Our specialist coach Jo Carnie shares her approach to tackling typical issues facing managers.
There is no doubt 2020 has been a tough year to be a manager. Balancing remote work, unprecedented levels of change and heightened wellbeing concerns. Very few of us can say we have not faced moments of overwhelm.
Life as a leader can be a lonely one. It’s often not easy to know who to share concerns and uncertainties with, particularly during this very challenging time.
Professional coaching for managers’ support can help you deeply understand your team and the system in which they are working. Whether it’s a one-off, a short series, or on-going support.
There is much to be gained from an expert who has been trained to aid decision making, development, and management of specific issues. And every coach brings something different.
These are some typical issues managers are facing right now, and how we could work together to find actionable solutions.
If any resonate or if you have other topics you’d like to discuss, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
1. Motivating yourself or your staff following redundancies, furlough leave, and through an extended period of home working
During the pandemic, I have been working with clients to explore the specific and often new issues they are facing.
We question whether your previous expectations, goals and ways of working continue to be relevant.
We think about where you want to get to personally or organisationally, who you need to bring with you, and what may need to change or be moved aside in order for you to achieve your goals.
2. Creating succession plans or motivating your team to step up and take on additional responsibility
Drawing on my experience in HR, performance management, succession planning, talent management and organisational change, I provide mentoring or coaching for managers’ support as appropriate.
We’ll quickly establish who is who within the team, who your stakeholders are, what they need you to deliver, whether there are gaps and how best to fill them. A range of tools is utilised to spotlight the best ways to motivate and communicate with each team member.
3. Managing conflict at work
I’ll spend time listening and questioning to understand where and how that conflict is arising. Sometimes conflict or elements of it can come from within individuals, based on previous experiences rather than being purely external. We will look together at the nature of the conflict, when it happens and uncover why it is occurring.
We’ll work on handling challenging conversations, develop coping strategies for dealing with conflict and also look at how to put these feelings of conflict aside to allow yourself to work optimally and in the moment.
4. Coping with a surge in holiday requests or absenteeism during the rest of the year
Here, I combine HR management expertise and coaching experience to either coach or mentor you as appropriate. We’d draw up a range of solutions and look together at contractual obligations. It’s important to balance the needs of the business with the motivation, physical and mental health needs of the workforce.
5. Delivering targets that have been set for you and your team
Working either with individuals or the team, we’ll gain a deeper understanding of the targets, considering relevance and priority for the team. We’ll look at delegation opportunities both within and outside the team and identify any opportunities to fill knowledge gaps and allow individuals to step up and take on new responsibilities.
6. Finding the time to fully support your team
An external coach who can provide a confidential and unbiased sounding board as well as motivation, inspiration and practical people management support.
I can also provide mentoring from many years in HR and project management to provide guidance, a listening and ear and a completely confidential sounding board.
I offer a range of techniques to support you working together to create a plan that supports your needs, the needs of the team and balance these against what the organisation needs you to deliver.
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Get in touch to find out more about coaching for managers and how we could work together.
Jo Carnie is accredited at Senior Practitioner level with the European Mentoring & Coaching Council with 20+ years in HR, coaching and project management for both international and start-up organisations. Jo is experienced in running organisational change projects, leadership and talent development, performance and reward management, and coaching at all levels from execs to apprentices. Her coaching can be both supportive and challenging but is never judgemental.
