How to Coach and Give Feedback
The dynamics of manager-employee relationships are
complex, but in the best-case scenarios, with a good faith
effort and the right approach to coaching, employees can
be re-engaged. Consider implementing these practices:
● Provide intensive feedback and coaching to new hires.
Plan how you want employees to spend their first week on
the job and spend time with them during that initial period.
Discuss your performance expectations in detail, and ask
the employee to draft a performance agreement that summarizes
his or her objectives. Make it clear that giving feedback
is your responsibility and getting feedback is his or
her responsibility. You must both be proactive in your roles.
● Create a culture of continuous feedback and coaching.
Conduct informal, on-the-job feedback conversations with
your employees in addition to formal performance reviews.
● Train managers in performance coaching. Make
sure your managers understand the five-step process for
successful coaching. (See sidebar on right.)
● Make the performance management practice less controlling
and more of a partnership. Most experts on performance
management systems report that companies
achieve greatest overall satisfaction and effectiveness with
feedback systems in which managers and subordinates
partner in handling performance issues, rather than having
managers simply perform annual HR exercises with vague
objectives that tie performance rank to pay scale.
● Terminate nonperformers when best efforts to coach
or reassign don’t pay off. Despite your best efforts to
coach nonperformers or change the nature of their job
assignments, sometimes it is simply best to let the
employee go. All too often, other valued employees
know when that time has come long before the manager
does, and failure for management to act can adversely
impact the commitment of those valuable performers.
● Hold managers accountable for coaching and giv