Good communication is a fundamental leadership skill and a key characteristic of a good leader. Leaders must be skilled at communicating with others in countless settings and relationships — with individuals and at the organizational level, in communities and groups, and sometimes even on a global scale — in order to achieve results through others.

What Is Leadership Communication?

Leadership communication is how leaders inform and inspire others, and it encompasses verbal, nonverbal, and written messages. From giving instructions and feedback to direct reports, to sharing the vision with employees, to mediating conflict with teams, to providing updates to stakeholders — effective communication in leadership is critical.

Why Is Communication Important for Leaders?

At CCL, we see communication as one of the “fundamental 4” core leadership skills — those timeless skills needed by leaders in any organization, regardless of role, industry, or location.

Leaders must be able to think with clarity, express ideas, and share information with a multitude of audiences. They must also handle the rapid flows of information within the organization and among colleagues, customers, partners, vendors, and others.

Effective leadership communication allows managers to deepen connections, build trust, and drive creativity and innovation through their daily interactions with others. It also helps during change or disruption, as communication is one of 3 critical competencies that our research has found are essential for successful change leadership.

The Connection Between Communication, Conversations & Culture

In organizations, conversations are the foundation upon which the majority of communication happens, as people communicate every day through the formal and informal discussions they have with colleagues and leaders. And the more effective these conversations are, the stronger their organizations become — because better conversations drive better culture.

Core Traits of Successful Leadership Communication

Authenticity

Be honest and sincere. Find your own voice; avoid using corporate-speak or sounding like someone you’re not. Let who you are, where you come from, and what you value come through in your communication. People want, respect, and will follow authentic leadership. Forget about eloquence — worry about being real. Don’t disguise who you are. People will never willingly follow someone they feel is inauthentic.

Accessibility

Visibility is a form of communication. If you want to communicate well, be accessible. Emails and official missives aren’t enough. Be present, visible, and available. Getting “out there” — consistently and predictably — lets others know what kind of leader you are. People need to see and feel who you are to feel connected to the work you want them to do. Find ways to interact with all of your stakeholder groups, even (and especially) if communicating in a crisis.

Clarity & Confidence

Being clear and confident when communicating with your team helps avoid ambiguity, misinterpretation, and confusion. Speak in specifics, use nonverbal communication to augment your words, and speak not just with facts but also with feelings and values. Being able to speak clearly and confidently builds trust and commitment with your team.

Empathy & Respect

Empathy is critical for leadership success, and that extends to communication. Employees want empathy from their leaders and appreciate compassionate leadership. Acknowledge their feelings and pain points when you speak to them, and that will help them feel valued and heard, creating a strong culture of psychological safety.

Trust

Trust isn’t something you can mandate — it grows from consistently demonstrating your commitment to better communication with those you work with. By modeling the values you hope to foster in your team and in your organization, you can build trust. And by building trust, you also encourage those around you to communicate more authentically, contributing to a culture of psychological safety at work. When people feel safe with their team and organization, they’re more open to sharing ideas and taking risks, which can lead to more creativity and more innovation.

Learn how to communicate better, connect more deeply, build trust, and be more satisfied — inside and outside of work — with our book, Better Conversations Every Day.

15 Tips for Effective Leadership Communication

1. Communicate relentlessly.

Get vocal and get involved. Communicate information, thoughts, and ideas clearly — and frequently — in different media. Keep processes open and transparent, and find ways to help smooth the path of communication for your team, employees, or organization. Shed all traces of detachment and arrogance, and take the time to talk to your people.

2. Set clear expectations.

Set the tone. In every relationship, our behavior is guided by a set of rules or social norms — and in a professional setting, these norms tend to go unspoken. Be intentional about establishing team norms at your organization, whether you’re leading a group discussion, mediating a conflict between employees, sending an email to your colleagues, or having a one-on-one conversation with a direct report.

3. Simplify and be direct.

Say what you mean. Be direct. Don’t hide behind complexity or pile on a ton of information. Direct, clear communication can be the most important type of communication. This is even more important when communicating in a virtual setting.

4. Illustrate through stories.

Use stories to bring your ideas to life. When you tell a good story, you help clarify a vision, goal, or objective. Telling good stories creates trust, captures hearts and minds, and serves as a memorable reminder of the message. This is key when communicating the vision. Plus, people find it easier to repeat a story or refer to an image or quote than to talk about a mission statement, strategy document, or project plan. Your ability to create and communicate a compelling, authentic, and bold story will also help you bolster your leadership brand.

5. Be prepared.

Do your homework. Poor communication in the past might mean your audience resists what you have to say today. So start familiarizing yourself with the context around an issue, and any alternative viewpoints and perspectives about it, so you’re ready to handle any concerns or objections before you initiate communication. If you’re met with resistance or presented with a different position, solid preparation will make addressing and overcoming objections much easier and communicate your ideas more effectively.

6. Know your audience.

Communication isn’t just about what you say — it’s also about who is listening. Different stakeholders may have different concerns. The way you approach influencing others will vary from one group to the next, depending on their needs. Tailor your influencing strategy for the particular person and consider their personality, goals, and objectives, as well as their roles and responsibilities. For example, someone who is highly rational may be more easily swayed by a logical appeal than an emotional one.

7. Reinforce intent with body language.

Don’t rely just on words. Showing positive body language like eye contact, nodding your head, and other relaxed nonverbal communication can inspire team members and make them feel more comfortable communicating with you. A simple head nod or smile can go a long way to show you’re paying attention and that you care, and little gestures like this can add up, slowly helping you to build rapport and collaboration and transform your organizational culture, too.

8. Read the room.

Good leadership communication means being flexible. Watch your audience closely for nonverbal signs of engagement or disengagement, confusion or understanding, etc. and adjust your message and style accordingly. You can do this quite literally during in-person meetings, but you can also “read the room” in virtual settings by looking closely at others’ faces on the screen and by explicitly soliciting feedback.

If people are understanding your communication and aligned with your message, you may get lots of eye contact, see nodding heads, observe audience members leaning forward or demonstrating other body language that suggests alignment with your message. If you see listeners leaning back, with arms crossed, and bored or confused expressions on their faces, then you may need to adjust your message or delivery style.

It’s helpful to pause occasionally to let people ask questions and check for understanding, giving your listeners a chance to respond or seek clarification, etc. Stay flexible so you can continually notice how your communications are landing with your audience, and do ongoing adjustments based on the signals they send.

9. Ask good questions.

Leaders ask powerful questions. Ask powerful questions that open the door to learning what others really think and feel. The best leadership questions get right to the heart of things, cut through complicated situations, and identify levers that will really make a difference. Asking non-directive inquiries can also unlock insights — especially key in coaching people, such as direct reports.

10. Listen and encourage input.

Good leaders listen more than they speak. Leadership communication isn’t just about the messages you send, but also the messages you receive. The most effective communicators are also good listeners with strong active listening skills. When you listen well, you gain a clear understanding of another’s perspective and knowledge. So seek out, and then listen to, individuals from all levels of the organization — from the key stakeholders who have a lot of opinions you need to consider, to the new employees who may be reluctant to voice concerns. Allow people to air their concerns. Let team members know their input is valuable, so people feel comfortable speaking up. Pay close, respectful attention to what’s said — and what’s left unsaid. It will show those you lead that you care about both them and the organization.

Also, be okay with silence. Encourage others to offer their ideas and solutions before sharing yours. Do 80% of the listening and 20% of the talking. Demonstrate an interest in — and respect for — your colleagues, as this builds trust and makes the emotional connection that’s so important for effective leadership.

11. Take feedback seriously.

Feedback is a gift. Asking for candid feedback from your team or employees can foster a positive stream of communication, and it helps build trust overall. This tactic can also make your team feel more respected, giving them a chance to have their voices heard. If you take their feedback seriously, you will grow as a leader and enhance your skillset. However, if you ask for and then don’t incorporate their feedback, the opposite is true — it could lead to a loss of trust and alignment. In fact, our research has found that following through with action is critical for leaders to convey they really were listening, as it shows that they truly heard and understood the other person’s concerns.

12. Affirm with actions.

Leaders don’t just talk — they act. Again, if people hear one thing from you but see another, your credibility is damaged. If employees speak up and you seem to be listening, but then do nothing based on what you learned, they won’t feel heard. People need to trust you. Your behavior and actions communicate a world of information — so focus on following up where appropriate and be clear on the messages you are sending with your actions.

13. Initiate the tough, but needed, conversations.

Don’t shy away from conflict. Holding difficult conversations, whether with a customer or direct report, are an inevitable part of any workplace. It’s tempting to ignore conflicts, but effective leaders must be able to address concerns as they arise. Be sure to approach any difficult conversation from a neutral perspective and explore both sides before coming to a conclusion. Work to problem-solve by inventing options that meet each side’s important concerns, and do your best to resolve conflicts through open communication.

14. Involve others before developing a plan of action.

Leadership doesn’t stop when the communication ends. Take whatever you’ve learned in the exchange, synthesize it, and present your plan to the appropriate stakeholders. Generating buy-in and making sure that everyone is on the same page before executing on strategy will be key to achieving organizational goals.

15. Remember your reputation.

Good communicators never compromise their reputations. At times, you may feel you are walking a fine line between being too aggressive and being too relaxed, and as a leader, you need to make sure you find and balance and avoid leaning too heavily in one direction.

To navigate these challenges and bolster your leadership image, consider asking yourself thought-provoking questions like, “When do I stay out of an issue, and when do I get involved?” or “How do I respond when errors are identified?” Make a list of communication concerns you have, and ask a colleague to describe the behaviors they would consider too aggressive or too relaxed — their responses will help gauge how to move forward.

How Poor Leadership Communication Can Cost Your Organization

Workplace communication is a moving target. Leaders must continue to find new ways to make their communications more effective, purposeful, and trustworthy. But, what if communication becomes stagnant, unorganized, and messy?

Leaders may unintentionally derail their own efforts to enhance their communication. They may not communicate enough because of a fear of oversharing, they may think out loud at the wrong moment, or they may have been too honest with a colleague.

These challenges typically arise in high-stress situations, when expectations or deadlines aren’t met, when an opportunity is lost, or when innovation is lacking. It can be frustrating, but it’s worth putting in the extra effort to tackle these conflicts head-on with candid conversations and productive debate, because when a conflict is mismanaged, costs will continue to mount — whether they result in tangible out-of-pocket costs like turnover, or intangible costs like poor morale, decision-making, or broken trust. Learn more about the impact of poor leadership communication in such situations and the costs of conflict incompetence.

How to Evaluate Your Leadership Communication Skills

Strong communication is one of the quickest ways leaders can build trust. Here are some actions that you can take while communicating. As you’re reading them, rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 5 — with a 1 signifying it’s an area that you need to work on, and 5 meaning that you have excelled:

• Avoid mixed messages: ensure that your words and actions are consistent.
• Act in ways that support the values of your organization.
• Go directly to the relevant individual to discuss the situation if having difficulty with another coworker or team member.
• Serve as a sounding board on sensitive issues for others.
• Share your opinions and perspectives, even when they’re different from the majority view.
• Avoid being a “yes” person.
• Keep your focus on the big picture and the shared goals of the organization.
• Accept accountability for your actions and the results of those actions.
• Promote respectful dialogue and productive debate.

Now that you’ve assessed your skills, how high is your score? How well did you do? If you identified any areas that need improvement, begin today by marking the one that you will start with immediately to improve your skills in leadership communication.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Effective communication for leaders is essential. Partner with us to craft a customized learning journey for your team using our research-based modules. Available leadership topics include Authenticity, Communication & Leadership Training, Feedback That Works, Emotional Intelligence, Influence, Listening to Understand, Psychological Safety, and more.

Or, build conversational skills across your team to scale a culture of open communication and feedback across your entire organization.

The post Essential Communication Skills for Leaders appeared first on CCL.

It all starts with conversations.

What Are Coaching Conversations, and Why Are They Important?

A coaching conversation can be defined as a conversation in which someone uses coaching skills to hold a dialogue with someone else that helps them to learn, grow, and develop. This exchange can happen in a formal or informal setting, and can range from a one-time conversation to an ongoing series of discussions.

Coaching conversations are important because when done well, they can be transformational — both at an individual and organizational level. In terms of interpersonal impact, a coaching conversation between 2 people can:

• Facilitate learning, growth, and development by encouraging individuals to reflect, explore, and discover solutions
• Strengthen relationships by providing support and guidance while fostering trust, openness, and mutual respect
• Help identify and overcome barriers to performance, leading to improved outcomes
• Foster creative thinking and problem-solving, leading to innovative solutions
• Encourage accountability and promote a sense of ownership and responsibility

And when enough people are having them, coaching conversations can begin to impact entire organizations. As a critical mass is reached, with people at all levels holding candid conversations and coaching one another, something powerful begins to happen: it instills a coaching culture. Team relationships strengthen, employee engagement increases, and business performance improves, which can increase:

• Employee engagement;
• Job satisfaction and morale;
• Collaboration;
• Teamwork; and
• Bench strength.

When Do Coaching Conversations Happen?

Coaching conversations aren’t just for specialized or trained coaching professionals. In fact, nearly anyone can conduct a coaching conversation. Coaches can help anyone who is ready to identify problems and find solutions. And developing people — coaching others — is an important part of leadership. So, managers can coach people by holding coaching conversations with colleagues or direct reports in the course of everyday work.

In fact, some of the most powerful coaching conversation experiences can happen in informal exchanges — in hallways, cafeterias, workspaces, virtual chats, and video calls. As coaching interactions occur across the entire organization, whether in-person or virtually, communication becomes more clear, honest, and effective, and together, all these better conversations start to create a better culture at the organization.

Ready to get started with coaching conversations right now? Learn how to communicate better, connect more deeply, listen more effectively, build trust, and feel more satisfied — both inside and outside of work — with our Better Conversations Every Day guidebook.

Best Practices for Coaching Conversations

If you’re ready to try to hold a coaching conversation with someone, here are some things to know.

First, Recognize Opportunities for a Coaching Conversation

First, identify when there’s an opportunity for a coaching conversation. Not all conversations lend themselves well to coaching. Make sure you know whether it’s the right time. To recognize when someone is open to having a coaching conversation, pay attention to their cues. Listen for phrases like:

• “Can you help me think things through?”
• “I’d like to bounce some ideas off of you.”
• “Could you give me a reality check?”
• “I need some help.”

In these moments, you can turn a typical conversation into an opportunity for a coaching conversation.

Remember These 3 Keys

At that point, remember these 3 guidelines to hold a coaching conversation:

1. Listen carefully.
2. Respond thoughtfully.
3. Resist imposing your own solution.

1. Listen carefully.

Don’t assume what the conversation is about or what path it should take. Truly listen, allowing space for others to think, reflect, and express themselves. Start with your active listening skillset, but know that truly listening goes beyond active listening, to listening to understand. 

Listening to understand focuses on the idea that there are multiple levels of information we must tune into during conversations. One level, of course, is the factual information being presented — most of us tend to pay attention primarily to that. But listening for the values behind the topic at hand and the emotions that people bring to an issue is an important part of a better conversation.

That’s where we often find unstated objections, sensible reservations, and concealed barriers that might torpedo new initiatives. Stronger and more robust solutions to business challenges emerge when people are really listening to understand one another.

2. Respond thoughtfully.

Coaching isn’t about the quick fix or first solution. It’s about uncovering answers through inquiry, openness, and exploration. Start by asking powerful questions that draw out more information or stretch the other person’s thinking, such as:

• What else could you do?
• What else occurs to you?
• Who else have you talked to about this?
• Who else is affected in this situation?

Beyond creating mutual understanding about facts, when leaders ask good questions, it can help to uncover insights that wouldn’t have come to light otherwise.

A non-directive prompting question like “How do you want your team to feel when you announce the new initiative?” is likely to spark more reflection and lead to greater insights than asking “When are you announcing the new initiative?” While the latter question might be helpful in getting the person inquiring up to speed, it isn’t particularly powerful and isn’t likely to add any real value for the person answering, as they simply repeat a straightforward fact they already know.

Be sure you set a comfortable tone, maintain eye contact, and give plenty of time for them to think and respond to your questions. Encourage them to express themselves — without you agreeing or disagreeing.

3. Resist imposing your own solution.

Shift away from the common and natural tendency to want to problem-solve or give advice. There are times to direct or give answers, but coaching conversations are about the other person’s learning — not about your opinion or expertise.

Informed by neuroscience, the real art of conversation is balancing an appropriate mix of challenge and support. Providing support includes assuring people that they’ve been heard and, especially, that their feelings and values are understood. It provides an important sense of creating psychological safety at work, building trust, and encouraging greater honesty and transparency.

When that ratio is right — and practiced in an authentic rather than formulaic way — the challenge is received and actually fosters more constructive dialogue, rather than triggering defensiveness.

When you’re able to listen carefully, respond thoughtfully, and resist imposing your own solution, you have the basis of a coaching conversation.

So whether that conversation was a planned coaching session or an impromptu moment, you’ve opened the door to new thinking, new action, and valuable learning.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Individual participants in our coaching skills program for leaders learn how to hold a coaching conversation. Or, your organization can partner with us for enterprise-wide conversational skills training with our Better Conversations Every Day suite and scale a culture of coaching conversations across your entire organization.

The post How to Have a Coaching Conversation appeared first on CCL.

Feeling out of sync with colleagues of other generations as you work on projects and in teams? Some people call this the generation gap in the workplace.

But here’s a secret — regardless of age, they’re probably a lot more like you than you might expect.

Today, 5 generations are in the workforce: Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Baby Boomers, and the Silent Generation. While some motivations differ, they do share similar desires. Employees of all generations, for example, want to work on teams with people they trust and care about.

Creating a team dynamic that works for everyone is essential — and it can be done.

10 Tactics for Leading Across Generations

How to Bridge the Gap of a Multigenerational Workforce

We’ve compiled 10 tactics to address the generation gap in the workplace and help leaders look past the stereotypes and effectively lead across generations. The approaches here are adapted from over a decade of our research, including our research on emerging leaders, which is based on data from thousands of Gen Z and Millennial young professionals around the world; our book What Millennials Want From Work; and our white paper What Makes a Leader Effective?, which polled Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials. These are the keys to successfully leading a multigenerational workforce.

1. Learn from one another.

Older workers often have significant experience that can’t be learned in school, and younger team members usually appreciate it when that wisdom is shared. But being told that something needs to be done a particular way just because it’s “how things are done around here” will open the door to pushback. Those who’ve been in the workforce for a long time should recognize that, just because things have been done a certain way in the past, that doesn’t mean it’s the best way for the future.

There’s a stereotype that younger workers think they should be exempt from boring work. Older team members may remember “paying their dues” earlier in their careers and have no sympathy. But what if, working together, you could come up with alternatives to doing repetitive work, or at least find ways to reduce it considerably?

Younger employees, many of them digital natives, may have ideas or technology options that haven’t been explored, and more experienced employees have the knowledge and expertise to make new processes work. That’s why some organizations, recognizing the need to bridge the generation gap in the workplace, are beginning to partner their older and younger team members in formal or informal reverse mentoring arrangements.

2. Foster wellbeing.

Want to keep your organization competitive in retaining employees of all ages? Consider our best practices that support employee wellbeing and leading across generations. These include helping young workers nurture a broad network of relationships both inside and outside the office, and encouraging regular exercise and time for mindful reflection.

Remember to lead by example. “Walk and talk” meetings can help marry business with exercise, while a daily “out of office” email reply after work makes it clear that team members aren’t expected to be on call 24-7.

Workers of all generations report that they’re more likely to stay with their organizations if flexible schedules are allowed and remote working is supported. Employees of all ages are willing to work long hours but also want to have a life outside of work. Whether raising families, preparing for retirement, caring for elderly parents, or pursuing personal interests, employees often feel that their organizations forget that they have lives outside work.

3. Share values and show respect.

We often hear that younger people are disrespectful of older employees and people in authority. We also hear complaints that older people show no respect for younger talent and ideas. Many people think that older and younger people value vastly different things.

However, our research has shown that different generations actually have fairly similar values. For example, “family”  is the value chosen most frequently by people of all generations. Other widely shared values include the following:

• Integrity
• Achievement
• Love
• Competence
• Happiness
• Self-respect
• Wisdom
• Balance
• Responsibility

The reality is that everyone wants pretty much the same thing, which is for their organizations to cultivate a culture of respect — they just don’t define it in the same way. Some would argue this is really the secret to teamwork and leading a multigenerational workforce.

Our research shows that today’s young professionals also prioritize value alignment between their personally held beliefs and their organization’s mission and driving principles. Clearly defining and communicating what your organization stands for is an important way to deliver upon this. Also, take steps to show that you value the perspectives of the youngest members of your team.

4. Be a trustworthy leader.

By and large, people of all generations value trust in the workplace. At all levels, they trust the people they work with directly — such as bosses, peers, and direct reports — more than they trust their organizations. And people trust their organization more than they trust upper management.

What do different generations expect from their leaders? Conventional wisdom says older generations want a command-and-control type of leader and that younger generations want leaders who include them more in decision-making. But our research says that effective leadership is less about style and more about substance. People of all generations want leaders who are credible and trustworthy, above all else.

5. Promote psychological safety.

Our research study with Y20 found that 41% of young adults (ages 18–30) want to lead in the future. The top personal barrier getting in their way: psychological safety.

A psychologically safe workplace encourages workers of all ages to make meaningful contributions. Young professionals want a sense of belonging at work and to feel accepted for who they are, including those characteristics and perspectives that make them different from others. They also want encouragement to learn and grow — without fear of repercussions for asking questions or making mistakes.

To promote psychological safety at work, consider asking your senior leaders to share stories about mistakes they’ve made, or use organization-wide meetings or newsletters to share “failing forward” stories that encourage risk-taking. This transparency makes it clear across generations that missteps are an opportunity to deepen learning.

6. Communicate change.

The stereotype is that older people hate change and younger generations thrive on it, but these are inaccurate assumptions. In general, people from all generations are uncomfortable with change and can experience change fatigue. Resistance to change has nothing to do with age; it’s all about how much someone has to gain or lose with the change.

The best way to manage change and be a successful change leader is to communicate. Send out memos, host meetings, or implement an open-door policy that embraces communication. Make your team feel comfortable with asking questions and voicing concerns.

7. Break down silos.

The ability to build bridges — across an organization’s divisions and across a multigenerational workforce — is important. Successful leaders must help everyone learn how to span boundaries.

Help your young leaders view boundaries not as barriers, but as opportunities for new ways of working and collaborating. Ensure they understand the social aspects of their role and how to work through and with others to achieve results, regardless of age and other factors. One way to break down silos and lead across generations: Set aside time for colleagues of all ages to share their stories, including how their personal background and social identity influence the way they work.

8. Do the right things to retain talent.

It’s as easy to retain a young person as it is to retain an older one — if you do the right things. Just about everyone feels overworked and underpaid. People of all generations have the same ideas about what their organization can do to retain them. Employees want room to advance, respect and recognition, better quality of life, and fair compensation.

An audit of leadership representation — and whether multigenerational voices and perspectives are included when important decisions are made — is one thing to consider. By engaging a diverse cross-section of young employees in your analysis, you can broaden your perspective when leading a multigenerational workforce. After the audit and review, you’ll be poised to take informed steps to level-up access and make your talent management processes a lever for change.

9. Create a learning culture.

Everyone wants to learn — more than just about anything else. Learning and development were among the issues most frequently mentioned by study participants of all generations. Everyone wants to make sure they have the training necessary to do their current job well.

Leading across generations includes creating a learning culture that prioritizes and rewards gaining and sharing knowledge. You can also help employees create a personalized development roadmap that provides a clear understanding of what the organization needs, how their performance compares to peers, and which improvements they must make to support success. Building the core leadership skills needed in every role and career stage is another way to boost employee motivation and learning.

10. Build coaching skills.

Almost everyone wants a coach. We’ve heard that younger people are constantly asking for feedback and can’t get enough of it. We’ve also heard that older people don’t want any feedback at all. According to our research, everyone wants to know how they’re doing and wants to learn how to do better. Feedback can come in many forms, and people of all generations appreciate receiving it. Building coaching skills and a coaching culture at your organization can help.

Equipping everyone to hold coaching conversations can help create a stronger organizational culture for workers of all ages.

Leading a Multigenerational Workforce or Team: Final Thoughts

Our research shows that, fundamentally, people want the same things, no matter what generation they represent. So the so-called generation gap in the workplace is, in large part, the result of miscommunication and misunderstanding, fueled by common insecurities and the desire for clout. Successfully leading across generations is actually pretty straightforward.

So let go of your assumptions about the challenges of a multigenerational workforce, and spend more time developing your leaders of all ages.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Support your multigenerational workforce by scaling leadership development across your organization. Partner with us on an enterprise solution, such as CCL Passport, that supports learning and growth for your leaders at every level.

The post Tactics for Leading Across Generations appeared first on CCL.

But what if you are asked to coach a subordinate or a peer within your organization? Is coaching someone who you work with daily an impossible task? It isn’t — if you know the key principles of coaching for leaders.

6 Core Leadership Coaching Principles

Key Tips for Leader-Coaches

Whether you’re an external executive coach or a leader-coach working in the trenches of your organization, a lot of the same rules of thumb apply in terms of what it takes to coach people. Use these 6 core principles for leadership coaching to coach someone from an office, cubicle, or virtual call.

1. First, create a safe and supportive, yet challenging environment.

We all need our thinking challenged at times. But offered without sufficient support, challenge can cause damage by decreasing trust and eroding morale. Providing safety and support includes assuring people that they’ve been heard and that their feelings and values are understood. It builds trust, encourages honesty and candor, and helps your coachee feel psychologically safe at work.

It’s up to you to create an environment where risk-taking feels rewarding, not risky, so keep your attitude as open and as nonjudgmental as possible, and let the coachee know you support them, even as you test their knowledge and skills. (This is the basis of our Assessment – Challenge – Support (ACS) framework, one of our widely-recognized leadership development models; remember ACS to ensure you’re providing needed support at the same time as challenge and accountability.)

2. Try to work within the coachee’s agenda.

Remember, in a coaching conversation, it’s not about you, so let the coachee decide which goals to work on and even how to go about improving. Sure, it’s great when the coachee’s own agenda aligns perfectly with the organization’s goals, but never impose your personal priorities on the relationship. When it’s clear you need to push a point, put on your managerial hat — thereby preserving the special collaborative coaching relationship you’re trying so hard to build.

3. Facilitate and collaborate.

Like Socrates, who always led his students with questions, the best coaches don’t give direct answers or act the expert. Focus on using active listening skills when coaching others.

Really hear the coachee’s needs, and avoid filling the lesson with your own life stories and pet theories. Although you may suggest several options for responding to a problem or issue, the ultimate choice of what to do next should rest with the coachee — with you acting as the facilitator and collaborator.

Ready to start today? If you’re designing, initiating, or implementing coaching programs, explore our actionable guidance on approaches and techniques that drive better outcomes in our Handbook of Coaching in Organizations.

4. Advocate self-awareness.

You want your coachee to learn how to recognize their own strengths and present weaknesses — a prerequisite skill for any good leader. In the same way, you should understand how your own behaviors as a coach impact the people around you. Demonstrate a sense of awareness in yourself and you’re more likely to foster in your coachee a similar self-awareness. You may also want to share ways to boost self-awareness.

5. Promote learning from experience.

Most people can learn, grow, and change only if they have the right set of experiences and are open to learning from them. As a coach, always help your coachee reflect on past events and to analyze what went well and what didn’t. Foster experiential learning and using experience to fuel development, and your student will continue to improve long after the end of your lessons.

6. Finally, model what you coach.

This, the last of the 6 core principles of coaching, may be the most difficult to embody, as it means putting into practice outside of class the leadership lessons you’ve been trying to communicate.

And remember, if you don’t feel you have the capacity to coach on a particular issue, refer your coachee to someone more experienced — perhaps someone who, we hope, puts into practice the 6 core leadership coaching principles even better than you do.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

If you’re seeking a highly trained, world-class provider of leadership coaching services for your leaders, we can help. Or, if you’d like to instill the principles of leadership coaching across your organization, partner with us to offer enterprise-wide conversational skills training with our Better Conversations Every Day suite.

The post The 6 Principles of Effective Coaching for Leaders appeared first on CCL.

What can you do to improve talent development?

Teach your leaders how to give feedback regularly and well (we recommend using our SBI feedback model), and help them to hold effective feedback conversations with employees.

This is the fastest way to improve talent development because individual leaders are in the best position to influence and develop talent — or shut it down. Managers can give employees good reasons to be engaged, work effectively, and build their skills.

Most importantly, a talent conversation isn’t done to someone, but with someone. It’s about building a relationship that allows managers to influence employees toward improved performance, development, and positive outcomes.

It’s one of the simplest yet most effective ways to develop others. And, if the employee has been given honest, ongoing feedback, these conversations don’t come as surprises.

Some of the most valuable types of feedback are given in the moment and on routine, day-to-day behaviors. When feedback is given consistently and well, managers establish and strengthen trust. The more trust and rapport managers can build, the more readily subordinates will accept and act on future feedback, creating a pattern of learning and growth.

In the face of unrelenting disruption, effective leadership is what’s needed most. Download our new Talent Development report to learn how investing in talent development today will position your organization to succeed tomorrow.

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Hold More Constructive Feedback Conversations With Our SBI Feedback Model

First and foremost, make sure your managers know that giving feedback on a regular basis is more effective than saving it all for the performance review. Ongoing feedback conversations can:

• Motivate employees to continue a behavior that increases their effectiveness
• Encourage them to stop a behavior that reduces their impact
• Encourage employees to adopt or modify a behavior that will make them more effective
• Foster greater commitment to their work and the organization

Secondly, we recommend sharing any feedback using our SBI feedback model. It’s a simple ways for leaders to structure feedback conversations to capture and clarify the Situation, describe the specific Behaviors, and explain the Impact that the person’s behavior had.

Our SBI feedback model can be used to give both positive and negative feedback. It’s a process that may feel awkward or formal at first, but once managers get some practice, they tell us that they find it’s incredibly helpful.

The SBI Feedback Model in 3 Simple Steps

1. Describe the Situation.

Describe the specific situation in which the behavior occurred. Include the time and place to reduce any confusion.

2. Describe the Behavior.

Describe the actual, observable behavior being discussed. Keep to facts only and avoid inserting any opinions or judgments.

3. Describe the Impact.

Describe the results of the behavior in terms of the impact it had, whether the effect was positive or negative.

Take the Feedback Even Further by Asking About Intentions

Our SBI feedback model can be even more helpful when accompanied with an inquiry about intent. This turns the one-way act of giving feedback into a two-way dialogue, a feedback conversation, where both parties can have a clarifying discussion around intentions versus impact. Learn more about using SBI to explore intent vs. impact.

Feedback Conversations Can Be Talent Conversations

Feedback conversations can be thought of as talent conversations. They’re an opportunity for managers to influence their direct reports towards improved performance, development, and positive outcomes.

Feedback conversations can happen at any time, and are part of what it takes to coach your people on an ongoing basis. But one of the most critical moments for holding effective talent conversations is during your organization’s regular performance review process.

Here are some guidelines to consider for those times.

First, Understand the 4 Types of Talent Conversations

Managers need to be prepared to hold 4 types of talent conversations, based on how an employee is doing. The first step is to clarify whether the employee is considered top talent, a solid performer, a potential performer, or an underperformer. The feedback conversation will have a different focus, depending on how the employee is viewed. From there, you will know where to focus the feedback conversation.

The Top Talent Conversation

Focus on future investment. Individuals who clearly meet or exceed expectations and deliver superior results are top talent. These are the individuals who are seen as the future leaders in the organization. Be sure you’re being thoughtful about engaging this high-potential talent.

The Solid Performer Conversation

Focus on maintaining or building value. Solid performers are typically individual contributors who are valued by the organization but could take on more responsibility.

The Potential Performer Conversation

Focus on short-term success for now. Potential performers are individuals who may not have had enough time in their role to show significant results but are expected to bring a lot to the role they’re in.

The Underperformer Conversation

Focus on improving performance. Underperformers are not meeting expectations. The feedback conversation should remain focused on the here and now rather than future options, new tasks, or additional responsibilities. Learn more about managing a difficult employee.

Discover how to use talent conversations to build relationships based on rapport, collaboration, and mutual commitment and help your team improve performance, focus development, and reach positive outcomes.

How to Structure a Feedback Conversation With Your Talent

Whatever other formal talent management or leadership development systems are in place, feedback conversations are where development becomes real. It’s the best time for managers to build their direct report’s commitment to the organization and engagement in the work.

So the feedback conversation itself should have a structure, too. Things will go more smoothly if you follow these 6 steps:

1. Clarify the goal. What’s the purpose of the feedback conversation? What exactly does each person want to accomplish?
2. Explore the issues. Assess strengths, vulnerabilities, development needs, and performance. Identify motivation and career aspirations.
3. Identify the options. Generate ideas and opportunities for learning and improvement.
4. Set expectations. What do we want to do first? Next? What are the obstacles?
5. Motivate. What support is needed? Are you sure the goals are meaningful? How can I help and what else is needed?
6. Identify the plan. How will we know you are on target? How will we track outcomes?

Learn even more about our recommendations for holding feedback conversations with your direct reports in our guidebook, Talent Conversations: What They Are, Why They’re Crucial, and How to Do Them Right.

Demands placed on managers to meet performance goals can be relentless, and priorities and challenges shift frequently. That’s why the key to improving your talent development processes is ensuring that your managers can hold meaningful feedback conversations with talent (and again, our SBI feedback model is a great tool for that).

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Upskill your team’s capacity for holding effective feedback conversations. We can create a customized learning journey for your leaders using our research-based modules. Available leadership topics include Conflict Resolution, Emotional Intelligence, Feedback That Works, Listening to Understand, Psychological Safety, and Talent Conversations.

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