KOI Consulting Blog

What is Coaching and What Should you Look for in a Coach?

December 9th, 2009 by Isolde Norris

As a professional coach, I’m often asked “what is coaching?”

Zeus and Skiffington say it’s about change and transformation. I like this; it captures the essence of coaching and is often all that is required to satisfy the friendly enquiry.

Of course, coaching is a very broad field and is an emerging profession.

Organisations such as the Association for Coaching, European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) and the Life and Business Coaching Association of Ireland have emerged to promote good practice and ethics.

In my view, this is a very important and necessary step in the development of our profession.

There are many types of coaching; life, spirituality, sports, parenting, business and executive coaching are some of the variations.

My field is business and executive coaching. Having played a leadership role in a large multinational for many years, the challenges that individuals and organisations face in mobilising and achieving change fascinate me.

When I first decided to pursue coaching training, I wanted to ensure that I would receive top class training and that my qualifications would have national and international credibility and currency.

It took many months of research and my final choice was supported by a recommendation from a trusted colleague – always a good start and end point.

Interestingly, I have found coaching to be an effective and personally challenging catalyst for my own development. When I started my training I believed coaching would be something I would learn to do – and learning to do it is important.

However, I also quickly learnt it was a personal journey, one which I needed to embrace if I wanted to authentically facilitate the change and transition process for others.

I fully appreciate how frustratingly confusing it can be for individuals and organisations looking for a coach. My advice is to use the various coaching organisations’ websites as a starting point.

When I’m asked for a 90 second elevator pitch about what to look for in a coach, I use Peter Bluckert’s five higher level competencies of executive coaching. The depth of competence required in each will depend entirely on what the individual or organisation wants to achieve.

The first is business competence which involves an understanding of how organisations work, culture, strategy, leadership and politics.

The second is coaching competence. This is a combination of skills, process, methodology and mindset of the coach.

The third is psychological competencies. A coach needs to understand how change takes place and why it often doesn’t take place.

The fourth is interpersonal and relationship management competencies. This is about the coach’s ability to build and form a relationship with the coachee.

In organisations, the coachee is often not the sponsor. Therefore, an ability to manage the triangularisation of the contracting process is critical to success.

The fifth competence is professional practice. This includes adhering to a code of ethics, honouring confidentiality agreements and maintaining the highest standards of professionalism.

Yes it’s about change and transformation, but it’s also about a lot more.

Isolde Norris: Director at KOI Business Coaching & Consulting Limited
www.koiconsulting.ie