CIPD report calls for a new style of management to help motivate employees

CIPD report calls for a new style of management to help motivate employees, as a UK-wide reduction in training budgets and development opportunities takes hold

A new CIPD research report launched today, Coaching at the Sharp End, is the first in the UK to assess the implications of the devolution of coaching to line managers. It examines the issues from the perspective of line managers and develops a framework through which line managers and HR professionals can work together to foster a coaching style of management; calling for a move from a command and control approach to a more participative style.

It challenges the idea that line managers can fulfil all the functions of a specialist coach; instead calling for a coaching style of management as more realistic and desirable for organisations facing the challenges of the recession and beyond.

An extensive survey of over 500 managers from ten organisations, representing different levels of seniority, age, gender and background was conducted as part of the research, enabling the creation of a two stage model of coaching characteristics. The results also helped reveal the main constraints to achieving a coaching style of management; identified as time constraints, organisational culture, a perceived lack of skills and a lack of confidence to deal with difficult people.

Dr John McGurk, Learning, Training and Development Adviser, CIPD says:

Coaching as a management style is just as appropriate for organisations facing the challenges of hostile economic conditions as it is for those enjoying business growth and development. This guidance will help HR professionals work with their line managers to diagnose the most effective way forward in implementing and embedding coaching so that it becomes part of 'business as normal'.

A coaching style of management must be seen by top managers as a business issue rather than a learning and development department initiative. This means senior managers must communicate their commitment to coaching in a consistent way. Both learning and development and coaching and mentoring have roles in design and support, but if line managers are to engage then coaching needs to have the imprint of a business strategy - as evidenced by those organisations involved in the research.

The research also made use of discussion groups involving 95 participants from 69 organisations, as well as in-depth interviews with four organisations (VT Group plc, KPMG, Southern Railway and Child Benefit and Tax Credit Office) probing the issues surrounding the reasons for the introduction of coaching in their organisations and the implications for the role and expectations of line managers.