The best managers don't just give feedback. They share it with a coach approach.

When we deliver feedback with a coach approach, we're not just helping others address immediate challenges; we're empowering them to chart future possibilities.

The GROW model—Goal, Reality, Options, and Way Forward—offers a powerful framework for turning feedback into a coaching conversation. By refining their coaching voice, leaders can shift from a prescriptive "tell and sell" message to a more collaborative "listen and learn" tone.

Here's how you can use the GROW model to transform your feedback into a tool for lasting impact.

Goal

G stands for Goal. Your first job as a coach isn’t to fix things. It’s to listen. Try to understand the other person’s goal. Do they want a solution or just sympathy? Your attention or your answers? To set the right tone, try these opening questions:

• How can I be most helpful to you right now?

• What’s getting in your way?

• What outcome are you hoping to achieve?

Reality

Next, R stands for Reality. Once you’ve identified their goal, try to understand the reality others are facing. This is your chance to draw out key insights you may not have. You can tease this information out gently with the following questions:

• Why do you think this is happening right now?

• What’s working? What’s not working?

• Is there something here I’m missing?

These first two stages can help you set the context. The next two stages are where you put coaching to work.

Options

O stands for Options. Good coaching is about helping others see the same picture from a different angle. It’s about creating new perspectives. Help others broaden their thinking by prompting them to examine their past experiences or prior assumptions:

• Have you experienced anything like this before? What did you do?

• Is there an option you haven’t tried yet? Why not?

• If someone else came to you with this issue, what would you tell them to do?

Remember, the job of a coach isn’t to fix it – it’s to frame it.

Way forward

Which brings us to W, which stands for Way Forward. As a coach, you can show others where to look without telling them what to see. Let them see it for themselves. I like these questions, because they empower others to decide what the way forward should look like:

• What is your most powerful next step?

• Who else could provide support?

• How can I continue to be helpful?

When we pair coaching with feedback, we create the conditions for a supportive, empowering and results-focused conversation that leaves others feeling renewed and ready to act.  When we share feedback with a coach approach, we don’t just make others feel better about their work. We help them do better work.

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