Mental Coaching In The Internet Age: HR Still Matters
Today’s most vocal business leaders are emphasizing that “the world is flat,” that labor moves freely, and that the lowest price, whether it’s from Atlanta or Argentina, always wins. Million dollar orders can be placed online without so much as speaking to a live person, and the “faces” of corporate communications are increasingly those of models or paid spokespersons rather than real business leaders.
Are people skills even relevant, at a time when posting a job opening online will get you applications from around the world? The answer is a resounding “yes”: at the end of the day, someone is still designing the products, the web sites, and the marketing material.
That person deserves the best possible environment to perform his or her job, even if- especially if- that person comes from some other country; immigrants and guest workers are members of your company just like your other employees. They bring their own special strengths and weaknesses, and require close attention and mental coaching to maximize their productivity. Mental coaching is the best way to ensure that anyone from any background is truly part of your team, which is the most important part of human resource management today.
Mental coaches might be most associated with professional sports, outdoor sales-people, or CEOs. For example, Dr. John F. Murray developed the “Mental Performance Index” for American football and helped Vincent Spadea overcome a losing streak that was one of the longest in tennis history. However, the truth is that mental coaching is relevant from the highest to the lowest rung of the corporate ladder.
In the end, if someone is worth spending tens of thousands of dollars to hire and train, doesn’t it make sense allow the Human Resources department the freedom to bring out the most in him or her? If sports teams can hire mental coaches to increase their performance, so can corporate teams. Even if the labor they’re coaching is fresh off the web.
While the world can well be flat, it is still populated with human beings, and human beings don’t perform at their peak potential without training and smart management. Companies are made up of people — something that is as true during the reign of Bill Gates as it was during that of Rockefeller, despite the Internet.
These days a job opening posted online easily fetches applications from around the world. A person needs a proper work environment, especially if that person was born and raised elsewhere. Immigrants and guest workers are integral members of the corporate world. Their special issues and hardships need close attention to bring out the most in them, and that requires mental coaching. This is an excellent way of bringing someone from a different culture into a team 100%, and is one of the most important functions of human resource management. The mental coaches help to maximize the value of employees. Such coaching is relevant for employees at every level.
- George Purdy
