Five ways to coach the team

Coaching the team ranks among the most important responsibilities of a manager. While it's important to keep the lines of communication open, creating a high-performance team means not trying to micro-manage every aspect of their work. Here's how you can get it right:

Get Them on Board

Understand the strengths and areas of improvement of each team member, says Dabur India HR head A Sudhakar. "You need to explain to them how these improvements can help take them to the next level, enhance their abilities and improve positioning. Once you tell them what they stand to gain, their buying into the process is much stronger," says Sudhakar.

Empower your Team

Creating a strong team means empowering them to make their own decisions, rather than having to come to you with every little thing. Tell your team what your expectations are and then move out of the way. This helps them gain confidence, and become better at their jobs.

Communicate Well

Good communication goes hand-in-hand with being available to your team whenever they need you. Be sure to put across to your team the targets, your expectations from them and what is important.

Extend Help

If it is a particularly complex task at work, do not just hand it over, says Meenakshi Roy, VP, HR, Reliance Broadcast Network. "Break the main task into smaller tasks, which the team can easily finish. But they should see the entire task so they are aware of what they helped put together. Subsequently, let them try it on their own but review the final outcome before it goes out," she says.

Listen Effectively

Sometimes, employees approach their superiors for personal advice. "Do not debate, just listen. Exploring possible causes for the problem and discovering the root cause helps you pinpoint solutions," says Roy.