
Corrective Coaching: What It Is & How To Do It

Thirty-plus years ago, I was an officer cadet in the Royal Navy. On one occasion, we were lined up on the parade ground and took turns in telling each other off under the supervision of a Royal Marine Drill Instructor.
Confrontation is part of leadership. Most of us are brought up at home to be “nice” and “polite.” We have a problem, as leaders, confronting our staff over poor performance. Nobody wants to be the “bad guy,” so s/he does not know how to handle these discussions. Either s/he gets aggressive, then abuse is exchanged, or s/he avoids confronting the person and the poor performance continues.
Military-style reprimands are not appropriate in civilian life, so what can a civilian leader do?
"Corrective Coaching"
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One method is an extension of my “four questions” approach to problem-solving. See “further reading” below for the original article.
The “4 questions” – a recap:
This is my personal twist on the GROW method. GROW is an acronym. This is how the four questions fit into the acronym.
- “What are you trying to do?” = Goal – This helps your colleague to define what she is trying to achieve. You will probably ask more questions to define the goal in more detail.
- “What’s stopping you?” = Reality – This builds a bridge between the current reality and achieving the goal. If you want to build a real bridge, you have to know how wide the river is. To solve a problem, you have to understand its size.
- “What are your options?” = Outcomes – This encourages your colleague to produce as many ideas as possible. Follow-up questions help to assess which are practical.
- “What is your plan?” = Will – This leads your colleague to make decisions and formulate a concrete plan. These conversations must end with a plan, even if the plan is to do more research.
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How do we adapt the GROW method for "Corrective Coaching"?
We add three stages to the front end. The “PRO” elements set the conversation up.
P = Present: Present your colleague’s poor performance as factually and as unemotionally as possible. Describe actions taken or not taken with dates, times, and other measurable data.
Keep your presentation as unemotional as possible. Your colleague may be feeling defensive. If s/he interprets any language or behavior as emotional or judgmental, s/he will attack.
R = Response: Give your colleague the chance to respond to the issue presented.
Ask your colleague to respond. I would not recommend asking: “What have you got to say for yourself?” This is aggressive, arrogant, and cliched. Try asking: “Would you like to comment?” or “What are your thoughts?” Make your invitation to respond as neutral and non-confrontational as possible.
Now say nothing! Their silence will feel uncomfortable. It will be a lot less comfortable for your colleague. Let the silence do its work. Listen very carefully to what your colleague says and the way s/he says it.
If s/he admits that it is his/her fault, skip the “O” stage shown below. If s/he gets defensive or blames other factors or people, proceed to the next stage.
O = Ownership: Ask a question to get your colleague to take ownership or responsibility for the issue. Here are some examples:
- How is this going to affect the business/team/company etc.?
- How do you think your colleagues will feel about this?
- How would you deal with this situation if you were in my position?
Having asked the question, wait silently for the answer.
When your colleague replies, don’t just consider the words, but also how they are spoken. Does s/he look like s/he means them?
If your colleague continues to be aggressive, then you may need to escalate to higher levels of management.
If s/he does admit responsibility, move on to the following adapted version of the GROW questions.
- What are you going to do to fix this? = GOAL
- What’s stopping you from fixing this now? = REALITY
- What are your options? = OPTIONS
- What is your plan? = WILL
The first two questions have been slightly adapted to focus on the issue to be solved.
Your colleague may see this as a way to regain your trust and respect. The result should be a plan with a concrete timeline and actions that you can follow up on.
General PrinciplesBigstock
Whatever happens, keep control of this conversation. That means:
Confronting people can be quite scary. This is what builds your colleagues’ respect for you as a leader. If you feel like it, contact me in a private message and let me know how you get on!
Further reading...
Here's the original article on the four questions: 4 Steps To Solving Problems
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Many candidates who come to us for resume help have the same question. They have years of professional work experience, but a lot of it isn't relevant to the position they're currently seeking.
On the one hand, they don't want to waste resume space detailing work that doesn't relate to their application. On the other hand, they don't want to omit years of work that developed them as a professional.
How do you mention unrelated work experience on your resume?
The Right PhraseBigstock
We use a magic phrase to address this issue: "additional experience." It's perfectly fine to sum up large portions of your career in one section that lists previous employers, positions, leadership roles, certifications, associations, publications, awards, volunteer experience, and even significant hobbies (as long as the experience supports your professionalization in some way).
If you spent the first 10 years of your marketing career performing lower-level tasks, in your "Additional Experience" section at the end of your resume you could say: "Marketing positions with ABC, DEF, and XYZ (1990-2000)."
If your previous work was in an unrelated field, you can simply list the companies: "Positions with ABC, DEF, and XYZ."
Whatever additional experience you decide to include on your resume, make sure you demonstrate why it's important to the job you're applying for by quantifying the work experience and your accomplishments.
The Age GameBigstock
This technique can also be very helpful for those who are concerned about age discrimination. We summarized the first 15 years of one candidate's career into one sentence to downplay the fact that she was 55. Because her experience was relevant to her field, removing it from her resume entirely would have been a disservice, but we did not include the years that experience encompassed in her "Additional Experience" section.
The Experience IssueBigstock
We recently worked with another candidate who needed to show that she was a more experienced professional than her education suggested. This woman had worked for 10 years before going back to complete her bachelor's degree. From looking at her graduation dates, you would assume she was in her 20s. In fact, she was an experienced manager in her 30s—a fact that was important to show for the level of job she was seeking.
By adding an "Additional Experience" section and putting her "Work History" section before her "Education" section, she was able to show employers that her graduation dates were not an indication of how much experience she had. Just because her work experience occurred before graduating doesn't mean it was unrelated work experience. The right resume format will make it much easier to mention any kind of significant work experience you've had in your career.
Many of us have work experience that doesn't fit neatly with our current goals and objectives. If you don't feel comfortable leaving it off your resume altogether, using an "Additional Experience" section can help you mention the experience quickly without wasting precious resume space.
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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However, the reason most employers conduct panel interviews isn't to intimidate you; rather, it's a time-saving way to meet with people that will likely interact with you in the new job, and gather their impressions all at once. So, when you stride into a panel or group interview, remember that the team is there to learn about you and your value-add, NOT to interrogate you or make you uncomfortable.
These five tips can help you feel more in control of the process while facing a group of interviewers in a panel interview—with a professional, enthusiastic demeanor that helps win the job.
1. Direct Your Attention To Each Person On The PanelUpon starting the interview, get each person's name (ask for their business card or jot down the name), and then look at each person as you introduce yourself. This will help to break the ice and establish a connection with all of your interviewers.
While fielding questions, avoid staring at a single person (nothing makes you look more "frozen" than doing this!). Instead, make it a point to relax, smile, and open your gaze to the others in the room. Even if a single member of the group asks you a particular question, look around at the others while you answer it. Doing so will help you project a confident image and build rapport with the entire panel.
2. Expect To Repeat YourselfBigstock
While one of your interviewers might take your answer the first time, you can almost expect someone else to either ask for clarification—or ask it again, later in the interview. Why? Because just like our verbal abilities many of us have different listening styles.
What is clear to one panel participant may need further explanation for another person. In addition, each panelist comes to the interview with a different agenda. You can expect a prospective peer to be interested in your technical or analytical skills, for example, while the boss might be more curious about why your last job was so short in length.
You may also find yourself repeating information from earlier interviews. This is perfectly normal in the context of a multi-interview hiring process, so avoid coming across as impatient or noting that you've answered this query before.
3. Find Out Who You'll Need To Impress The MostBigstock
Within most panel interviews, it becomes obvious very quickly who is on "your side" and who still hasn't made up his or her mind. While it may be comforting to direct your answers and gaze toward the interviewer who seems more open to your responses, you're better off tackling the naysayer first. Why? Because winning over the person most likely to reject you shows you have the ability to read the audience, as well as problem-solve on your feet.
Most employers are looking for leaders who will challenge issues head-on, ask numerous questions, and hone in on the thorniest problems first. If you respond well to someone who throws challenges your way, you'll come across as an unflappable professional ready to take on the demands of the job.
In addition, most panel interviewers convene after the interview to discuss the candidate and their impressions. If you've won over the toughest member of the group, the others may throw their support behind him or her as well.
4. Be Prepared For At Least One Zinger QuestionBigstock
Interviewers, like anyone else, tend to feel more comfortable (and perhaps bold) in a group. Therefore, you can almost count on being asked a question that might not be posed to you in a one-on-one situation. Of course, you'll want to prepare for your interview by pulling out three to five "power stories" that demonstrate your abilities to perform the job.
Arming yourself with these anecdotes will give you the ability to answer numerous behavioral interview questions common in both single and multi-interviewer situations. But if there's any question or situation you would feel awkward explaining, prepare and practice a set of answers to it prior to your panel interview. This way, you won't feel a sense of dread when the question finally comes up, and you'll be better able to handle any curveballs thrown your way.
5. Thank All Participants PromptlyBigstock
At the conclusion of your panel interview, thank everyone personally, and gather business cards if you didn't already do so. Then, as you're sitting in your car post-interview, write down specific highlights from the interview to include in your thank-you notes, which should be sent within 24 hours after completing the panel interview.
You'll gain the advantage of having the interview fresh in your mind, and will score points for your promptness and attention to professional courtesy.
In summary, a panel interview is nothing to dread, especially since it offers an opportunity to establish rapport with your potential new co-workers and bosses. Arm yourself with a stack of success stories, answers to tough questions, thank-you notes, and a smile, and you'll be on your way to a job offer.
Need more help with your job search?
We'd love it if you signed up for Work It Daily's Power Hour Event Subscription! Get your career questions answered in our next live event!
This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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Originally posted on: https://www.workitdaily.com/corrective-coaching