You’ve likely heard the phrase, “people don’t leave companies, they leave managers.”

It is possible you might have firsthand knowledge of why that phrase speaks volumes. A positive relationship between manager and employee is one of the key pillars to retaining quality employees.

A manager should not only be concerned with the accomplishment of business tasks but also with equipping the workforce to desire to do tasks well. A company invests time, energy and other resources into its employees with the expectation that they will be around for the long haul.

A manager whose behavior is ineffectual creates an atmosphere that is the opposite. When the opposite is true, the oft-quoted phrase comes into play and, ultimately, the business pays the cost for those failures.

Not everyone is born to be an effective manager or leader. The skills that go into being a quality manager are taught or role-modeled. If someone has not had the benefit of guidance and instruction, chances are he or shw they won’t “discover” those skills on their own. Since managers are directly responsible for what a job is like day-to-day for an employee, it is to the benefit of all that managers have the skills required to be the best leader they can be.

In the Forbes article, How Bad Bosses Compel Good Employees to Leave, by Terina Allen, she states, “It is up to you to develop or drive out the bad bosses … Develop effective leaders who will make it a priority to do the most important things …”

There is opportunity for someone who is in a leadership role and struggling. Coaching is a great way to come alongside a leader to help in developing the desired skills. Coaching has become a popular developmental tool for companies concerned with improving the performance of their leadership.

Harvard Business Review, in the article What Can Coaches Do for You?, lays out some points that will heighten the benefits of a coaching relationship.

• The individual being coached should have a desire to learn and grow.

• The coaching relationship needs to be a good match and the coach chosen carefully.

• Leadership needs to be supportive and committed to the development of the individual being coached.

These are just a few of the considerations to take into account when looking at coaching to turn a poor leader into a good, even great, leader.