Why Managers Need to Coach

I had a surprise last week when I was asked to be an instructor at NYU Graduate School of Leadership & Human Capital Management…perhaps more surprised when I learned they wanted me to teach one of six courses on Coaching.

The class comprised of a group of Gen X/Y and Millenials. Why are they interested in learning coaching skills? Because their experience in being managed in traditional ways has taught them that as managers themselves they need new ways to motivate, inspire and support their people to be satisfied and productive contributors.

But a series of graduate level courses on coaching? Blew me away that what I have been teaching and preaching for over 30 years has come to this. Now that I think about it, When I was working on my MBA we were taught “coaching” but it was then termed Theory “X” and Theory “Y”.

Not much, then, has really changed. A predominate number of mangers get appointed because of their technical expertise and manage others based on how they were (are) managed. Just like becoming a parent!

So I am delighted to have the opportunity to really help managers understand new ways to be instrumental in causing greater success in others.