Management, leadership, coaching

Management 

• Line-managers need to manage and have a responsibility, both to the organisation and to the individual, to do so.
• Line-managers, as part of managing, need to agree clear goals for their direct reports (What).
• Line-managers need to hold their direct reports to account for the goal that has been agreed.
• Once the goals have been agreed, and any other parameters surrounding their role such as values and behaviours, the line-manager coaches the report to achieve the agreed goals (How).
• Line-managers need to lead, to keep present in the minds of their direct reports the overarching aims of the organisation and be role-models for the desired values and behaviours. (Downey, M. 2003)

The 'What' is generally non-negotiable and falls under the authority of the organisation.

The 'How' is more discretionary and is falls under the authority of the individual. 

The 'How' is the domain of performance.  The line-manager is the direct link between the organisation as an entity and the individual working within the organisation. Where this work relationship is poor, or individuals are disengaged, organisations cannot pretend to aspire to high performance.  It is the role of the line-manager to lead (set direction and inspire others to follow), to manager (to set clear parameters, goals and expectations) and to coach (to grow and develop) their direct reports. 


The underlying management role of setting clear goals and expectations is key to individual, team and organisational performance: If people do not have clear goals it is extremely difficult to be successful and even more difficult to discuss performance'. (Downey, M. 2003)