Five Key Ways Coaching Helps Improve Employee Performance

From the stage to the sports field to the board room and workplace, life is a performance, and how we perform is how we’re judged. Strong leaders know it’s their job to help employees perform their best. After all, when employees are at their best, companies are more efficient, productive and profitable.

But the benefits go far beyond the bottom line. Employees who achieve their best performances are more committed, confident and inspired.

Here are some of the key ways coaching can lead to the best possible employee performances, and drive gains that are both professional and personal. 

1. Coaching builds self-awareness

Photo by Bud Helisson on Unsplash

Performance is not just what employees deliver in the end — it’s how they show up in the beginning. It’s the attitude they possess and the positive outlook they project. Those qualities greatly shape how well (and how harmoniously) employees work together with colleagues, not to mention determine the opportunities they are given by their companies and bosses.

A coach is able to come in with fresh eyes and give objective feedback, making employees aware of how their words, body language and disposition are received by others and are impacting their performance. Then those employees can begin to make positive adjustments.

2. Coaching establishes a process

Photo by Clayton Robbins on Unsplash

When employees are mired in their day-to-day responsibilities, it can be harder for them to see the bigger patterns — in other words, to know what’s coming next and feel prepared to handle it. This is especially true in our new world of working fully or partially remotely. 

Coaching helps employees see the patterns and put a process in place. That empowers them to get into a performance rhythm by approaching their tasks and roles the same way every day. The process makes employees feel more confident and enjoy more success. And importantly, the process makes the success repeatable.

3. Coaching boosts team energy

Photo by Helena Lopes on Unsplash

Individual employees have an easier time boosting their performance when they see how it impacts the team’s performance — and feel the full team’s support. That’s why coaching can be so valuable. It makes teams stronger by building belief, communication and team chemistry.

With the right coaching, team members gain a better sense of what the team’s strengths and weaknesses are, and they’re able to talk about and address them in a productive way. This leads to a more committed team and a better overall team effort.

4. Coaching helps in goal setting

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Success begets success. When employees and teams achieve a goal, they get a jolt of confidence that helps them achieve it again, or even reach for a slightly bigger goal.

That’s what makes goal setting such an important skill for leaders. As I explored back in January, great leaders set goals that employees can reach with a stretch — meaning when they put in a real effort.

Coaching helps team leaders explore how and where to set goals in attainable places. This inspires teams to “stretch” — and empowers them to put in their best performance.

5. And coaching shapes a winning culture

Photo by krakenimages on Unsplash

What defines a winning culture (other than the wins it will yield)? I wrote back in May about what a winning culture is and how coaching helps build it.

It’s about fostering harmony between coworkers, across teams and the whole company. It’s about making employees feel like their input is valued and their voices are heard. And it’s about removing fault and blame, thus removing the employees’ fear of failing. When they feel that kind of security and confidence, they’ll take initiative and try ambitious things.

Having a winning culture does more than generate positivity — it boosts productivity. It delivers 72% higher employee engagement ratings than organizations with weak cultures.

When employees perform their best — and feel they’re set up to grow and succeed on personal and professional levels — it’s a win-win for their careers and for the companies where they work. Coaching is a powerful way to drive that kind of performance.