How to Change Employee Behavior through Coaching: Try These 4 Steps

The ability to instill change in your team members is one of the most important skills for any people leader. It’s critical for newly promoted managers as well as long-tenured CEOs. When I say change, I am talking about adopting new mindsets, learning new behaviors, and acquiring new skills. Examples include seeking out discomfort in service of personal growth, becoming a lifelong learner, developing a greater sense of ownership, and adapting your communication based on others’ preferred communication styles.

4 Steps to Changing Employee Behavior

While change can be hard, it is possible if you approach it the right way. Below are four steps to help you create behavior change within your teams.

Step 1: Start by Explaining “Why” It Is Important

Most human beings loathe change and long for stability. Whether we are talking about daily routines, habits, or methods of getting work done, people tend to stick with what they know, regardless of the outcomes they are achieving.

To help your team members break out of this catatonic state, start by explaining the “why.” Before focusing on “what” needs to change and “how” to achieve it, be intentional to explain “why” changing a specific behavior or learning a new skill matters in the first place. The “why” is the fuel that provides the spark and motivation to change. Given the relentless pursuit of outcomes, most leaders skip over the “why” to move quickly to “what” needs to change.

 My first experience in the importance of leading (or not leading) with why was during college. I had landed my first “business” internship for an accounting firm in Sacramento that was an offshoot of Ernst & Young. The firm had a long-term contract with the Prison Industry Authority and my work centered on creating very basic budgeting spreadsheets. After putting the final touches on my spreadsheet, I reviewed it with my manager. To my dismay, my supposed masterpiece was shredded by my manager. There were all sorts of issues including the fact that the decimal places in one of the columns weren’t lined up. Wow, he’s really uptight, I remember thinking as I made the necessary adjustments so that it was client ready.

While he had provided “what” I needed to change, he could or should have led with “why” it was important. “At our firm, attention to detail and accurate analysis is one of the reasons clients hire us over and over again,” he could have said. “If we have typos in emails and formatting errors in spreadsheets, that dings our credibility and could prevent us from winning future contracts.” Instead, I left this internship thinking accountants were “uptight” and focused on unimportant tasks. Clearly, I was wrong, but they also could have explained why it was important so that it wasn’t until years later that I realized the importance of attention to detail and its impact on client delivery and retention.

My story is a simple one, but the point is clear. When you are asking someone to change, lead with “why” the change is important and avoid the temptation to jump right to “what” needs to change. This holds true whether you are teaching a team member about executive presence or you are coaching a new manager how to conduct one-on-one coaching conversations aimed at development. Start with “why” and you’ll increase engagement and buy-in to the change.

Step 2: Define “What” the End or Next State Looks Like

Once you have gained buy-in around why the change matters, define what the change looks like. If you are coaching your team member to boost their executive presence, break-down it down into bite-size components such as projecting vision, staying calm under pressure, using intonation, and telling stories to convey big points. Depending on the complexity of the topic and nature of the change, it may make sense to start with the “next” state and not the end state. Be clear to provide examples of “what” the next step looks like in adopting a new mindset or behavior as well as acquiring a new skill.

WARNING: This is where most leaders go wrong. They skip over step 1 and jump right into what needs to happen. While that may be faster in the very short-term, you’ll receive much better medium and long-term results by taking the time and effort to first discuss the reasons for the change. You’ll create greater engagement as well as increased ownership of the process and the outcome.

Step 3: Co-Create “How” to Achieve the “What”

Now, it’s time to move to action and bring the change to life by discussing “how” to achieve the “what.” Avoid the temptation to be prescriptive. Instead, lead with a question to get your team member’s input. Consider asking, “How can you start to demonstrate greater ownership in your role?” or “How can you start to practice active listening in meetings with your direct reports?” Lead with a question and co-create the “how” with your team members. Co-creation of the solution will lead to greater engagement and empowerment of your team and provide greater motivation to make the change.

Step 4: Coach to Success

Driving change within your teams is not a one and done exercise. Be sure to revisit each of the changes (even small ones) in your regular one-on-one meetings. As you do, be sure to acknowledge their efforts (not just the outcomes they are achieving), identify barriers that are getting in their way, and ask how you can support them in achieving the change. Regular check-ins are critical to make iterative adjustments and the course corrections necessary to achieve the change and make a new mindset or behavior become a habit.

Change can be hard, but it doesn’t have to be. Slow down with your team members to explain why it matters before shifting to what needs to happen and how to achieve it. Doing so will improve your chances of the change occurring and also create greater ownership and engagement along the way.

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