Coaching emerged in the management literature in the 1950s as an approach to develop employees

through a master-apprentice type of relationship (Evered & Selman, 1989).

Coaching has been variously defined as a process for improving problem work performance
(Fournies, 1987); as a day-to-day, hands-on process of helping employees recognize opportunities
to improve their performance and capabilities (Orth et al., 1987; Popper & Lipshitz, 1992); as a
process of empowering employees to exceed prior levels of performance (Burdett, 1998; Evered
& Selman, 1989; Hargrove, 1995); as a process of giving guidance, encouragement, and support
to the learner (Redshaw, 2000); and as “a process by which one individual, the coach, creates
enabling relationships with others that make it easier for them to learn” (Mink et al., 1993, p. 2).
Coaching has traditionally been perceived as a remedy for poor performance and as an approach
that links individual effectiveness with organizational performance (“Mentoring and coaching help
employees grow,” 2001).

Ellinger (1997), and more recently by Beattie (2002) and Talarico (2002), have specifically
examined the role of line managers as coaches or learning facilitators.

Relationship-oriented managers will show personal concern to subordinates thus Supervisory

coaching behavior is positively associated with employees’ job satisfaction and performance
(Ellinger, Ellinger, & Keller, 2003). Coaching enhances employee [ability to perform] Formatted: Highlight

performance (Hameed & Waheed, 2011; Ellinger, Ellinger, & Keller, 2003; “Why Workplace Formatted: Highlight
Formatted: Highlight
Coaching and Why now?,” n.d.; Kirkpatrick, 2006).).
s’
Workplace Coaching is:
The process of equipping people with the tools, knowledge, and opportunities they need
to fully develop themselves to be effective in their commitment to themselves, the
company, and their work.

A “designed alliance” focused on developing an individual to become their “best self”

and to contribute their “best fit” and talents.

An ego-less process in which coachable moments are created to draw out distinctions
and promote shifts in thinking and behavior.

Why Coaching in the Workplace?

Coaching promotes creativity, breakthrough performance and resilience, giving

organizations a competitive edge and an effective way to flow and operate within an
environment of continuous change. Successful organizations like Hewlett Packard, IBM,
MCI and others have recognized that managers must be able to coach their employees
and each other, and have included coaching in their management/leadership
development.

Successful managers and leaders today are developing their coaching skills, in order to
support and enhance employee performance and development. Finally, managers in a
360º feedback situation may “coach up” by coaching their superiors to enhance their own
ability to lead and manage. Coaching provides not only a context for feedback, but also
a process to support changed behavior.

Citation: (“Why Workplace Coaching and Why now?,” n.d.) Formatted: Highlight

Formatted: Font color: Accent 6

Adopting employee coaching practices as a way to both improve your relationship with your employees
and help them reach their potential. By coaching your workers, you can mold them into the employees
you want them to be instead of constantly bemoaning their shortcomings (Schreiner, n.d.).
Examples of Employee Coaching: (Schreiner, n.d.) Formatted: Font color: Accent 6

1. Collaborative Goal Making Formatted: Space After: 8 pt

Formatted: List Paragraph, Numbered + Level: 1 +
When adopting an employee coaching model of management, business managers must allow Numbering Style: 1, 2, 3, … + Start at: 1 + Alignment:
employee input in the goal-making process. By letting employees work as goal setters, management Left + Aligned at: 0.25" + Indent at: 0.5"

can show these workers that they are important members of the business team instead of simply lowly
employees. This collaborative goal making can occur in a meeting in which all employees are given a
voice or can be an ongoing process completed digitally in which employees email their goal ideas to
team leaders, who then integrate these ideas into overall business goals.
s’ Formatted: Tab stops: 4.36", Left
2. Ongoing Training Formatted: Font color: Accent 6
To coach your employees, make training a continued focus. Instead of engaging employees in one Formatted: List Paragraph, Numbered + Level: 1 +
Numbering Style: 1, 2, 3, … + Start at: 1 + Alignment:
training program and then tossing them out into the workforce never to be trained again, make the
Left + Aligned at: 0.25" + Indent at: 0.5"
training process an ongoing one. With regular training sessions on topics of importance to your
employees, you can provide them with the knowledge they require to succeed and craft a supportive
relationship in which you work with your employees as they develop their skills.

3. Feedback Sessions Formatted: List Paragraph, Numbered + Level: 1 +

Coaching is an active process that is vastly different from the passive manner in which many managers Numbering Style: 1, 2, 3, … + Start at: 1 + Alignment:
Left + Aligned at: 0.25" + Indent at: 0.5"
lead their small businesses. To truly coach your employees, you must offer them suggestions for
improvement, helping them reach their potentials in the same way that sports team leaders guide their
athletes to success. To do this, managers engaged in employee coaching should arrange feedback
sessions in which they meet one-on-one with employees and offer specific suggestions for
improvement.
Formatted: List Paragraph, Numbered + Level: 1 +
Numbering Style: 1, 2, 3, … + Start at: 1 + Alignment:
4. Employee Recognition
Left + Aligned at: 0.25" + Indent at: 0.5"
Just as athletes are recognized for their successes on the field, employees being coached should be
recognized for their achievements. When employees accomplish successes within the workplace, take
time out of the day to recognize them, showing them that you truly appreciate all that they have done.
Encourage them to continue to put effort into being the best workers they can be.
Citation: (Schreiner, n.d.) Formatted: Font: (Default) Arial, 11 pt, Italic
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Accent 6

REFERENCES
Talarico, M. (2002). Manager as coach in a pharmacy benefit management organization: A
critical incidents analysis. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Minnesota.

Beattie, R. S. (2002). Line managers as facilitators of learning: Empirical evidence from the
voluntary sector [CD-ROM]. In Proceedings of Human Resource Development Research and
Practice Across Europe Conference. Edinburgh, Scotland: Napier University.
Ellinger, A. M. (1997). Managers as facilitators of learning in learning organizations.
Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Georgia.

Ellinger, A. D., Ellinger, A. E., & Keller, S. B. (2003). Supervisory coaching behavior, employee
satisfaction, and warehouse employee performance: A dyadic perspective in the distribution
industry. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 14(4), 435-458.
Hameed, A., & Waheed, A. (2011). Employee development and its affect on employee
performance a conceptual framework. International journal of business and social
science, 2(13).
Evered, R. D., & Selman, J. C. (1989). Coaching and the art of management. Organizational
Dynamics, 18, 16–32.
Fournies, F. F. (1987). Coaching for improved work performance. New York: Liberty Hall Press.
Orth, C. D., Wilkinson, H. E., & Benfari, R. C. (1987, Spring). The manager’s role as coach and
mentor. Organizational Dynamics, 66–74.
Popper, M., & Lipshitz, R. (1992). Coaching on leadership. Leadership and Organization
Development Journal, 13 (7), 15–18.
Burdett, J. O. (1998). Forty things every manager should know about coaching. Journal of
Management Development, 17 (2), 142–152.
Hargrove, R. (1995). Masterful coaching. San Francisco: Pfeiffer.
Redshaw, B. (2000). Do we really understand coaching? How can we make it work better?
Industrial and Commercial Training, 32 (3), 106–108.
Mink, O. G., Owen, K. Q., & Mink, B. P. (1993). Developing high-performance people: The art
of coaching. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Mentoring and coaching help employees grow. (2001). HR Focus, 78 (9), 1.

Why Workplace Coaching and Why now? (n.d.). Retrieved November 14, 2017, from
https://www.integral.org.au/about/resources/why-workplace-coaching-and-why-now

Schreiner, E. (n.d.). Examples of Employee Coaching. Retrieved November 14, 2017, from
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/examples-employee-coaching-14013.html

Kirkpatrick, D. L. (2006). Improving employee performance through appraisal and coaching. AMACOM
Div American Mgmt Assn.