One of the most challenging “coaching” responsibilities a new manager is tasked with is working to improve employee performance. The “Why” is simple enough: Improve performance and you improve the likelihood of success.  It’s the “How” that can be tricky.  The first step is to identify "Career Enablers and Accelerators."

An effective “coaching” manager will constantly strive to boost the performance of the team both individually and collectively.  Why? Improve the performance of your team, and you improve the likelihood of success.

A good coach makes sure that the time, energy and efforts of the team are not wasted, but that they are used effectively in order to meet the goal of victory.  The best way for a coach to ensure that the work of the team is not simply activity but actual achievement is to establish priorities.  

In organized sports what is the goal of every team?  To win, of course!  You might say that winning is the shared goal of every member of the team.  And who oversees this collective effort? The coach.

In business it’s the manager who oversees the collective effort.  It is the manager’s role to “coach” the “team.”

The team coach is responsible for evaluating the talents of each player, determining where each talent is best served within the team, and then working with the team to achieve victory. 

For a manager in the workplace, the objective is similar.  Combine the efforts and talents of the “team” in order to successfully complete the assigned task. 

Ever sit through a training session that was so dull you wished they had passed out pillows and blankets instead of pencils and notebooks?

Everyone at one time or another has experienced the boredom and frustration of a bad training session.  Either the presentation was uninteresting or the material itself was uninteresting, or worse, irrelevant.  An ineffective or unnecessary training session can feel like a complete waste of time.  On the other hand, training that is engaging, active and provides an opportunity for real and meaningful learning can be invaluable for improving employee job performance.

For a new manager a mismatch of talent and task can mean frustration, and, worst case, failure.  For instance, having assigned a 15-minute presentation to a team member that you knew understood the subject matter, prepared a great outline, and was comfortable speaking in front of the group; you are disappointed when the presentation fails to be a success. 

Climate change can be disastrous . . . particularly when it's not anticipated.  What about organizational climate change?  How does a new manager or supervisor manage or even affect a change in the organizational climate?