Behind the scenes, under the radar, and without being asked, team members work to improve the knowledge and skills of less experienced colleagues.
They informally coach, mentor, guide, and tutor junior members of the team, helping them navigate the organization and leading them to higher performance.
The generosity and leadership these team members display often go unnoticed and unrewarded as they do this work inconspicuously.
The value they add is often enormous. They provide this utility because they care about the team and the members who make it up. Their colleagues, who know exactly who they are and how much value they create, hold them in the highest regard.
But team leaders are often oblivious.
Smart leaders presume some individual team members are excellent coaches and mentors of their colleagues and go out of their way to learn who is doing this unheralded work.
They know the benefits to the team are significant and want to encourage others to do the same. Now for an important research finding.
Not surprisingly, team members are more likely to coach and guide those below them when it is known by leadership that they are sharing their time, knowledge, and experience with others.
Highlighting the hidden contributors produces more of them.
Leaders encourage more informal coaching of others within the team when they acknowledge the importance of this work and publicly recognize those who excel at it.
Seems so obvious, but very few teams celebrate the work of the informal coaches and mentors in the group. Good leaders buck this trend and go all out in acknowledging those team members who serve as informal coaches and mentors.
By placing a halo on specific team members who excel at coaching others, they promote more generosity and sharing throughout the team.
As a best practice, savvy leaders often establish a year-end award for the best informal team coach or single out the best team mentor during an all-team meeting.
This signals to everyone how important this work is and that it doesn’t go unnoticed by the leader. The result is a team full of informal coaches, each lending a hand and encouraging others to improve.
Who is the best coach and mentor to colleagues on your team? Do they know that you know?
Make it a point to thank them for their efforts. They make your job easier and improve the performance of the team without being asked.
Formally recognizing them for their informal contribution is a Win-Win.
