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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
SUPPORT SERVICE
Level III

LEARNING GUIDE # 1

Unit of Competence: Lead Small Teams

Module Title : Lead Small Teams
LG Code : ICT HNS3 11 1110
TTLM Code : ICT ITHW1 TTLM 0511

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LO 1: Leadership
1.1 Definition of Leadership
Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an
objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and
coherent.—

Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to

achieve a common goal.

Leaders carry out this process by applying their leadership knowledge and skills. This is
called Process Leadership However, we know that we have traits that can influence our
actions. This is called Trait Leadership, in that it was once common to believe that
leaders were born rather than made. These two leadership types are shown in the chart
below

While leadership is learned, the skills and knowledge processed by the leader can be
influenced by his or hers attributes or traits, such as beliefs, values, ethics, and character.
Knowledge and skills contribute directly to the process of leadership, while the other
attributes give the leader certain characteristics that make him or her unique.

1.2 Ingredients of leadership

Four Factors of Leadership

There are four major factors in leadership

Leader

followers

Communication

Situation

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Leader

You must have an honest understanding of who you are, what you know, and what you
can do. Also, note that it is the followers, not the leader or someone else who determines
if the leader is successful. If they do not trust or lack confidence in their leader, then they
will be uninspired. To be successful you have to convince your followers, not yourself or
your superiors, that you are worthy of being followed.

Followers

Different people require different styles of leadership. For example, a new hire requires
more supervision than an experienced employee. A person who lacks motivation requires
a different approach than one with a high degree of motivation. You must know your
people! The fundamental starting point is having a good understanding of human nature,
such as needs, emotions, and motivation. You must come to know your employees' be,
know, and do attributes.

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Communication

You lead through two-way communication. Much of it is nonverbal. For instance, when
you “set the example,” that communicates to your people that you would not ask them to
perform anything that you would not be willing to do. What and how you communicate
either builds or harms the relationship between you and your employees.

Situation

All situations are different. What you do in one situation will not always work in another.
You must use your judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style
needed for each situation. For example, you may need to confront an employee for
inappropriate behavior, but if the confrontation is too late or too early, too harsh or too
weak, then the results may prove ineffective.

Also note that the situation normally has a greater effect on a leader's action than his or
her traits. This is because while traits may have an impressive stability over a period of
time, they have little consistency across situations. This is why a number of leadership
scholars think the Process Theory of Leadership is a more accurate than the Trait Theory
of Leadership.

Various forces will affect these four factors. Examples of forces are your relationship
with your seniors, the skill of your followers, the informal leaders within your
organization, and how your organization is organized.

1.3 Trait approaches to leadership

Traits of a Good Leader
 Honest — Display sincerity, integrity, and candor in all your actions. Deceptive
behavior will not inspire trust.
 Competent — Base your actions on reason and moral principles. Do not make
decisions based on childlike emotional desires or feelings.
 Forward-looking — Set goals and have a vision of the future. The vision must be
owned throughout the organization. Effective leaders envision what they want and
how to get it. They habitually pick priorities stemming from their basic values.
 Inspiring — Display confidence in all that you do. By showing endurance in
mental, physical, and spiritual stamina, you will inspire others to reach for new
heights. Take charge when necessary.
 Intelligent — Read, study, and seek challenging assignments.
 Fair-minded — Show fair treatment to all people. Prejudice is the enemy of
justice. Display empathy by being sensitive to the feelings, values, interests, and
well-being of others.
 Broad-minded — Seek out diversity.

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  Courageous — Have the perseverance to accomplish a goal, regardless of the
seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Display a confident calmness when under
stress.
 Straightforward — Use sound judgment to make good decisions at the right
time.
 Imaginative — Make timely and appropriate changes in your thinking, plans, and
methods. Show creativity by thinking of new and better goals, ideas, and solutions
to problems. Be innovative!

1.4 leadership behaviors and styles

Attributes of Leadership
If you are a leader who can be trusted, then those around you will grow to respect you. To
be such a leader, there is a Leadership Framework to guide you:

BE KNOW DO

BE a professional. Examples: Be loyal to the organization, perform selfless service, take

personal responsibility.

BE a professional who possess good character traits. Examples: Honesty, competence,

candor, commitment, integrity, courage, straightforwardness, imagination.

KNOW the four factors of leadership — follower, leader, communication, situation.

KNOW yourself. Examples: strengths and weakness of your character, knowledge, and
skills.

KNOW human nature. Examples: Human needs, emotions, and how people respond to
stress.

KNOW your job. Examples: be proficient and be able to train others in their tasks.

KNOW your organization. Examples: where to go for help, its climate and culture, who
the unofficial leaders are.

DO provide direction. Examples: goal setting, problem solving, decision making,

planning.

DO implement. Examples: communicating, coordinating, supervising, evaluating.

DO motivate. Examples: develop morale and esprit de corps in the organization, train,
coach, counsel.

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Leadership Styles

Leadership style is the manner and approach of providing direction, implementing plans,
and motivating people. led a group of researchers to identify different styles of
leadership. This early study has been very influential and established three major
leadership styles. The three major styles of leadership are

 Authoritarian or autocratic
 Participative or democratic
 Delegative or Free Reign

Although good leaders use all three styles, with one of them normally dominant, bad
leaders tend to stick with one style.

Authoritarian (autocratic)

I want both of you to. . .

This style is used when leaders tell their employees what they want done and how they
want it accomplished, without getting the advice of their followers. Some of the
appropriate conditions to use it is when you have all the information to solve the problem,
you are short on time, and your employees are well motivated.

Some people tend to think of this style as a vehicle for yelling, using demeaning
language, and leading by threats and abusing their power. This is not the authoritarian
style, rather it is an abusive, unprofessional style called “bossing people around.” It has
no place in a leader's repertoire.

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The authoritarian style should normally only be used on rare occasions. If you have the
time and want to gain more commitment and motivation from your employees, then you
should use the participative style.

Participative (democratic)

Let's work together to solve this. . .

This style involves the leader including one or more employees in the decision making
process (determining what to do and how to do it). However, the leader maintains the
final decision making authority. Using this style is not a sign of weakness, rather it is a
sign of strength that your employees will respect.

This is normally used when you have part of the information, and your employees have
other parts. Note that a leader is not expected to know everything — this is why you
employ knowledgeable and skillful employees. Using this style is of mutual benefit — it
allows them to become part of the team and allows you to make better decisions.

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Delegative (free reign)

You two take care of the problem while I go. . .

In this style, the leader allows the employees to make the decisions. However, the leader
is still responsible for the decisions that are made. This is used when employees are able
to analyze the situation and determine what needs to be done and how to do it. You
cannot do everything! You must set priorities and delegate certain tasks.

This is not a style to use so that you can blame others when things go wrong, rather this is
a style to be used when you fully trust and confidence in the people below you. Do not be
afraid to use it, however, use it wisely!

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Forces

A good leader uses all three styles, depending on what forces are involved between the
followers, the leader, and the situation. Some examples include:

 Using an authoritarian style on a new employee who is just learning the job. The
leader is competent and a good coach. The employee is motivated to learn a new
skill. The situation is a new environment for the employee.
 Using a participative style with a team of workers who know their job. The leader
knows the problem, but does not have all the information. The employees know
their jobs and want to become part of the team.
 Using a delegative style with a worker who knows more about the job than you.
You cannot do everything and the employee needs to take ownership of her job!
In addition, this allows you to be at other places, doing other things.

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  Using all three: Telling your employees that a procedure is not working correctly
and a new one must be established (authoritarian). Asking for their ideas and
input on creating a new procedure (participative). Delegating tasks in order to
implement the new procedure (delegative).

Forces that influence the style to be used included:

 How much time is available.

 Are relationships based on respect and trust or on disrespect?
 Who has the information — you, your employees, or both?
 How well your employees are trained and how well you know the task.
 Internal conflicts.
 Stress levels.
 Type of task. Is it structured, unstructured, complicated, or simple?
 Laws or established procedures such as OSHA or training plans.

Self-Check 1 Written Test

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. What is leadership? (2 points)

2. List the Four Factors of Leadership. (2 points)

3. Discuss Leadership Styles. (4 point)

?
4. What are the Attributes of good Leadership (2 point)

5. Explain the difference between Authoritarian and democratic leadership .

(3 point)

4. What are Traits of a Good Leader? (2 point

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LO 2: Leadership techniques
2. Leadership techniques
2.1 Assign duties and responsibilities to team member’s
Individual duties and responsibilities within the team
 Members work interdependently and work towards both personal and team
goals, and they understand these goals are accomplished best by mutual support.
 Members should feel a sense of ownership towards their role in the team.
 Members should work together and use their talent and experience to contribute
to the success of the team's objectives.
 Members base their success on trust and encourage all members to express their
opinions, varying views, and questions.
 Members make effort to be honest, respectful, and listen to every person's point
of view.
 Members should offer their skill, knowledge, and in turn each member is able
contribute to the team success.
 Members participate equally in decision-making, but each member understands
that the leader might need to make the final decision if the team can not come to
a consensus agreement.

2.2 Set performance expectations for team members

Rather than focusing on ineffective teams, Larson and LaFasto (1989) looked in the
opposite direction by interviewing excellent teams to gain insights as to what enables
them to function to a high degree. They came away with the following conclusions:

 A clear elevating goal — they have a vision

 Results driven structure — visions have a business goal
 Competent team members with right number and mix
 Unified commitment — they are a team, not a group
 A collaborative climate — aligned towards a common purpose
 High standards of excellence — they have group norms
 Principled leadership — the central driver of excellence
 External support — they have adequate resources

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Team Leadership Model
While there are several Team Leadership models, Hill's Team model is perhaps one of
the better known ones as it provides the leader or a designated team member with a
mental road map to help diagnose team problems, and then take appropriate action to
correct team problems (Northouse, 2007). This Team Leadership model is built on a
number of research projects:

Hill's Team Leadership Model

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The Four Layers or Steps in the Team Leadership
Model
1. Top layer: Effective team performance begins with leader’s mental model of the
situation and then determining if the situation requires Action or just Monitoring?

2. Second Layer: Is it at an Internal or External leadership level?

3.Third layer: Is it Task, Relational, or an Environmental intervention? Select a

function depending on the type of intervention. See the next section for explanation of
Function Interventions.

4. Bottom layer: Correctly performing the above three steps creates high Performance
through Development and Maintenance functions.

Team Leadership Function Interventions

 

Internal Task Functions

 Focus on goals by clarifying and/or getting agreement

 Restructure plans, processes, roles, etc. in order to gain desired results (process
improvement)
 Guide the decision-making process so that better information is obtained,
coordination is better, focusing on issues, etc.
 Train members through both formal and informal means
 Assess performance an confront when necessary

Internal Relationship Functions

 Coach team members

 Use more collaborative methods to involve all team members (this survey
includes questions to determine if the environment is collaborative)
 Manage conflict
 Build commitment and esprit de corps through the use of ethos leadership
 Satisfy team members' needs
 Model what you expect from your team members

External Environmental Functions

 Network to increase influence and gather information

 Advocate by representing your team so that it shows them at their best
 Get support for your team by gathering resources and recognition for your team

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  Buffer the team from environmental distractions
 Assess the environment through surveys and other performance indicators to
determine its impact on the organization
 Share information with the team

2.3 Supervise team performance

A person's motivation is a combination of desire and energy directed at achieving a goal.
It is the cause of action. Influencing someone's motivation means getting them to want to
do what you know must be done. (U.S. Army Handbook, 1973)

A person's motivation depends upon two things:

 The strength of certain needs. For example, you are hungry, but you must have
a task completed by a nearing deadline. If you are starving you will eat. If you are
slightly hungry you will finish the task at hand.
 The perception that taking a certain action will help satisfy those needs. For
example, you have two burning needs — the desire to complete the task and the
desire to go to lunch. Your perception of how you view those two needs will
determine which one takes priority. If you believe that you could be fired for not
completing the task, you will probably put off lunch and complete the task. If you
believe that you will not get into trouble or perhaps finish the task in time, then
you will likely go to lunch.

People can be motivated by such forces as beliefs, values, interests, fear, and worthy
causes. Some of these forces are internal, such as needs, interests, and beliefs. Others are
external, such as danger, the environment, or pressure from a loved one. There is no
simple formula for motivation — you must keep a open viewpoint on human nature.
There is a complex array of forces steering the direction of each person and these forces
cannot always be seen or studied. In addition, if the same forces are steering two different
people, each one may act differently. Knowing that each person may react to different
needs will guide your decisions and actions in certain situations.

As a leader you have the power to influence motivation. The following guidelines form a
basic view of motivation (U.S. Army Handbook, 1973). They will help guide your
decision making process:

Allow the needs of your team to coincide with the needs of your
organization

Nearly everyone is influenced by the needs for job security, promotion, raises, and
approval of their peers and/or leaders. They are also influenced by internal forces such as
values morals, and ethics. Likewise, the organization needs good people in a wide variety

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of jobs. Ensure that your team is trained, encouraged, and has opportunities to advance.
Also, ensure that the way you conduct business has the same values, moral, and ethic
principles that you seek in others. If you conduct business in a dishonest manner, your
team will be dishonest to you, for that will be the kind of people that you will attract.

Reward good behavior

Although a certificate, letter, or a thank you may seem small and insignificant, they can
be powerful motivators. The reward should be specific and prompt. Do not say something
general, such as “for doing a good job,” rather cite the specific action that made you
believe it was indeed a good job. In addition, help those who are good. We all make
mistakes or need help on occasion to achieve a particular goal.

Set the example

You must be the role model that you want others to grow into.

Develop morale and esprit de corps

Morale is the mental, emotional, and spiritual state of a person. Almost everything you do
will have an impact on your organization. You should always be aware how your actions
and decisions might affect it. Esprit de corps means team spirit — it is defined as the
spirit of the organization or collective body (in French it literally means “spirit of the
body”). It is the consciousness of the organization that allows the people within it to
identify with and feel a part of. Is your workplace a place where people cannot wait to get
away from; or is it a place that people enjoy spending a part of their lives?

Allow your team to be part of the planning and problem solving process

This helps with their development and allows you to coach them. Secondly, it motivates
them — people who are part of the decision making process become the owners of it,
thus it gives them a personal interest in seeing the plan succeed. Thirdly, communication
is clearer as everyone has a better understanding of what role they must play as part of
the team. Next, it creates an open trusting communication bond. They are no longer just
the doers for the organization — they are now part of it! Finally, recognition and
appreciation from a respected leader are powerful motivators.

Look out for your team

Although you do not have control over their personal lives, you must show concern for
them. Things that seem of no importance to you might be extremely critical to them. You
must be able to empathize with them. This is from the German word, einfuhling, which
means “to feel with”, or the ability to perceive another person's view of the world as
though that view were your own. The Sioux Indian Tribal Prayer reads, “Great Spirit,
help us never to judge another until we have walked for two weeks in his moccasins.”

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Also note that empathy differs from sympathy in that sympathy connotes spontaneous
emotion rather than a conscious, reasoned response. Sympathizing with others may be
less useful to another person if we are limited by the strong feelings of the moment.

Keep them informed

Keeping the communication channel open allow team members to have a sense of control
over their lives.

Make their jobs challenging, exciting, and meaningful

Make each feel like an individual in a great team, rather than a cog in a lifeless machine.
People need meaningful work, even if it is tiring and unpleasant; they need to know that
it is important and necessary for the survival of the organization.

Counsel people who behave in a way that is counter to the company's goals

Inspiring Your Employees

Getting people to accomplish something is much easier if they have the inspiration to do
so. Inspire means "to breathe life into." And in order to perform that, we have to have
some life ourselves. Three main actions will aid you in accomplishing this:

1. Be passionate: In organizations where the is a leader with great enthusiasm about a

project, a trickle-down effect will occur. You must be committed to the work you are
doing. If you do not communicate excitement, how can you expect your people to get
worked up about it?

2. Get your employees involved in the decision making process: People who are
involved in the decision making process participate much more enthusiastically than
those who just carry out their boss's order. Help them contribute and tell them you value
their opinions. Listen to them and incorporate their ideas when it makes sense to so.

3. Know what your organization is about!: The fundamental truth, as General

Creighton W. Abrams used to say in the mid-1970s, is that “the Army is not made up of
people. The Army is people. Every decision we make is a people issue.” Your
organization is the same. It may make a product or sell a service, but it is still people! A
leader's primary responsibility is to develop people and enable them to reach their full
potential. Your people may come from diverse backgrounds, but they all have goals they
want to accomplish. Create a "people environment" where they truly can be all they can
be.

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2.4 Present assignment instructions and client profile

Giving Instructions Clearly

Whether you call it orientation, indoctrination, development, or training, a program for

ensuring adequate instruction of team members is vital to reach the organization’s goals.
The more expert you become in giving instructions, the more everyone benefits. Team
members understand exactly what you want and comply conscientiously and cheerfully.
Here are suggestions for giving orders and instructions effectively:

 Preparation – Before you begin, be sure you know exactly what you want to
communicate. If you need to ask for information or conduct a discussion or
brainstorming session before reaching a decision about what orders to give,
separate that session from the actual giving of instructions or orders. Any
apparent indecision or confusion on your part creates doubt and lack of
confidence.
 Consideration – Check on the team member’s time and workload before directing
any change in procedure or priority. Be sure you have the right employee for the
job. Along with instructions, assign a priority to the job.
 Presentation – Give instructions in a logical sequence and in clear, concise
language geared to the team member’s intelligence and education. Check to see
that your instructions were understood, and explain again any part that seems
unclear. If the order has several parts, or if it’s to be a permanent procedure,
follow oral instructions with a written message.
 Attitudes – “Ask” rather than “tell,” but make it clear you expect compliance with
your request. Accomplish this by using language and a tone of voice that are
authoritative, but not authoritarian. Be considerate of team member needs and
desires, but never apologize for giving an order. You represent the organization,
so make it clear that you support the organization and its goals. Give individuals
an opportunity to ask questions or express opinions, but do not feel bound by
those opinions.
 Follow-up – Check on compliance with your requests and instructions. Amend
your instructions when that seems logical. Express appreciation when your
requests and instructions are carried out well.

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How to Give Instructions to Your Team

Steps
1. Plan based on "What your team must be able to do as a result of your
instructions?"

2. Organize the instructions in a form of a flowchart this will help your team
members follow the exact sequence in which the activity needs to be carried out.

3.Develop checklists and templates that will enable your Team in carrying
out what has been instructed.

4. Schedule a meeting with your team.

5. During the meeting first state the objective, importance and the scope of the
meeting.

6. Describe the process flowchart in detail.

7. Give information on any additional inputs that will help your Team in
performing each task.

8. Give inputs on resources needed to perform the task like, equipment, tools,
templates, etc.

9. Once you finish giving the instructions ask someone to repeat the instructions and
tell them to explain how they will carry it out.

10. Confirm if your team has understood the instructions.

Client or customer Profile

Description of a customer group or type of customer based on various demographic,
psychographic and/or geographic characteristics; also called shopper profile. For
example, magazine advertising salespeople provide advertisers with customer profiles
describing the type of person who will be exposed to advertisements in that magazine.
The description may include income, occupation, level of education, age, gender,
hobbies, or area of residence. Customer profiles provide the knowledge needed to select
the best prospect lists and to enable advertisers to select the best media.
A customer profile is an outline of the type of customer likely to purchase your product.
Most companies / businesses constantly update the profile of their customers. A customer
profile may vary from one product to another. Developing a customer profile will help
you target your advertising and marketing and is an essential analysis tool. This will cut
your advertising costs and allow you to concentrate on real potential customers rather

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than too wide a range of people. Concentrating on potential customers will save you time
and money.

To build a customer profile you could ask a focus group some of the questions listed
below and carry out questionnaires. Alternately you could ask yourself or people in your
company/class the same questions.

1. Describe the type of person who could be your typical customer (or will be your
typical customer).
2. What is the age range of potential customers?
3. Are potential customers likely to be male or female or does gender matter?
4. What is the geographical location of potential customers? Where are they likely to
live?
5. What are the most likely occupations of potential customers?
6. What are the general likes /dislikes of potential customers?
7. What does a typical customer want from the product you design and manufacture?
8. What makes your product more suitable to potential customers than that of your
competitors?
9. What are the most common design requirements shared by your potential customers?
10. What factors are your potential customers likely to consider before purchasing your
product?
11. What do your customers value from your company, products or services?
12. How will potential customer find out about the product you are selling?
13. What have previous customers said about your company / product?
14. Does the cost of your product influence a customers decision to buy from you?
15. List all the ways in which contact can be made with your potential customers. You
may include the following points:

2.5 Follow up communication

Communication and Leadership

No one would talk much in society if they knew how often they misunderstood others. —
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

Communication is the exchange and flow of information and ideas from one person to
another; it involves a sender transmitting an idea, information, or feeling to a receiver
(U.S. Army, 1983). Effective communication occurs only if the receiver understands the
exact information or idea that the sender intended to transmit. Many of the problems that
occur in an organization are the either the direct result of people failing to communicate
and/or processes, which leads to confusion and can cause good plans to fail Studying the
communication process is important because you coach, coordinate, counsel, evaluate,
and supervise throughout this process. It is the chain of understanding that integrates the
members of an organization from top to bottom, bottom to top, and side to side.

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The Communication Process
Communication that is what we try to do speak to those near us
 Thought: First, information exists in the mind of the sender. This can be a
concept, idea, information, or feelings.
 Encoding: Next, a message is sent to a receiver in words or other symbols.
 Decoding: Lastly, the receiver translates the words or symbols into a concept or
information that he or she can understand.

During the transmitting of the message, two elements will be received: content and
context. Content are the actual words or symbols of the message that is known as
language — the spoken and written words combined into phrases that make grammatical
and semantic sense. We all use and interpret the meanings of words differently, so even
simple messages can be misunderstood. And many words have different meanings to
confuse the issue even more.

Context is the way the message is delivered and is known as paralanguage — it is the
nonverbal elements in speech such as the tone of voice, the look in the sender's eyes,
body language, hand gestures, and state of emotions (anger, fear, uncertainty, confidence,
etc.) that can be detected. Although paralanguage or context often cause messages to be
misunderstood as we believe what we see more than what we hear; they are powerful
communicators that help us to understand each other. Indeed, we often trust the accuracy
of nonverbal behaviors more than verbal behaviors.

Some leaders think they have communicated once they told someone to do something, “I
don't know why it did not get done. I told Jim to do it.” More than likely, Jim
misunderstood the message. A message has NOT been communicated unless it is
understood by the receiver (decoded). How do you know it has been properly received?
By two-way communication or feedback. This feedback tells the sender that the receiver
understood the message, its level of importance, and what must be done with it.
Communication is an exchange, not just a give, as all parties must participate to complete
the information exchange

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 Self-Check 1 Written Test

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. Explain Individual duties and responsibilities within the team? (4 points)

2. What are the four layers or Steps in the Team Leadership Model? (2 points)

3. Discuss the difference between Internal Task Functions and

External Environmental Functions.(2 points)

4. What are the steps to give instructions to Team? (2 points)

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LO 3: Counseling skill
3. Counseling skill

Counseling

Counseling has a powerful, long-term impact on people and the effectiveness of the
organization. Counseling is talking with a person in a way that helps him or her solve a
problem. It involves thinking, implementing, knowing human nature, timing, sincerity,
compassion, and kindness. It involves much more that simply telling someone what to do
about a problem.

Leaders must demonstrate the following qualities in order to counsel effectively.

 Respect for employees — This includes the belief that individuals are
responsible for their own actions and ideas. It includes an awareness of a person's
individuality by recognizing their unique values, attributes, and skills. As you
attempt to develop people with counseling, you must refrain from projecting your
own values onto them.
 Self-Awareness — This quality is an understanding of yourself as a leader. The
more you are aware of your own values, needs, and biases, the less likely you will
be to project your feelings onto your employees.
 Credibility — Believability is achieved through both honesty and consistency
between both the leader's statements and actions. Credible leaders are
straightforward with their subordinates and behave in such a manner that earns the
subordinates' respect and trust.
 Empathy — or compassion entails understanding a subordinate's situation.
Empathetic leaders will be better able to help subordinates identify the situation
and then develop a plan to improve it.

The reason for counseling is to help employees develop in order to achieve organizational
goals. Sometimes, the counseling is directed by policy, and at other times, leaders should

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choose to counsel to develop employees. Regardless of the nature of the counseling,
leaders should demonstrate the qualities of an effective counselor (respect, self-
awareness, credibility, and empathy) and employ the skills of good communication.

While the reason for counseling is to develop subordinates, leaders often categorize
counseling based on the topic of the session. Major categories include performance
counseling, problem counseling, and individual growth counseling (development). While
these categories help leaders to organize and focus counseling sessions, they must not be
viewed as separate and distinct types of counseling. For example a counseling session
which mainly focuses on resolving a problem may also have a great impact on improving
job performance. Another example is a counseling session that focuses on performance
may also include a discussion of opportunities for growth. Regardless of the topic of the
counseling session, you should follow the same basic format to prepare for and conduct
counseling.

Counseling Steps
1. Identify the problem. Ensure you get to the heart of the problem. Sakichi Toyoda,
the founder of Toyota, invented a technique called the Five Whys. When
confronted with a problem you ask “why” five times. By the time the fifth why is
answered, you should be at the root cause of the problem. For example:

Tom's work is not up to standards

o Why? — After discussing it with Tom it turns out he has too much of a
workload
o Why? — Tom is considered one of the experts, thus he often gets extra
work dumped on him
o Why? — Susan, the other expert, was promoted and no one else is capable
of replacing her
o Why? — We failed to train and develop the other team members
o Why? — We did not see the necessity of cross-training
2. Analyze the forces influencing the behavior. Determine which of these forces you
have control over and which of the forces the worker has control over. Determine
if the force has to be modified, eliminated, or enforced.
3. Plan, coordinate, and organize the session. Determine the best time to conduct the
session so that you will not be interrupted or forced to end too early.
4. Conduct the session using sincerity, compassion, and kindness. This does not
mean you cannot be firm or in control. Your reputation is on the line; the problem
must be solved so that your department can continue with its mission. Likewise,
you must hear the person out.
5. During the session, determine what the worker believes causes the
counterproductive behavior and what will be required to change it. Also,
determine if your initial analysis is correct.
6. Try to maintain a sense of timing of when to use directive or nondirective
counseling (see below).

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 7. Using all the facts, make a decision and/or a plan of action to correct the problem.
If more counseling is needed, make a firm time and date for the next session.
8. After the session and throughout a sufficient time period, evaluate the worker's
progress to ensure the problem has indeed been solved.

There are two types of counseling — directive and nondirective. In directive counseling,
the counselor identifies the problem and tells the counselee what to do about it.
Nondirective counseling means the counselee identifies the problem and determines the
solution with the help of the counselor. The counselor has to determine which of the two,
or some appropriate combination, to give for each situation. For example, “Put that
cigarette out now as this is a nonsmoking area,” is a form of directive counseling. While a
form of nondirective counseling would be, “So the reason you are not effective is that
you were up late last night. What are you going to do to ensure that this does not affect
your performance again?”

Hints for counseling sessions:

 Let the person know that the behavior is undesirable, not the person.
 Let the person know that you care about him or her as a person, but that you
expect more from them.
 Do not punish employees who are unable to perform a task. Punish those who are
able to perform the task but are unwilling or unmotivated to succeed.
 Counseling sessions should be conducted in private immediately after the
undesirable behavior. Do not humiliate a person in front of others.
 Ensure that the employee understands exactly what behavior led to the counseling
or punishment.
 Do not hold a grudge. When it is over, it is over! Move on!

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 Self-Check 1 Written Test

Name:____________________
Date:_________________

Instruction: Answer all the questions listed below, if you have some clarifications-
feel free to ask your teacher.

1. ___________ Counseling is talking with a person in a way that helps him or her
solve a problem? (3 points)
2. Write counseling steps. (5 points)

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