Johnson Wong talks technology as an enabler for coaching performance.
In the recent years, many firms have been moving from annual performance reviews to more frequent check-ins alongside with some form of coaching. Coaching has been seen as an integral activity that drives individual performance breakthroughs.
Technology can provide just the right digital solution to help managers to stay ‘connected’ to communicate and to provide timely coaching for their employees. Using the right technology saves time for mundane tasks such as push reminders for goals, and monitoring specific data points with succinct key performance statistics needed for possible intervention or further coaching.
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There is a growing movement among organisations to develop a coaching culture as more companies realise the advantages of such a strategy in creating performance breakthroughs. Regular feedback on goals progress allows managers and employees to stay in sync on the performance levels.
This feedback allows managers to decide whether redeploy or deploy resources or manpower to any affected or bottleneck performance. By giving deserving recognition motivates employees and drives work engagement.
The following illustration is an example of a two-stage process of continuous coaching in developing employee’s potential to improve and cultivate critical thinking skills for performance consistently.
Operationalising those coaching cycles paves the way for higher levels of organisational effectiveness through positive interactions (virtual, digital space or face-to-face) that create awareness, purpose, competence and new breakthroughs among employees.
Some tips on coaching for sustainable performance
- From 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey: “If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.“
- It is critical for managers and supervisors to ‘scaffold’ employees by providing ‘timely mini-coaching sessions’ (where feasible) in leading them to the desired outcomes and while making the necessary tweaks.
- Give regular feedback and deserving recognition (present them with badges).
- Review your employee’s goals achievement progress and trends. Identify where the gaps are and intervene to develop them.
Technology as enabler for coaching performance
Continuous feedback is the key driver for clarity of goal achievement. However, today, many managers are constantly swamped with other organisational priorities that zap those crucial coaching sessions with their employees, leaving them to fend for themselves on the ground.
These continuous coaching and feedback sessions are vital for the business success as providing ongoing feedback enables employees to adjust their behaviour in real time to achieve their goals effectively.
Technology can provide just the right digital solution to help managers to stay ‘connected’ to communicate and to provide timely coaching for their employees. By adopting the right technology to coach for performance benefits everyone in the organisation.
It helps managers to understand what motivates each person on their team. As such, they can better support each other and develop them be a successful and engaged team in the coaching process. Far from being an impersonal instrument that creates distance between people, technology is progressively being used to develop a coaching culture that empowers continuous feedback and supporting performance.
Aside from technological enabler, successful coaching improves employee effectiveness in adapting change and thriving. It also helps them identify when teamwork is essential and to use their skills to foster it. Nonetheless, it is vital for managers to choose what works for their team and focus on people development to achieve performance breakthroughs.
About the author
Johnson Wong is an L&D consultant for CET Global Pte Ltd., where he provides services for clients in learning design, learning technology solutions (e-courses) and training advisory. He is also an academic advisor at a private education institute, where he facilitates courses in topics such as research design and HR- and management-related soft skills.
