How do I get colleagues to give me a more finished version of the work?

Coaching Couch Issue #3

Welcome to The Coaching Couch. This is the place where talented insight professionals can seek out support for anything they think is getting in the way of feeling, being and giving their best at work.

Today’s question is: How do I get colleagues to give me a more finished version of the work?

I see this frustration time and again when coaching new managers and leaders:

• You used to be a top do-er and now you can’t (nor should you) do it all yourself.
• You have excellent attention to detail and high standards – that’s why you’ve been promoted.

But how do you foster this commitment to excellence in others? How do you avoid the trap of being the one who tidies up the documents and fills in the blanks?

Time is almost always an excuse

Before you throw something at your phone or laptop, hear me out. I know that deadlines are looming and you will find yourself in a position where there’s not time for another round of changes and checks. This happens. But if someone has run out of time to complete something, then there’s something more underlying going on.

Understand what’s REALLY going on with them.

Sometimes what they say or what you assume, is not the underlying issue. They might say “I’m not a detail person” or you might assume “they don’t care about the work.” We’re great at not taking consumers at face value, so imagine if we applied our curious mindset to internal people challenges.

Think about how you contribute to this

This might grate. But sometimes it’s the identify shift that a promotion into a management role creates that sees us continuing with old behaviours (like getting documents client ready) long after they serve us.

Common ones are:

I don’t want to be seen as a micromanager – this might stop you setting clear expectations or asking for updates. You won’t do this forever, but with more junior people they are vital tools for supporting them to deliver.

I don’t want to appear “too good” to get my hands dirty – this keeps you finalising work because you fear pushing it back will make you look like you think you’re better than the team member.

I like doing the work – this is your comfort zone and if you’re honest, staying busy here means you’ve got a legitimate reason not to send those cringe business development emails or have that difficult conversation.

Here are a few tips to break the cycle.

Tip #1 Define Excellence

What does “done” work look like?

Set a consistent benchmark, clearly communicate this at the briefing and refer back to it when finalising work. Having an objective sense of what ‘done’ is makes feedback less personal, arbitrary, and stickler-esque.

Tip #2 Get beneath the issue that presents

Ask the team member:

If you had more time, what would you have done?

How did you use the time you had?

What took priority?

This will unearth more insight that you can train around; because how you work with someone who lacks a skill (like prioritisation, summarising or structuring) is different from supporting someone who lacks will.

Tip #3 Don’t make it about you

Re-frame your language:

From “I need to see a finished document”

To “The client is expecting a finished document”

And put the onus on them to define the contract with you:

“What support do you need from me?”

Thank you for reading and I hope this helps you and those you work with. If this resonated with you or you have an experience to share, drop a comment in the notes. If you have a question you want answered in a future column, get in touch at xxx

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Coaching Corner is a bi-monthly column by Zoe Fenn. Zoe is a qualified coach with 15 years of agency-side experience, as a researcher, manager and leader. She now runs her own business, You Burn Bright, helping talented insight professionals become more effective managers and strategic leaders.  

She runs 121 and group coaching programmes within agencies, and a cross-agency 6-week group leadership development programme. If you’re curious or want a sounding board for a management or leadership challenge – get in touch at zoe@youburnbright.com.