Coaching Skills Training: Communication and Coaching Part 1
by Matt Somers
Most managers I train as coaches are clear (or have been convinced by their bosses) that they need to take on the role of coach as part of their people management responsibilities. Most are less clear about exactly what this means or how to go about it. There are obvious difficulties in defining coaching with any precision and of incorporating coaching into a general management role.
If we start by considering coaching as merely one type of communication we can see how it fits with the more general approaches to communication that most of us already employ.
Here we’ll consider six communication styles that differ in terms of the level of control exercised by manager and team member respectively.
Tells
When we tell people what to do and how to do it, we assume total control. This is highly attractive when time is tight or the consequence of error high.
Sells
Here we loosen our control just slightly and involve team members to the extent that we realise that they must be convinced of the merits of an idea before they’ll feel inclined to act upon it with any enthusiasm.
Tests
A further loosening of our control and a greater involvement for team members because we literally test out an idea or decision and accept the risk that the team will not agree.
Consults
I think of this as a meeting halfway, 50/50 kind of style. The team’s input is sought and their ideas considered but it is still the manager that makes a final decision and thus retains a high level of control.
Joins
This is an egalitarian communication style aimed at decision making by consensus. Control has switched. More of it has been given to team members, but not all.
Delegates
The manager sets the parameters of the task, success measures, reporting guidelines, etc. however, control over how exactly the task will be accomplished is given to the team member(s). This is a much riskier strategy but potentially a more fruitful one.
A common mistake in considering management communication in this way is to think that one style is necessarily correct. Each has its advantages and disadvantages and the most effective managers adapt their style to reflect the needs of the situation and of the person with whom they are communicating. Imagine a fire alarm sounded as you were reading this. You could attend a meeting to discuss evacuation options, but I think you’d want something more direct. What’s needed is for someone to decide what to do and tell the rest of us how to do it. Similarly, a new person on the team will need a period of close monitoring and some instruction before they have built up the knowledge and experience required for delegated tasks.
In a future article I’ll expand on the relative advantages and disadvantages of each style and examine where coaching fits.
Matt Somers runs his own consultancy specializing in turning managers into coaches. He consults in the UK, Europe and beyond, and runs a number of workshops and seminars throughout the year. He has published three books on coaching and promotes a range of resources via his website. His popular mini-guide “Coaching for an Easier Life” is available FREE at http://www.mattsomers.com
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Original Source: Coaching Skills Training: Communication and Coaching Part 1