Lucille is a hardworking, highly reliable person. When given a project, she goes to her office, shuts the door, and digs in. She is intent on meeting the deadline with a high-quality product. She is the "go-to person" for getting a task done. The downside is that if someone interrupts her with a question, she will say something like, "Can't you figure that out yourself?" or "I have better things to do right now," in a short, curt manner. Her body language says, "Go away!"
Mark marches to a different drummer. He's always friendly and upbeat. If you step into his office, he's glad to see you and will take as much time as you want to talk about work or sports or movies or whatever is on your mind. People enjoy meeting with Mark about projects because he's always got an encouraging word or a joke to tell. If you ask him to drive you to the airport or carry in some boxes, he's on it. The downside with Mark is that he doesn't get tasks completed on time because too often, according to Mark, "He got caught up talking and time got away" or "Someone needed a favor."
Consider how these two employees will interact when working together on a project.
These two workers are examples of the extreme ends of the Task/Relationship model that is useful when coaching employees.
The Task/Relationship model considers how people respond to work interactions, and whether they focus first on completing tasks or on maintaining relationships.
Of course both kinds of employees are able to be successful. The idea is to help employees who lean heavily one way or the other to realize the payoff of building their skills on the other side. This may require coaching and skills building on the part of the manager because the employees are learning to go against their habits and tendencies. As they "build their muscles" to be more balanced, give them positive feedback on their progress.
