics. Remember Mary Lou Retton?  Or Nadia Comaneci?

How many of us grew up hearing the old saying, “Practice makes perfect?”

All too often managers are looking for the perfect performance from their employees.  There are few perfect 10s if any, in the business world.  There is no such thing as a perfect game, dive or routine in the corporate world.  And I disagree that practice makes perfect.  In fact, I believe that practice makes progress.  Progress towards the goals.

Progress is what managers today need to focus on, not perfection.

Think about where your employees are at today and where they could be tomorrow.  Work with them to develop a plan that will get them there.  Engage your employees in a conversation and focus on behaviors that will lead to success.  As an employee begins to take steps towards their potential, celebrate their progress.  Don’t wait for the employee to arrive at the set destination.  Help them see how small efforts every day will get them closer to their goals.  As you celebrate their progress also find out how and what the employee is doing that is allowing them to make that progress.  This will continue their momentum and keep them focused.

In my experience, if you wait for perfection, you will be waiting a long time.  Without celebrating the small wins, employees tend to give up and shift their focus.  Changing or enhancing behavior is uncomfortable, kind of like exercising.  Don’t wait to celebrate the win of going from working out for 10 minutes to 20 minutes to an hour.  You can’t get to an hour without first making it to 20 minutes.

Realize that perfection in the workplace is a moving target.  Making it that much more critical to build on small successes and focus on progress!

How will you focus on the progress your employees are making today?

Do you agree, disagree or just don’t give a rip?  We would love to hear from you!

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Wednesday: Whining Employees

by Jen Kuhn on March 17, 2010

I’ve never worked with, at or for a company that does not have one or two chronic whiners.  No matter what you introduce, they find fault.  These are the people that complain about a free meal (“Pizza for lunch? We had that last time. Why can’t we ever get anything else?”).  Ah, how pleasant.

Several years ago, I was working with a company to help enhance their coaching skills.  All of the people I met were in positions of leadership.  On one of the breaks, a gentleman approaches me and begins a conversation about their holiday party. He stated that it was the worst one yet. They were finally allowed to invite a spouse/significant other. Upon arrival, he said there was barely any food left. To paraphrase, “My wife got a first hand experience of how cheap this company really is…running out of food! Can you believe that?  Then they send people out for chips and order some pizza.  How tacky.”  I responded by saying something like, “Sounds like you were disappointed.” Way to add fuel to that fire. He ranted for 5 more minutes.

On the next break, I avoided eye contact with him. I was speaking with a newer employee, and she asked me, “Did you hear about our holiday party?!”  I wanted to run. She continued, “It was the BEST! My fiance and I got there after it started and there was no food left. Our CEO is calling pizza places and asking ME what I liked on my pizza! He doesn’t even know me and I just started working here! Then, he hands my fiance money and asks if he would mind going with some others to pick up chips and dip. How cool is that?”  She went on and on about how excited she was to finally be working for a company where they cared about their employees and where the CEO connected with everyone.

Same event, different interpretations. As a coach, how do you deal with chronic complainers if stun guns are not an option?

Here are some common employee complaints coaches have shared with me.  I’ve added some possible responses to consider.

Employee: Why do we have to do it this way? We’ve never done it this way before?

Coach: You’re right. We are using a new approach. What concerns you most about using a new approach?

Employee: Do they have any idea how busy we are? They keep calling us with the same questions!

Coach: You’re right. We work in a fast paced department. What ideas do you have to help other departments find this information on their own?

Employee: Why do I have to attend that training?  It doesn’t even apply to me.  What a waste of my time!

Coach: There may be some parts of the training that do not directly impact what you do.  I want you to listen for things that do apply to you and tell me about them after the training.  I’d also encourage you to attend the training with an open mind; my expectation is that you challenge yourself to discover something new and connect with at least one person from another department.

I could go on and on with complaints that coaches have brought to my attention.  Yet you’ll notice a pattern in the responses I’ve provided.  The coach validates what is true within the complaint, then challenges the employee in a non-threatening manner to work toward a solution.  If every complaint is addressed this way, eventually the complainers will learn that you will hold them accountable for solutions, and that despite their complaining you are not going to change your course of action.  This should lessen the number of complaints you hear (as long as you are consistent with your responses).  Whiners want an audience.  Don’t give them one.  Give them a coach.

If you have other ideas about dealing with whiners and complainers, please share them.  You’ll be helping a coach who is currently hiding under their desk in an attempt to avoid the chronic complainer!

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Take the Bite out of New Hire Remorse

by Jen Kuhn on March 10, 2010

“I’m writing a book. I’ve got the page numbers done.” ~Stephen Wright

Almost every person in a leadership capacity that I’ve had the honor to work with has, at one time, hired or inherited a new employee. At first there is usually a honeymoon phase.  You’re excited to have an energetic new player on your team; the employee is constantly smiling because they are trying to make a great impression and demonstrate their eagerness.  Yet after a few weeks, you may start to have some questions.  The questions may sound something like this:

  • Did I make the correct hiring decision
  • Is this really the type of employee I want on my team
  • How can I coach this employee so they reach their potential
  • Why can’t this employee be more like the one I had before
  • When will they “get it”
  • They whine so much…what’s wrong with them
  • Didn’t I already tell them how to do this
  • Why do they keep saying, “Well, at my last job, we did it this way….”
  • Why do they require my constant attention
  • Did they hit their 90-days yet

These are just the tip of the iceberg.  Positions of leadership are challenging.  When leaders do not take the time to coach, they turn into strong managers but weak coaches.  They are able to get many tasks done, but lack the substance and confidence to help develop their employees.  They have to micro-manage. They also may get frustrated with newer employees which can lead to misunderstandings and under-performance. This leads to employees who are uncertain of their value, and may become disengaged or difficult to manage later in their employment.

I am a new puppy owner.  Look at all those questions above and you get a clear picture of my life today.  I haven’t had a puppy in 12 years!  Last night I took the leap and became the owner of Bella…aka The Spawn of Satan.  Bella is a Newfoundland puppy.  I’ve never owned a Newfoundland puppy.  I’m sure Bella is like every other puppy in the world…but I forgot about what puppies are really like once you get past their cuteness. Say it with me…”High Maintenance”.

So far…all of the above questions have applied to my decision to get this puppy.  And since the Newfoundland breed is a “working breed”, that’s almost a literal statement!  I’ve had Bella in my possession fewer than 24 hours.  I’m already looking at the “return policy”…and then she does something cute.

Having a new employee is similar to having a puppy.  But at least your employees can locate the appropriate restroom on their own.  I’m questioning every brain cell that went into the idea that this puppy was the right one for me.  Once you make the decision to hire an employee, they deserve and require all of your leadership skills in order to reach their highest potential.  Challenging?  YES.  Aggravating?  YES.  Time consuming?  YES.  Worth the effort?  YES! (if they’re potty trained).

Coaching your new employee will reap rewards, but not necessarily right away.  They will have their moments of brilliance; yet ultimately will need your guidance and attention to develop to their fullest potential.

Some quick tips on adapting to, and coaching a new employee:

1. Praise, praise and more praise: Recognize their efforts and don’t hold out for perfection before letting them hear a good word from you.  The first time they take initiative, even if it doesn’t quite work out, praise what they did well and coach them towards improvement.  This may sound like:

YOU: “Sally, I’m impressed that you took the initiative to help that customer.”

SALLY: “But I felt really nervous and wasn’t sure I fully answered their questions.”

YOU: “My expectation right now is that you find opportunities to learn.  You just demonstrated that you can easily build rapport with customers. Very impressive. What questions did they ask that you thought were challenging?”

2. Pay attention and be patient: What are they doing well?  Where do they need support?  What will you do to provide them with the support they need? Have patience with mistakes made early in their tenure. Focus on the positive and redirect the negative. If you expect mistakes, you won’t be shocked when they make one. How you respond to their mistake will determine whether or not they learn from it.

3. Provide tools for success: My new motto: you can never have enough chew toys.  People have different learning styles. The primary three learning styles are: visual, auditory and kinesthetic (“hands on”).  Make sure to incorporate all styles into your coaching approach.  For example: show them how it’s done (visual); tell them how it’s done (auditory); allow them time to practice/demonstrate their understanding of how it’s done (kinesthetic).  Lather, rinse and repeat steps 1 and 2.

4. Be consistent: They are in a brand new environment.  The more consistent you are with the expectations, the easier it will be for them to adapt and grow.  You must be consistent with them if you expect them to perform consistently well.  Don’t expect more from them than you do of yourself.

5. Find their value: If you constantly compare them to other employees, it will be difficult to discover the unique value they bring to your team.  Once you discover and acknowledge their value, you will probably stop second guessing your decision to hire them in the first place.

Once you incorporate these 5 behaviors, things will start to fall into place.  There will be set-backs (like the one I cleaned up on my kitchen floor) and rewards (the sleeping puppy at my feet).  New employees want to be successful.  As a leader you have the opportunity to guide them toward success.  Before you know it, both you and the employee will become comfortable with each other and work more effectively together.  Enjoy the opportunity to coach your new employee.  Ultimately, how well they perform in the future is a reflection of the time you spent guiding them when they were a puppy…I mean, new employee.

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Training + Coaching = Results

by Kelly Ketelboeter on March 9, 2010

Recently, I was asked the question, we have trained our employees and we aren’t seeing the results we want, what should we do?  The simple answer to this question is coach your employees.  Without coaching, training isn’t going to get us the results we want.  Let’s explore this a little bit more.

In most cases less than 20% of the skills learned and knowledge gained in training programs are actually transferred back to the work place and are still in use one year later. Research shows that when the new skills are not used within 30 days, 90% of the knowledge will be lost. All of that time and money that was spent on training will be wasted if the employees fail to apply the training immediately.

We have to realize that it takes a lot of effort for employees to use the new skills they learned in training.  This is because often times it is something new and they have to change the way they do things.  That change is uncomfortable. If the employee doesn’t practice and receive continual feedback from their coach we won’t get the results we are looking for. Without the support of the coach, the employee is likely to become frustrated and stop trying to apply the new skills.

Coaches can make a tremendous difference in the success that employees will have in transferring recently learned information back to their job. To increase the likelihood that the employees will use the skills we need to involve the coaches and have an understanding of their impact to the success of their employees.  Here is what coaches can do before, during and after the training to support the process.

What the coach can do BEFORE training. First of all, and most importantly clearly communicate the specific need for the training to the employees. Make sure they understand exactly why they are going to the training program and specify the particular skills that you want them to focus on.

In addition, tell the employee why the training is important to their job and to the team and how it will contribute to the achievement of their goals. In other words, let the employee know the relevance of the training and how it will relate to their current job. This prepares the employee to get the most out of the actual training session.

What the coach can do DURING training. Provide an atmosphere that allows the employees to fully concentrate on the learning process. Don’t schedule meetings during the training or interrupt them with messages.

Reassign the training participant’s workload. This way the employee will not be faced with an avalanche of work on their desk when they arrive back at work. Instead, they will be able to devote their attention to new and more productive ways of doing their job based on the information they learned in the training session.

What the coach can do AFTER training. Absolutely conduct a post-training debriefing. Allow the employee the opportunity to tell you and other co-workers what they learned and how they intend to apply it to the job. Through the debriefing the coach will learn what they should be coaching them on and where they need to focus their efforts in catching the employee doing “it” right.

Provide a lot of encouragement to the employees to try the new skills and give them every possible opportunity to practice the new skills. The learning is reinforced through practice and application, not by thinking about it.

If you are looking for results from employees we have to combine training and coaching.  Training by itself will not get you the results you are looking for.  Think about ways to incorporate these items in the development of a training program and how you can support the coaches and you will begin to see results.

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Effective Coaching Starts with YOU

by Jen Kuhn on February 22, 2010

Coaching to Create a Culture

Recently I was asked by a supervisor why coaching plays such a crucial role in the development of their service culture.  The supervisor wanted to understand what particular coaching behaviors are the most effective in enhancing this culture.  Although there are many coaching behaviors that will influence your cultural development, I am going to address two of them in this blog: upholding standards and positive reinforcement.

Several years ago I was facilitating a motivational and teambuilding seminar for employees of a juvenile court detention center.  This particular team had a great deal of internal conflict and resistance.  The primary reason for the seminar was to get them motivated and working together in a more productive manner.

During one of the activities, I asked the participants why they chose to work at the detention center.  (I was hoping that we would find some common ground as a foundation for building a more cohesive team).  One participant responded by saying, “If I can make a difference in just one child’s life, I will have done my job.  I work at the detention center in the hopes of helping one child.”  I asked if they all felt the same way since they were all nodding their heads.  Everyone vigorously nodded in agreement.  My response was from the heart: “You see hundreds of kids a year, and you’ve done your job if you’ve helped just one?”  Their new common ground: hating me.  Hey, we had to start somewhere.

If people are paid and trained and coached to do a job, we should expect that they will do it well.  I highly doubt that the supervisors at the detention center were hiring people and saying to them, “During your tenure here, it is our hope that you can help one child.  Welcome to the team.”  That sounds ridiculous, right?  But isn’t that what we sometimes communicate to employees?  We set our standards low and become accustomed to underperformance in certain areas.  What coach hasn’t had the thought, “Well, as long as they’re not making any big mistakes, or causing too much conflict, I’ll be happy with my team”?  (But remember, what you are willing to accept becomes your standard).  Or, the ever popular, “I really don’t have time to meet with my employees or catch them doing something right…I’m just relieved they showed up for work today”.  These thoughts lead to coaching behaviors that serve to de-motivate employees and ensure underperformance!  They are destructive to the development of your culture.  Negative and neutral reinforcement guarantee underperformance, as does setting the standard, then not holding employees accountable if they are unwilling to meet that standard.  When we finally confront underperformance, it’s met with shock, defensiveness and resistance.   The employee learns to respond by saying things like, “At least I’m not as bad as her”, or “Remember, back in 1989 when I helped that one guy?  I can’t believe you think I don’t help enough people”!

As coaches, we need to have high standards and expectations.  The person we should expect the most from is ourselves.  If you are given the honor and task of supervising employees, have standards and expectations of yourself.  Do not fall into the trap of thinking that you do not have time to coach employees.  We are all given 24 hours in a day.  No matter how many employees you supervise, projects you are working on, emails you have to answer, you get 24 hours.  What you do with those hours makes all the difference.  “Time management” is just a phrase.  In the book, 100 Ways to Motivate Others,(100 Ways to Motivate Others: H…) the authors state that “…you can’t really manage time.  You can’t add any more time to your day.  But you can manage the priorities and the things you choose to do.”  Wow.  How about that for a reality check?

You may wonder where to start coaching your employees, and how to fit that into your day.  (And remember, you can’t manage people, but you can coach them)!  You must start with something simple.  Make it a priority to catch your employees doing something right everyday.  Give them immediate, positive feedback.  Be specific about what they did well.  Pay more attention to the behaviors that you want to see and you will see more of those behaviors.  Have you ever noticed that when you buy a new car, you start seeing “your car” all over the place?  Funny, suddenly everyone has a car like yours.  Do you really believe that the car you bought gained in popularity overnight?  Or is it more realistic that you started noticing the car once it became important to you?  Once you decide that it is important to catch your employees doing “it” right, you will see them doing things right with more frequency.  Remember, coaching is a way of thinking and behaving, not an event.

Giving consistent positive reinforcement to your employees will help lay the foundation for all other coaching thoughts and behaviors.  Additionally, holding employees accountable for meeting standards is an effective coaching practice that treats people as capable adults.  I’ll say it again: what you are willing to accept becomes your standard!

Coaching plays a vital role in developing and enhancing your company culture. You have been given an opportunity as a coach to influence and ensure this development at your company, school, hospital, court system, restaurant, not for profit, government agency or where ever you work.  You can do it!  Changing your coaching style may be difficult at first, but eventually effective coaching will simply become what you do.  Now go out there and catch the next employee you see doing something right!  Seriously, get out of your chair, walk away from your computer…Are you still there?  It’s over, move along, there’s nothing to see here…

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