A manager who wants to get the best out of their team must also be a coach. This starts with believing in the value of your people and creating a meaningful framework in which they can thrive.
On the sports field, the coach is shouting instructions at their players, encouraging them, and pushing them to give their best throughout the game. During halftime, they come together to discuss what’s not working and how they can improve, with the aim of returning to the field as a stronger team.
In the same way, a manager wants to bring out the best in their team. Coaching leadership begins with a mindset on how to handle human capital within a company. It starts with believing in the value of your people. Additionally, the company has a role in creating a meaningful framework, and a manager’s responsibility is to clarify that framework, getting people on board with the organisation’s vision.
The role of the coaching leader
Just as a sports coach knows the strengths and weaknesses of their players—and acts on them—a manager in a company should do the same. Where is someone today? What is their potential? And how can you help them grow? At the same time, you want individuals to work together as a team, so you must be both a personal coach and a team coach.
This is about leadership style—how you communicate certain messages. Coaching leadership is all about dialogue. You aim for two-way communication in a relationship built on trust. You start from the idea that you want people to grow and discover their strengths without resorting to an instructive style. Coaches ask questions to create an exploratory framework, allowing employees to feel that they can come up with their own ideas and solutions, rather than being overloaded with answers dictated by their manager. Employees are only truly engaged when they can find solutions for themselves.
Let employees find their own solutions
It’s essential to create an environment where employees and teams can come up with their own solutions, rather than overwhelming them with instructions. A coach provides a framework in which individuals have the freedom to explore and acts as a sparring partner who can hold up a mirror on an equal level, someone employees can turn to. This requires a willingness to listen, a curiosity about who the person in front of you is, and humility to accept feedback or criticism in return.
The pitfalls of micro-management
Coaching leadership stands in stark contrast to micro-management. Micro-managers often struggle to let go of control, fearing they don’t know what their employees are doing, leading to obsessive oversight and a very instructive approach.
Letting go of control isn’t easy for everyone, and not everyone has a natural curiosity. But coaching is a skill that can be learned to a certain extent. You can learn questioning techniques and how to guide people and teams toward solution-focused thinking. There are methods for this. Through these techniques, you can dig deeper into a person’s motivations, assess them better, and effectively stimulate their problem-solving abilities.
The benefits of external guidance
Internal coaches can easily fall into the trap of not seeing the quality of the “water” they are all swimming in—it can be murky without them realising it. This is where external supervision offers value by providing a fresh perspective and maintaining the quality of coaching.
It’s also important to recognise that every coach brings their own experiences with them. Their personal history can subconsciously cause them to avoid certain topics during coaching sessions. A good coach knows their own limits and is aware of when to refer someone to an expert, especially if coaching starts to cross into psychological territory.
Maintaining quality
Coaching is a profession in itself, and companies that want to implement coaching need to be well informed. It’s essential to understand what coaching truly involves and to choose qualified professionals. If you, as a manager, want to start coaching, you should also have your own coach and ensure external supervision. This guarantees the quality of the coaching and helps you get the best out of your employees and teams.
How would you like to be treated?
As a leader, ask yourself: Would you prefer to work in an environment where you’re overloaded with instructions, or one where your potential is recognised, and you’re empowered to find your own solutions? Coaching leadership is about fostering growth, building trust, and allowing people to thrive within a meaningful framework.
By adopting a coaching mindset, you create the space for your employees to discover their strengths, innovate, and grow—both individually and as part of a team. It’s not just about managing people, it’s about believing in their value and investing in their success.