Questions

Questions That Coaching Style Managers Ask

Discovery Questions:

Questions designed to promote self-discovery, such as:

  • What's new or different?
  • What's the gap between where you are and where you are aiming to be?
  • What's the current reality?
  • What's the unspoken truth?
  • What's possible?
  • Where are the gaps in knowledge, skills, relationships, attitudes and behaviors?
  • What are the unintended results of present attitudes and behaviors?

Questions about Vision and Strategy:

  • What is the individual or team's vision, which can be aligned with that of the organization?
  • What are the possible strategies to meet the current business challenge?
  • How has our past strategy been/not been effective?
  • What is the next level for us?
  • If you could design a response with no constraints whatsoever, what would it be?

Questions to Gauge Awareness/Understanding:

Questions which reveal an individual or team's understanding of current reality, challenges which lie ahead, as well as current performance strengths and gaps, such as:

  • What is your perception of the current situation?
  • What do you see as the biggest challenge?
  • What will it take to address the challenge?
  • What are our performance strengths?
  • Where are the gaps in skills, attitudes or behaviors?

Forwarding Action Questions:

Questions which move the individual or team into forward action, such as:

  • What steps are necessary to move the project forward?
  • What steps will you or the team assume responsibility for?
  • What is the best way to bridge the current gap?
  • Who else needs to be involved to ensure the project's success?
  • What obstacles to success need to be eliminated?

Support Questions:

  • What would make the biggest impact and help to ensure your success?
  • What resources are you missing that would make a difference?
  • What help will you need in making those contacts?

Questions to Determine Readiness, Motivation and Commitment:

Questions which reveal the current state of "GO" as well as any obstacles which still need to be overcome, such as:

  • Are you ready?
  • When will you be ready?
  • How committed are you to the project?
  • How optimistic are you about the outcome?
  • What possibilities are you most excited about?
  • What's holding you back now?
  • What's your uncertainty about, and how could we turn that into readiness?

Questions about Standards:

Questions that are designed to build a shared understanding of and commitment to standards, such as:

  • What are your personal standards for this project?
  • Are your standards high enough given the current business environment?
  • How do your standards compare with the competition?
  • How will we get everyone's full effort to maintain or exceed these standards?
  • How will performance against standards be measured?