Every Winning Team Has a Great Coach

Wondering how to get your product team executing flawlessly against the product goals? It's probably time to put your "Coach" hat on. Here are three coaching techniques to help your product team — and product — thrive. Read on:

When you're not the boss, you still can be the leader
Since product managers usually don't have positional power in your organization (a.k.a. a staff), you earn your leadership credentials by (1) providing a clear view of the strategy and (2) building the team's trust. Both of these credential-builders also are coaching skills.

1.  Great coaches provide a clear view of the goal
Your product will have a much better chance of success if the cross-functional team is pulling in the same direction toward meeting revenue, profitability and customer satisfaction goals. Successful coaches in sports and effective team leaders keep everyone focused on the goal, whether things are going well or badly. Find ways to share the product and company strategy and objectives with the team, in both formal and informal settings. Better yet, find ways to enable team members to describe the strategy and objectives in their own words. (Brown bag lunch, anyone?)

2.  Great coaches build the team's trust
People who trust a coach will go to great lengths for the team. Applied to your product team, building trust can only help your product succeed. So how do you start to build trust? Our best recommendation is "never throw anyone under the bus" when there's a problem. For example, when dashboard metrics are showing "red alert" in one area, you can put your coach hat on and work out a proposed solution with the key contact for that functional area. Then you can jointly communicate the plan to the larger team. And when things are going well, give credit to team members who helped create the success.

3.  Great coaches support team members' own goals
One tried-and-true coaching technique to encourage a team member to pull for the overall goal is WIIFM (What's In It For Me). Start by looking at the current situation from each team member's point of view and seek to truly understand their issues. You'll need to take time understand what their professional and personal goals are, so you can show how contributing to the product team will support their goals. This doesn’t happen overnight — it's a coaching skill that you cultivate over time. By the way, this approach also can work well when you’re "managing up" in your organization.

Developing your leadership skills starts with self assessment. To gauge your current leadership skills, use our Leadership Self-Assessment worksheet (available at no charge when you answer this month's 30-second Hot Button Survey), or listen to our complimentary webinar Leading from the Middle. 

If you need some additional help, sign up for the upcoming Product Management Intensive on June 10-11, 2009, or look into our individual coaching program. See www.pivotalpm.com for more information.