A helping hand: the role of executive coaching in performance management

University Business, March, 2006 by Barbara Kaufman

SEEKING THE ADVICE OF AN EXECUTIVE coach is becoming increasingly common in educational institutions across America. After all, professional athletes have coaches, so why shouldn't university administrators?

Too often, however, coaches are called in even though an administrator's poor performance is well beyond redemption. The intervention is thus set up for failure, right from the start. The likely result is that the institution loses not only the administrator but also the time and resources invested in the coaching engagement.

To avoid this dilemma, it's helpful to identify the circumstances under which coaching is really an appropriate performance management tool, what institutions can do to help coaches succeed, and what performance management actions remain when coaching is not a viable option.

When Can a Coach Make a Positive Contribution?

When administrators are asked what they wish they had known when first appointed to their current positions, most state that they could have benefited from the guidance of a "truth-teller," someone willing to alert them to cultural landmines and unwritten norms and to candidly point out role expectations and performance areas in need of course correction.

Since bosses, including board chairs, are so often reluctant to be the truth-tellers for newly appointed leaders, this is one of the primary areas of effectiveness for executive coaches. A coach can facilitate the period of adjustment for a newly appointed leader or prepare a leader in transition for new roles and responsibilities. "Administrative leaders are most often derived from faculty members who have excelled in their teaching and research responsibilities," says Molly Corbett Broad, president emerita of the University of North Carolina system. Successful faculty members are individual performers, but successful administrative leaders create an environment and empower the organizational capacity to advance the mission of the university.

She believes it's no surprise, then, that newly appointed administrative leaders can be quickly overwhelmed by the realization they cannot make every decision or micromanage every person in their new organization. Paramount to both their success and the success of the university are leadership development and relationship building skills. "A skillful executive coach can play an instrumental role in transforming bright individuals into effective managers and leaders. Such a coach understands the organizational culture and knows how to hold up a mirror to the 'coachee' that leaves no place to hide," Corbett Broad says.

The other side of the coin is remedial coaching, used when a specific performance issue has been identified. This is most effective when integrated into a comprehensive performance management process, which positions coaching not as a remedial tool to "fix" an individual who has gone astray, but as an investment in development.

"We tend to think of coaching in the context of negative behaviors that require correction," says Bruce Darling, senior vice president for University Affairs in the University of California system. "In actuality, it is our responsibility as leaders to identify the strengths of the individuals who work for us so that we can build on those strengths or help them develop new ones. Seeing someone you work with grow, take on new responsibilities, and even advance beyond your own position is one of the most rewarding aspects of being a supervisor. A coach who can help in these efforts not only benefits the individual, but creates tremendous value for the institution."

Corbett Broad agrees. "An investment in leadership development is an investment in the future of the organization," she says. "However, many universities are unwilling to invest either resources or time in leadership development. In an environment where coaching has simply not been the tradition, it is difficult to achieve the necessary paradigm shift without a serious commitment from the governing board."

Components of Coaching

A successful coaching process begins with an assessment of the administrator's role as defined by the institution, current performance expectations, and perceptions that have developed over time, including feedback from the superior and a sample of subordinates, key peers, and other key constituents.

Expect the coach to conduct one-on-one confidential interviews with a cross-section just large enough to get a snapshot of any performance issues from multiple perspectives. The approach may also include "shadowing," such as by accompanying the administrator to meetings and generally observing him or her in action and in relationship to other key players. Coaching may further involve working sessions between the administrator, direct reports, and his or her boss to acknowledge the performance feedback, build a sense of team, and solicit support for agreed-upon changes in performance--both at the individual and team levels.

One common misperception about coaching is that a coach can work with the individual in isolation, invisible to the organization. A coach who remains invisible lacks the leverage of getting first-hand feedback about how others experience the administrator's performance. In many remedial situations, the administrator's problem lies in the perceptions of others, so coaching needs to be grounded in the interdependent nature of roles and relationships.