Breakfast Club
Philadelphia: The Next Frontier for Learning and Development
Mar 18, 2010 07:30 am
Four Seasons Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Webinars
Improving Emotional Intelligence Through Behavioral Style
Mar 18, 2010

CLO Symposiums
The Networked Organization: Leading Learning in the New Economy
Apr 12, 2010 - Apr 14, 2010
Boca Raton Resort & Club
Boca Raton, Florida

See More Events

---

Industry News

 

What Makes a Good Coach?

Print this Article  Email this Article

 

Chapel Hill, N.C.
Executive coaching is one of the hottest fields in the talent management industry today as executives look inward to improve their leadership and management kills. But what makes a good executive coach? This is often the topic of strong debate with both talent management professionals and consultants vying for pieces of the business.

Career Partners International (CPI), a provider of talent management solutions, posed the question to its partners during a two-day Global Executive Coaching Summit held in September. Twenty-five of CPI’s most experienced executive coaches met to discuss emerging trends within the field, as well as define for themselves the characteristics of good coaching.

“As a practice, executive coaching is taking off across our industry as more companies and their executive teams find themselves facing new and sharpened challenges brought on by globalization, economic volatility and a downsized labor force,” said Helen Resnik, chief executive officer of the Denver-based CPI firm Resnik Partners. “As coaches, not only do we need to keep pace with the demand, but also challenge ourselves by offering multidimensional solutions to our clients.”

During the Summit, CPI coaches discussed the emerging role of team coaching, where partners collaborate to serve clients with multiple needs. As an example, Resnik pointed to a recent coaching experience with a new vice president of human resources for a health care organization. The CPI Denver office teamed up with two additional coaches who worked with the client on specific strategic HR issues along with presentation skills to enhance the leader’s executive presence.

“Rarely do our clients come to us with just one concern. Our team-coaching approach enables us to address any number of issues with a network of partner coaches who bring specialized expertise and experience. By working as a team and collaborating with CPI partners from other offices, we can offer our clients a much richer and more effective coaching experience,” said Resnik.

Globalization is another key trend with a number of CPI partners working with clients who oversee international offices or are moving to an international assignment.

“Coaching clients to navigate cultural differences stemming from globalization is a significant hot button in our practice,” said Resnik. “We recently partnered with a CPI firm in Germany to coach an existing client who was promoted to a leadership position in that country. Together, we helped the client assimilate into his new role both professionally and culturally so he was positioned for success.”

With so many emerging paths within the executive coaching practice, Kris Girrell, a partner with CPI firm Keystone/Camden Consulting in Burlington, Mass., highlighted the importance of a coach’s experience and training. “We have seen over the past year, an increasing number of individuals calling themselves executive coaches, who don’t bring a depth of technical knowledge or expertise,” he said.

“Executive coaching is a discipline that requires a great deal of research and theoretical understanding, as well as real-world experience. As coaches, we have a wealth of tools to draw upon, and our success comes from knowing which tools will be most effective for our clients.”

Through events such as the Global Executive Coaching Summit, CPI and its partners are promoting an open flow of dialogue and discussion of best practices. “As executive coaches, it is imperative that we practice what we preach to our clients: continuous learning, energetic collaboration and risk-taking,” said Resnik. “The Summit challenged all of us to think more critically and strategically about how we can strengthen our coaching experiences to provide the best possible outcomes for our clients.

“Great executive coaches are the ones who bring the entire package to the table: strong research and analytical tools to correctly assess and evaluate; a collaborative, deep bench of teammates; a solid understanding of cultural and functional nuances; and a discerning eye that both challenges and guides the client.”

For more info: http://www.cpiworld.com

March 2010
Five Innovative Online Courses
by Brandon Hall

Make the most of e-learning

March 2010
Securing the Future
by Fred Harburg

Lessons from an educational innovator

March 2010
The Right Feedback
by Bob Mosher

Leverage your untapped resources

Case Study

March 2010
Health Care Learning for the Next Generation
by Bill Perry

With a collaborative, networked learning system in place, NextGen cures health care providers’ hesitancy to innovate.

Business Intelligence

March 2010
Talent Management as Survival Skill
by Cushing Anderson

Talent management emerged from the recession relatively unscathed, and many CLOs see it as the way up and out of the economic downturn.

Profile

March 2010
Special Delivery: Learning at UPS
by Daniel Margolis

Anne Schwartz delivers a workforce that is the complete package via a philosophy of experiential rotation and a strong emphasis on simulations.