Every two years when the Olympics roll around, we all become experts in sports we may not have even tried ourselves (though curling does make a surprisingly fun team outing). We’ll yell to the slalom racer on TV, “You should’ve taken that turn tighter!” even though we wouldn’t want that same racer showing up on Monday morning to give us play-by-play feedback in the office.
But Olympic athletes don’t succeed because of random commentary from the sidelines. They succeed because of consistent coaching, years of preparation, and the kind of feedback that’s based on trust. Those breakthrough moments aren’t luck; they’re the result of practice, support, and someone helping them get better over time.
This is where HR comes in. One of the most valuable things HR can do is help managers move from “sideline commentary” to real coaching, with practical tools for feedback, trust, and development. If you want to empower your managers to set their team members up for their own “gold medal” moments, here are five tips to share:
Olympic coaches don’t prepare athletes for vague success. They train for the exact conditions of competition.
Managers sometimes do the opposite. We tell employees, “Do your best,” and “Be successful,” but we don’t clarify what success actually looks like. Or we assume people know what the finish line is, because we can see it.
Olympic-level management means being specific:
Teams can’t hit a target that hasn’t been clearly, and specifically, communicated.
No Olympic coach waits until the gold medal round to say, “By the way, your form was off.”
Feedback happens in real time. It’s part of the process. If managers are only talking about performance at review time, this can be a training gap, not necessarily a motivation problem. The strongest leaders build a culture where feedback sounds more like coaching than criticism:
Consistent, constructive feedback makes it feel supportive, not stressful.
Olympic coaches absolutely challenge their athletes. They stretch them, and raise the bar. But the best coaches also know the difference between growth and burnout. They support, and require, recovery. They notice when someone can do more, but also when they need a break. They understand that performance isn’t just about effort. It’s about sustainable effort.
Managers need that same awareness. If your team is always sprinting, they’ll eventually stop running. A good question to ask your team is “How can we make sure you’re able to balance getting your work done and taking time to recharge?”
That check-in can prevent a lot of breakdowns later.
When an athlete steps onto the world stage, they’re not wondering if their coach believes in them. That trust was built long before the spotlight.
In workplaces, trust works the same way. You can’t wait until the big moments to try to build it. It comes from showing up regularly, following through, and communicating clearly day to day.
Trust isn’t extra. It’s what makes everything else work.
Olympic athletes are chasing excellence, which means no one’s perfect on Day One. They get there through repetition, learning from mistakes and adjusting along the way.
Managers sometimes forget that work is developmental, too. If someone isn’t getting it, the question isn’t always, “Why can’t they do this?” It’s often: “How can they learn and grow?”
A manager’s job isn’t to lead a team of flawless performers. It’s to lead real humans who are learning, trying, growing, and doing it all over again.
A team member’s presentation next week might not come with medal chances, but it can still feel like they’re on the world stage. That’s where good coaching matters. Managers can use these tips to help people not only understand what’s expected, but feel supported in how they’ll succeed. And HR can play a role in making that kind of leadership the norm.
Ashley Herd is a former Chief People Officer and General Counsel , leadership speaker, and podcast host who has trained over 250,000 managers through LinkedIn Learning and live corporate trainings. Ashley has spent her career helping professionals navigate leadership challenges with clarity and confidence. Ashley built Manager Method after leading HR and Legal teams at McKinsey, Yum! Brands and Modern Luxury. She’s a top LinkedIn Learning instructor and co-host of the HR Besties podcast. As the CEO of Manager Method, Ashley works with organizations of all sizes to equip their managers with practical, proven tools that drive clarity, accountability and stronger teams – because better managers build better workplaces.
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