COUNSELLING PROCESS

COUNSELLING PROCESS

STRUCTURE

1.       Introduction

2.       Objectives

3.       Feedback and counselling

4.       Counselling process

5.       Barriers to counselling

6.       Making counselling effective

INTRODUUCTION

It is well known that the management if an organization involves the management of people and their performance at work in the organization to achieve organizational goals. Effective management is associated with activities such as supervising, mentoring, coaching, controlling and rewarding. Two of the processes that make interaction between the supervisor and employees more effective are feedback and counseling. Both aim at providing employees with the information, advice, and assistance required to strengthen them psychologically and functionally and utilize their best talents. In this unit, you will learn in detail about the feedback  and counseling process.

OBJECTIVES

This unit seeks to enable the students to do the following:

1. Examine the importance of feedback and counseling
2. Explain the process of counseling
3. Understand the problem involved at each stage of counseling
4. Explain the counseling process in the context of career and  performance
5. Discuss how counseling can be made effective.

FEEDBACK AND COUNSELLING

The feedback is a routine  and regular aspect of management activity, while counseling is situational and occasional.

A. Illustration

For example, Raman an employee in your organization, is found drinking beer during office hours. His performance is good, and he has never received any bad remark about his work. As a supervisor, you would like to correct him. So you say: “Raman, I am sorry to know that You are consuming alcohol in the office. First, it is injurious to your health. Second, it is a misconduct as per our company rules. You are a valuable employee of our organisation and we do not want you to ruin your future. Please stop drinking. Do you need my help in this ?”

The feedback given here is informative and suggestive. It offers an appropriate level of assistance. When Raman thinks he needs help, he may be referred to a de-addiction centre. Thus we see feedback and counseling go together in many cases in organization.

B. Contexts of Feedback and Counselling

Details regarding the contexts of feedback and counseling are given below:

No	Situation	Feedback	Counslling
1	After a selection process	Selection and appointment	How to fit into a job and an organization. An orientation programme.
2	Standard of conduct is not being met: late coming, gossiping during office hours, sleeping during working hours, etc.	Violation of conduct rules / code.	Mending behaviour, changing values, and attitudes.
3	Performance appraisal	Poor performance	Psychological counseling for positive thinking, interest in training, and sprit of performance.
4	Staff training and development	Weaknesses and Opportunities	Career counseling
5	Job Exit by an employee	Relieving or a new job offer	Benefits of staying longer, future growth opportunities, etc.

C. Making Feedback Effective

Feedback can be informal and formal. In most cases, feedback will be informal and oral, and will be an exchange of information between the supervisor and  the staff in a broad range of work-related situations. The main purpose of such feedback efforts is to understand how best the two of them can  work together to achieve organizational goals. Feedback can be formal and written where records are considered important.

It is important to make the feedback mechanism because it is a core process for effective team work. The characteristics of effective feedback can be summarized as done below

                          Characteristics of Effective Feedback

No	Characteristics	Description
1	Two Way Process	Feedback is a form of communication. It will be complete only when the receive gives his response to the information in the form of acceptance, clarification, or rejection. It also helps to have further communication between the persons involved.
2	Cooperative	Feedback will be more effective when it involves the receiver kin a progressively active manner to arrive at a mutual understanding.
3	Timely	Information transaction has to be timely. Delays are undesirable, because delays can result in loss of opportunities.
4	Regular	Regular and continuous information on how well things or event swill help alerts individual or organisations to take corrective actions.
5	Factual and Specific	Feedback is more effective when it is related to specific situations or persons, and is based on focused information that is tangible and factual. Casual feedback with generalizations will usually be ignored.
6	Balanced and Constructive	Feedback should be based on a balanced judgment, without any bias. It should touch upon the positive and negative elements and highlight what is important in that context. It should also help the receiver to take action for improvement or correction. So, it should be constructive and must provide solutions for discussion and adoption.
7	Positive	Feedback should be positive. When negative messages are conveyed ( like warning, suspension, and poor grading in appraisal), they should be made ina positive way. Instead of an accusative approach, you can follow a transformation approach in giving such feedback.
8	Follow-up	Feedback requires follow-up supervision and also feedback to continue the progress of communication spirals moving from low  level of understanding to higher levels of understanding.

 Five Ws of Counselling

Counselling can be understood by using the five Ws framework of inquiry. These are: What is counselling? Why counseling? Who counsels? When to counsel? Where to counsel?

1.      What is counseling?

According to the Chambers Dictionary, counseling is “ the service of helping people to adjust or deal with personal problems by coaching them to discover for themselves the solution to the problems while receiving attention from a counselor.”

Counselling is a process of empowering a person to think clearly and to deal with the problems of life in a rational and emotionally balanced way. It offers interaction with a sound person and thus paves a safe and non-judgemental way of talking though issues.

In the organizational context, counseling is a formal process, initiated by a manger when an employee has not responded to his feedback and a separate discussion is found necessary to help him/her to bring about a change in thinking  and behaviour.

Counselling involves the following steps:

(i)                 Issuing a notice to inform the employee about a meeting to enable him to come prepared for the discussion.

(ii)               Arranging the meeting in private, in the presence of a support person and observer.

(iii)             Discussing the issues in a chosen style of counseling.

(iv)             Keeping a brief record of  the meeting in a dairy.

(v)               Reviewing at regular intervals.

The counseling process, however, will depend on the  individual consellor, the individual client, and the specific issue to be dealt with.

2.      Why counseling?

When confronted with a problem, every human being looks for a person who will sympathetically listen and extend help in thinking through the issue. But in toda’s busy and fragmented world, it is difficult to get a sympathetic listener.

Friends and relatives may not be the right persons, for the following reasons:

(i)                 They may not have the ability to resolve the problem.

(ii)               They may be a part of the problem

(iii)             They may impose a solution, which may be difficult to refuse, out of respect for the person suggesting the solution

(iv)             They may act as judges and pronounce judgements on your behaviour.

(v)               Relationships may be strained when the discussion deviates from the original purpose and leads to emotional exchanges.

(vi)             When a professional or trained counselor is consulted, one need not be afraid of any negative consequences.

People find different  issues in the course of their lives. Given below is table showing the a range of problems arising at four different levels of human behaviour, that is at the individual, family, organizational and social levels.

 Range of  Problems for Counselling

Individual	Family	Organisation	Society
1.Anxiety/depression 2.Eating disorders 3.Alcohol or smoking addictions 4.Adopting to life transitions 5.Menopause/ Pre-menopause	1.Family and relationship issues 2.Sexual abuse and domestic violence 3.Loss and grief 4.Conflict over property 5. Control and authority issues	1.Career change and progress 2.Career stagnation 3.Job stress/anxiety/ 4.Burnout 5.Conflict with peers or superiors 6.Indiscipline 7.Compensation Issues	1.Social/ emotional difficulties related to disability, illness, 2.Problems with the Government 3. Problems with the neighbours  4.Conflct with social leadership 5.Conflict with values of the society.

Some of the above problems may be difficult to manage. Examples of sacuh serious issues include the following: Job loss, sickness, accident and bereavement. Others may be anger, stress, insult, tiredness etc.

The table below illustrates hoe feelings are exhibited by individuals.

 ISSUES THAT MERIT COUNSELLING

No	Issues	Thoughts	Behaviour	Problem
1	Constant anger	“Other don’t care for my words”	Doest not listen to others	“How to make relationships pleasant?”
2	Stress and burn out	“Others are hopeless”	Keeps worrying about something	“How to relax and reduce stress?”
3	Feeling blamed	“Others blame me for their mistakes”	Shouting, slamming doors	“How to gain positive evaluation of others?”
4	Constant tiredness	“They do not know how tired I am”	Stays in solitary places	“How do I rejuvenate myself?”

3.      Who to counsel?

In most cases, it is the responsibility of the manager to provide counseling to the employees under his or her supervision. However, if the problems of the employee is caused by factors outside the workplace ( for example, if a person has a problem with drugs or alcohol or has difficulties in private life) it will be appropriate to refer the person to a trained counselor. In such cases, the manager plays a suggestive role.

In case of critical issues, the manager may take the support of  his senior manager or a suitable person from the human resource department.

When a therapist’s help is found necessary, a professionally qualified counselor outside the organization, say a psychiatrist, or some one from a social service organization with expert counselors and medical practitioners may be contacted.

4.      When to counsel?

Hen a problem is found relating to an individual, and if the manager finds it necessary to arrange a counseling session, the key question is: “ At what stage of the problem should the counseling be done?” Intervention at an early stage  often helps prevent a problem from escalating further. Nipping the problem in the bud is a good approach as it prevents the problem from taking a more serious and possibly disruptive turn in the future.

When the decision to counsel is taken, sufficient notice to prepare for counseling should be given. However, there may be exceptions to this norm. When the behaviour of the employee impacts the other members negatively, then a counseling session may be arranged immediately.

5.      Where to counsel?

The place of counseling is important, because both the ambience and space  have a significant influence on the mind of both the counsellot and the counselee. The discussion should ideally be held in a place which is private and free from distractions. There are two options: The office, if it is convenient or a neutral place, which adequately far off the office.

E. MANAGEMENT COUNSELLING APPROACHES

Managers are leaders when they guide and motivate employees to to achieve high performance levels and job satisfaction. They act as mentors, coaches and counselors. However, sometimes situations demand managers to be directors or autocratic.

 By a similar token, counseling can be directive when needed. At the other polar end, counseling can be non-directive with prescriptive, negotiative and consultative styles in between. All these styles or approaches are solution-centred.

The table below explains the different styles of counseling

                                               Styles of Counselling

No	Styles	Description	Situation
1	Directive	Manager dictates the solution	Time is short. Employee is dependent and immature. Task is highly structured.
2	Prescriptive	Suggests possible solutions and encourages its adoption	Manager is mature and has good understanding of the problem. Employee trusts the manager.
3	Negotiative	Involves offers and counter offers. In this process, manager and employee arrive at an agreement.	Manager and employee have differing aims. Both of the parties have the ability to provide solutions. They sit together to negotiate.
4	Consultative	Manager invites the employee to provide solutions. Discusses to find better solutions	Both of the parties have  mutual trust and ability to provide solutions.
5	Non-directive	Manager encourages the employee to design solutions.	Employee is capable of finding solutions. Trust is low and conflict is high.

COUNSELLING PROCESS

Counselling is essentially an interviewing process in which the counselor acts as a facilitator to accomplish one or a few of all of the following:

• Enable the clients to explore a difficulty which they may be experiencing, or aspects of their life they wish to change;
•  Guide the clients to free themselves from feeling to be a victim of circumstances to feeling that they have more control over life;
• Assist them  in considering and deciding possible  approaches to change;
•  Support implementation of  steps for bringing about the desired change.

The entire process of counseling can be conceptualised as a series of stages with specific outcomes at the end of each stage. In each stage the counselor employs strategies and skills to be successful in getting the desired outcome.

The process of counseling is divided into a number of stages by different analysts. To start  with one, we can say that the process has a beginning, a middle and an end. Girard Egan (1986) has explained counseling as a four stage activity, where as Lawrence Brammer (1988) has divided the counseling process into six stages.

We will use a five stage model involving the following stages:

1. Preparation
2. Beginning
3. Developing
4. Terminating
5. Follow-up

                     

     Table showing the Counselling Stages

No	The Stages in our model	Girard Egan	Lawrence brammer
1	Preparation
2	Beginning	Attending to the counselee and building a rapport	Clarifying the problem and deciding the goals for counselling
3	Developing	Responding to the counselee and helping him to explore his feelings, experiences, and behaviour. Stimulating action that subsequently is  evaluated by the counselor and the counselee together.	Building a deeper relationship. Deciding on some plans for action, trying these out, and evaluating them.
4	Terminating		Terminating the relationship
5	Follow-up

A close observation reveals that the essence of all classifications is the same. The interviews tarts with the aim of establishing a rapport between the client and the counselor. Once the rapport is established, the issue taks centre stage and is explored till a solution comes into focus. It is followed by plans and their implementation.

However, it is to be remembered that a counseling model is only a snap shot of a dynamic activity and it cannot be explained and applied prescriptively to all situations.

The process, style, and strategies vary from one situation to another. The purpose of prescribing a conceptual model is to help to understand the process elements and sequences and to learn to apply the model in a flexible manner.

Discussed below are the details regarding each of the stages.

ONE: PREPARATION

Counselling is initiated either by the manager or by the employee. It is important for both of them to be well prepared for the session. Therefore the first step in counseling is preparing for the interview.  To prepare for the interview, the following need to be done:

• Identify the need
• Choose a suitable place
• Schedule the time of meeting
• Notify the subordinate well in advance
• Organise information
• Evolve a counseling strategy

Each of the above steps needs to be elaborated.

(1)   Identifying the Need

Quite often, organizational policies such as counseling associated with an evaluation or counseling required by the employee, focus on a counseling session. However, you may conduct a developmental counseling whenever the need arises for a focused, two-way communication aimed at subordinate development. Developing subordinates involves observing the subordinate’s performance, comparing it to the standard, and then providing feedback to the subordinate in the form of counseling.

(2)   Choosing a Suitable place

A place which is quite and free from distances is to be chosen.  Pleasing interiors, comfortable seating and good ventilation and lighting are important features of a good environment. In addition, if there is facility for recording the interview, it will be helpful to the counselor.

(3)   Scheduling the time of Meeting

 The question of when to conduct the counseling requires considering  two factors: working time of the employee and time required for counseling. If the employee has a day duty, counseling can be done either during duty hours or after duty hours. Counselling after duty hours may not be liked by the employee as he or she may want to get home instead.

The length of time required for counseling depends on the nature of the issue. Complex issues may require more than one hour. The optimal time period for counseling is less than an hour. If more time is necessary, counseling can be done in more than one session.

(4)   Notifying the Subordinate

Effective counseling requires employee involvement and commitment. Two factors merit attention to stimulate interest in the employee:

(i)                 Counselling should take place following the event causing counseling. For example, performance counseling should take place immediately after appraisal.

(ii)               Time to prepare for the interview should be adequate. In development counselling, employees may need a week or more to collect information from forms and records.

(5)   Organising Information

Before counseling, the manager has to organize information and outline the following:

(i)                 Purpose of the counseling

(ii)               Facts and observations about the employee.

(iii)             Identification of possible problems.

(iv)             Main points for discussion

(v)               A plan of action.

(6)   Evolving a Counselling Strategy

Since the approach of the employee is not known, the manager has to develop a strategy to conduct the interview successfully. There are several approaches to counseling, ranging from directive to non-directive ones. The manager should use a strategy that suits his employee and the situation.

 TWO: BEGINNING

The beginning session of counseling is critical because it paves the way for a constructive relationship between a counselor and a counselee in problem-solving. The objectives of counseling at this stage are:

a)      Establishing support or a working relationship

b)      Clarifying and defining the problem

c)      Gaining an understanding of the terms of contract.

There are seven processes in this beginning stage of counseling, as listed below:

1.      Receiving

2.      Prompting

3.      Relationship Building

4.      Acceptance

5.      Understanding

6.      Defining the Problem

7.      Establishing a  Pattern

8.      counseling contract

These can be explained as shown below:

1. Receiving

What is involved here is inviting the employee and offering him a seat and a cup of tea or coffee, and setting the stage for a personal discussion by explaining the context for the meeting.

2. Prompting

Prompting means evoking a counselee to start to say something when he or she is remaining silent or  not willing or not able to express in words. The counselor can do this by using techniques such as the following:

(a)   By Expression or Statements like the following:

(i)                 Assertive Statement: “I wonder how you imagined you  would start!”

(ii)               Interrogative statement, or open-ended question: “ What questions would you like me to ask you?”

(iii)             Directive statement: “Tell me what concerns you most at present.”

(iv)             Summary: “People in the office, like your boss, colleagues and others, do not care for you. Your boss …… is the nagging type, and perhaps you could begin with that.”

(v)               Paraphrase: “ You said,  your boss is the nagging type. … can we start there?”

(b)   By Content: A counselor may use different types of  messages as illustrated here.

(i)                 On Thoughts: “ I wonder what was on your mind , as you came here today.”

(ii)               On Expectations: “In your imagination what did you hope to happen here today?” Or “Imagine you have some thoughts and expectations, and I wonder what they are.”

(iii)             On Help: “ How did you decide to get some counseling for yourself?”. Or “What information would you like from me that would help you to begin?”

(iv)             On the Problem: “Will you tell me what problem what is the problem, as you see it?”.

3. Relationship Building

This is developing rapport and creating a relationship with our client. According to Tyler and Gilmore, acceptance and understanding are important requirements of a relationship. According to Rogers ( 1957), the core conditions for successful counseling are the following:

     ( a )  Unconditional positive regard:

Irrespective of all other attitudes and actions of an employee, as a client he or she is to be treated as person of worth.

(b)    Empathy

This understanding others from their point of view. When a counsellotr talks with empathy, the counselee responds positively. Empathy promotes rapport and relationships in a better way.

(c)    Congruence

 When the counselor aligns his thinking  with that of the counselee, a similarity in interests can be established. Both the counselor and the counselee would then consider the issue from the same perspectives and aim at the same goals.

4. Acceptance

Acceptance means valuing others because they are human beings. Clients may have different emotions like fear, anxiety, vexation, shame and anger. They may talk silly and do foolish things. Still a counselor should have unconditional positive regard  or respect for him. To accept a client means accepting his emotions, experiences, expectations, and giving credence to what he brings to the counseling session. The counselor has to start things from a strengths-based perspective. By pointing out the positive ones, he removes the inhibitions and fears in the mind of the counselee and encourages him to open up.

5. Understanding

Understanding in this context means that the counselor has almost the same views as the counselee has in his mind. The need for understanding is very much emphasized by experts in counselling. To show this, the counselor has to actively listen to the client, and understand his verbal messages and non-verbal signs. A positive relationship can be created only when the counselee fees that the counselor has concern for his welfare and that he understands him

6. Defining the Problem

The right way for beginning a counseling session is by stating the purpose in clear terms. For example, a purpose statement could be: “ The purpose of this counseling is to discuss your performance over the past month and to develop a plan to improve it to meet performance  standards.”

In case it is the second counseling session, you may begin by reviewing the status of the previous plan of action.”

Clients often come with confused feelings about their problems. Very few of them are aware of their problems or declare them in clear terms. Sometimes a client may have more than one problem and thus struggle hard in dealing with them. Therefore clarifying and defining problems is an important step in the problem-solving process. The counselor has to understand the problem by helping the client to define it through his skillful interventions.

Clients may make four types of statements as shown below:

(i)                 Statements on facts and alternatives

(ii)               Statements on judgements, criteria, preferences, dislikes.

(iii)             Statements on problem-solving behaviour, and specific type behaviour

(iv)             Statements on emotions, conflicts, pressures, fears and expectations.

7. Establishing a Pattern

A counselor has to establish a pattern interaction which we call style. The style should enable the client to open up and explore the problem and as well as the solution areas. Clients who are confident and communicative respond well to an asking style. On the other hand, those who are depressed and helpless will find comfort in the telling and advising style.

8. Counselling Contract

A counseling contract involves agreement for consideration. It is based on willingness of both the parties- cousellor and counselee- to go ahead with counseling. It is a tentative agreement on terms such as the issues that need to be explored, number of sittings and fee, that will help the counsellor and the counselee to move to the next stage of counseling.

The issues to be considered in a contract are the following:

(i)                 Number of sessions: A tentative agreement on the number of sessions will be helpful to maintain the tempo of counseling. A planned and methodical progress is possible when we know the date of termination or completion. Planned activities will be more effective. It is also open to the counselor and the counselee to cut short or lengthen the  duration of the counseling.

(ii)               Frequency of sessions: In counseling, continuity is important. If the time interval between the sessions is too short, the client may experience the stress of counseling. If it is too long, both the client and the counselor may have to spend time to establish a common ground. Therefore, depending upon the problem and its importance, the frequency of sessions may be decided.

(iii)             Timings: A regular time in a week is ideal. It establishes a routine to the client. It is easy to remember and respond.

(iv)             Length of sessions: ideally, the length of a session is fifty minutes. It is long enough to examine issues with proper attention and concentration. It is short enough not to create feelings like  “boring”, and “taxing”.

(v)               Payment: An important item in the contract is is the fees of the counselor and the terms of payment by the counselee. If the fee is negotiable, decisions regarding the following should be made mutually:

• Amount o be paid by the client
• When to be paid- weekly or monthly
• Payment for cancelled sessions
• Exemptions if any conditions for the same.

THREE: DEVELOPING

Developing is the crucial part of counseling. The counsellor encourages the counselee to explore a difficulty or distress which he may be experiencing, and facilitate him to make his own decisions on how to proceed.

There are three stages involved here, namely  (a) assessment and diagnosis  (b) organizing information and (c) Exploration.

1.      Assessment and Diagnosis

A good assessment can provide an opportunity for the client to see how his behaviour or attitude might be contributing to an undesirable or unhealthy situation. Assessment is an ongoing process. Re-assessments enable a counselor to ensure that the client is on the right track.

How do  you gather information for assessment?

(i)                 Articulation of the Client’s Point of View:

The client is asked to narrate in detail his problems and related experiences. Also the client’s answers are filled in checklists to understand the client’s behaviour.

(ii)               Inquiry in to Other’s Point of View:

Discussions with other people who are associated with the client, and reading any documented information on the client can help the counselor to gain another perspective on the client’s behaviour.

(iii)             Formulation of the Counsellor’ Point of View

A counselor may use different  techniques and tools such as simple observation to psychological instruments to assess the client’s behaviour and personality. Assessment tools include psychological tests and non-standardized tools such as clinical interview. Where appropriate, the counselor may employ the assessment inventories or checklists.

2.      Organising Information

The information gathered in the assessment process is organised to make a meaningful  description.

Using Frameworks.  Counsellors make use of frameworks to provide direction and dimensions for assessing clients. For example, SWOT analysis helps to assess the client’s strengths and weaknesses, and also to helps him to identify opportunities and threats. Transactional Analysis (TA) is a model for understanding a personality in its three ego states: Parent, Adult and Child. It helps to know the games people play and  the limits they impose on themselves.

Gilmore offers a three dimensional framework to gather information – Work, Relationships and Identity.

(i)                 Work

Work is the primary pursuit of any person. It is the means of livelihood and symbol of accomplishment. What is a person’s occupation and how does he / she feel about it?

(ii)               Relationships

However,pursuits go beyond a job or occupation. People crave for relationships to receive and provide  care, support, encouragement, love and concern. Whom do they care for  and who cares for them?

(iii) Identity

Being social does not mean loss of identity. We develop self-image and identity and try to protect and enhance it. Who are you? Could you self-actualise while progressing in your life?

Frameworks are not all inclusive. You cannot package all details in the framework chosen, but it serves as a guide to cope with major issues.

3.Exploration

Exploration means helping clients to articulate their concerns. In this process, counselor guides the client to speak out his thoughts and  emotions relating to his problem. The counselor has to be skilled in keeping a focus – he has to encourage as well as monitor the process of exploration by the client.

At the end of the guided exploration of individual’s personality and situations ( both past and present), the client will gain clarity in the problem. In the place of negative feelings such as fears and doubts, he will find new energy and interest in problem-solving. Some problems may have chains and,  often, unpacking on e problem may reveal its connection to another.

Through out the process,  the counselor offers support and facilitation based on what the client decides, based on his feelings. It aims at allowing the clients to experience the following:

(i)                 Realising what they are: Recognition of their skills and  experience, their achievements and failures.

(ii)               Recalling response to a problem: Knowing how they responded to a problem that has confronted them, how they fell from a caring to a blaming position, and the way they used to to discount themselves and others.

(iii)             Re-experiencing: By talking about the past events, they wil be able to visualise how they how they suffered and  feel it all over again. It helps release emotions that are deep=seated in their mind and which restrict their positive behaviour.

Emphasis is given to feelings and thoughts, as stimuli for action and change. Assessment should be factual and unbiased. The following guidelines should be kept in mind:

(i)                 Be aware of your biases and those of  others who furnished information

(ii)               Use a variety of sources; do not rely on one single source to make an assessment;

(iii)             Do not label a behaviour  that you do not understand or which is culturally different as dysfunctional;

(iv)             Be balanced; make sure to point out strengths when addressing problematic behaviour.

3.      What is to Observe?

While making an assessment of the client, it is important to evaluate his behaviour and the effectiveness of the interaction. Some useful question here are:

(i)                 Is the client able to make iuse of counseling or would some other intervention be appropriate?

(ii)               Is the client talking about himself in a  way he intends to and is he correctly conveying information about himself?

(iii)             What issue is the client avoiding or seeing as less important or is overlooking?

(iv)             Can I identify some patterns or themes in the thinking  and behaviour of the client?

(v)               Am I too eager to jump to conclusions?

(vi)             Am I clear about the facts, fantasies, fears and hopes of the client?

4.      Re-Assessment

5.      Goal-Setting

6.      Agreement on an Action Plan

FOUR: TERMINATING

1.      When to End?

2.      Plan to End

3.      Role of Counsellor

4.      Take Care of emotional Feelings

5.      Documentation

FIVE: FOLLOW UP

1. Review Progress
2. Review learning

(v)               BARRIERS TO COUNSELLING

1. Psychological Barriers

(a)   Client-Related Barriers

a)      Lack of trust

b)      Dislike

c)      Lack of Commitment

(b)   Counsellor-Related Barriers

a)                  Lack of Willingness to Counsel

b)                  Lack of Commitment

c)                  Lack of Patience

2. Behavioural Barriers

                                                              i.      Counsellor-Related Barriers

• Poor Skills
• Wrong Styles
• Improper Stratgey

                                                            ii.      Client  – Related Barriers

• Dependence on the Counsellor
• Inability to Articulate
• Poor Decision-making Skills

3. Languge barriers

Langauge-related barriers arise in many ways’

(a)    The client and counselor do not have a common language to interact in. When the language known to the client and counselor differs, the counseling process will not be smooth

(b)   Even when there is a common language, some problems like limited vocabulary, ( not knowing the right or enough  words) and different interpretation of known word may occur.

We also face problems in the interpretation of  words. Many words have several meanings depending on the context and cultural background, and result can be confusing. Therefore avoid being either over-precise or too colloquial.

V.  HOLISTIC VIEDW OF COUNSELLING

Aspects	Beginning	Developing	Termination	Follow-Up
1. Goal
2. Tasks
3. Client’s Expectations
4. Counsellor’s Role
5, Counsellor’s Strategies
6. Counsellor’s Skills.

II.                MAKING COUNSELLING EFFECTIVE

1.      Principle of Positive Regard

2.      Principle of  Active Listening

3.      Principle of Rational Inquiry

4.      Principle of emotional Intelligence

5.      Principle of application of techniques

6.      Principle of Balance

7.      Principle of Communication

8.      Principle of Change orientation

9.      Principle of Support

10.Principle of Being Holistic

     

  COUNSELLING ROLE OF THE MANAGER

One of the essential functions of a manager is managing the performance of employees.

One of the aims of performance management is to help employees to improve their performance in line with the wider aims of the organization.

In this respect, the manager must act as a counsellor to the subordinates, and, using appropriate techniques, he should either direct the employees to, or jointly work towards, the identification of weaknesses and how these weaknesses should be handled, with the ultimate aim of improving job  performance.

NATURE

Conselling is constructive listening and calls for  skill and self-restraint  on the part of the counsellor.  A counseling interview that focuses on unsatisfactory performance should have as one of its outcomes  a list of things that the appraise will try to do better.

Counselling is an inescapable and necessary part of appraisal. It has to do with  establishing a personal relationship, and interaction between two people, one of whom is  accepted as wiser  or more experienced than the other.

OBJECTIVES

The purposes of counseling are the following:

1. Getting the subordinate to do a better job through making clear the standards of performance and the reasons for these standards.
2. Giving the employee a clear picture of  how he is doing, with an emphasis on strengths as well as weaknesses , showing how well he meets the standards.
3. Discussing together plans for improvement and projects for better utilization of the  strengths of the subordinate.
4. Building strong, personal relationships between the superior and the subordinate in which both are willing to talk more frankly about the nature of the  job, how it is being done, what improvement is possible, and how it can be achieved.
5. Eliminating or reducing anxiety, tension, and uncertainty, which may exist where individuals do not have the advantage of planned counseling.

Thus counseling is a purposeful activity to be done with clear objectives.

DIFFICULTIES AND SHORTCOMINGS

 In spite of the many advantages of counseling ( which are implied in the objectives mentioned above), subordinates often find excuses for not going to their supervisor for counseling . There are also some apparent shortcomings for counseling, as shown below.

1. The man being counseled will react badly. He may argue; he may be upset, and made insecure; or he may get a conceited or distorted notion of his own importance.

2. The counselee may reveal the content of his counseling, particularly that part which is complimentary, and thus provoke jealousy in the group.

3. Executives do not have time for counseling.

4. Lower level executives are not skillful  enough to counsel their subordinates.

Difficulties or constraints such as the above limits the extent to which counseling is made of use of in many organizations.

STEPS

The important steps involved in counseling are as listed below.

1. Schedule periodic appraisal meetings for all immediate subordinates
2. Establish performance appraisal standards jointly with subordinates
3. Prepare for each appraisal and counseling session.
4. Select an appropriate place, provide enough time, and review records.
5. Make appraisal sessions cooperative. The subordinate must be encouraged to appraise his own performance and share his ideas and feelings with the appraiser.
6. Establish and maintain rapport with the subordinate by words, actions, and attitude.
7. Jointly explore alternative solutions and the consequences of selecting each one.
8. Help the subordinate to come out with a self-determined solution to the problem or deficiency in performance.
9. Conclude the session gracefully
10. Complete records of the session and decisions for future reference
11. Implement the decisions and plans
12. Conduct follow-up and evaluate the outcomes.

As shown above, conducting  a counseling session has to be a planned, with a series of sequential steps to be followed for ensuring effectiveness.

 EFFECTIVENESS

Many situations that arise at  the work  place are such that they demand effective counselling skills on the part of the manager.  The most important skills required in this context include the ability for : (1) effective listening; (2) comprehensive  and empathetic understanding; (3) identifying workable solutions; (4) objective evaluation of alternative solutions; (5) choosing the most desirable and workable solutions; (6) building acceptance of and commitment to the agreed upon solutions; and (7) motivating the counselee to promptly implement the agreed-upon action plan.

For ensuring effectiveness, the counsellor should aim at the following:

1. Bringing about some constructive changes in the subordinate’s behaviour.
2. Locating the root causes of the problem faced by the subordinate.
3. Reducing frustration by allowing the subordinate to express his attitudes and feelings about his job
4. Stimulating problem-solving for the purpose of finding solutions the subordinate’s problems and achieving excellence in his performance.

 STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVENESS

Effective counselling demands  effective communication, active listening, and skillful transactional analysis. In addition, the following can be treated as useful guidelines for enhancing the effectiveness of counseling:

1. Avoid making you subordinates defensive; recognize that defensive behaviour is normal.
2. Never attack a person’s defense; try to concentrate on the concerned act or fact  itself ( inadequate sales, decreasing profits, etc.)  rather than on the behaviour of the subordinate.
3. Postpone action; sometimes, the best thing to do is to do nothing at all.
4. Be an active listener; be sure you understand not only the words, but, more importantly, the feelings and attitudes underlying them.
5. Try not to criticize; criticism often just evokes defensive behaviour.
6. Try to counsel often, on a daily basis, rather than once or twice a year; give feedback.
7. Use critical incidents; No one likes being told with vague generalities such as “your performance is not up to the mark”; Try to be especially specific  about the behaviour  you consider unsatisfactory.
8. Agree on standards of improvement; Best results are always achieved when the superior and subordinate set jointly specific goals to be achieved.
9. Get your subordinate to talk.
10. When agreements have been reached, put these on paper and both of you should  sign the document.

PERFROMANCE APPRAISAL AND PERFROMANCE COUNSELLING

There is a great degree of unhappiness all around with performance appraisals. Rarely does one come across with managers who are happy with the appraisal system in their organizations. But managers find it difficult to do without appraisals, because in the absence of an appraisal mechanism, how-so-ever weak it may be, it is difficult to get work out of people. It is also a good mechanism to control people.

In practice, a development oriented performance appraisal system has to be evolved by combining certain key elements such as performance analysis, self-appraisal, performance ratings, and couselling.

The Voltas company has evolved a development oriented appraisal system on the basis of their  own experiments and experiences over the years.

The Larson & Tubro Ltd. company is the first company in India to introduce a development-oriented performance appraisal system almost a decade ago as a part of an integrated human resource development system.

The State Bank of India also introduced such a system in some its branches covering a large number of officials.

Any organization interested in changing its appraisal system from control-oriented confidential report to a development centered system is actually initiating a change in its culture. Such a change is slow, and it is likely to be resisted even if it is good for the employees and, therefore, should be carefully planned and monitored.

Performance counselling, in addition to letting the subordinate know where he stands, helps him by providing encouragement and assistance while improvement is taking place.

We must remember that the purpose of counseling is more of development than of discipline. The approach must be positive, and out outlook on this score , will go far to determine our success or failure.

When the subordinate sees that the counseling is for his own good, one of the major obstacles to mutual understanding is overcome.

EVERY MANAGER’S ROLE AS A COUNSELLOR

                Counselling is helping the employee to grow and develop in the organization. Every manager is counseling his employees knowingly or unknowingly in his day-to-day work-life.  This routine counseling involves the following:

1. Helping the employee to realize his potential as a manager
2. Helping him to understand himself- his strengths and weaknesses.
3. Providing him an opportunity to acquire more insight into his behaviour and analyze the dynamics of such behaviour.
4. Helping him to have a better understanding of the environment
5. Increasing his personal and inter-personal effectiveness through feed back.
6. Encouraging him to set goals for further improvement.
7. Encouraging him to generate alternatives for dealing with various problems and prepare a definite action plan.
8. Helping him to review in a non-threatening way his progress in achieving various objectives.
9. Providing him an empathetic atmosphere for sharing and discussing his tensions, conflicts, concerns and problems.

Thus, without being aware of it, every manager performs a lot of counseling functions as part of his routine activities. Through conscious review and reflection, with a special concern for  strengthening strong aspects and for eliminating the weak aspects, a manager can improve one’s own counseling skills.

IMPLICATIONS  OF  COUNSELLING AND MENTORING

Both counseling and mentoring involve help and support by a senior person to a younger one. Three processes are involved both in counseling and mentoring:  communication, empowering and helping.

* Communication implies the processes of  receiving messages, giving messages and giving feedback. The counsellor or the mentor does all these.

* The process of empowering involves enabling the other person to exercise more autonomy, providing him positive reinforcement so that the desirable behaviour is further strengthened, and creating condition sin which the person is able to learn from the behaviour of the mentor.

* Helping behaviour is based on concern and empathy of the mentor or the counsellor for the employee. It is also based on the mutuality of relationship; conselee’s response as much to the counsellor’s need as the former does to the latter’s. And finally, helping primarily involves identification of developmental needs of the counselee so that he may be able to develop and increase his effectiveness.

Counselling requires certain interpersonal skills which can be acquired easily if a manager genuinely interest in developing hi subordinates. Counselling skills are important for a manager especially at the time of performance review.

Counselling is essentially helping a person in need of  development assistance. Helping involves several processes. Without a manger’s concern for his employees, effective helping cannot be provided in the counseling sessions.  Such concern is shown when the counsellor is able to feel for his subordinate and is able to empathise with him. 

The concerns of a manager for his employees will be  reflected in the kinds of questions asked, and the tone in which questions are asked or the  way a conversation takes place.

Managers may constantly ask themselves how much concern and genuine empathy they have for the employees whom they are counseling.

Without such genuine concern, counseling may only de-generate into a ritual which  cannot achieve its goals.

 PRINCIPLES OF COUNSELLING FOR MANAGERS

The time that immediately follows the performance review meeting gives the manger an opportunity carry out his counseling or guidance responsibility. The following principles can be of use to the manager for enhancing the effectiveness of his counseling.

1.  The manager must prepare himself  for the counseling session as soon as possible following the performance review. Another important element in the preparation process is the selection of a suitable time and place.

2.   The manager must prepare his subordinates for the counseling by laying down the objectives of the entire performance review procedure and the ensuing discussion.  He should make it clear  to the subordinate that the discussion is intended to help him in doing his present job and in thinking about his future with the organization. An important part of  preparation of the subordinate is to get him to review his own performance , attitude, and values before the discussion with his superior.

3.  The manager must reach an agreement with his subordinate as to the responsibilities of the latter. During the discussion, the manager can make it evident that he is comparing the subordinate’s  performance  with the standards which apply to the job itself-not with the performance of the people.

4.  The manager must establish and maintain a positive tone throughout the discussion. He must make sure that the discussion does not become a fault-finding session, or a one-sided criticism of the individual’s  performance, but rather that it is a joint effort to work out suggestions for improvement. It is better to emphasize some positive features early in the  discussion- that is, definite areas in which the employee’s performance can be commended.

5. The manager must be willing to listen  to his subordinate and try to get his reasons.  As a part of this listening phase of the developmental interview, the manager should try to get an agreement on improvements to be made in a specific area, and suggest ways and means for accomplishing the same.
6. The manager should at all times help the subordinates to maintain their self-respect; The discussion should be free from arguments, be flexible and open to suggestions.
7. The manager should try to work out a mutual plan for the personal development of the subordinates; He must use an individual development plan for recording the developmental actions agreed  upon. If the procedure is properly handled, the subordinates will view the plan as their own.
8. The manager must close the discussion on a positive note. It should be made clear to the subordinate that being counseled that his performance and his development are a joint responsibility of himself  and  of his boss. In all developmental efforts, a clear distinction has to be drawn between employee performance and employee potential.
9. The manager must make sure to follow up the discussion, scheduling definite sessions for this purpose. After reviewing the plan which has been agreed upon, he and the subordinate should consider the progress made and explore further possibilities that may arise.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. What are the nature and dynamics of counselling
2. What are the objectives of  counseling?
3. What are the major constraints for counseling?
4. What are the steps in counseling subordinates?
5. What are the skill requirements for effective counseling?
6. What are the guidelines for effective counseling?
7. What are the ways in a manager is carrying out counseling functions as a part of his routine work?
8. What are the principle of counseling for  managers?

“Effective counselling demands effective communication, active listening, and transactional analysis”. Discuss.