Coaching For Success
Helen Dyrkacz
November 6, 2008

Objectives
• To understand the principles of coaching
• To learn the coaching process
• To conduct a coaching session
• To use various tools to enhance coaching
• To learn how to provide support and
ongoing coaching assistance

What is Coaching?
Webster
• A teacher who helps someone prepare for
a special test
• A person who teaches athletic teams
• To teach or train

1. What is a Working Definition of
Coaching?

Coaching is…
• A means for learning and development
• Guiding someone toward their goals
• Sharing of experience and opinions to
create agreed-upon outcomes
• About inspiring and supporting another
person

Coaching is Not…
• An opportunity to correct someone’s
behaviors or actions
• Directing someone to do something to
meet goals
• Being the expert or supervisor with all the
answers
• About trying to address personal issues

“You cannot teach a man
anything. You can only help
them discover it within
himself.”
Galieo Dallei

2. To be effective, a coach must
be able to…

3. The consequences of not
coaching for improved
performance are…

4. Some conditions that need to
exist for a coaching session to be
effective…

When Do We Coach?
• A staff member needs direction
• New direct report is ready for new
responsibilities
• Problem performer needs guidance
• Worker needs positive feedback and
recognition

What is the Purpose of Coaching?
• Maximize individual strengths
• Overcome obstacles
• Reach potential by continuous learning
• Achieve new skills and competencies
• Prepare themselves for new responsibilities
• Better manage themselves
• Clarify and work towards performance goals

What are Some Benefits of
Coaching?
• Increased job satisfaction
• Increased employee motivation
• Increased productivity
• Better use of organizational resources

When Should Coaching Take
Place?
• It depends…when the need or opportunity
arises…

How Should You Coach?
• Focus on cooperation and facilitation of
employee’s development
• Steps
– Know their skill level and behavior patterns
– Create a comfortable environment where
action plans can be developed together

• To coach, you need to:
– Observe without judging
– Listen actively
– Ask questions

Giving Feedback as a Coach
• Focus on behavior – not character,
attitude or personality
• Describe their behavior and impact on
project or coworker
• Be specific – avoid generalizations
• Be sincere
• Be realistic
• Provide feedback frequently

Receiving Feedback as a Coach
• Ask for specific information
• Ask them for clarification
• Be willing to receive positive and negative
comments
• Avoid emotion-laden terms
• Avoid being defensive
• Thank them

Agreement Building Process
1. Looking into different perspectives
2. Presenting options
3. Checking for understanding
4. Checking for agreement
5. When agreement is in question, go back
to step 1 and begin the process again

Steps to Successful Coaching
1. Identify the opportunity
2. Prepare for the session
3. Conduct the session
4. Develop an action plan
5. Always follow up

Identify the Opportunity
• Is there an opportunity to improve
performance?

Preparing for a Coaching Session
• What needs to be accomplished?
• What is at stake?
• What is the purpose of the session?
• What are some potential issues and how I
handle these issues?

How to Conduct a Coaching
Session
• Keep it positive
• Determine the desired results
• Sincerity
• Share perspectives on the situation
• Share advice and suggestions
• Listen to their ideas and response to yours
• Discus pro’s and con’s on outcomes
• Commitment to action plan and date

Developing an Action Plan – What
is the Coach’s Role?
• Set SMART goals
• Priortize the tasks
• Review potential obstacles and brainstorm
possible solutions
• What additional coaching is needed
• Include resources

Follow Up
• Ask what is working well? What is not
working?
• Share your observations and reinforce
positive progress
• Look for opportunities for development
and feedback
• Suggest possible changes to action plan
• Ask what worked well in the coaching
session and what could be done differently

Follow Up
• Take the time to celebrate their
accomplishment
• Reward them for their courage to try
something new
• If they did not achieve goal:
– Discuss the results
– Decide together what change is needed
– What will the individual need to do differently,
better or more of in order to reached the goal?

Coaching Styles
1. Direct
– Developing skills
• Need to instruct
– Providing answers
– Instructing

Coaching Styles
2. Supportive
– Facilitating problem
solving
– Building self
confidence
– Encouraging others to
learn on their own
– Serving as a resource

Supportive Coaching and
“High Flyers”
• Acknowledge their good work
• Ask them to coach others
• Talk to them about career goals
• Identify knowledge, skills and commitment they
need for other opportunities
• Ask them to identify their gaps and areas of
interest
• Develop mutually acceptable plan
• Follow up on the plan

The Balancing Act Between Coach
and Coachee
Employees open up to Coaches and who
they TRUST
TRUST is the foundation of the relationship

Conducting a Coaching
Session

When Things Go Wrong…
1. Build rapport
2. Relate to the situation
3. Restore performance
4. Reassure
5. Remove

When Things Go Wrong…OOOPS!
1. Build Rapport
• Put them at ease – even if they have made
a mistake
• Provide them with honest appreciation –
supported by evidence
• Choose a behavior you have observed and
comment specifically about it

2. Relate to the Situation
• Focus on the problem or behavior – NOT
the person
• Ask them to explain what happened
• Gather facts and information
• Get to the root cause

3. Restore Performance
• Remedy the problem
• Reduce the chance of the mistake
happening again
• If accept responsibility
– Use questioning, listening and coaching
• If does not accept responsibility
– Reaffirm performance expectations

4. Reassure
• Reassure employee of their value and
importance to the organization
• Provide them with support and encouragement
• The “blamer” will leave with sense of
accountability and understanding of what the
expectations are.
• Employee should understand that manager is
interested in their success and growth

5. Remove
• Not a good fit
• Explore strengths, interests and goals