feature article:

Submitted by Diane Burbie, President, ASPIRE Group -- ASPIREgrp@aol.com.

COACHING FOR OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE

Key points for leaders in any organization

Project Description

Leadership teams are seeking new approaches to performance management. Here are some questions that capture common concerns.

How do we coach team members in a way that results in sustained improvement in quality and/or quantity?
How do we coach team members in a way that is accepted – that doesn’t feel “personal”?
How does a team leader determine when there just isn’t a “fit” and both the Company and the coworker would be better served by severing the work relationship?
How do we talk about quality?
What does a team leader do when an otherwise responsible and valued coworker is chronically late?
How do team leaders get honest, candid feedback?
How do team leaders work with coworkers in a way that coworkers become self-motivating?

Two Sides to Every Story

Achieving optimal performance is accomplished through shared efforts between leaders and team members. Leaders lay the foundation, provide context, create systems and inspire team members to bring forth their best abilities. Team members are equally responsible for understanding the “big picture,” establishing professional goals, committing to continuous growth and development, taking concerted efforts to address any issues that hinder optimal levels of performance and professional fulfillment.

Goal Setting
Team members perform at their best when they have clear, achievable and meaningful goals. Some employees are very self-sufficient in this area and merely need an invitation to share the goals they have set for themselves. Other employees are unclear and/or undecided about their goals. In fact, some see no need to set goals. The variations can be explained by three (3) types of employees that make up most organizations: those who are intentionally here, accidentally here and passing through here.

Intentionally here – people who come to work for your company because this job relates to the clear and specific professional goals they have set for themselves.
Accidentally here – people whose employment with you seems to have occurred more by “fateful coincidence” v. “conscious choice.”
Passing through here – people who have clear and specific professional goals, but UNRELATED to the job at your company. Therefore their current employment meets essential needs, but is not linked to their “true passion.”

Leaders can sometimes form unfair judgments about team members who are not “intentionally here.” Assumptions are that they are less loyal, committed or driven to do a good job. These are false assumptions. Team members in all three categories can be significant contributors to the organization, provided the proper mindset exists – within the team member and the team leader. Here’s another way of viewing the three categories of employees:

Intentionally here – These are usually the visionary folks within the organization. Encourage them to think deeply, feed the vision with creativity and new insights.
Accidentally here – These folks are on an uncharted journey. Provide opportunities for them to “try on new shoes” – explore new areas/assignments. Encourage them to look for meaning in the work, assess levels of fulfillment and determine areas where they can be strong contributors to the organization.
Passing through here –Folks in this category perform best when encouraged in two ways. First, help them see how performance on “this” job is a reflection of their professionalism and character on “any” job – therefore - don’t coast – give it their best. Second, if their time here is limited, then encourage them to focus and following-through/completing assignments. Point out ways their work will continue to be valuable to the organization even after they have moved on.

Systems for Motivation & Recognition

The most meaningful foundation for motivating an employee is the goal that the employee has set for himself/herself. Leaders can support and encourage employees towards their goals. Leaders may also provide employees with new possibilities to consider for goals. But ultimately, it is the employee who determines which goals to set and why they are motivational.

The greatest challenge associated with team members who do not have clear goals is that they consciously or unconsciously look to the team leader to motivate them. This is an inappropriate level of dependence and transference of responsibility. People are very diverse in their preferred systems for motivation and recognition. Therefore, the employee has to be self-motivating. When asked what types of things help employees become self-motivating, the following items are often described:

A desire to be competent/proficient in your work
Feeling connected to the “big picture.” Being aligned with the organization’s vision. Having a sense of ownership.
Feeling that the work has purpose – is meaningful.
Having measurable ways to assess the quality of work he/she produces

Similarly, when asked for forms of recognition that were most meaningful to them, leaders say:

Having a high level of trust and confidence bestowed on me – to the extent that others can rest easy because I’ll handle it
Acknowledgement from those who truly understood the magnitude and/or complexity of the task
Seeing my progress in comparison to prior efforts/experiences
Observing others operate in more empowered and proficient ways – to the extent that the focus on my role becomes nonexistent

Giving Feedback

The following qualities are important when giving feedback:

Be self-assessing and objective when defining problems
Make time for people
Be direct, with kindness and sensitivity
Do it quickly – catch the moment
Make it a partnership
Act before situations change or escalate
Listen
Acknowledge and support
Use your colleagues as resources

Negotiating Corrective Action

Remember, not all organizations are like the culture of your company. In fact, many of the “tips for surviving” in the work world are counter-cultural to the values of your organization (i.e. lying, getting over, etc.)

Here are some guidelines for negotiating corrective action:

Be clear about the issues and expectations. Describe the performance area for development and why it’s important.
Keep ownership of the issue with the employee. Seek the employee’s opinion.
You seldom have to specify “how” the employee will correct a problem, but rather “what” needs to be corrected. Ask the employee to identify specific ways to enhance performance. Give feedback on the employee’s ideas and, if necessary, add your own.
Confirm the action plan and set a follow-up date.
Express confidence and support.

Addressing “Crossroads” Decisions

80% of employees in the workforce have received some form of constructive feedback, coaching or counseling during their career. Most learn and grow from the experience. However, some employees struggle to perform at the desired level. Some common causes for this problem include:

A clash of personal philosophies and organizational values
The employee doesn’t see or agree that there is a problem
Priories and needs change in the life of the employee

These problems don’t fix themselves or go away. They represent important decisions employees need to make. Change is required – by the employee, by the organization, or both. Leaders can encourage employees to take responsibility for these important decisions by doing the following:

Acknowledge there is a problem. Ask the employee to describe ALL aspects of the issue/situation he/she finds troubling.
Remind the employee that you can only address aspects of the issue that relate to the workplace. Encourage them to take ownership for addressing elements of the problem due to factors outside of work.
Describe the impact the problem is having on the employee’s attitude and/or behavior.
Encourage the employee to think deeply about the importance of the issue(s) to him/her. If the matter is extremely important, then encourage the employee to determine how he/she will be proactive in resolving the matter. If the issue isn’t terribly important, then encourage the employee to “make their peace” with the issue so they can move forward with positive energy.
Try to establish a timeframe by which the employee will come to some important conclusions about the issue(s).

Leadership Decisions – When the Team Member Won’t Make the Decision

Postponing important crossroads decisions is not without consequences. Job satisfaction, productivity, commitment and quality can all suffer.

Don’t allow employees to decide to continue to be miserable – at your expense. The entire work group or company can be harmed.
Remind employees of commitments they make – to perform tasks, resolve issues and/or adjust attitudes.
Hold employees accountable for their commitments and responsibilities.
Advise employees that they decide their success or failure, and team leaders merely monitor their adherence to the commitments and expectations they agreed to meet.
Provide timely and honest feedback concerning positive progress and/or continued problems.
If an employee needs to be released – address the issues in ways that allow the employee to keep his/her dignity in tact.
Provide a summary of activities and attempts to prevent this outcome.
Focus on the issue(s) that ultimately led to the decision to terminate.
Do not engage in debates or arguments.

Next Steps

Everyone invested valuable time and energy into this process and the goal now is to translate your “awareness” into specific actions/activities that will be beneficial to the organization as a whole.

IF YOU’VE GOT IT, FLAUNT IT
Or How to Get the Killer Annual Evaluation You Deserve

My mother used to say, “If you’ve got it, flaunt it.” Then Mel Brooks wrote a song of the same title and featured it in The Producers. And “flaunting it” is the bottom line for how to get the killer annual evaluation you deserve.

First of all, if your board is lax in preparing your annual evaluation, gently remind them. Gently remind them again, when they still don’t do it. Nudge your board president and ask her/him to put an evaluation committee together. Explain that for you to “be the best that you can be,” you need to know what the board thinks you’re doing right and what they’d like to see you improve upon. Explain that just as you give performance evaluations to the staff, you need to have the board give one to you. Put a post-it on the board president’s agenda for the upcoming board meeting. Email your board president sample copies of evaluations that the board can use, to remind her/him.

Don’t be grateful that they forgot! You need to have this evaluation. Especially if you’re living in a state (and there are eleven such states) where there is an “at will” policy – that is, you can be fired at the will of the board - and you do not have the safety net of a contract. You need to have acquired a file of positive evaluations that are “proof” you’re doing a good job.

Now get your ammo ready. Prepare an Overview of Accomplishments to email (or hard copy) the Evaluation Committee and “cc” the members of the board before the committee’s first meeting. It’s important to pre-empt their first discussion with your Overview, in which you remind them of all the great things you accomplished. It is your job to “flaunt it.”

I prepared anywhere from a 7-11 page narrative of my accomplishments. When the committee and members of the board read through it, they were wowed. It left little room for anything negative to say, and it is another critical piece to keep in your files, just in case you should ever need it. Plus, it will make you remember and feel really great about all that you’ve achieved on behalf of your non-profit organization. Click here to get a sample Overview of Accomplishments outline, which is there for you to “borrow.”