LINK ALL PRIVATE COMMUNICATION TO INDIVIDUAL GOALS

For maximum effectiveness, all counseling sessions should be tied to the employee's goals. The supervisor may be required to help the employee reestablish previous goals or establish new ones.

Maggie, a registered nurse who supervised the maternity ward on the night shift, was having trouble with Marty, a vocational nurse in charge of cleanup procedures. Marty wanted to take over the RN's responsibilities instead of performing her own tasks. When Maggie discovered, through counseling, that Marty was taking college courses leading to RN certification, she modified her approach. She agreed to give Marty extra duties that would help in her advanced training, provided that she took care of her other, more mundane responsibilities first. This concession immediately improved the relationship.

Surveys made in large organizations show undisputed evidence that the further up the management ladder a person travels, the more time she or he must spend counseling others. Some company presidents spend up to 80 percent of their time in private communication with their executives. Without question, private communication is a tool the ambitious supervisor or team leader cannot ignore.