The July 2008 issue of Talent Management Magazine reports some interesting statistics released by the American Management Association (AMA) about the use of coaching activities as a talent development tool.
The AMA survey of over 1000 businesses worldwide reports that employee and executive coaching aimed at improving performance and individual productivity is on the rise. 60% of North American companies report regular coaching of high potential employees, while 42% report a regular use of executive coaching.
That in and of itself is not so much of a surprise given the increased focus on developing talent. However, there were some "jucier" stats to be found in the report.
While high potentials are receiving a regular dose of employee coaching to improve their performance, only 37% of "problem employees" (i.e. low performers) in North America are receiving coaching to improve their performance. This number seems to be on the decline.
I found this both fascinating and exciting at the same time.
Intuitively, one would expect low performers to be the ones recieving the majority of the coaching attention. Leaders and managers, however, are growing increasingly impatient and intolerant of poor performance and don't see the logic in pouring scarce coaching and development dollars into individuals who show little likelihood of improving their performance.
Think about your organization's sales staff for a moment. Chances are that 20% of your sales people account for 80% or more of all sales. It's pretty common actually...
One would think that the low performers are the ones who should be recieving coaching to improve their performance, not the top performers . After all they are the ones who have the largest upside potential. Right???
Actually no...
Here's why - Based on my experience working with a number of different organizations and their sales teams in particular, one thing I consistently see is that the low performers are rarely if ever a good fit for the job. No amount of coaching (or training) can fix this. It's like pounding a round peg into a square hole...
Consider a few of the main traits that make for a successful sales rep - people orientation, persuasiveness, immune to rejection, persistence, money driven, and a desire to control one's destiny. Looking at low performing sales people, they almost always "score" low on these critical traits.
No coach or leader, however talented, can fundamentally change who a person is deep down inside. It's near impossible to coach an individual to care about money enough to influence their behavior and performance if it's just not something they are motivated by. This is true for all positions... if a team member lacks the necessary set of behavioral preferences and personal motivators there is little chance that coaching will be an effective means to improve performance in that given position.
For this reason I find that coaching efforts aimed at low performers are typically an exercise in futility. A far more effective approach to employee coaching is to identify high potential team members who are on the verge of becoming top performers and focusing your coaching efforts there. This is where you will see the biggest "bang for your buck"
As a leader where are you focusing your coaching efforts?
It's time to change our views on coaching as a tool to breathe life into poor performers and start focusing on coaching as a means to help our high potentials and top performers add even more to the bottom line.
Now go maximize possibility!
Other posts you may be interested in:
- Improving Performance with Employee Coaching Score Cards
- Employee Productivity Coaching Tip - Effective Time Management
- The Morale Obligation of Coaching Employees
- Coaching Malpractice is Rampant!
Chris Young helps organizations Maximize Possibility through talent management, cultural transformation, and strategic intervention. Bring Chris in today!
