Buy coaching: a guide to investing in people
In this article, I outline some recommendations for people buying coaching They are based, on the one hand, on the requests I receive for executive and business coaching services and, on the other hand, on my own vision as an Executive Coach.
Do you know what Coaching is?
First of all, I must say that there is a lot of confusion about what coaching is and what it isn’t. Often the word is used interchangeably as business training , motivational conferences to teams, counselling, company events and even as a therapy. But the truth is that coaching is a methodology aimed at the development and learning of individuals, groups and organisations. Thus, like any tool, it must adapt to the needs of the clients and the companies where they work. The atomisation of coaching by seeking market niches on the supply side (executive, corporate, teams, personal or life, business, commercial, nutritional, sports, medical, students, women, etc.) does not contribute to giving coaching a clear identity either:
- It is not training because the coach does not teach or offer knowledge to the client.
- Nor are they motivational conferences. The coach is not a speaker, on the contrary, he/she listens and stimulates the client’s conversation.
- And it is not counselling, because the coach does not provide information or technical advice .
- Finally, much less is it psychotherapy. A coach is not qualified to do so, nor is the client a patient.
It should be noted that many coaching orientations, even those taught in prestigious business schools, are based on techniques considered pseudo-therapies by the Ministry of Health (March 2019), including Neurolinguistic Programming or NLP and Gestalt.
Who buys Executive Coaching?
Generally the requests we receive come from professionals who are proactively acting on their own – whether they pay for it themselves or are funded by their company – or from companies – either through Human Resources or Management. A third comes from people who are organising a “special event” in the company, and they are asked to buy the coaching, without hardly knowing what the objective of the purchase is, or what “coaching” sounds so attractive? Simplifying, except for very proactive professionals, multinational HR areas or companies that invest in people, the lack of knowledge about what coaching is, what it is for and how to buy professional coaching, is remarkable in Spain
Because potentially everything is coaching.
Thus, we receive a variety of requests, ranging from employment advice, consultancy, headhunting, the search for speakers, mentors, training, or coaches to deal with anxiety and disruptive emotions of managers. Coaching as a catch-all Although, properly purchased, executive coaching is a powerful methodology at the service of the development of people in organisational contexts In short, executive coaching is not a commodity. Buying coaching services in the wrong way is expensive, inefficient and even contraindicated.
I think that not knowing how to buy coaching means that there are coaches for almost everything.
How to buy executive coaching ?
Above all, I would say, by looking at these variables:
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- Buyer’s (customer’s) objectives and needs
- Competence and experience (of the coach)
- Outreach (for individuals, teams or corporations)
- Budget (buyer)
Hire the best coach
So, taking these variables into account, hiring the optimal coach would depend on:
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- Business experience provided
- Behavioural psychology qualification (people and organisations)
- HR area compression
- Specialisation in coaching
- Its own competences
The certified coach
A coach may be certified and have neither business experience nor any knowledge of the psychology of human and organisational behaviour. Many are academics or have a purely theoretical background.
The psychologist coach
At the same time, a psychologist is assumed to have knowledge of human behaviour but does not necessarily have to have any experience or understanding of business or companies. This means that they are of little use when working with executive clients and companies.
The executive coach
In addition, there are many senior professionals with long careers in business who offer coaching but without knowledge of how a person works on a psychological level and without specialisation in human resources and/or coaching. These managers are coaches who rather “advise” clients from the “authority” of their experience. Something similar to mentoring, which although it may have its benefits in specific cases, it is not professionalised coaching.
Who offers coaching?
Independent professionals
Independent coaches operating in the market. Some of them are excellent and work in a client-focused way. To be sure, their qualifications in relation to the objectives of the buyer and the needs of the coaching client should be examined in depth.
Coaching Companies
To know whether or not the executive coaching provider subcontracts these services to freelancers in order to have the traceability of the coach finally assigned to work with a client and of the expected services.
Conclusion
- PURCHASING CRITERIA: the above variables must be identified and evaluated by the person buying coaching services in order to make a professional purchasing decision and invest in people development.
- QUALIFICATION OF THE COACH: it is necessary that the qualification of the coach can be easily verified in relation to the client’s needs and not just to buy “coaching certificates” with which the buyer exempts his purchasing responsibility in relation to his company’s order.
- CREDIBILITY OF THE COACH: finally, many coaches offer services without any transparency about their training, career path, speciality and/or the companies where they have worked. Their credibility is essential if they are going to have an impact on people.
Read more:
Coaching Ejecutivo y Empresarial Coaching Career Coaching comercial Para qué sirve el coaching y para qué no
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