Disciplining an employee who has engaged in improper conduct should be different from dealing with an employee who is not performing work duties well. In fact, most business people prefer to refer to the latter as coaching, rather than discipline.

In a situation where there are performance problems, employees may not be willfully doing something that violates your policies and may just need some guidance. Some performance problems may even be the result of morale problems.

Effective coaching and giving constructive feedback can be difficult and challenging, but have their advantages:

• Employees learn more about their jobs and perform better.
• Employees develop a sense of loyalty toward you and the business.
• Working conditions are improved.
• Productivity is enhanced and maximized.

The characteristics of a good coach are that he or she is:

• confident in the abilities of individuals
• enthusiastic
• caring
• supportive
• goal-oriented
• knowledgeable
• a good communicator
• patient
• responsive
• an excellent listener

The coaching process has certain perspectives and behaviors that can be duplicated in the workplace. They are:

• Mutual respect. Both you and your employees must accept the mutual dependence each has on the other in order for each of you to succeed. From that relationship, respect can grow based on the contributions of each party.
• Supportive environment. Where there is respect, it follows that the working environment will be supportive. The opposite is true where there is distrust or conflict.
• Trust. Where there is fear, there can be no trust. The workplace must encourage an atmosphere of trust, which includes candor and an acceptance of an initial level of failure.

In order to counsel employees, you must focus your attention on the goals that you are trying to get the employee to achieve. Those goals may be to increase profits, increase market share, create new products, reduce error rates, or achieve other business-related objectives. In order for employees to know how their work can contribute to the goal, they must be taught:

• what the goal is
• how it is achieved
• what part their work plays in reaching the goal

As the coach, you must:

• set clear expectations
• set performance standards
• measure performance
• correct deviations from performance standards
• make it clear that you are on the same side as the employee
• provide guidance while preserving the employee's self-esteem

Once you have an understanding of the philosophy of coaching an employee, you're ready to move on to:

• the steps involved in coaching an employee
• giving constructive feedback
• pitfalls of constructive feedback