If you are reading this article, you have most likely decided that you would benefit from coaching to aid your professional development, and now you are wondering how to go about selecting an executive coach. Finding the right executive coach can be a challenge as there is a very varied landscape of coaches with different backgrounds and levels of experience. Working with an executive coach is an investment of your time and therefore it makes sense to also invest some time into choosing the right coach for you. In this article we will highlight the five key considerations that can help you to navigate this field to find an executive coach who will help you achieve your professional and personal goals.
1. Be clear on what you are looking to work on and what you want to achieve
Are you looking for insights and strategies to become a better leader, a better people manager? To develop a certain set of skills or behaviours? To help you meet a particular challenge; obtain a promotion, lead a change initiative, assume a new leadership role or to redesign your organisation or function? An executive coach can help leaders to develop the necessary skills and strategies, by supporting, guiding, and challenging executives to increase their effectiveness. Coaches come in all shapes and sizes; they will be more experienced in some areas more than others. We would always suggest an initial conversation to help you to determine if a particular executive coach can support you in achieving your goals.
2. Coaching is an unregulated field, but don’t be put off
That is to say that there are very few restrictions to an individual setting up as a coach if they feel they have the necessary skills and qualities. There is not one all-encompassing regulatory body governing the practice of executive coaching. However, most coaches have gone through formal training, obtained qualifications and hold hard earned membership with professional bodies. We would always recommend that you research but also speak with your prospective executive coach to make sure you are comfortable with the experience, qualifications, and skills that they can offer.
3. There’s more to coaching than theory
It may be preferable to work with a coach who has practical business experience, who has operated in leadership roles or has held a senior level advisory position. Understanding first-hand the demands on leaders, how they need to operate to be effective, as well as an in-depth knowledge of business strategy, business challenges, business transformation and the risk and issues inherent in leading organisational change, can be hugely beneficial. Working with an executive coach with this type of experience and knowledge, can mean that you can dive straight into your discussions as they already have a deep understanding of the demands working at level at which you are operating, or aspire to reach.
4. Do you have chemistry?
It is best to work with someone whose manner and approach you like - if you respect and are comfortable with your coach, your sessions will be more open and productive. However, be mindful that you are not looking for a friend nor a counsellor. The best coaches will provide a positive challenge to you and your ideas, increase your self-awareness, expand your thinking, and bring you outside of your comfort zone, whilst being supportive and offering practical advice. The best relationships are based on trust and working with a coach is no different. This is especially important where the coach has been engaged by your business, and therefore to ensure a healthy process will need to provide feedback, and insights to your manager or HR. We would suggest that at the outset of the coaching assignment there is an understanding reached between you and your coach, as to what remains confidential and what can be shared.
5. Timeframe is important
Discuss with your prospective coach how long they believe the coaching assignment will last. As a rule of thumb, most engagements will last be between 6 to 12 months. Be wary of coaches offering a ‘quick fix’ in a short time frame, as change is a process that requires a change of mindset and behaviour and is rarely adopted overnight. On the flip side, you should expect, when putting in the work on your side, to see results in a 6-to-12-month period of regular engagement, so be mindful of coaches who talk in longer terms. At a later stage, you may benefit from a mentor or less frequent refresher sessions with your executive coach.
Putting it into practice
Knowing the above considerations, you could start your search by asking your professional network for recommendations for executive coaches. No one size fits all, but having a personal recommendation is a good place to start. Consider if you need to work with an executive coach who is local to you. Many people are finding that sessions conducted over video call are just as effective and can offer you much greater flexibility to manage your working, personal and development time. Do your research on the prospective executive coaches’ websites, LinkedIn pages and even check website reviews. What qualifications and experience do they offer? Will they understand your challenges? It is important that you feel you can respect their opinion and guidance.
Request a preliminary conversation and be honest about what you are looking for and want to achieve from the engagement. Use this conversation to see if you have the right chemistry for this working relationship. Are you comfortable opening up to the executive coach? Does the executive coach demonstrate a good balance between listening to understand, and talking?
Make a list of questions to ask your prospective executive coaches and don’t be afraid to ask them all. You will both have expectations of how sessions will run, frequency and duration, as well as how you will communicate, and the amount of personal development work that will be required of you between sessions. It is important to have an idea of this prior to working together and for you both to be comfortable with each other’s requirements and expectations.
We hope that by considering these points your search for an executive coach will be easier and successful. If you found this article useful, please drop us a like or comment below.
Gamea Consulting is a management consultancy specialising in helping individuals and businesses increase professional and organisational performance and to implement enduring change.
Our team of executive coaches and business advisors are seasoned professionals who have had their first careers in senior executive and leadership roles in a diverse range of industries from banking and finance to healthcare and charitable organisations. They have a wealth of experience in building and redesigning organisations, leading large and small-scale change, and implementing business transformation programmes.
Our executives coaches have a deep understanding of different industry sectors, how to operate and lead complex organisational landscapes and cultures. They bring their knowledge, experience, and leadership skills to every coaching engagement with the aim of guiding, challenging, and supporting individuals to develop the necessary leadership skills and strategies to increase their impact and enhance the value they bring to their organisation.