Reasons managers spend time on coaching

Despite how busy they are, some managers take the time to coach their employees. Coaching is an effective tool in the workplace environment and the rewards of it are invaluable. A recent Harvard Business Review article summarized research conducted on managers that coach and what distinguishes them from their counterparts. Researchers found that there are four major reasons why managers choose to make coaching a priority:

• They see coaching as an essential tool for achieving business tools. Managers who coach see coaching as an essential element for maintaining and growing a successful business. Their goal is to retain their budding leaders and grow other solid players in the business. This is crucial in turbulent marketplaces where there is a competition for quality talent. Talented individuals are often hard to find and recruit, so it is crucial to nurture current employees that are promising. Also, organizations cannot prosper on the backs of the most talented alone. Solid players are key to organizational success, and they often need their managers to build the necessary skills needed to do well in the roles.
• They enjoy helping people develop. Coaching managers view helping people become successful as an essential part of their job as a manager. Managers who coach are passionate about helping employees learn and grow so that they can better fulfill their roles. These types of managers stress the importance of fostering employees with the most potential to realize their ambitions and work towards them.
• They are curious. Managers who coach are natural question-askers. They are interested in how things are going, what kind of problems arise, where there are gaps and opportunities, and what can be done to improve. Their naturally curious tendency facilitates the coaching dialogue and the give-and-take between coach and learner. This allows the learner to share perceptions, doubts, mistakes, and successes so that both parties can reflect.
• They are interested in establishing connections. Managers who coach typically have high levels of empathy. They can put themselves in their employees shoes to gain understanding. They offer customized coaching based on the needs and style of each particular individual.

If you are interesting in coaching, first find a mentor at your organization who does coaching and learn from them. Second, develop a relationship of trust with those you will be coaching. And finally, learn some basic principles of managerial coaching. And always remember, coaching is about them, not you.