Advice on finding the right leadership coach
Hiring a professional coach to improve performance, enhance skills, set goals and get results is becoming a widespread practice. Just as professional athletes hire coaches to take their game up a notch, many business professionals are turning to coaches to objectively assess their performance, give unbiased advice and guide them to the next level. The problem is just about anyone can call themselves a “coach,” and it’s hard to know whom to turn to for the best coaching advice. We look at sites that outline where to find a coach, what to look for and what they offer.
Watch for 'bait and switch’
www.leader-values.com/Content/detail.asp?ContentDetailID=95
This article, “Executive coaching credentials vary: due diligence is a must,” offers some words of caution for those who are interested in hiring an executive coach. “Coaching is an emerging new profession and currently there are no legal restrictions. Therefore, anyone or any business can legally market coaching skill services.” It offers practical tips to be followed in selecting a coach, including confirming the level of industry experience the coach has, whether he is using diagnostic instruments and avoiding a “bait-and-switch” where a less-experienced coach shows up after the contract has been signed.
What coaching isn’t
www.fastcompany.com/magazine/91/open_playbook.html
This Fast Company article, “Are you being coached?” outlines “the good, the bad, and the ugly of coaching” for those thinking of hiring a coach. It answers basic questions about coaches, including who coaches are, who needs a coach and what it costs. It says many coaches explain their profession by what it’s not: “It’s not a substitute for therapy. And it’s not business strategy. Don’t expect great epiphanies on a silver platter. Coaches say it’s the clients who do the heavy lifting.”
Coaching in the federal bureaucracy
http://coaching.gc.ca/menu_e.asp
This section of the Government of Canada site, Coaching Connection, gives readers the opportunity to “explore how coaching supports creating a different culture in the public service.” The home page offers several links to articles on coaching under the title “What’s new,” and a navigation bar on the left provides links to documents and articles, books on coaching, tools and practices and frequently asked questions. The “Learning events” link provides a description of upcoming events or information submitted by participants about events they have attended. Click on “Interesting links” for a variety of other sites and resources involving coaching.
A few FAQs on coaches
www.quintcareers.com/career_coaching_FAQs.html
There are a lot of questions that need to be answered before deciding whether to hire a coach. This article, “Should you work with a coach to enhance your career? Get the FAQs,” outlines several things to think about and ask before hiring someone. While “most people could probably benefit from partnering with a coach at some point in their careers,” the article explores some typical career situations that a coach can — and can’t — help with, the typical amount of time a coaching session should take and how much coaching experience the coach should have.
The whole gamut
www.coachfederation.org
The International Coach Federation is a large resource for business and personal coaches, with more than 10,000 members around the world. This site offers an in-depth look at what coaches offer clients, as well as information for current and future members of the federation. Click on the site’s home page for links to information for coaching clients, including selecting a coach, the core competencies and ethical guidelines.
Backing up from the soap opera of one’s life
www.bestlifeonline.com/cda/article/printer_friendly/0,5508,s1-6-0-0-1658,00.html
The article “Do you need a performance coach?” takes a look at specific cases of people who have hired performance coaches and offers information on ways a coach can get a career back on track. It reports on one coach who asks his client, “You have a choice, so how do you want to experience this situation?” The client’s response is, “That may sound really ‘no duh,’ but when you’re caught up in the soap opera of your life, you tend to forget that you do have a choice.” The article also takes a look at whether hiring a professional coach is the right move, as well as the risks involved.
Ann Macaulay is a freelance editor and regular contributor to Canadian HR Reporter. Her Web Sight column appears regularly in the CloseUp section.
Watch for 'bait and switch’
www.leader-values.com/Content/detail.asp?ContentDetailID=95
This article, “Executive coaching credentials vary: due diligence is a must,” offers some words of caution for those who are interested in hiring an executive coach. “Coaching is an emerging new profession and currently there are no legal restrictions. Therefore, anyone or any business can legally market coaching skill services.” It offers practical tips to be followed in selecting a coach, including confirming the level of industry experience the coach has, whether he is using diagnostic instruments and avoiding a “bait-and-switch” where a less-experienced coach shows up after the contract has been signed.
What coaching isn’t
www.fastcompany.com/magazine/91/open_playbook.html
This Fast Company article, “Are you being coached?” outlines “the good, the bad, and the ugly of coaching” for those thinking of hiring a coach. It answers basic questions about coaches, including who coaches are, who needs a coach and what it costs. It says many coaches explain their profession by what it’s not: “It’s not a substitute for therapy. And it’s not business strategy. Don’t expect great epiphanies on a silver platter. Coaches say it’s the clients who do the heavy lifting.”
Coaching in the federal bureaucracy
http://coaching.gc.ca/menu_e.asp
This section of the Government of Canada site, Coaching Connection, gives readers the opportunity to “explore how coaching supports creating a different culture in the public service.” The home page offers several links to articles on coaching under the title “What’s new,” and a navigation bar on the left provides links to documents and articles, books on coaching, tools and practices and frequently asked questions. The “Learning events” link provides a description of upcoming events or information submitted by participants about events they have attended. Click on “Interesting links” for a variety of other sites and resources involving coaching.
A few FAQs on coaches
www.quintcareers.com/career_coaching_FAQs.html
There are a lot of questions that need to be answered before deciding whether to hire a coach. This article, “Should you work with a coach to enhance your career? Get the FAQs,” outlines several things to think about and ask before hiring someone. While “most people could probably benefit from partnering with a coach at some point in their careers,” the article explores some typical career situations that a coach can — and can’t — help with, the typical amount of time a coaching session should take and how much coaching experience the coach should have.
The whole gamut
www.coachfederation.org
The International Coach Federation is a large resource for business and personal coaches, with more than 10,000 members around the world. This site offers an in-depth look at what coaches offer clients, as well as information for current and future members of the federation. Click on the site’s home page for links to information for coaching clients, including selecting a coach, the core competencies and ethical guidelines.
Backing up from the soap opera of one’s life
www.bestlifeonline.com/cda/article/printer_friendly/0,5508,s1-6-0-0-1658,00.html
The article “Do you need a performance coach?” takes a look at specific cases of people who have hired performance coaches and offers information on ways a coach can get a career back on track. It reports on one coach who asks his client, “You have a choice, so how do you want to experience this situation?” The client’s response is, “That may sound really ‘no duh,’ but when you’re caught up in the soap opera of your life, you tend to forget that you do have a choice.” The article also takes a look at whether hiring a professional coach is the right move, as well as the risks involved.
Ann Macaulay is a freelance editor and regular contributor to Canadian HR Reporter. Her Web Sight column appears regularly in the CloseUp section.
