Professional Coaching for Newly Promoted Managers

Companies retain excellent employees by promoting from within. As an Executive Coach, much of my time is spent with newly appointed managers to help them strengthen the skills they need to be effective corporate leaders.

While many employees are technically competent and excel within their field, they are often not prepared to deal with the leadership challenges that await them. Often times these new managers are especially uncomfortable about giving direction to and gaining peak performance from their former peers. They are reluctant to give the impression that they are leaving their friends behind to move up the corporate ladder.

My initial role in these situations is to help new managers gain self confidence in their own ability to lead. In a leadership role, the goal is for your employees to respect you - not necessarily like you. I urge them to talk candidly to their employees about their new management role and the new responsibilities associated with it.

The next step is to work on what I like to call the Toolbox of Assertion. This includes skills in setting and communicating boundaries, making effective requests, declining with dignity, confronting when necessary and giving and receiving feedback. These are all learnable skills and crucial to a manager’s success.

By providing new managers with professional coaching early on, companies can invest in the long term success of its leaders. This not only saves money by minimizing employee turnover and low morale but can also improve the overall work environment.

More info. on Executive Coaching