The Decline of Supervision and the Rise of Performance Coaching

May 28, 2023

It’s no longer good enough to have a strong organization or culture, the individual managers need to evolve their focus and become coaches–through performance coaching.

By Melissa Carson, GPHR SHRM-SCP, Founder; Consultant; Coach, Crim Dell Consulting, LLC

HR West 2020 Speaker

HR West 2020 - Time to Get Real with Performance Management and Rewards!

The changing workplace and workforce

Over the past century, management practices have needed to change significantly.  The world of work has evolved from primarily agrarian to factory work to knowledge-based work and now is significantly influenced by technology and innovation.

It’s no longer a requirement that everyone works in the same place with a fixed schedule…teams may never or rarely meet each other if they’re based in different time zones, countries, and work schedules.

The best talent can come from across the globe and not just from down the street.  Multiple generations in the workforce have also influenced what it takes to lead in today’s work environment.

In the past, it was standard practice for managers to provide specific, direct oversight to how everyone accomplished the tasks at hand.  In some cases, you’d suspect a lack of trust and a belief that if no one was watching constantly, the work wouldn’t get done.

Much of today’s workforce is not looking for that oversight! They want to know the destination and then figure out how to get there in the best possible way.

The manager’s role is changing

Recent research has highlighted the criticality of the manager’s role in creating and leading a high performing team.  It’s no longer good enough to have a strong organization or culture, the individual managers need to evolve their focus and become coaches–through performance coaching.

In today’s work environments, it’s become more important for that manager to focus less on day-to-day supervision and more on coaching employees to be better performers; focusing on how they can be better tomorrow than they are today.  This coaching focus will also enable the managers to get the maximum value from the diversity of their team.

Today’s manager’s can learn a lot when focusing on what successful athletic coaches do with their teams.

Performance coaching increases job performance

I’ve identified 11 performance coaching actions that managers can take to increase the overall performance of the individuals and the team. If you reflect on a coach that you’ve worked with for yourself or for a family member that built a great team, I think you’ll recognize at least a few of my recommendations.

  1. Coach with passion
  2. Set the expectations
  3. Show what great looks like
  4. Know each player’s/team member’s strengths
  5. Coach the whole person
  6. Believe in the capability to succeed
  7. Foster 2-way communication
  8. Know the competition
  9. Focus on collaboration
  10. Celebrate the successes
  11. Learn from the replays

Consider this list and which ones you are actively doing today.

What practice could you add that would enhance the performance of your team?

Wouldn’t you rather be coached than managed?  Doesn’t it feel more empowering?

Start performance coaching today!

About the Author

Melissa Carson, Speaker HR West 2020Founder Crim Dell Consulting, LLC, Consultant and Coach, Melissa Carson, GPHR SHRM-SCP has spent over 25 years of her career focused in the HR arena working across a few organizations and multiple business units, focusing on how to maximize the potential from the people on the teams and partner with the leadership to drive organizational success.  Her passion areas are in improving the overall employee experience and enabling emerging and current leaders for greater success.  In past roles, Melissa also focused on defining and implementing talent strategies, M&A due diligence, and integrations, redefining performance management, and standing up an HR function in the NA region.  She recently launched her talent consulting and executive coaching business and is an adjunct instructor at Wilmington University.  Melissa lives in Bear, DE with her husband, Bill and her two children–teenage high schoolers who are active in soccer, lacrosse, and horseback riding.

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Join Melissa at her HR West 2020 session, The Decline of supervision and the Rise of performance coaching. on Wednesday, March 11th at 10:40 a.m.

About HR West 2020

The HR West Conference shapes the future of HR together with the HR community. HR attendees and participants are thriving, in-the-know HR professionals and providers, always striving to stay ahead of what’s next and what’s to come in the HR profession.

The HR West Conference has convened annually for 36 years in the San Francisco Bay Area, attracting professionals from across the country, with a heavy presence from the Silicon Valley companies and their HR experts. These HR experts represent some of the most seasoned HR professionals who deliver on some of the biggest HR demands in the profession since they practice HR in California and around the world.


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