Bangkok Post, Thailand, Kriengsak Niratpattanasai Column.

Byline: Kriengsak Niratpattanasai

Dec. 6--"I have tried to coach several Thai staff but it didn't work. I don't think Thais are coachable," a frustrated expat friend told me recently.

Managing people today involves a lot of coaching, which can be done in various ways. There are three styles: instructional coaching, coaching by questioning, and consultation by coaching. Some people also count delegating as a way of coaching. A good coach needs to understand the different objective and steps of each coaching style.

Instructional coaching aims to teach people to do a task by showing clear steps on what, why and how to do it, complete with examples. It works well with subordinates with low skills or knowledge about the task but with a high commitment to perform.

For example, a newly appointed farang boss has just introduced a monthly report format. He wants his five Thai subordinates to submit it to him on the 5th of every month. He has to show the staff what it looks like, why he needs it, how to do it, and he shows them an example he brought from his home country.

Coaching by questioning aims to encourage staff who already have some skills but might not show a high level of commitment to the job. It will encourage staff involvement by using questions to solicit their input and involvement.

Following on from the example used earlier, suppose one of the Thai executives used to work with a multinational corporation and knows how to do a monthly report similar to the one required by the new boss.