Coaching, Feedback, Training, or Clearer Expectations? How to Know What Your Employee Actually Needs

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When someone isn’t performing as expected, it can be tempting to jump straight to a solution. More coaching. More feedback. A training course. Another conversation about expectations.

But these approaches solve different problems. If you choose the wrong one, you can spend a lot of time trying to help without addressing what is actually getting in the way.

Before deciding what an employee needs, start by diagnosing the issue.

Start here: What is preventing the employee from performing?

Before deciding what kind of support to provide, work through four questions:

1. Can you confidently say they know what good looks like?
If not, start with clearer expectations.

2. Do they know how their current performance compares to that expectation?
If not, they need feedback.

3. Do they have the knowledge and skills to do what is expected?
If not, they may need training.

4. Do they have the capability, but are stuck or need help working through how to apply it?
That’s where coaching can help.

These aren’t four completely separate paths, and an employee may need more than one. But working through the questions in this order can help a manager get much closer to the real issue before deciding what to do about it.

1. Clearer expectations: Do they know what good looks like?

Start with the expectation itself. Could the employee clearly explain what successful performance looks like?

This is especially important when the concern is described with words like ownership, communication, leadership, initiative or strategic thinking. These can sound clear while meaning very different things to different people.

For example, telling someone to “take more ownership” gives them very little direction. Does that mean making more decisions independently? Raising problems sooner? Bringing recommendations instead of simply identifying issues? Following through without reminders?

If you can’t describe what you need to see differently, the employee probably can’t either.

Try this: Define the expectation in observable terms. Instead of “be more proactive,” try: “When you see a risk that could affect the project, raise it early and come prepared with your recommendation for how we should address it.”

2. Feedback: Do they know there is a problem?

Sometimes the expectation is clear, but the employee does not recognize that their current performance isn’t meeting it.

A manager may have noticed the same behaviour several times and assume the employee must see it too. That isn’t always the case.

Consider a manager who regularly steps in when their team encounters a problem. They may see themselves as responsive and supportive. Their leader may see that the team is becoming dependent on them and isn’t developing enough confidence to solve problems independently.

That manager doesn’t necessarily need training. They need feedback that helps them understand the difference between their intention and their impact.

Try this: Connect the feedback to a specific expectation and observable behaviour. Explain what you have noticed, why it matters, and what you need to see instead.

3. Training: Do they know how to do it?

If the employee understands the expectation and knows where they are falling short, the next question is whether they actually have the capability to do what is being asked.

This is where training can help.

A new manager may understand that they need to address performance concerns earlier. They may have received feedback that they are waiting too long. But if they have never learned how to structure a difficult performance conversation, give clear examples, or respond when an employee becomes defensive, there is a skill to build.

Training is useful when there is something specific to learn. It is much less useful when the person already knows how to do the work and something else is preventing them from doing it.

Try this: Identify the specific skill or knowledge the employee is missing. If you can’t name it, training may not be the right intervention.

4. Coaching: Can they do it, but need help applying it?

Coaching is useful when someone has the underlying capability but needs help thinking through how to apply it in a particular situation.

Perhaps a manager knows how to handle conflict but is dealing with an unusually difficult dynamic between two employees. Or a leader understands how to delegate but is struggling to decide what to let go of as their team grows.

They may not need someone to tell them what to do. They may benefit more from a conversation that helps them examine the situation, consider their options and decide how they want to proceed.

Useful coaching questions might include:

• What do you think is getting in the way?

• What have you tried already?

• What options are you considering?

• What are you avoiding?

• What would a good outcome look like?

• What will you do next?

The goal is not to turn every management conversation into a coaching session. It is to recognize when helping someone think through a situation is more useful than giving them another answer.

Often, the answer is more than one

These four approaches are not mutually exclusive.

A new manager may first need clear expectations about what good people leadership looks like. They may need training to build skills they have never practiced before. Once they start applying those skills, feedback helps them understand how they are doing and coaching helps them work through more complex situations.

The sequence matters.

For example, training cannot compensate for unclear expectations. Coaching will only get you so far if someone lacks the foundational skill. And feedback is difficult to act on when there isn’t a reasonably clear standard to compare performance against.

Rather than asking which development approach is best, ask what this person needs at this point to move their performance forward.

And sometimes, the issue isn’t development

There is one more possibility managers need to consider.

An employee may understand what is expected, know how their performance compares to that expectation, have the skills required and have received appropriate support, but the performance still isn’t changing.

At that point, adding more coaching or training may not be helpful. The issue could be accountability, motivation, role fit or a broader performance concern that needs to be addressed directly.

This is an important distinction because managers can sometimes stay in development mode for too long. Providing support is part of good management, but support should not become a substitute for addressing a performance issue when expectations are reasonable and the employee has the capability to meet them.

A quick diagnostic for your next performance conversation

When you’re trying to decide what an employee needs, work through these questions before choosing the solution:

1. What specifically needs to change?
   Describe the behaviour or result, rather than relying on broad labels like “ownership” or “communication.”
   

2. Is the expectation clear?
   Make sure you and the employee have the same understanding of what good performance looks like.
   

3. Have they received useful feedback?
   Confirm they understand where their current performance differs from the expectation.
   

4. Do they have the required capability?
   Identify any specific knowledge or skill they still need to develop.
   

5. Would coaching help them apply what they already know?
   Consider whether they need support thinking through the situation rather than another answer.
   

6. If all of those things are in place, is this still a development issue?
   Be prepared to address accountability or performance directly when appropriate.
   

Managers don’t need to have the same response every time someone is struggling. In fact, relying too heavily on one approach can make it harder to see what the situation actually requires.

The better starting point is diagnosis. Get clear about what is expected, what is happening now and what is preventing the person from getting from one to the other. From there, it becomes much easier to decide whether the next step is clearer expectations, feedback, training, coaching or a more direct performance conversation.

👉 Trying to strengthen performance on your team? Book an intro call and let’s figure out the right next step.