Page 102 - DMGT517_PERFORMANCE_MANAGEMENT_SYSTEM

Unit 9: Performance Counselling

9.3 Performance Counselling Skills Notes

The given below are the key performance counselling skills:

Listening

One of the key essential of performance counselling is active listening. Listening involves paying
attention to the various messages being sent by the other person. The obvious message is the
ideas being communicated (cognitive message). But more hidden may be the feelings and the
concerns the other person may not be able to put clearly in words. Listening to feelings and
concerns is very important for effective counselling. This involves skills which can be practiced.
Some exercises can be used to improve listening of such hidden messages.

Asking Questions and Responding

Questions can facilitate or hinder the process of communication. Questions can serve several
purposes: they can help in getting more information, establishing mutuality, clarifying matters,
stimulating thinking. In a counselling situation questions play a very important role. Some
questions can shut off the counselee, or make him dependent on the counselor. Another set of
questions can build autonomy of the counselee. Obviously the latter will be helpful, and not the
former.

Being Emphatic

Questions about the feelings of a person, his concern, his problem, not so much for fi nding

solutions as to indicate and express concern, may be classified as emphatic questions. When
a manager asks an employee: “How is your son feelings now?”, he is not merely seeking
information, but in fact indicating his personal concern about the health of the employee’s son
and thereby expressing empathy with the employee. Such questions help to generate more trust,
and the necessary rapport with the employee. Empathic questions create a climate of mutual
trust and human understanding.

Positive Reinforcement

It has been established by Skinner that change in behaviour cannot be brought about in human
beings through punishment or negative reinforcement, but only through positive reinforcement.
Influencing would involve providing encouragement and reinforcing success so that the person

takes more initiative and is able to experiment with new ideas. Change cannot take place without
experiment and risk-taking. And these are encouraged through positive reinforcement.

9.4 Performance Counselling for Higher Job Performance

Counselling is given by one who is senior to the other person-in competence, or in knowledge,
or in psychological expertise, or in the hierarchical position in the organization. There are three
main processes involved in counselling-communication, influencing, and helping. The counselor

essentially communicates with the counselee. Communication involves both receiving messages
(listening), giving messages (responding), and giving feedback. The person who provides
counselling does all the three things. Counselling also involves influencing the counselee in

several ways. The manager cannot escape the fact that he is influencing his employee in such a
way that the latter is able to move in some direction. However, this influence is of a special type,

enabling the other person to exercise more autonomy, providing positive reinforcement so that
desirable behaviour is further strengthened, and creating conditions in which the person is able
to learn from the behaviour of the counselor through the process of identifi cation.

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