Building First-Time Managers into Effective Coaches

One of the most critical challenges faced by BPO organizations is the shortage of capable managerial talent at the first-line leadership level. Young professionals with 2–3 years of experience are quickly promoted to manage teams, with a clear mandate: coach agents to deliver high productivity, quality, and conversions.

However, these first-time managers operate under intense pressure from demanding clients and tight performance metrics—often without formal people management training. Lacking coaching capability, many slip into policing rather than influencing, especially when managing team members who were their peers just weeks earlier.

Our Intervention: The Smart Coach Program

We co-created The Smart Coach Program, a focused development intervention designed specifically for first-time managers and floor coaches.

The program:

• Targeted supervisors and newly appointed team leaders
• Was delivered through two-day workshops
• Reached 120 participants over six months
• Focused on building the mindset and skills of coaching for sustained performance, not just task supervision

At the core of the intervention was People Factor’s Co-Creation Model, built on the belief that learning is most powerful when participants actively create meaning from their own experience.