Coaching & Retaining Top Employees

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  CTE Lesson Plan

• CTE Course Info and Benchmark Notes

  
  

  Course Info:

  Career Cluster: Business, Management & Administration

  Course Number & Title: 8301110 - Management and Human Resources

  CIP Number: 0552070110

  Course Type: Secondary – Career Preparatory

  Program Name: Business Management and Analysis

  CTE Benchmarks (Focus):

  CTE-BUS.912.8301110.4.9 - Describe a coaching process for managers to effectively manage organizational talent.

  CTE-BUS.912.8301110.5.5 - Describe coaching to managers and executives regarding the management of organizational talent.

• Unit Outline

  
  

  This lesson is designed to be used with case study, “Coaching and Retaining Top Employees.” See CPALMS Resource ID# 219422.

• Career Connection

  
  

  Students will build industry content knowledge by learning two critical components of a manager’s job: coaching employees to help them improve and ensuring their top employees stay at their organization. Students will develop durable skills of communication. Students will present information orally and collaborate with each other.

• Learning Objectives

  
  

  Students will be able to:

  • Identify and discuss why retaining top talent is so important for organizations
  • Identify and discuss how managers coach employees effectively.
  • Describe how managers can use effective coaching to keep employees engaged and working for the organization.
  • Present information about how managers can effectively coach employees and what managers can do to retain employees.

• Prior Knowledge

  
  

  Students should be able to/familiar with:

  • Interacting and collaborating with classmates in small groups.
  • Background knowledge on coaching methods for managers.

• Guiding Questions

  
  

  What can a manager do to effectively coach and retain top employees at an organization?

• Procedure

  
  

  1. Introduction: Class poll and response to industry quote: Help students connect coaching in sports to coaching in the workplace. Poll students by asking them how many of them have played a sport and experienced effective coaching. Students can raise their hand if they have played a sport and then raise their hand if they've experienced effective coaching. Then have students in small groups discuss: What makes effective coaching?

  • Then, discuss the following quote: “Coaching is unlocking a person's potential to maximize their own performance. It's helping them to learn rather than teaching them.” –– Tim Gallwey. Have students discuss for 1-2 minutes in small groups or pairs: Based on this quote, what is the purpose of coaching?
  • Provide time for students to investigate managerial coaching strategies or review effective coaching strategies used in the workplace.

  2. Discussion: Answer case-study based questions:

  • Introduce the case study “Coaching and Retaining Top Employees” (see CPALMS Resource ID# 219422).
  • Have the students read the case study by themselves and look at the attachment comparing Stacy's job choices.
  • Once each student has read the case study, have students discuss the following questions in small groups:
    • Why is Stacy considering a new job in Tampa?
    • Looking at the attachment comparing the two jobs, what are some of the reasons you think Stacy should stay with her current job? What are some reasons Stacy should consider leaving?
    • How could Amanda adjust her management approach to be a more effective coach and leader?
    • How should Amanda and Danielle proceed? What should they try to do to keep Stacy as an employee?

  3. Integrated Activity: Discussions using guiding questions:

  • Amanda and Danielle must decide how they’ll respond and proceed. They both want Stacy to stay with the company. Danielle recognizes that Amanda’s management style and Stacy’s working style do not mesh well, and that Stacy is not receiving the coaching, recognition, and appreciation she deserves.
  • Allow students time to discuss the case study, using the guiding questions:
    • What are Stacy's concerns?
    • How can Danielle and Amanda retain Stacy as an employee?

  4. Students will work together to summarize and present the case study (Coaching and Retaining Top Employees, Resource ID 219422).

  • Provide students with the attached graphic organizer, Employee Summary, for students to summarize the main problems and coaching processes and stratgegies that could be used. Give students time to fill out the attachment in preparation for the discussion and presentation. Students may also need additional time to research specific strategies to present.
  • Based on what students summarized in their graphic organizer attachment, students will engage in small group discussion, giving a summary of what Stacy's main concerns are, what they would do if they were in the shoes of Stacy, Amanda, and Danielle, and discuss how effective coaching would help this situation.
  • After the small group discussion, students will present a solution that describes how effective coaching would help the situation.

  5. Closure & Future of Work: Including an Exit Ticket:

  Students will write an exit ticket at the end of the lesson, see the provided Exit ticket attachment. Students will answer:

  • • Which strategies presented do you think would be the most effective?
    • How might Stacy react to the suggested solutions?
    • What would you do if you were Stacy? Amanda? Danielle?
  • Students will also complete a future of work reflection, which is part of the same exit ticket attachment, looking at how the lessons learned from the case study and lesson can apply to their future career.
    • Why is it important for managers to know how to effectively coach employees?
    • How can coaching skills apply to other careers, other than management?
    • How did this case study apply to what you want to do for a career?

• Teacher Notes

  
  

  Teachers can post or project the questions for discussion on a board to help students stay focused on the questions.

  As an alternative outcome, what if Amanda and Danielle decide NOT to match Amanda’s job offer salary in Tampa and let her leave the organization? How can Amanda and Danielle develop a new coaching process to retain employees moving forward?