How to coach top performers - Internal Consistency

November 27th, 2012

Your top performers or high potentials are not your typical employee. They are driven, determined, and are willing to make sacrifices others won?t. They approach their work differently than your average Joe or Jane.

But what exactly sets them apart, and what can managers and leaders do to ensure these top performers don?t leave the organization?

First, let?s understand the characteristics of high performing employees:

• Self-focused: Self-performance is what matters
• Goal driven; Highly challenging goals drive their high performance
• Totally committed; Willing to make sacrifices to reach goals
• Demanding; High expectations of themselves come high expectations from others.
• Continuous improvement; Constant search of new and better ways to improve their performance
• Sponge for information: With continuous improvement comes the pursuit of useful information

Now that we know how top performers or high potentials approach their work, we can better coach them, lead them, and manage them. A person who is goal driven, demanding, and who is always seeking continuous improvement requires a effective leadership skills. With a better picture of how top performers think and act, leaders can take a unique coaching approach that leads to job satisfaction.

So how can a leader better coach top performers?

1. Offer Challenges: Their striving for continuous improvement and goal-driven perspective seeks out challenges to overcome. Plus, overcoming challenges leads to?
2. Illustrate tangible results: Top performers need to see tangible outcomes. They have a low threshold for boredom and need to see results quickly.
3. Feedback: Be prepared to give feedback?in a moments notice . If it?s positive feedback, good; If it?s negative feedback or criticism, frame the message so that it is actionable.
4. Don?t try to be their friend: The common phrase is, ?it?s not personal, it?s just business? certainly applies. Top performers hold the same view. They aren?t looking for a friend; they are looking for a professional relationship at all times.
5. Keep the pace: Recall their low threshold for boredom.? Be wary of ?droning on?, and (perceived) dwelling on a topic when they want you to move along.

High performers approach work willing to make sacrifices in order to learn more and achieve more. With this in mind, leaders and managers can help them do exactly that.

?Jones, G., & Spooner, K. (2006). Coaching high achievers. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 58(1), 40-50.

Image courtesy of stockimages / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

This entry was posted in Coaching, Feedback. Bookmark the permalink.

Previous Post

Source: http://internalconsistency.com/2012/11/27/how-to-coach-top-performers/

chase CJ Spiller tracy morgan Chase.com Talk Like a Pirate Day raiders Demi Lovato