The American Swimming Coaches Association
2101 North Andrews Ave.   Suite 107
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311
1-800-356-2722

Coaching Evaluation

What is the overall purpose in evaluating the head coach?  The written and stated objective should be to improve the quality of your program by helping the coach improve his or her ability to effectively run the swim team.   This is done by identifying areas where improvement is needed then helping the coach to make improvements in those areas.  The purpose is not to derail the coach.  View the coach as an investment – take action to make the investment a valuable one.  Work in a partnership with the coach where the goals are to recognize achievement and to identify areas for improvement.  The club can assist the coach in improving deficient areas in a variety of ways including education, delegation, restructuring functions, encouraging, and supporting.

Who evaluates the coach?  We recommend a panel of three or four people:  the Board president, an age group parent not currently on the Board, a senior parent not currently on the Board, and if possible, an alumni parent who is still active in with the club in some way and whose children came up through the program and are now in college.  The members of the committee should be chosen by the Board president based on their ability to bring objective information free of personal agendas.  Each person has the responsibility of speaking with as many other parents as possible in order to gather as much information as possible.  

Should athletes be involved in the process?  We do not recommend placing an athlete on the evaluation committee.  While we believe the opinions of athletes are important, finding athletes with perspective and maturity to serve in such a critical function is not easy.  On the other hand, members of the committee may interview athletes.

How often should the coach be evaluated?  Evaluate the coach two times a year.  Any longer leaves too much time for problems or misunderstandings to grow beyond easy repair.  

When should the coach be evaluated?  The first evaluation should be in about January.  This gives time to have started the season and to know more about the coach’s program.  A second evaluation should take place just before contract negotiation time, usually in June or July.

How do you talk with your coach?  Speak calmly, without sarcasm, and with emotional control.  Explain the goals and the process. Say things like, “In this particular area the committee feels the responsibility has not been met.  Do you think this is an important responsibility?  What has prevented you from fulfilling this responsibility?  What assistance can the Board provide to help you with this?  This area should be one of your top priorities in the next six months.  Please report your progress in your monthly report and we will again review this at the next evaluation.” Hopefully you will have many opportunities to say things like, “In this particular area you have far exceeded our expectations.  We appreciate your efforts and keep up the good work.”  Finally, remember to listen carefully to the head coach.  Ask questions, then secondary questions, then tertiary questions.  Get to the bottom, get to the real issues.

What areas should be evaluated?  Generally speaking, the primary areas of evaluation should come directly from the contract.  The contract should list what the club expects of the coach.  “On deck” areas of responsibility might include coach-athlete interaction, teaching skills, practice management, and meet management.  Each one of those areas would have several specific responsibilities.   Administrative areas of responsibility might included meets, office, communication, planning, team growth, and knowledge – each with several specific responsibilities.   A final section may include various people skills and personal management issues.

What areas should not be evaluated?  Technical issues are out of bounds for an evaluation.  One of my other titles at ASCA is Technical Director.  I study coaching methods and can safely say that there are a multitude of different ways to coach successfully.  Who is the judge of what method is best?  I am not in that position and certainly no Board is in that position.  What energy systems should be written into early season workouts for senior level swimmers?  Should sprinting be done early in the workout or at the end of workout?  What is the proper amount of and balance of anaerobic and aerobic work during the taper?  How many yards/meters should 12 year olds be doing?  Should age group swimmers do a 3 week taper, 2 week, one week, or no taper at all?  Who should swim on the relay and what order should they be in?  What events should each child swim?  These are technical issues for which there is not a single universally acceptable answer.  The bottom line is “Are the athletes improving and are they happy with their progress?”

What kind of follow up should there be to the evaluation?  There should be a second review about six months later.  In the meantime, the Board president should check with the coach twice monthly to ascertain progress and give support or assistance.  The coach should be requested to give a written monthly report to the Board which includes notes about progress toward meeting responsibilities that were identified by the evaluation as needing improvement.

ASCA provides consulting to club board members on matters relating to coaches contracts, coach - board relationships, club administration and structure, and long range planning.  Please call Guy Edson for assistance, 1-800-356-2722.

Coach Evaluation	Frequency		Quality	
	1 - never		1 - poor	
Coaches Name: 	2 - occasionally		2 - acceptable	
	3 - half of the time		3 - good	
Date:	4 - most of the time		4 - very good	
	5 - always		5 - exceptional	
I.  ON DECK 	1	2	3	4	5		1	2	3	4	5	
Coach-athlete interaction												
     Works with individuals 												
     Works with all individuals 												
     Works with groups 												
     Works with the team 												
     Uses encouragement 												
     Uses praise 												
     Uses constructive criticism 												
     Uses goal setting 												
     Uses appropriate discipline												
Teaching Skills												
     Uses demonstrations 												
     Uses presentations 												
     Uses questions as a teaching tool 												
     Provides constructive feedback												
Practice Management												
     Arrives early 												
     Workout is organized and well planned 												
     Workout begins on time 												
     Keeps athletes engaged in productive activity												
Meet Management												
     Arrives early 												
     Structures individual warmups 												
     Supervises warmup 												
     Attends meetings 												
     Observes swims 												
     Provides encouragement 												
     Uses constructive criticism 												
     Appropriately handles disputes with officials												
Other												
     Dresses appropriately 												
     Positive role model												

	Frequency		Quality	
	1 - never		1 - poor	
	2 - occasionally		2 - acceptable	
	3 - half of the time		3 - good	
	4 - most of the time		4 - very good	
	5 - always		5 - exceptional	
II.  ADMINISTRATIVE	1	2	3	4	5		1	2	3	4	5	
Meets -- handles or oversees:												
     Entry procedure 												
     Disbursement of meet information 												
     Posting or announcement of meet results 												
     Meet publicity 												
     Team travel												
Office												
     Maintains reliable office hours 												
     Handles or oversees best times 												
     Handles or oversees team files 												
     Handles or oversees team records												
Communication												
     Provides written reports to the Board 												
     Oversees production and content of Newsletter 												
     Oversees production of team roster 												
     Establishes and maintains contact with media 												
     Initiates frequent informal meetings with key Board
     personnel 												
     Conducts effective parent meetings												
Planning/fund raising/financial												
     Directs/participates in team long range planning 												
     Directs/participates in fund raising 												
     Directs/participates in the budget process												
Team Growth, actively promotes team growth by initiating and directing special programs, for example: 												
     clinics												
     SwimAmerica Learn to Swim												
     summer club recruiting												
     masters/ triathalon clinics												
Knowledge												
     Continues to pursue professional education												

	Frequency		Quality	
	1 - never		1 - poor	
	2 - occasionally		2 - acceptable	
	3 - half of the time		3 - good	
	4 - most of the time		4 - very good	
	5 - always		5 - exceptional	
III.  PEOPLE/PERSONAL	1	2	3	4	5		1	2	3	4	5	
Integrity 												
Respect 												
Courtesy 												
Consistency of approach 												
Fairness 												
Approachability 												
Gracefully accepts input 												
Dependable 												
Handles relationships with parents professionally												
Appropriate dress and grooming 												
Directs parent education programs												
												
IV.  OTHER												

												

												
V.  WRITTEN COMMENTS:												

												

												

EVALUATION COMMITTEE			Coaches Signature:				
   1.							
   2.												
   3.					Date