Clients may engage a coach for a number of reasons, but the bottom line is the bottom line – improving business performance.

Typical coaching goals include:

Improving leadership skills – how to lead teams more effectively
Becoming an even better manager – identify and address focus areas to make good managers great
Increasing strategic focus – moving executive's orientation from tactical to strategic.
Better manage work/life balance – identify the boundaries that you need to set and honor to find your own work/life balance
Positioning for next step in career progression – clarifying the client's desired career path and immediate next steps.

Coaching goals are aligned with overall corporate direction and objectives at the start of the engagement. This is usually done through a three-way meeting between sponsor, client and coach. This meeting sets the foundation for both the content of the coaching as well as the three-way relationship that corporation coaching involves. Final goals for the engagement are defined by the client after this meeting.

One factor is critical in all coaching engagements – confidentiality. A coach cannot be effective if there isn't a level of trust with the client. Therefore, ground rules are established at the very beginning of the coaching engagement as to who will see/hear what information. Confidentially and groundrules are usually addressed in the initial meeting between sponsor, client and coach.

Approach and Duration

Corporate coaching engagements generally take the following path:

Initialization – Introductory meeting with sponsor and coaching client to discuss: coaching goals, confidentiality and operating norms. The method of measuring coaching effectiveness may also be established in this phase.
Goal setting – Establish goals for coaching engagement. There are usually 2-3 goals that align with organizational objectives.
Data collection & feedback – Coach develops interview questionnaire with client. Coach conducts interviews & develops assessment. Feedback is provided to client
Action planning – Client develops action plan to meet goals, incorporating assessment data. A three-way meeting is conducted with sponsor and client to confirm and refine goals as necessary
Action item follow-up – Coach supports client in following through on action plan. Coach helps client identify and overcome roadblocks.
Close out data collection – Coach conducts 2nd 360 feedback survey with same interviewees, using same tool. Results provided to client. Debrief session is conducted with sponsor, client and coach