Why All This Talk of Coaching Rather Than Managing?

For years, there have been managers. Why now this change to a coach? The two main reasons

are:
- global competition
- technology

No longer can issues be passed up the ladder sometimes taking days for a decision. Decisions need to be made quicker than ever before because the consumer today is more demanding. Thanks to technology, information is now readily available to us, and there is lots of it. With all the information available today, the manager can no longer have all the answers. Whereas, in a coaching role, you are not expected to have all the answers. In a coaching role, you ask the questions and rely on your staff, who become the experts, to provide the information.

The result of global competition and the increased information is that managers now must become coaches. We found a job description of a manager with the following statement:
"controls, directs and supervises the day to day operations."

A job description of a coach would be: to lead, motivate, create a vision, and teach staff the skills needed to empower them to help make us a successful and profitable company." A real difference in the two descriptions.
You cannot manage men into battle.
You manage things; you lead people."

What happens if companies do not change? Simply, they will not survive. They will not attract the talent they need as employees no longer will conform to complying with the orders issued by managers. Today's employees are more educated and need to see the whole picture.

With more and more competition, due to global markets, companies must constantly evaluate how they are doing business. Change is going to speed up before it slows down. No longer can the manager do it all, know it all, and be it all. You need your employees to speak up and speak out! They are the ones closest to your front line and they are the ones who often have the best ideas as they are closest to your customer. So, by coaching employees rather than managing them, you end up with a more dynamic result!!

Rather than clinging to past ways, look at changing to a coaching style. Some managers have concerns about letting go. We will address these concerns in later articles.