Housing Pros

The Coaching Manager and Supervising our Current Populations

By Luke LaCroix, Community Development Educator, New York University

Student Affairs professionals may wonder ‘What is coaching?’ Most associate the term with athletics, but the coaching profession has evolved over the past two decades into much, much more. Coaching has predominately evolved in the private sector. Some variations of the coaching field include executive coaching, career coaching, internal coaching, external-consultant coaching, and the coaching-manager. Although all coaching variations are unique and fascinating, this piece will discuss how supervisors can use the coaching-manager model during supervision when a staff member is having difficulty or a problem.

Some may wonder how the coaching-manager from the corporate world relates to the educational mission on our campuses. Interestingly, coaching is actually very developmental and informed by many of the same research and concepts. Coaching in good practice is defined as assisting staff in sustaining cognitive, behavioral or emotional changes so that the individual staff member can achieve his/her desired goals or improve performance as a professional (Douglas & McCauley, 1999). Based on definition, it is evident that the coaching-manager technique for supervision will assist supervisors in developing staff through learning, improve our departments by sharing what is learned, improve communication between supervisors and staff, and potentially retain staff within our departments and the field at-large.

James Hunt and Joseph Weintraub describe the coaching-manager as a simple model in The Coaching Manager: Developing Top Talent in Business (2002). The model is designed simply because the coaching-manager can spend time developing the staff member through supervision, which will be successful in the long-run and will afford more time toward serving other needs later like students, institutional priorities, etc. The model begins with the two involved in the coaching relationship (the supervisor and the staff member). The manager must establish a coaching-friendly environment and enter the relationship with a coaching-mindset. The coaching-manager would stay-away from the take-charge style of leadership and learn to engage with staff members through dialogue and developmental discourse. Supervisees will be welcomed to discuss work-related concerns or problems without the conversations appearing in an appraisal or evaluation. Similarly, in order for the coaching manger to be successful the supervisee would need to be a coachable learner, willing to participate in the dialogue.

Hunt and Weintraub direct coaching-managers to “stop the action and start the coaching dialogue (2002).” This portion of the coaching-manager model plays into the strengths of Student Affairs professionals, but similar to the private sector this may be a challenge due to hectic schedules and demanding workloads. Hunt and Weintraub suggest the coaching-manager use situations when a staff member has a problem as the learning moment. The coaching-manager will use open ended-questions to help the staff member connect the dissonance for him or herself and probe the staff member to search deeper for the answer from within. The coaching dialogue is the most significant segment of the coaching-manager model. The subsequent pieces naturally follow the relationship developed in the relationship.

The subsequent pieces of Hunt and Weintraub’s coaching-manager model include serving as a mirror to keep the staff member on-track, but without interfering and without informing the staff member what is right and wrong. The coaching-manager should provide balanced and helpful feedback, which is meant to inform the staff member. The coaching-manager and the staff member work together, with the coach assisting the coachee in understanding the problem; once the source of the issue is determined the coach will work with the coachee to set goals to change whatever needs to be changed. It is also important to note that all of the pieces of the coaching-manager model are cyclical and are meant to repeat over and over with every problem. Relationships and rapport are built through the reoccurring cycles.

I believe the coaching-manager approach will be particularly successful in supervising professional or graduate staff members. Similarly, Millennial students are starting to graduate and enroll in higher education programs or apply to work in positions on our campuses. Much has been written about Millennial students, but the coaching-manager approach to supervision may also prove very productive in supervising the new graduate and professional staff. Establishing a strong relationship between the coaching-manger and the Millennial is vital to the success of coaching, and I believe Millennials will respond well to a coaching-manager based on characteristics of the Millennial Generation.

The Millennial Generation is defined as children of Baby Boomers born between 1980 and 2000. Neil Howe and William Strauss, authors of “Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation,” describe “Millennials” as members of a unique generation inappropriately labeled “Generation Y.” Generation Y makes it sound like the Millennials (or Y) are a progression from Generation X (b. 1965-1979). Strauss claims that Millennials are characteristically different than Generation X-ers, who are subsequently defined as cynical and distrusting of authority. Howe and Strauss define Millennials as eager to succeed, competitive, more likely to be friends with their parents and, significantly, more reliant on parents. Howe and Strauss state that Millennials value intelligence as “cool,” strive for athleticism, are accustomed to winning with rewards, proficient with technology, possess a higher aptitude to multi-task, were ‘raised on the Internet,’ and are subsequently are more impatient. Millennials also have higher expectations for customer service in multiple dimensions of life, like education, work, etc. (Howe and Strauss, 2000).

A fundamental element in a productive coach-coachee rapport is to develop a healthy relationship of mutual respect and collaborative spirit. Similarly, Hunt and Weintraub’s strategy for the coaching-manager shows the progression from establishing a coaching friendly context with staff members willing to be coached. In establishing trust between the coach and coachee, the coaching-manager is described as using coaching dialogue to stop action and start reflection in supervision, provide feedback through open-ended dialogue, establish collaborative responsibility between the coaching manager and staff member, and set appropriate goals (14-32). The relationship piece will be especially important to Millennial-employees as they are accustomed to much attention from their elders, and the relationship piece will prove itself important throughout the other areas of Hunt and Weintraub’s strategy. The strong relationship between coach and coachee has the potential to evoke the Millennials’ strengths based on the description of the Millennial Generation.

The Millennial Generation is characterized as having strong relationships with their parents and looking to their parents for guidance and approval. I believe this is where the coaching-manager can make some inroads and begin to build a successful professional relationship. Developing rapport early during the on-boarding process, orientation, and pre-service training may gain the trust of the Millennial-employee. Coaching-managers cannot expect to replace the Millennial-employees’ parents (nor should they want to), but the time invested in the Millennial employee during the on-boarding process, new-staff orientation, and pre-service training will provide a foundation to the relationship the two can rely on as the academic year progresses. In addition, the on-boarding process, orientation, and pre-service training will provide many opportunities for the coaching-manager to initiate coaching dialogue. The coaching-manager can use phases like, “What components of training were most meaningful for you?” or “How do the institutions values match your professional goals?” This type of reflective, open-ended questioning will help the Millennial-employee feel that the relationship is just as much about them as it is about the position and institution. Reflective questioning will also make the Millennial reflect and process their new environment. In addition, the dialogue will assist the Millennial-employee in learning more about his/her position, the organization, and the institution.

The coaching-manager has the opportunity to develop a relationship with the Millennial-employee by providing structure in the workplace. The Millennial Generation is described as being more reliant on parents than previous generations. According to Susan Heatherfield, Millennials seek structure provided by an authority for security in lieu of their parents, and they subsequently thrive in it. The on-boarding process, new-staff orientation, and pre-service training is designed to provide the new staff member with the nuts and bolts for their new position, and it can double as a time where the coaching-manager can assert structure. The Millennial-employee has the opportunity to develop a sense of comfort and potentially begin to trust his/her supervisor. Millennials are described as eager to succeed and place high expectations on customer service. I suggest the coaching-manager and the Millennial-employee sit down and discuss their mutual expectations. I believe this will be mutually beneficial because the Millennial-employee will be able to express what s/he expects explicitly, and is an opportunity for the Millennial to be heard. The coaching-manager must listen to what the Millennial-employee says, while reiterating structure and establishing him/herself as the knowledgeable authority. I believe this will work well in establishing the coaching-manager and the Millennial-employee relationship, and it will suit the Millennial-employee’s desire to succeed. The structure will help the Millennial-employee succeed.

After setting expectations, the coaching-manager and the Millennial-employee should establish a regular schedule for individual, one-on-one meetings. The one-on-one meeting will provide a venue for discussion of job related topics and other interrelated goals. Traditional coaching could take place at this time. The coaching-manager can use the one-on-one time to ask reflective questions and really congratulate the Millennial-employee in his/her accomplishments and make meaning of their experience in the position. One-on-one meetings will also allow opportunities for the coaching-manager and the Millennial-employee to build a sense of connection, trust, and better sense for the relationship.

Millennial-employees value structure through supervision and attention through quality service from managers. The Millennial-employee will enjoy the one-on-one sessions, but will also require more attention intermittently. The Millennial Generation is proficient with technology (Oblinger). I believe using technology in supervision will speak to the Millennials’ strengths, while assisting with quick service upon the employee’s request. For example, I think using modern tools like Blackberries for email, mobile phones, and on-line blogs for reflection will comfort the Millennial in their new position. The attention the Millennial receives will help him/her feel supported, confident that his/her concerns are being addressed, and it will meet the employee in their “technological comfort-zone.”

Millennials will respond well to goal setting. Millennials are accustomed to success, enjoy competition, and welcome challenges. If the relationship is built on trust, the Millennial will succeed with the structure and support provided by the coaching-manager. Goal setting could occur during one-on-one sessions or through reflective thinking (journals, blogs, etc). It is important that the coaching-manager respond to the Millennial-employee’s thoughts and ask clarifying questions. This will create an opportunity for the Millennial-employee to make corrections when necessary. The coaching-manager may also propose goals based on his/her experience with the Millennial-employee. This will help the coaching-manager establish him/herself as a knowledgeable person, and Millennials traditionally enjoy challenges when it is follow by with support and affirmation.

In any supervisory situation it is important to provide the supervisee with balanced feedback. Susan Heatherfield suggests a 360- degree report to inform the employee of their performance and what others think of them. She also states that providing constructive feedback to Millennials will be a challenging aspect of supervision (Heatherfield). My organization uses a 360-degree model. I suggest that the coaching-manager using reflective questions and active listening when processing the report with the Millennial-employee. Millennials do not respond well to negative feedback, and I suggest the information be phrased in a pragmatic and direct manner so that the employee can make meaning of the information. The employee may be distracted by the syntax of the provided feedback and neglect the content.

The coaching-manger has many opportunities to make a “teachable moment” when working with Millennial-employees. The characteristics of the Millennial Generation provide suggestions on how to reach the employee intellectually and personally. The relationship between the manger and Millennial-employee is vital to the success of the coaching-manager approach to supervision. Developing relationships may be challenging and time consuming, but the investment will prove itself worthwhile with happy employees progressing through their own professional development.

About the Author

Luke LaCroix works as a Community Development Educator within the Department of Residential Education at New York University. Luke earned a B.A. in Communications and Peace & Justice Studies at Fordham University, a M.A. in Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration at The Ohio State University, and is currently enrolled part-time in the M.S. in Human Resource Management and Development program at NYU with a focus in management and coaching. You can reach Luke at LL56@nyu.edu or 212.995.3936.

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