Coaching Conversation 1: Review Q12® Results and

the State of the Team Conversation

Part One: Make Sense of the Q12 Results

The goal for this part of the conversation is to help the manager thoroughly explore the team’s engagement
results and better understand how he or she can ensure that each person’s workplace needs are being met.

  Initial Observations   Call to Action

•• What do you think about your results? Does anything
surprise you?
•• At first glance, what would you like to see change?
•• What specific items or concerns get your attention
the most?
•• How do you plan to communicate the team’s
areas of strength to the team?
•• Are there two or three things you could start
doing today to immediately improve the team’s
engagement?

•• What questions do you have? •• If you could change one thing about the team,
what would it be? What would it take to make
 Exploration this change?
•• What do the GrandMean results say about the team’s •• Where do you want the team to be in one year?
engagement? •• What is the team’s most important
•• How do the team’s GrandMean results compare with the performance goal?
organization’s GrandMean results? •• Which engagement item has the most
•• In what areas is the team strong? What should the team influence on whether the team will achieve this
celebrate? What do you think contributes to making these performance goal? Why?
areas of strength?
•• Which scores do you see as areas of opportunity? What
do you think has contributed to the lower scores?
•• Which of the four levels in the engagement hierarchy is
the strongest for the team? Which is the weakest?
•• What do the team’s scores say about how the team works
together to get things done?
•• What engagement items are the most important to you?
To the team?

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Copyright © 2015 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.
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 Coaching Conversation 1: Review Q12® Results and the State of the Team Conversation

Part Two: Plan for the State of the Team Conversation

During this coaching conversation, help the manager plan for the State of the Team conversation. Walk the
manager through the agenda for the conversation. Create a strategy for facilitating the conversation together.
Discuss expectations and concerns.

  State of the Team Conversation: Agenda   Consulting and Support

1) Identify a Team Performance Goal •• How will you describe employee engagement to
-- Collaboratively identify the team’s most the team?
important performance goal. Listen for:
2) Analyze Gallup Q12 Survey Results ✓✓ How clear is this manager about the purpose
-- Share and discuss the team’s and goal of this initiative? Does this manager
engagement results. understand the importance of this initiative?

3) Select the Engagement Item to Focus on and •• What are your main objectives for the State of the
Actions to Take Team conversation?

-- Select an engagement item that will help the Listen for:

team achieve its performance goal, and then
brainstorm the actions and owners needed to
achieve the goal.
4) Review and Recalibrate
-- Set a date to evaluate progress on the team’s
goal and recalibrate if necessary.
  How to Have a Successful Conversation
✓✓ Approach this conversation with natural curiosity.
✓✓ Demonstrate that engagement matters.
✓✓ Understand that the manager does not own the
results alone; the team owns them.
✓✓ Empower team members to do most of the talking.
✓✓ Narrow the focus.
✓✓ Lead from strength.
✓✓ Don’t interpret the Q12 results or individual items
for employees.
✓✓ How clear is this manager about what he or
she wants to accomplish? How realistic are
these goals?
✓✓ How can you support this manager in
accomplishing his or her objectives?
•• Do you anticipate any challenges or obstacles to
achieving your goals that I can help you with?
Listen for:
✓✓ Are there issues or concerns that are outside of
the team’s control that should be elevated to the
next level?
•• How can I support you throughout the year?
Listen for:
✓✓ When should you reconnect with this manager?
✓✓ How can you help this manager create
opportunities to influence engagement or to get
the support he or she identified?

✓✓ Build from the base by focusing on the first six •• How often should we get together to talk about
Q12 items. employee engagement?

✓✓ Ensure that every team member feels as if he or she Listen for:

has contributed to the overall engagement process. ✓✓ Can you meet with this manager as often as
he or she wants? If not, how can you work
with this manager to determine a realistic
meeting schedule?

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Copyright © 2015 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.
EED_CH-T_Convo1Hndt_en-US_050416_bk