Just as shamans, snake doctors and financial folks once freely dispensed unregulated advice and wares to the public, business coaching currently requires no specific training, experience or credentials. Any organization or individual, including your neighbor, bartender or hairdresser, can legally profess to be a coach.

Amber University and PROfusion Public Relations firm conducted a poll of 210 individuals who had hired an executive coach. The survey revealed that 81.9% of the polled clients thought executive coaches were required to have coach-specific, extensive credentials. 17.1% of the respondents had no idea what credentials their coach brought to the table while 1% knew their coach had no special training.

Historically, whenever a new profession emerges, there are no standards or credentials. “The professional coaching field is still in a state of infancy,” says Dr. Otto Laske of Personnel Development Consultation, Inc., who teaches developmental coaching to aspiring coaches. Coaching first emerged in the early 90s and according to the International Coaching Federation (ICF), a non-profit professional coaching organization, the number of individuals professing to be a coach has doubled each year. The professional organization, ICF, currently works with over 14 organizations that provide coach-training and lists the schools at: http://www.coachfederation.com/schools.htm. Just as other professions have emerged and slowly acquired and implemented specific professional standards, change is on the way to protect the public and to give the coaching profession credibility.

Until specific training or certification becomes a requirement prior to individual’s providing coaching services, the recommendations below will assist in evaluating reputable coaching opportunities:

Background of the specific coach:
Most professionals base their recommendations on their own level of development, past experience, knowledge in the problem area, education, and core values. One organization experienced an expensive nightmare: The company contracted to pay $9,500.00 for a coach to work with a high-profit producing employee. The employee lacked skills in integrity and professional honesty. Sadly, the hiring organization did not verify the specific coach’s background. The hiring firm eventually terminated the employee and the coach. The only change that occurred was the hiring firm was $9,500 poorer. It was later learned that the coach had been involved with three married clients. This very coach also had honesty and integrity issues! Before obligating thousands of corporate dollars, hiring managers should confirm that the specific coach they intend to employ has some history of coaching/professional integrity.

Assessments:
Dentists use x-rays to help in gauging the scope of dental problems. Physicians use lab reports to supplement patient’s self-reports of problems to minimize treatment errors. Likewise, a skilled coach must be trained and comfortable in using assessments in order to deal with behaviors, communication styles and values (motivators) to develop effective interventions or developmental processes. Beware of organizations and coaches who are not trained in providing assessment feedback or do not utilize a wide variety of assessment instruments.

Basic Level of Competence:
“In order for a coach to be an effective resource in executive development, he/she must possess a combination of high ethics, maturity, outstanding communication proficiencies, a firm grounding in business knowledge, a thorough understanding of leadership development, and a reputation that gains respect,” says Cork Motsett, and author of If it Weren’t for People, This Job Would be Fun, a coaching book that is on Duke University’s Business School recommended reading list. Motsett, owner of Jacksonville, Florida Business Development Specialists, Inc., makes the point well, “One coach, unfamiliar with industry politics, coached an individual which resulted in the client’s termination and the client remained unemployed for one year.” A business coach should have familiarity in the client’s world relating to roles, political environment and hierarchy.

Previous Reputation:
Even organizations that have professional reputations and skills in other markets are jumping on the unregulated coaching opportunities. Buyers should look for red flags when an organization’s past reputation is in another field and uses that reputation as a passport to market coaching expertise. While a good coach can boost organizational or an individual’s productivity, carefully screening one’s past coaching success rate is critical to the buyer in this non-regulated field.

Coach Credentialing:
Professional credentials will distinguish experienced, professional coaches from garden-variety individuals who just want to jump on the trend of coaching. ICF provides a website listing of coaches and their self-reported qualifications who specialize in corporate, small business, personal, speakers and career coaching at http://www.coachfederation.org/~icfcrs/search.cgi. For an individual to become an ICF certified coach, they will be required to pass an exam, accumulate 750 coaching hours and just as other professionals are required, participate in continuing education programs. It is expected, within the next few years, some type of training or credentials will become the international standard.

Credentialing has improved reliability and credibility within other professions as they evolved. So, prior to obligating corporate funds, it is important to verify experience, training, bottom-line payback results and professional integrity of the coach.

Tips
Business coaching can be a valuable investment when contracting with professionals who have coach-specific training, experience and verifiable results.

Important questions to ask a coach include: “What qualifies you to coach people and how many individuals in my profession have you coached . . . How else can I verify your professional expertise, i.e., references, published work, credentials, etc.”

Freda Turner teaches at the University of Phoenix and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. She may be reached at fturner@email.uophx.edu.