5 steps to team coaching

Go back to the last time you joined a new organization or department. You walk into the building and locate your hiring manager. After a 15 to 20 minute talk, she shows you his office or cubicle and says "have a nice day." You have your phone, laptop, and email account. The toolbox of the 21st century! You are ready to roll.

I've gotten used to this approach during my corporate years, and frankly I've also experienced it during my life as business coaching. Now, in each case, there is always some planning and I understand the expectations of those who have asked for my help. From there, this is the path I take, and you can too, when coaching a team.

I call it the 5 steps to team Training . Here we go!

1. Learn about the team - Understand its background, including strengths, communication styles, motivations, and sense of business value.

2. Create a Shared Vision - Yes, this sounds silly sometimes, but it really is an important step. Develop a rationale for the team's existence (why everyone is here) and identify how the team will work together to offer the best products and services.

3. Develop and agree on team values: Determine what values ​​are in each person and which ones the team will consider to be the most important or valuable. Record these values ​​among team members.

4. Set Goals - Act as a guide and work with the team to develop goals that focus on creating business value.

5. Go ahead! - You know the team, everyone knows why they are here, they are taking advantage of each other's respective strengths, the playing field is defined and you know the definition of success. Why wait? Now is the time to do it.

Be sure to participate. In many cases, you don't need to complete the tasks and assignments necessary to create the product or service. However, you need to hold the team accountable, create business value thinking, celebrate success, and identify what was not achieved and why. If things slow down or drift, bring up some of the coaching questions that are most helpful. Ask "what steps are you taking to achieve your goals?", "What obstacles are in your way?" And "what would you do if the obstacles were removed?"

Ultimately, you want to create an environment where your equipment delivers great results without you riding or driving them. Don't worry about being too far away. Skillful implementation of the 5 Steps is far from useless. It just feels like this!