4 Ways to Coach Workers

There’s a common phrase that is said in a few different ways. No matter how you’ve heard it, it pretty much says “Employees don’t quit their jobs, they quit their mangers.” But is this always true? Absolutely not. Yet there’s no denying that many people have left their jobs because of bad management. Luckily for employers, good management can also be a reason for employees to stick around. And to be a good manager, a person needs to know how to coach employees. One way to do this is by following the strategy one expert shared in the Harvard Business Review. 

Ruchira Chaudhary, an adjunct faculty member at several business schools and founder of TrueNorth Consulting, designed what she calls the Coaching Styles framework to help managers to be better coaches. The framework is a 2x2 matrix. The x-axis is inspired by “push” coaching and y-axis by “pull” coaching. Push coaching encourages managers to provide employees with direct instructions and feedback. Pull coaching tasks employees with self-reflection through questioning. According to Chaudhary, the more pull, the more preparation the manger must do.  

The highest “push-pull” combo occurs in collaborative coaching. Chaudhary says this style blends traditional coaching (asking open-ended questions) and mentoring — providing counsel. This approach is best used when a manager wants the employee to become more self-aware, and eventually, make the final decision.

The least amount of both push and pull occurs within the “hands-off” coaching style. As one might expect, this style asks the manager to give the employee plenty of space and trust to make his or her own decisions. Chaudhary says this coaching style should include checks and balances (like regularly scheduled meetings) just to make sure everything is going well. The manager should also express a willingness to provide support if needed.

“Telling” coaching involves high push and low pull. This coaching is the default for many supervisors and involves them passing their knowledge onto the employee. Chaudhary recommends using this style of coaching when supervising an employee whose job is consistent and involves repetitive tasks, so it very well could be a fit when leading cleaning staff.

“Asking/listening” coaching is low on push and high on pull. It involves active listening and open-ended questioning that will help the person being coached to find their own answer. Chaudhary says this style takes more work and practice, but it does become easier and is a good way to coach new leaders or people with the potential to eventually lead.