COACHING COUNSELLING

& MENTORING
 COACHING
 COACHING is an interactive process
through which managers and
supervisors aim to solve performance
problems or develop employee
capabilities, Cclose performance gaps,
teach skills, impart knowledge and
inculcate values and desirable work
behaviors
 COACHING
 THE PROCESS RELIES ON COLLABORATION &
HAS 3 COMPONENTS;
Technical help
Personal support

Individual challenge

These 3 elements are held together by

an emotional bond between manager,
coach and subordinate
 Elements of successful Coaching

Technical help

Personal Support Individual challenge

 Coaching can
 Rekindle motivation and help in:
 Closing performance gaps
 Overcoming personal obstacles
 Achieving new skills and competencies
 Preparing themselves for new responsibilities
 Becoming more motivated
 Managing themselves more effectively
Coaching as management
 Managing focuses  Coaching focuses
on; on:
 Telling  Exploring
 Directing  Facilitating
 Authority  Partnership
 Immediate needs  Long Term
 Specific outcome improvement
 Many possible
outcomes
Direct versus Supportive
Coaching
 Direct  Supportive
 Developing skills
 Providing answers
 instructing
 Facilitating problem
solving
 Building self
confidence
 Encouraging others
to learn on their
own
 COACHING- When?
 How do I identify Coaching
opportunities?
 When would it work-when not?
 Timing?
 Who should Coach??
COACHING
EXAMPLES of coaching
interventions
 X a newly appointed supervisor is overbearing in his dealings
with subordinates. X lacks supervisory experience & thinks it
is the only way to get people to do their jobs.
 Y is an accomplished researcher-superb technical skills-but
has few organisational skills. Prefers to work by himself on the
computer than in meetings. As a result his own inputs as a
researcher are not always incorporated in plans and his
career is going nowhere.
 Z has managerial potential-a fast learner, works well with
people, understands org goals – you plan and want to
promote Z but Z is uncomfortable due to reluctance to
confront difficult and argumentative people.
COACHING- steps
 PREPARATION
 DISCUSSION
 ACTIVE COACHING
 FOLLOW UP
COACHING STEPS

PREPARATION
Preparing to coach
 Observe
 Avoid premature judgements
While participating in a team meeting noted the way Y one of his subordinates,
interacted with the group. She had something to say about everything. That was a
positive trait, but Y repeatedly interrupted others- a negative. Y’s behavior in X ‘s
estimation , prevented others from expressing their views.
A less observant manager would have passed a judgement that Y is not a good team
player. But this general judgement would not have isolated Harriet’s specific
problem: knowing when to speak up and when to listen to what others have to say-
a problem amenable to coaching.
AS YOU PREPARE , DON’T APPROACH THE COACHING SITUATION
WITH PREINFORMED JUDGEMENTS. ONE OR TWO
OBSERVATIONS MAY LEAD TO AN ERRONEOUS CONCLUSION.
Observe for Performance gaps &
Skill deficiencies
 Performance gap is the difference between a
subordinate’s current performance and what is
required by the job
 X a researcher is generally effective in his role but his written
reports are poorly organised and often fail to clearly state
conclusions
 Skill Deficiency is also a gap – between a person’s
current capabilities and those needed to take on
another job
 Sales executive to team leader
Create & test your own hypothesis

 Observation will eventually lead you to some

hypothesis about the performance gap and its
amenability to improvement though coaching
 But your hypothesis may not be valid if your
perspective is flawed or limited
 To test your hypothesis, ask a few others what they
think
Listen carefully
 Just as you watch for problems, listen for
signals that your help and intervention is
needed.
 These signals are not always obvious or
direct
Estimate the probability of
improvement – Difficult cases
 Coaching a person who cannot or will not be helped would be a huge waste of
time
 A employee who denies his problem or blames it on others cannot be helped,
unless you succeed in convincing him/her of his /her error
 A person who is so competitive that he must always be best his peers
 The manager who must always act “boss’ even as a team member
 manager who insists on solving every problem instead of allowing
subordinates to do so
Definitions / Assumptions
Emphasis on performance coaching

Effective coaching practice involves the

overseeing, planning and delivering of appropriate
sport performance

[Effective behaviours may mean successful

coaching. Experts are by definition – effective over
time]

Having the capacity to be effective may not mean

that it is displayed all the time!
 What is a behaviour?
 Antecedents
 Intentions
 Recipients
 Context
 Decision making
 Observable (versus cognitive behaviour)
 Means to an end

 Yes, we can identify behaviours through systematic

observation but significant limitations
Research / conceptual challenges
Behaviour/practice needs to be related to
outputs: difficult because of variability,
complexity and inter-relatedness
Isolating behaviours is difficult
Tendency towards ‘intervention
behaviour’
Research / conceptual challenges
There is a question of ideology over what
are effective behaviours (assumption of
person centred, job involvement, not
authoritarian)

For example: leadership behaviour has very

mixed findings, little useful, really a
question of preferred ‘style’, since all can
be effective.
 IS COACHING THE ANSWER-ASSESSING LIKELIHOOD OF
CHANGE

FREQUENT Very difficult to

change

How frequent is the behavior

Very easy to
change

INFREQUENT

How deeply entrenched is the behavior

Ask the employee to prepare
 To what extent have you achieved your
goals?
 Which if any goals have you exceeded?
 Are there particular goals with which you are
currently struggling
 What is inhibiting your progress?
COACHING STEPS

DISCUSSION
 Discuss your Observations

 Target observed behavior, not supposed

personal attitudes or motives
 In the workplace , why people do things is
usually less important than what they do.
 Never lose sight of the fact that coaching is
a two way process. Once you’ve had your
say give the person an opportunity to
respond
Ask Probing questions
 Offer propositions Is it …..
 Open ended and closed questions
Be an Active Listener
 Maintain eye contact
 Smiling at appropriate moments
 Avoiding distractions
 Taking notes only when necessary
 Be sensitive to body language
 Listen first and evaluate later
 Never interrupt except to ask for
clarifications
 Occasionally repeat what was said….
Listen to the emotions behind
the words
 Positive strokes that build up the person’s
self confidence
 Guarantees that reduce the person’s fear of
failure
 Assurances that progress is seldom made
without some conflict
Move discussion to Causes
 Encourage the employee to articulate points
of disagreement
 Avoid generalisations
 Be selective- stick to issues that really
matter
 Give authentic praise as well as meaningful
criticism
 Orient feedback toward problem solving and
action
COACHING STEPS

ACTIVE COACHING
Obtain agreement on goals
 Inquiring into & advocating different
perspectives
 Presenting proposals
 Checking for understanding
 Checking for agreement
 When agreement is in question revisit
step 1…..
Create an action Plan
 Statement of current situation
 Specify goals
 Timeline
 Action steps
 Expected outcomes
 Coach’s role
Begin Coaching
 Describe situation in a neutral way
 State your opinion & interpretation
 Share your experiences if they help
 Encourage person to provide his/her
perspective
 BEGIN
Begin Coaching
 Focus on improving performance
 Keep focus of feedback on the future
 Timely feedback
 Focus on behavior not character, attitudes
personality
 Avoid generalisations
 Be sincere
 Be realistic
DIRECTIVE versus SUPPORTIVE
COACHING

DIRECTIVE Developing skills expertise

Providing answers Why to do

Instructing How to do

SUPPORTIVE Facilitate problem Inspire-Pull

solving
Building self Encourage -push
confidence
Serving as a resource Providing information
to others
Always follow up
 Set a date for follow up discussion
 Check progress made
 Continue to observe
 Ask others opinion
 Identify modifications
 ask what worked & what could be improved in
coaching session
 What are the key elements of
coaching practice?
 Planning
 Decision making
 Technical knowledge
 practice
 Competition management
 Communication
 Meta analysis
 Modelling
 Regulating progress
 Monitoring
 3 sets of ideas
 Meaningful practice
 Accept that many effective behaviours
towards same objective
 Interaction tools for education: simulations,
case studies

Hard work
Expert
Commitment
Coach Effective
Technical immersion
Assistant
Learning culture

Supportive community
 Research / conceptual challenges
Discrete Practice Outputs Outcomes
Behaviours

Coaching Behaviour Technical Changes Standards

Tactical Changes Medals
Results
 Coaching Roles

Aspiration

Performance Coaching

Development Coaching

Coaching
Boundary Participation
Markers Coaching

Preparation Intensity
Competitions Involvement
Performance Standard

The relationship between forms of coach and boundary criteria (Lyle, 2002)
 PERFORMANCE

Short duration Intensity high

Limited non-
intervention contact Stable
performance group

Short-term
objectives Competition
focus

Limited control of Attempted control

variable of variables

Participation Longer-term
focus objectives

Extensive intervention
Large, variable and interpersonal
numbers contact
Intensity low Long duration

PARTICIPATION

A diagrammatic representation of the balance of performance and participation coaching roles (Lyle, 2002)
 Coaching Styles
Autocratic Coaching Practice
Negative Directive Coach-led Task-centred Performance

Feedback Communication Decision Role Goal

taking orientation orientation

Positive Interactive Performer-led Person-centred Process

Democratic Coaching Practice

The distinctions between autocratic and democratic coaching practice (Lyle, 2002)
 Authoritarian Power sharing Humanistic approach

COACH/SUBORDINATE SUBORDINATE
COACH CONTROL CONTROL CONTROL

• Empowerment
• Early experiencing • Developing and collaborating
• Coach dependence • Athlete/coach dependence • Athlete independence
(+ accountability)

Teaching skills Opportunities Personal AUTONOMY in:

Safety and security self management Self-responsibility
Procedure and routines self determination Training / competitive intensity
Guidance in learning Shared decision making and Performance routines
sense of control Strategies

Partnership Between coach and

Subordinates

Illustration of a shift in coaching paradigms (Hogg, 1995)

 subordinate COACH

TALENT EXPERTISE

QUALITY OF
TRAINING

PREPARATION KNOWLEDGE AND PERSONALITY

INTELLECT TECHNICAL TACTICAL PSYCHOLOGICAL

The coachee-coach relationship (adpated from Bompa, 1983)

Successful coach needs to mix art
with science on their coaching
(Pyke, 1999)
 Qualities of Coach
(Sabock, 1973)

 Coaches should maintain high moral and ethical values.

 Coaches must be completely honest with all those with whom their deals.
 Coaches must maintain a true and lasting concern for all
 Coaches must earn the respect of staff and the community.
 Coaches must be able to motivate
 Coaches must be dedicated
 Coaches must be a strong disciplinarian.
 Coaches must have obvious enthusiasm.
 Coaches should possess a strong desire to win.
 Coaches needs to be a good evaluator of talent.
 Coaches must be knowledgeable about their subject.
 Coaches should have a good sense of humor.
 Coaches must be willing to work long hours.
Successful coaches are those who
can learn new skills, who are
flexible enough to change old ways
when change is needed, who can
accept constructive criticism, and
who can critically evaluate
themselves.
 Leadership in Coaching
(Martens, 2004)

 Leaders provide direction; they set goals by having a vision of the

future.
 Leaders build a psychological and social environment that is
conducive to achieving the team’s goal.
 Leaders instill values, in part by sharing their philosophy of life.
 Leaders motivate members of their group to pursue the goals of
the group.
 Leaders confront members of the organization when problems
arise, and they resolve conflicts.
 Leaders communicate.
 Management and Monitoring
during coaching

A. Positive Discipline
coach with tolerance, encouragement,
praise, fairness, consistency, and respect, but without
criticism, hostility, ridicule, and shame.
 B. Preventive Discipline

Step 6:
Catch them doing
good
Step 5:
Conduct exciting practices

Step 3: Step 4:
Develop rules Create routines

Step 2:
Hold meetings

Step 1:
Create the right culture

The steps of preventive discipline (Martens, 2004)

 A mediocre coach tells,
A good coach explains,
A superior coach demonstrates,
But the great coach inspires
(Martens, 2004)
Becoming a better coach
 Be very judicious in time allocated to
coaching-delegate if possible to an
expert
 Pay attention to psychological climate
 Avoid talking too much, failing to listen,
losing control of emotions
 Improvise with practice
Executive Coaching
 Diagnosis & development approach-
diagnosis, self awareness, development plan and
implementation
 Prescriptive Approach- shadowing observed
behavior & prescribe new ways of acting
MENTORING
MENTOR
 A mentor, basically, is someone who
serves as a counselor, a guide or
coach. Being asked to serve as a
mentor is an honor. It indicates that
the company has faith in the person's
abilities and trusts him or her to have a
positive impact on the situation.
WHO SHOULD BE A MENTOR?

 Mentors often are volunteers. Forcing

someone who does not want to serve
as a mentor to do so can quickly
create problems.
 Someone with a negative attitude, who
might encourage a new employee to
gripe and complain, should not serve
as a mentor.
MENTORING
 Maybe
 informal,short-term situation or
 more formal, long-term assignment.
 In an informal mentoring program, the
mentor usually helps the new employee for
a limited period of time. Advice from the
mentor may include the most basic of
information about everyday routines
including tips about "do's and don'ts"
MENTORING
 A more formal version of mentoring occurs
when an organization either appoints an
employee or brings someone from the outside
with extensive knowledge and experience to
serve as a mentor for people the company feels
has excellent potential for growth.
 The mentor's role usually lasts for an extended
period of time. This relationship usually lasts for
months or until the person mentored reaches a
certain level.
Mentoring vs Coaching
Key goals Correct inappropriate Support & guide
behavior personal growth
Initiative Coach directs learning & Mentee in charge of
instruction learning
Volunteerism Not necessarily voluntaryVoluntary

Focus Immediate problem & Long term personal

learning opportunities career development
Roles Heavy on telling with Heavy on listening
appropriate feedback making suggestions &
corrections
Duration Short term needs Long term needs

Relationship Coach is coachee’s boss Not in chain of command

MENTORING -Ground rules
 The mentor's role is to teach and advise the
new employee.
 The mentor does not interfere with the
supervisor or manager's decisions.
 The new employee, while expected to seek
the mentor's advice, particularly on critical
issues, is not bound to accept that advice.
 MENTORING TIPS
 Confidentiality is important. Both parties need to feel
confident that discussions remain between them--not
immediately relayed to a supervisor or manager.
 Certain areas may be considered off-limits. The mentor
needs to outline these areas at the beginning.
 Decide in advance (again, particularly with long-term
mentoring) how you will communicate. Will you have
regularly scheduled meetings? Will discussion be face-to-
face, over the telephone or even via e-mail communication?
Both parties need to make their preferences known at the
beginning and reach an acceptable compromise if the
preferences are different.
MENTORING TIPS
 Discuss time limits. If the mentoring period has a
time limit (example, the first thirty days) the mentor
should state that at the beginning.

 Discuss time commitments. Again, this may be more

critical for the long-term, formal mentoring. The
mentor must expect to give the new employee
adequate time, but the newcomer should not expect
excessive amounts of time. Setting a schedule at
the beginning (example: meet once a week the first
month, then once a month after that) avoids irritating
misunderstandings later.
MENTORING TIPS
 Openness and respect: Both the mentor and the person being mentored need
to be open and honest, yet respect the other. A mentor who withholds
important information or comments does not contribute to the other person's
success. However, such comments should be delivered with tact and
courtesy--and (even if somewhat hurtful) received with an open mind.
 Most often the role of mentor is associated with serving as advisor to a new
employee. However, persons interested in changing career fields might seek
out a mentor or a business coach to help them evaluate their decision and offer
guidance. Or, an employee with concerns about advancement within the
company might seek out a mentor to assist in his or her professional growth.
MENTORING: benefits
 Develops human assets of org
 Helps transfer important tacit knowledge
from one set of employees to another
 It aids in retention of valued employees
 Not everyone benefits from mentoring-only those who are
career oriented 9 as opposed to job oriented), are self aware,
eager to learn, and highly ambitous.
MENTORING: costs
 Time commitment made by executives
to mentoring at the cost of regular
duties
MENTORING-right match
 Mentor characteristics-mutual respect, logical
fit, no political agenda, compatible
temperament and commitment
 Not in chain of command but takes personal
interest
 Initiate must come from mentee-protégé
 Good match revealed over time in attitudes &
behavior
Factors in Selecting a Mentor

 ?good at what he does?

 ?good teacher?
 ?good motivator?
 ?responsive to my needs/goals?
 ?what are mentor’s needs and goals?
 ?how does organization judge the mentor?
 ?Is the mentor getting support?
 ?How powerful is the mentor?
 ?Is the mentor secure in his own position?
Characteristics of Effective
Mentors
 Set high standards
 Make themselves available
 Orchestrate developmental experiences
 Respected people
 Demonstrate good people skills
 Have access to information & people
 Candid in dealings
 Sordidly linked to organisation
How to mentor well
 Walk the talk
 Give actionable advice & feedback
 Resist the temptation to solve protégé’s problem
 Criticise the behavior not the person
 Challenge the protégé to develop a plan for success
 Create a foundation of support
 Don’t allow the protégé to become dependent on
you
 Know when to say goodbye
Mentoring in the Work
Place
Mentoring assists protégés on a
Transitional Journey by:

 Support

 Challenge

 Vision
 SUPPORT
Support affirms the validity of
the protégé’s present experience.
Transition requires a trusting
relationship for courage to
“take a leap”.
Factors continued

 ?how does organization judge the

mentor?
 ?Is the mentor getting support?
 ?How powerful is the mentor?
 ?Is the mentor secure in his own
position?
 Methods of Support
 Listening, Hearing, Understanding
 Providing structure

 Expressing positive expectation

 Serving as an advocate

 Sharing him/herself
Challenge: To “open the gap” between
protégé and environment.

 Engaging in  Constructing
discussions that competing
perturb the hypotheses
protégé’s  Setting high
assumptions standards
 Heating up  Setting tasks
dichotomies—
present black and
white choices
Vision: helping protégé apprehend a
different reality

 Keeping tradition  Suggesting a

new language
 Modeling
 Providing a
 Offering a map or “mirror” to extend
developmental self-awareness
schema
 The Hierarchy of Mentoring

Level Mentor Activity Protégé Mentor Invest.

Benefit
I Teaching Organ. Skills, Time
inside info.
II Counseling/Support Enhanced Self
sense of Emotion
self/confi-
dence
 Hierarcy continued
Level Mentor Activity Protégé Benefit Mentor Invest.

III Organiza. Intervent. Intercedes on Organ. Relations/

protégé’s behalf Reputation

IV Sponsoring Recommend. Reputation/

Responsibility/ Career
promote.
 Level I-Teaching “the job”
 Imparts a feel for the job, knowledge o skills needed and
info on trends.
 Shows best methods for managing people in the
organization
 Draws organizational map: transfers info about politics,
personalities, presentation of self. Transmit info. About
classified data.
 Career Guidance: provides picture of career paths available
inside and outside the corp.
 Redirecting: realistically looking at skill, skill potential and
suitability.
Level II—Personal Support
 Psychological Support: To overcome
pressures/strains accompanying transition to
positions of greater responsibility. Accentuates
positive factors/new position. Imparts perspective.
 Confidence Building: Through various attitude and
behavioral methods
 Assistance with personal life: Deal with family
pressures, personal Dilemmas, and conflicts that
interfere with job performance.
 Level III—Organizational Intervention

 Protection: intervening in conflicts and situations that

endanger organizational advancements. Protégé’s careers are
often negatively affected by weak or threatened supervisors/
staff requiring mentor intervention. Mitigate negative career
effects of reorganization/merger.
 Market the Candidate: advertises protégé’s good qualities
and skills to senior management. Helps gain visibility at in-
house interfaces and outside meetings. Protégé does not
seem self-promoting.
 Access to resources: Mentor uses his position to access
resources, supply and communication lines that would
ordinarily be unavailable.
Level IV—Sponsoring
 Direct: Increase title, expansion of
function, manipulation of political
factors.
 Indirect: Admission to in-house
training, programs; key management
programs; obtain appointments, seat
on boards, etc.
 Comparison of Mentored vs.
Unmentored Groups
Category Mentored Unmentored

Managerial Position More likely to have an lack of control over

authority position/closer to personnel, budget or
central control resources
Organizational High recog. re-quire to Mystified about
Awareness climb promotion/
advancement
Comparison Continued
Career Planning Clear objectives & No career map; vague
goals goals

Optimism High Lower career

expectations
 Strategies Employed to
Attract a Mentor
 Competence-possessed/demonstrated
 Achieving visibility
 Getting key assignments
 Showing a desire to learn
 Taking advantage of key interfaces
 Willingness to help mentor accomplish his goal
 Taking the initiative
 Making self accessible
 Ability to express the need
What Mentors Look For…….
 Intelligence
 Ambition
 Loyalty
 Ability to perform the mentor’s job
 Similar perception of work and organization
 Commitment of organization
 Organizational Savvy
 Positive perception of the protégé by the organization
 Ability to establish alliances
 Ability to express need/goals of mentorship
Mentoring is not limited to
novice workers. Mentoring
is lifelong growth: as a
mentor or mentee.