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The Lean Post / Articles / Lean Coaching Skills: Tips for “Humble Inquiry”

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Coaching

Lean Coaching Skills: Tips for “Humble Inquiry”

By David Verble

April 24, 2013

Lean Enterprise Institute faculty member David Verble compares and contrasts different managerial styles of coaching in this video.

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Lean Enterprise Institute faculty member David Verble compares and contrasts different managerial styles of coaching in this video.

He notes that to be a truly helpful coach to the people you are mentoring you have to know how and when to use “humble inquiry.” He also explains:

  • Why the “humble inquiry” approach so important to coaching as a lean manager does not come easy to most managers
  • The question to ask to begin the problem-solving process of plan-do-check-act (PDCA)
  • How humble inquiry supports people moving through the PDCA process
  • “Yes or no” versus “open” questions
  • How to help people “slow down” so they don’t jump to solutions
  • How do you know when to coach and when to give instruction
  • What capability development really means in a lean company

David, a former Toyota manager, goes into much greater detail about these and other coaching issues in the workshop Coaching Skills for Lean Implementation Leaders .

 

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Written by:

David Verble

About David Verble

A performance improvement consultant and leadership coach since 2000, David has been an LEI faculty member for 17 years. Recognized as one of the first Toyota-trained managers to bring A3 thinking from Japan to the United States, he has conducted A3 problem-solving and leadership programs for 30 years. Overall, his…

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