Coach class

Coaching is an absolutely fundamental Meggitt Production System skill. How does it work?

In problem-solving, where managers used to be expected to provide answers, they are now expected to use coaching techniques to help the individual find a solution for themselves. The idea is to develop an individual’s skills, insights and self-reliance at the same time as finding good answers.

From supporting a colleague working alongside you, to helping a senior manager grasp a complex technical process, everyone can, and everyone should, coach everyone else.

Here are some tips to get you started.

1. Realise that every request for help is an opportunity to coach.
2. The best coaching is delivered as a routine part of the daily round.
3. A quiet word in private is much more effective than a public lecture.
4. Pay special attention to ‘how’, as well as ‘what’, you say. A poorly chosen word or inappropriate tone of voice can convey entirely the wrong meaning.
5. Be careful when using humour. Not everyone will get the joke. Humour can help reduce tension and awkwardness. But sometimes it just feels as if we are not being taken seriously.
6. If you think you might have spoken hastily or used the wrong tone, go back and put it right as soon as possible.
7. The key to good coaching is good questioning. Poor coaching questions fail to stimulate deeper thought. They are often ‘closed’ (ie, yes/no answers) or ‘leading’ (“Would you say that X needs to be done?”). Good questions encourage self-discovery and critical thinking. They are often ‘open’ (“How would you …?”), probing (“Why do you think that?”) and systematic.
8. Don’t rush in. All good questioning begins with good listening and observation.
9. And try not to give away the answer! ■