Time OR Priorities?

Thanks for your posts, everyone. You have sparked more thought!

Time seems to be the big issue, but I think I'm hearing most everyone saying that lack of time is a symptom, not the real problem explaining why managers/supervisors don't coach more.

Lack of time – from my perspective – equals shifted priorities. When managers believe that their responsibilities are to get out the reports, prepare the budgets, manage the expenses, respond to customers, sign the paperwork, prepare the strategy, communicate up, etc., there’s no perceived time for coaching.

For the sake of argument, let's assume that we all agree that managers/supervisors don't recognize coaching as a priority.

How can we reshift the priorities of managers so that they make coaching a priority? (I think there's an intrinsic side and an extrinsic side to this.)

I'm looking for lots of ideas because I'm thinking of putting together a survey of best practices and this would be one area on the survey.

Terry

WHY won’t supervisors and managers coach?

As I prepare to write a book on developmental coaching, one constant nagging question haunts me: WHY won’t supervisors and managers coach?

According to a variety of studies, many employees – good employees – don’t feel that they receive the coaching they need to improve performance. After surveying 2,600 US workers, New York-based Mercer Human Resource Consulting (April 2003) found that:

• Only one-fourth of employees indicated that their managers coach them to improve performance.
  
• Forty-two percent say that their manager gives them regular feedback on their performance.
  
• Just 29% say that they are rewarded when they do a good job.

Towers Perrin, another New York-based consulting firm, concluded from surveying 35,000 U.S. workers that only one-fifth of workers are highly engaged in their jobs. While an equal amount of surveyed workers are disengaged in their work, Towers Perrin suggests that the middle three-fifths – “the massive middle” – offers the best opportunity for managers and supervisors. “Strengthening this group’s level of engagement may be the most critical task virtually every employer faces today.”

Despite the overwhelming evidence that points to the value of coaching as a way to develop talent, encourage growth, engender loyalty, generate commitment, and demonstrate leadership, many people in coaching roles don’t coach.

Why?