THE

THE FRAMEWORK, MINDSET AND

EXTRAORDINARY
SKILLS, THAT EMPOWER LEADERS

COACH
TO HELP OTHERS GROW

ZENGER FOLKMAN
EBOOK COPYRIGHT ZENGER FOLKMAN 2022
CONTENTS

1
ARE YOU A GOOD COACH?

2
A COACHING MINDSET

THE FRAMEWORK FOR COACHING

3
4
FEEDBACK AND COACHING

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
1
C H A P T E R

ARE YOU A GOOD

COACH?

Z E N G E R F O L K M A N

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HOW MANY LEADERS BELIEVE THEY
1 ARE BETTER COACHES THAN THEY
REALLY ARE?
The most critical test for measuring your
effectiveness is how the recipients of your
coaching rate your skills (and how their
performance increases).

We examined 3,761 leaders who assessed their

own coaching skills and had the courage to
have others also assess them.

What we found:

Cornell psychologists David Dunning and Justin

Kruger observed that for any given skill,
incompetent people fail to (1) recognize their own
deficiencies and (2) recognize the skill in others.
What traits are found in these leaders who
overrate their coaching abilities?
The lower an individual is on
ANY scale of measurement,
the more out-of-touch they
tend to become.

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
7 TRAITS OF
COACHING
OVERRATERS
1
Poor listening. Effective listeners do so without
judgment, have a strong desire to understand, and are
willing to take the time to hear about the needs and
concerns of others.

2
Not a role model. The best coaches create an open,
trusting environment by initiating positive interactions
with others.

3
Not collaborative. Effective coaches look for
opportunities to cooperate and collaborate with
others. Ineffective coaches, conversely, are
competitive.

4
Don’t develop others. Willingness to bring someone
into your circle and make the ongoing effort to coach
them is an active demonstration of compassion.

5
Fail to provide feedback. The best coaches are
willing to give clear, honest, pointed feedback about
what people need to do to improve performance.

6
Lack integrity. Great coaches honor commitments
and do what is right regardless of personal
consequences.

7
Don’t encourage diversity. Great coaches respect
others and value differences regardless of age, gender,
or race.

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
Becoming a great
coach begins with
aspiring to be a
good one.

—Jack Zenger

CONSIDER THIS...
IN WHAT WAYS DO I COACH MY EMPLOYEES NOW?
Annual or semiannual formal performance review
discussions
Regularly scheduled one-on-one meetings
Spot coaching: informal discussion related to
issues as they arise.
Providing performance feedback (positive and
negative)
Regular discussion regarding career development
Regularly reviewing development goals, assessing
progress, and creating next steps
Providing opportunities for skill expansion (stretch
assignments, etc.)
Being a connector—helping employees build
networks with other useful people
Supporting formal training and development
efforts

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
2
C H A P T E R

A COACHING
MINDSET

Z E N G E R F O L K M A N

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2
COACHING
REPRESENTS BOTH A
MINDSET AND A SKILL
SET, AND THE
MINDSET MUST PRECEDE
THE SKILL SET.
Here is our definition of coaching: “Interactions that help
the individual being coached to expand awareness,
discover superior solutions, and make and implement
better decisions.”

Coaching is NOT...

MENTORING TEACHING COUNSELING

A coach does not need to Coaching is far broader Coaching focuses on the
have lived the experience than merely conveying future, aiming to create a
of a coachee to be effective information. desired state and a series of
in helping guide them to actions to help achieve it.
an effective solution.

The very nature of a coaching process, conversation, or

relationship is that it focuses on change, growth, and
improvement.

Coaching conversations should move the coachee forward

in thought or action.

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
CONTINUUM OF LEADERSHIP APPROACHES

laissez-faire collaborative autocratic

I’m Too Let Them Ask Them: Tell Them; I'll Do It
Busy Figure It Out Spend Time Show Them Myself

Abdicating Investing and Controlling Actions

Responsibility Growing and Results

IF EMPLOYEES WANT CONTROL AND

INFLUENCE IN THEIR WORK
ENVIRONMENTS, WHICH
MANAGEMENT STYLE IS BEST?
Tannenbaum and Schmidt articulated various
approaches to leadership—laissez-faire, autocratic, and
collaborative. Tannenbaum and Schmidt noted that
the work environments that seemed to function best
were those in which there was the most felt and
expressed control and influence.

Questions

1 Where would
continuum?
you place yourself on this

2 Where would your employees place you on the

continuum?

3
What is your mindset for coaching? What
benefits could you achieve by adopting a
collaborative approach?

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
The enormous
DO MANAGERS PREFER value of
COACHING OVER DIRECTIVE coaching is
what it does
LEADERSHIP? to develop
A negative score indicates a preference people and
for strong, direct leadership.
A positive score indicates a greater
create a more
desire to act as a coach. engaged and
RESULTS: The vast majority preferred to
manage through coaching.
empowered
team of
employees.

What we’ve tracked

here is people’s desire
to act in a particular
way, not what they
actually act.

Those in top
management positions
have the strongest
desire to be more
collaborative and help
others find their own
solutions; supervisors
ranked the lowest.
A really effective autocratic leader can be
efficient and quick about getting things done.
But something suffers in the process.
People wait for orders.
They stop taking initiative.
Their level of engagement declines slowly—and
often rapidly—as time progresses. It can be easy
in the effort to get the job done to lose sight of
the long-term goal of helping people get better
at getting the job done.

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
3
C H A P T E R

THE
FRAMEWORK

Z E N G E R F O L K M A N

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3

FUEL
THE FRAMEWORK
FOR COACHING
Coaching conversations are worth planning.

They take valuable time, so that time should be put to its

most efficient use! The FUEL coaching model provides a
valuable framework or set of guidelines to follow.

It’s a framework, not a cage.

This model is malleable and flexible. You won’t use all of

these steps in every conversation, BUT the more you
follow the guidelines, the more productive your coaching
conversations will be.

The coach owns the process; the

coachee owns the content.

—Jack Zenger & Kathleen Stinnett

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
F.U.E.L.
FRAME THE CONVERSATION
Set the context for the conversation by agreeing on
the purpose, process, and desired outcomes of the
discussion.

EXAMPLE:
I’d like to talk about…
What else would you like to make sure that we
address?

UNDERSTAND THE CURRENT STATE

Explore the current state from the coachee’s point of
view. Expand the coachee’s awareness of the situation
to determine the real coaching issue.

EXAMPLE:
How do you see this situation?
What is working well?
What impact is this having on you?

EXPLORE THE DESIRED STATE

Articulate the vision of success in this scenario, and
explore multiple alternative paths before prioritizing
methods of achieving this vision.

EXAMPLE:
What would you like to see happen here?
What are your goals?

LAY OUT A SUCCESS PLAN

Identify the specific, time-bounded action steps to
achieve the desired results, and determine milestones
for follow-up and accountability.

EXAMPLE
What specific actions will help you
achieve your goals?
Who will hold you accountable?
How can I support you?

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
THE POWER OF
FRAMEWORKS/CHECKLISTS
STORY
At one time, hospitals faced a large problem with patient
infections from placing central line catheters. In one
prestigious hospital, 1 out of 9 insertions became infected.
This resulted in a long hospital stay and sometimes caused
death. A Johns Hopkins physician, Dr. Peter Pronovost,
decided to conduct an experiment. He made a checklist of
5 things doctors needed to do when performing the
procedure.

1. Wash hands with soap

2. Clean the patient's skin with chlorhexidine antiseptic.
3. Cover the patient's entire body with sterile drapes.
4. Wear a mask, hat, sterile gown, and gloves.
5. Put a sterile dressing over the insertion site once the
catheter is in.

After this checklist was implemented at Johns Hopkins,

the center line infection rate dropped from 11% to 0. When
the state of Michigan began using this checklist, its
infection rate dropped 66 percent in three months.

USE A COACHING GUIDE

A checklist allows
the individual to
focus on the
immediate action
rather than
what is
coming next.

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
Listening Well
The best thing you can do when you are listening to your
coachee explain a situation is WAIT.
W.A.I.T.
as in Why Am I Talking?

Listening is one of the skills few people ever master. Practice

does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.
Practice only makes permanent. And so it is with listening.

COACHING TIPS
Ask Open-Ended, Non-Leading Questions
Closed-Ended Questions (yes/no or finite answers) are
useful in gaining clarity but not in gaining insights.

CLOSED
So, have you shared your frustration with Alison?

OPEN
So, tell me a little about what is going on. How are the
requests lopsided?

Open-ended, non-leading questions are best used in

helping to expand the conversation.

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
4
C H A P T E R

COACHING AND
FEEDBACK

Z E N G E R F O L K M A N

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4 FEEDBACK IS MERELY INFORMATION
THAT HELPS US KNOW WHETHER OUR
ACTIONS ARE ON TARGET.
When feedback is frequent, timely, and balanced,
the individual is more likely to interpret the
feedback as useful information through their own
filters and beliefs.

Not every conversation is a

coaching conversation.

When do you decide to stop and

provide fast feedback to someone,
or when should it be a longer
coaching conversation?

THE FAST FEEDBACK TEST

YES NO
1. Will the information be useful to the recipient?
2. Do you have a trust-based relationship in place that
will support the conversation?
3. Is the behavior change critical for the individual's
success?
4. Will the feedback be new or surprising to hear? Will
the data fall into a blind spot for the individual and
perhaps be shocking?
5. Will the behavior change take significant time, effort,
or support?
6. Are you personally invested in the behavior change?

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
HOW DO WE ACHIEVE
EFFECTIVE COACHING?
1. Schedule more frequent sessions that are specifically
identified as coaching time.
2. Transform casual and informal dialogue into coaching
opportunities.

Remember, your job is one of developing people, not

just solving problems.
What could you say or do in this situation to help this
person succeed and grow in the long run?

Most leaders say too little,

wait too long, and hold
back when they should
have stepped in.

—Jack Zenger

Reflection
1 How frequently (on average) do you currently coach each
of your direct reports?

2 what percentage of your time is allocated to each of the

Of the time you spend in those coaching conversations,

following focus areas?

___% Project or task updates
___% Resolving task or people conflicts
___% Increasing performance and skills
___% Career growth/development for the future
___% Other

3 How frequently
conversations?
do you engage in career-focused

4 Which conversations are you not having now that would

make the biggest difference to the organization?

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
Once you have the self-awareness to recognize where your
coaching may need some improvement, it is up to you to take
it to the next level.

Improving requires both intention and action.

Begin every coaching session with your own self-

improvement goal in mind.

Ask for feedback from those you coach.

FEEDBACK FORM
Please complete this brief evaluation form, so that I
can understand what created the most value for you
in this conversation.
1 = Low 5 = High

Low High

1. This conversation focused on the issues that 1 2 3 4 5

are most important to me.
Comments:
2. This conversation was a good use of our time. 1 2 3 4 5
Comments:
3. The purpose and outcome of this discussion 1 2 3 4 5
were clarified early in our conversation.
Comments:
4. The general process and flow of this 1 2 3 4 5
conversation worked well to meet our goals.
Comments:
5. I felt you listened to me and understood 1 2 3 4 5
my points of view.
Comments:
6. I am leaving with some specific action steps 1 2 3 4 5
to pursue.
Comments:

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
CONCLUSION
We do not hire workers; we hire whole human beings
who bring all of their humanity into the workplace.
While we hope the human "doings" show up to work,
we must remember that they also bring their human
"being" side with them.

As a result of living in various roles and systems,

individuals are constantly pulled by competing
demands and expectations. Work is just one of these.

Our research shows that the most influential leaders

consistently build warm, close relationships with their
colleagues. When it comes to improving productivity,
employee engagement, retention, employee
development, and supervisor performance, there is
simply no better activity than having a leader who
coaches and develops their direct reports regularly.

Coaching conversations are worth planning. They are

worth your time, attention, and constant effort to
improve.

No matter how experienced you are as a manager,

strengthening your coaching skills and following this
proven framework will significantly increase your
effectiveness.

Excerpts from: The Extraordinary Coach: How the Best Leaders Help Others Grow, by Jack
Zenger and Kathleen Stinnett, McGraw Hill, 2011.

"People Who Think they Are Great Coaches Often Aren't," by Jack Zenger and Joe Folkman,
Harvard Business Review, 2016.

"Most Managers Think of Themselves as Coaches," by Jack Zenger and Joe Folkman, Harvard
Business Review, 2014.

"How to Choose a Leadership Pattern," by A.S. Tannenbaum and W.H. Schmidt, Harvard Business
Review, 1958

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© 2022 Zenger Folkman. All Rights Reserved.
COACHING
N E X T S T E P S

1
LEARN MORE ABOUT ZENGER
FOLKMAN'S COACHING AND
FEEDBACK OFFERINGS.

2 ATTEND ONE OF OUR COACHING

EVENTS

3
SCHEDULE A CALL TO SEE HOW
WE CAN HELP WITH YOUR
ORGANIZATION'S COACHING
NEEDS.

Z E N G E R F O L K M A N

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