Coaching and Leading LEAN teams...

Coaching Tips from the Lean Coach

It's the ultimate dilemma these days, in finding and keeping a job. It is an art and science of turning your education, skills and knowledge over the span of a career. Today the job market is becoming even more competitive than it did, say 5 years ago. Now I am not going to tell you it's easy. But it is important nevertheless. There is no shortage of high fliers and high performers in today’s knowledge economy. Unified Communications, Social Media Tools, SaaS, CRM, Cloud Computing and other tools provide a multitude of rewarding careers! 


So how does a professional in customer care sort through the myriad of metrics that will allow management to drive true performance improvement? What are the roadblocks that need to be eliminated? What skills do they need to be ahead of the curve while coaching their teams to manage and adapt to change? And that's just the tip of the iceberg. It's not an exaggeration to say that the coaching and leading is what everyone talks about but rarely focus on. Virtually every topic comes back to coaching and leading our teams against all odds. These things are all obvious today than before as the war for talent has begun, when you put them in these terms.

But most new managers, because of their inexperience, sometimes don't see all these issues as part of a whole, or see the common thread — the process for a productive and effective employee — someone who makes a difference to an organization’s bottom line. It's the forest/tree dilemma — they are so busy looking for a job that the big picture takes a back seat. Depending on what you are looking for, that's either a lot of money saved, or a lot of opportunity squandered. Can the new generation of knowledge workers make the most of that opportunity by talking with a customer effectively on the phone or do a presentation with clarity? Or sell them something that they might not have thought of? Do you even know what they are capable of? If not, then you're looking at the question of value through the wrong end of the telescope. When you properly identify your strengths and reasons to learn continuously, you can more effectively work for the benefit of the organization as a whole by being an effective coach and mentor.

Depending on what you are looking for, that's either a lot of money saved, or a lot of opportunity squandered. There are many ways to find one who can fine tune your skills. Like the popular Eastern saying goes, "When the student is ready, the master appears." Let your next objective be - to seek that knowledge and who knows, your teacher or mentor will appear sooner than later. Contrary to popular belief, "Personal development" isn't a category of product all by itself. Few, if any, would identify themselves as being in the career or personal development marketplace. Instead, it's more helpful to think of personal development as a super-category into which you learn more about yourself as you grow. This includes both products and services, and cuts across different technologies — what binds them together is the fact that they work toward a common set of goals: better performance, more effective management, leading to better interactions and a healthier balance sheet for your team and yourself.


Happy coaching and season's wishes!