We are business owners hire coaches. Many or our leadership positions have mentors and coaches. So why don’t we coach at other levels?
I see it all the time. The organization says we have a great employee retention program that gives the employees great benefits and a sweet break room! However, many of these organizations leaders still seem to be out of touch with their team. I believe this is because of one main reason; they rarely talk to them. I mean really talk to them on an individual basis and find out what motivates them and why they’re here.
The best way to do this is with face-to-face documented meetings with individual team members. I say face to face because it shouldn’t be an email. It should be documented to be able to look back on. It should be on the individual bases because that is who makes up our organizations. Many times, leadership speak to the whole team and then fire off emails to the individual or worse only engage the individual when there is an issue. If leadership could take a more active role in the individual, inside the organization this can have a great impact keeping employees and even better keeping them engaged.
Many leaders believe they already do this, but I would encourage you to really look at this system in your company. When I ask to see reports that are kept on employees most just don’t have a system in place and try to show me email traffic or the only documents found are a resume and maybe a disciplinary counseling statement.
I would encourage you, at whatever size organization you are, to look deep into this issue. Here are some ideas on how to get this system up and running in your organization to bolster your team and ensure retention.
The System Basics: (Coming Soon You Will Be Able to Purchase Our Employee Coaching System)
There are three types of coaching you or your leadership need to be able to have in your tool kit for mentoring your team.
1. Initial Coaching Statement: This should be done within the first couple days of the new team member starting their position. This is where the first line supervisor can really set the stage for expectations and goals setting for the individual. It is important for a supervisor not to dictate the goals, but to allow the team member to set the goals themselves based on the expectations and mission of the department.
An import part of this coaching will be to lay out the career path for this person. If done correctly it will encourage the team member to work towards a goal and they will be able to see their progress and envision their position in the organization as a more stable part of their life. Click here to see our write up on career progression coaching for employee retention. If you take care of your people, they will take care of you.
2. Cyclical Coaching: If not purposely done, this will become the most ignored part of the system. Every day seemingly “more important stuff” will try to take its place. It must happen on a consistent basis (weekly, monthly, quarterly). It will be dependent on the individual whether this will be done weekly, monthly or quarterly. It should be noted that this should be done at least quarterly. Some individuals will need more than others and it should be tailored to the individual. This coaching session will take what was said in the initial coaching or the previous cyclical coaching session that was conducted and see how goals were met as well as review the individuals career progression.
3. Specific Event Coaching: These are a great opportunity to communicate with a team member when you have noticed something out of the ordinary good or bad. These can be used to correct an issue as well as re-enforce a positive experience. For example if you are going to give a team member a raise, do it within a coaching session. Make it a big deal and continue to show them grow opportunities.
Below is an example of what our Coaching Sheets look like.
The initial Coaching sheet is to be the first document used the Coaching reports handles all the rest, be it event or cyclical coaching.
Once an individual has been in the workplace for 1 year there should at least be 5 documents that would go into the First Line Supervisors Leaders Book. Keep in mind I said the Supervisors Leaders Book, not HR or some off in the corner filing cabinet. These documents should be held at the leadership level to be used and called on whenever needed. Click here to read how to set up a leader book.
Start The Program ASAP:
Setting up this program can be easy. It might surprise you how accepting your team is when you introduce this. It all begins with the Initial coaching. Once this is done the rest is simply staying consistent.
Take a month and begin scheduling out your team members to come in and get an initial coaching. Even if you are a supervisor and your company doesn’t have a program like this. Step up and show them what a strong cohesive team can look like when led by a leader/coach.
Be Consistant:
Consistency will be key! Every new team member must get an Initial Coaching and the rest need to be on a schedule. Do not let the daily tasks that find their way in get you off track of what’s important.
**If you need further assistance in setting up an Employee Coaching Program within your organization, we would love to help. Please feel free to reach out to our office to have a discussion on your organization’s specific needs. Suppot@RetainToday.com