I am headed to Philadelphia, PA, to coach five managers separately for six months and thought sharing the situation summary and objectives. First, a meeting agenda/plan would be helpful to you.

management coaching and leadership development expert michael cardus

Situation

Coaching and development for 5 high-potential managers. Currently, the managers are struggling with a change in their roles. Their direct manager notices a lapse in time for responses to customers and project members, a poor delegation of tasks, and prioritization of incoming and outgoing work, plus increased signs of stress with the employees.

Their direct manager and the human resources director believe these managers have the cognition, complexity, and skilled-knowledge to succeed in their current role and would benefit from 1 on 1 coaching and development.

Objectives

Enhanced performance of skills:
  • Project management – developing a process for prioritizing incoming work and outgoing communication.
  • Improved response time to queries (defined metrics of current response time and necessary response time will be determined)
  • Delegation of short-term tasks to free up time for the areas they have control over.
  • Positive ways to increase trust and influence amongst project support staff and peers.
  • Lessening stress allowing managers to be themselves and flourish at work.
Focused Skilled-Knowledge areas:
  • Managing Time – Managing Yourself
  • Developing & Leading Quality Teams
  • Influence Strategies – when team members are NOT subordinates.
  • Goal Setting and Time Span
  • Innovation Skills for Project Managers
  • Managerial Communication & Listening
  • Managing Complexity & Change

Below is the plan/agenda for our initial meeting. Notice their manager plays an integral role in this managerial coaching is effective.

Following the initial meeting, the 6 months of Management Leadership Coaching begin.

Initial Meetings with Managers and those being coached
Individual Meetings with Managers of those being coached
  • Go over and refine objectives and goals
  • Define and share how we will measure and evaluate the coaching process and results
  • What role the manager will play, and how best to communicate the expected role of the manager and the person being coached
  • How often we will update each other, and how we will accomplish the updates
  • How often we will communicate, how we will communicate, and what accountability we will have to each other
Individual meetings with those being coached
  • Get to know more about each other and expectation for the coaching arrangement.
  • Create a baseline of knowledge about goals and objectives
  • Determine what is needed for our time to be useful
  • Clarify what will be shared and not shared with their manager
  • Develop goals and objectives for our time
  • How we will measure and evaluate
  • What their role will be, and what is expected in communication
  • Create a coaching schedule – how often? How? What will be shared?
  • Conceptual agreement on the coaching
Meeting with the person being coached and their manager
  • Discussion of goals, expectations, and objectives
  • Sharing of measurements and how they will be gathered
  • A shared understanding of what will be shared, when, and how
  • Shared agreement on current performance and desired future performance
  • Development of Manager – Employee meeting and check-in times
First coaching meeting
  • Beginning of process
  • Co-creation of task assignment
  • Beginning of coaching development plan
  • When will we talk again?
Final meeting with managers and those being coached
  • Recap what we all agreed on
  • Determine when the manager and I will talk again
  • How the manager can reinforce and support the coaching
  • Loose ends and questions

Above, you have the opening agenda and plan for the initial coaching work. The communication between the manager, the subordinate being coached, and me (the coach) must be clear, concise, and defined upfront. This extra work will allow for coaching and development to be more effective.

 

What do you think?

Share your experiences on what works best when establishing management coaching in an organization.