I came across a news release with this headline: "Study Finds Coaching and Mentoring Programs Underutilized Leadership Development Tool."  The release includes the following.

"The study found that, of the more than 300 organizations polled, fully half don’t have such programs at all."

Here's my question: "Why should they have programs?" Companies don't need coaching programs. They have managers who need coaching.  They don't need mentoring programs. They have managers who can be effective mentors who should be hooked up with less experienced managers. But they shouldn't need programs to do that.

The problem is that line managers won't put together a coaching program.  They'll try to get HR to do it.  Just like hiring and firing and evaluating and training and … well, you get the idea.

During a discussion of whether HR can add value to a business that's going on over at the Evil HR Lady blog, I realized that one trend for the last several years is for line managers to dump a lot of things they should be doing on the HR department. As they say where I live, "That's bad wrong."

Let's be clear. If you're a boss, it's your job to coach, counsel and correct. It's part of what you should be doing every day. Do your job.

If you're a boss, part of your job is to help your people develop. It's part of what you should be doing every day. Do your job.

When somebody isn't doing what they should, it's your job to confront them. If they don't reform, it's your job to do the documentation that may eventually be the basis for firing. Do your job.

The work of a manager involves two things. One is accomplishing the mission through the group. The other is caring for your people.  Do your job.

It's HR's job to support you and help you be more effective. It's your job to be the boss. Do your job.

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Wally Bock has helped people learn to be great bosses for more than a quarter century. His latest book, Performance Talk: The One-on-One Part of Leadership, makes learning key leadership principles almost effortless by teaching through a story and providing lists of resources for further growth.

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