Are you considering hiring an executive coach? Do you want to understand the benefits of coaching? Are you interested in learning how long coaching lasts, how much it costs and what to look for in a coach?

This page provides answers to some of the most common questions about executive coaching. Our goal is to give you a detailed overview and provide useful information on executive coaching. Whether you’re considering hiring an executive coach or simply learning more about the subject, we hope you find it helpful.

The problem

There’s no question about it; we’re living in an era of massive distraction. Nowadays, even the most productive and effective organizational leaders are defenseless against this trend.

Life constantly throws obstacles at us. Add distractions to the mix, and it’s easy to become overwhelmed and lose sight of what’s important. Our clarity, strategy, and performance are all compromised.

So how does a manager juggle these competing demands? One way is to hire an executive coach.

What is executive coaching?

“Coaching is releasing a person’s potential to maximize their own performance. It is helping them learn rather than teaching them.”

~ Unknown

The International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching as “partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.” Let’s create a clear image of what this looks like.

We’ve all seen how busy managers can get. They’re always jumping from one thing to the next to move their organization forward. As highly trained individuals, they get things done and never fear the grind.

This could be you.

The problem is not the ability to get things done. The problem is going around in circles and not achieving organizational or personal goals. As it becomes an endless loop of “just getting it all done,” executives seldom stop to consider their biggest challenges and how to solve them, which can feel extremely frustrating. That is where coaching fits in.

An executive coach can help individuals go from where they are, to where they want to go. It helps executives take their organizations to higher levels. To achieve this, however, you must define the “next level” and what it looks like.

An executive coach will not provide the answers, but rather help you discover them on your own through a systematic process. You will learn this process and continue to leverage it over and over again throughout your career, helping you unleash your own potential.

Another way to think of executive coaching is to compare it to an athletic coach, where the objective is to get an athlete to the next level. To achieve this, the coachee, otherwise known as the person being coached, must be engaged, interested, and committed. Just like an athlete who trains daily to become Olympic quality, executives must be willing to take daily incremental steps to achieve their goals. This commitment from both the coach and the coachee yields lasting results.

A coach is not a therapist, coworker, or friend. A coach is a person that a coachee can trust to tell them what they need to hear to achieve their goals.

Let’s recap. An executive coach can help you:

• Achieve specific goals
• Develop your capabilities and leverage your existing strengths
• Identify challenges that prevent you from achieving success
• See yourself and others more clearly
• Communicate more effectively
• Improve leadership abilities
• Enhance social skills, and
• Build more productive relationships

Who benefits from coaching?

First and foremost, the coachee! Coaching will give you more confidence to make empowered decisions; provide more clarity to your workforce and stakeholders; and ensure that your actions are aligned with purpose, vision, and values.

Outside of the coachee , though, organizations significantly benefit from coaching too! Research shows organizations that made coaching a priority have 13% stronger business results and 33% better employee engagement.

When it comes to business, leaders set the tone. They understand the importance of establishing a company-wide culture keen on learning and moving outside comfort zones. By working with an executive coach, you are not only leading by example and encouraging others to follow suit; you are also proving to others in the organization that personal development is important and encouraging others to take their own development seriously.

Strong coaches will challenge you to reflect and learn continuously. Look for a coach who walks the talk, meaning an individual who also works on self-development and is continuously growing as a person, professional, and coach. Coaches bring much more value to their coachees when they also continually work on themselves and polish their own skills.

What is the organizational value of coaching?

Building a continually improving organization that is solution-focused, collaborative, and results-driven should be central to every senior leader. An organization can significantly benefit by developing successful leaders and allowing the team to model leaders’ behaviors, positively affecting the entire organization’s performance.

Harvard Business Review surveyed 140 leading coaches. The research points out that most companies in the past hired a coach to advise and help fix harmful behavior at the top level. However, “today, most coaching is about developing the capabilities of high-potential performers.”

In other words, coaching adds value to busy managers who focus on developing their employee’s growth. In her article on the value of coaching, Rita Balian Allen, a Huffington Post contributor, said that organizations “appreciate the value [talented executives, leaders, and managers] bring… and would like to provide additional resources to enable them to grow and progress further.”

What are some key traits of a good coach?

Powerful executive coaches listen to their clients, have a high level of emotional intelligence, help the client utilize and leverage their own resources, and enable coachees to solve their problems. However, trust is one of the most important traits in a coaching relationship.

Trust is the core of any relationship; the one between executives and their coach is no different. If a client believes the coach can’t be trusted, the entire coaching experience will quickly deteriorate. Executives need to be confident in both their relationship with their coach and the coach’s process.

So what makes a good coach? Someone who:

• Helps their coachee identify what changes need to be made so the coachee can get to the root cause of issues as soon as possible
• Has a sole agenda to help their coachee become more effective
• Relates to the coachee and establishes a high level of trust and credibility
• Understands the coachee’s emotional and intellectual needs
• Identifies where the coachee can stretch their capabilities

How long does coaching take?

Coaching is a thorough process that can range from six to 12 months, via one-on-one phone calls, video chats or in-person sessions held approximately every other week.

It’s not uncommon to start the process with a 360-degree feedback assessment (sometimes shortened to “360”) or another type of evaluation to identify the coachee’s strengths, personality, leadership styles, attitudes, and values. The 360 may include confidential interviews with employees, top management, and/or the board of directors.

After the assessment data has been collected, the coach will analyze and explain the data to the coachee. Next, the executive and the coach develop coaching goals with specific, measurable, behavioral objectives. These goals form the basis of the actual coaching sessions.

Throughout the executive coaching sessions, the coach asks questions about each of the coachee’s goals, helping the coachee see where s/he may be getting in the way of progress. Once the coachee sees the goal situation in a new light, then the coachee commits to a small step of action to achieve the goal. Over time, each small step culminates in steady progress toward achieving the goal.

The evaluation process happens after the last coaching session. In this phase, the coach and coachee analyze how the coachee has progressed since the coaching started. The coach collects data on how the sessions affected the coachee’s leadership styles and overall effectiveness in the organization.

What credentials should a coach have?

Although the executive coaching industry is unregulated, there are certified programs and specialized trainings offered by the International Coach Federation (ICF), whose sole job is to ensure high standards in the coaching profession.

Having said that, clients have to make smart decisions when hiring a coach. A few things that are important to consider is a coach’s background, education level, experience, and ICF credentials.

What are the different types of coaching?

As described by the ICF, coaching is a partnership. It is a long-term relationship and commitment built on trust between a coach and a coachee. A coach once described her objective in these simple words,  “My job is to help great leaders make themselves even better.”

However, myriad types of coaching exist, from sports to public speaking. Below are some examples:

• Career coaching

Career coaching is related specifically to one’s professional career. This includes coaching someone on how to approach job interviews or breaking into a new career niche.

• Personal or life coaching

Life coaches help clients improve aspects of their daily lives, such as health, fitness or more personal goals.

• Business coaching

Business coaching is more closely related to consulting. This sort of coaching helps a client build a small business.

• Group coaching

Group coaching has many different formats, ranging from group coaching processes that are part of a leadership development initiative, to public groups bringing together individuals with a common focus.

What’s the difference between coaching and consulting?

There are big differences between coaches and consultants.

Think of consultants as people who possess specialized skills and knowledge in a particular area, and get compensated to either use those skills and knowledge or give advice.

A coach, on the other hand, works with a coachee one-on-one to establish and achieve specific objectives or goals, and then helps them arrive at the best possible solution. Jim Rohn, the American entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker once said, “make sure what you do is a product of your own conclusion.” Coaches are great at helping their coachees arrive at their own conclusions, thus yielding the highest benefit for the coachee.

Still not clear? No problem, here is one last example:

Consultants, in most cases, will diagnose and perform the work based on their expertise and knowledge of their industry. Coaching’s essence lies on listening, clarifying objectives, and holding the coachee accountable for taking action.

What is the cost?

There is no set cost for executive coaching. Each company and/or coach handles pricing a little differently. Some work per hour, others per session, and some have shorter or longer commitments based on initial assessments or requirements.

Most coaches offer a complimentary coaching session or discovery session so that you can mutually assess fit. So be sure to ask for this!

If you’re interested in working with an executive coach and learning more about our process here at CHCI, please visit our Get Started page. We’d love the opportunity to speak with you directly.

Hiring an executive coach/company

When you finally decide to hire an executive coach, there are a few important things to keep in mind. First, ensure your coach adds value, has a personality that resonates with you, and is trustworthy.

A coaching commitment can range anywhere from six to 12 months. Therefore, it is important to understand what you’re trying to accomplish. What are your expectations regarding goals, objectives, and time frame? Will you be 100% committed to the process? What kind of experience do you prefer that a coach have? What credentials will you consider to be important?

These are all great questions to ask yourself before starting your research, and certainly before hiring a coach.

Being clear with the answers to these questions will help expedite your research. We invite you to consult with one of our experts on executive coaching Washington DC.

Potential ROI in hiring a coach

In 2011, Forbes contributor Matt Symonds reported that corporate America was spending over one billion dollars annually on executive coaching. A recent ICF, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, and Association Resource Centre survey concluded the median coaching Return On Investment (ROI) for companies was seven times their initial investment, while 28% saw an ROI of 10 to 49 times initial investment. Nearly one-in-five indicated an ROI of 50 or more times the initial investment.

Investing in executive coaching can yield high returns. Leadership matters, and when the relationship between a coach and the coachee is built on trust and value, returns will only be higher.

Summary

We have all had coaches at some point in our lives, be it youth sports, school teachers, or even through books. The process of continually developing yourself as a person, as a leader, and as a citizen of this world should never stop.

Just because you grow up, enter the professional world and become an executive, doesn’t mean you should stop searching for another coach. Especially one who can continue to facilitate your development by helping you identify your strengths and opportunities.

But first, you’ve got to understand that coaching is a marathon, not a sprint.

Coaching is a delicate process. It may even be a time-consuming process. However, it is also customizable and well worth the overall investment because it provides a safe place for the coachee to talk about perceived shortcomings, opportunities for growth, fears, and aspirations.

An experienced, certified coach helps you leverage your gifts, overcome internal “blocks” or limitations, and take action toward success. The overarching goal when working one-on-one with a coach is to maximize your potential and create lasting change.