Training: how to choose a coach?

Increasingly widespread in the world of work, the Coaching meets a real need for businesses. Depending on the objectives, it is still necessary to make the best possible choice. Explanations ofAude Bohu, executive coach, associate director of Talentis.

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How do HR departments choose a coach for company employees?

Aude Bohu:”HR is faced with a plethora of offers in this area! A number of criteria must be met, criteria that depend on what the company is looking for, its needs and its objectives. Several options are possible: either HR already have a good connection with the coaches they work with, or they are turning to a coaching firm and asks them for advice according to their problematic.”

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What are the criteria that will determine this choice?

“First of all, thelife experience And of professional career of the coach, that is to say what he did before being a coach. Was he a manager? Has he ever worked as a consultant? Is it in a logic oflifelong learning ? Is it regularly supervised by a referent coach? What code of ethics does it respond to?

For accompany A leader, a manager or a collaborator in the company, a coach does not need to be an expert in the field. On the other hand, he must have a positive vision of the organization, coupled with a good understanding challenges that the coachee will encounter and that he will have to face in the practice of his profession.”

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Does the coach have to have undergone specific training?

“There are a certain number of certifying and recognized courses, in France and internationally. Some schools are better known than others. In these schools, a real work of personal development is undertaken and future coaches benefit from a solid training.

Then, you have to ask yourself what additional training the coach was able to follow. Because, in order to be efficient and effective and better support individuals and/or teams, a qualified coach also needstools. Psychometric self-knowledge tools, such as Lumina, Insight... And, to reinforce its daily practice, transactional analysis, NLP or Gestalt. So many reading keys that will help him analyze the situation and Support the reflection of the person being coached.”

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How is the contract of trust established between HR and the coach?

“The quality of the questions that the coach will ask, the attitude and the interest he will have with HR are determinants. His questions and his involvement will enlighten HR on how to proceed. Her relational and emotional intelligence as well, her empathy, her kindness, her ability to create relationships. The choice of a coach also depends on the type of approach that he intends to put in place: its schedule, the start-up interviews, the mid-term points, the closing interviews...”

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How do coaching sessions take place?

“Very often, coaching takes place outside the company. This is part of the coachee's approach: they surrender disponible, she is committed to changing things by leaving her environment, by agreeing to disconnect.”

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On the employee side, how do you choose a coach?

“As a general rule, an employee will be offered two or three coaches. If an employee's logic is not the same as that of a company, he will ask himself the same questions as HR: what is the coach's career path? Her resume? He will be particularly interested in his practice, which should be the first criterion of choice: is it a professional coach and what ethical rules does he obey?”

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Once assured that the coach is professional, what are the other selection criteria?

“The second choice criterion is more related to printouts What comes out when the employee meets his future coach: is he empathetic, benevolent, clear in his words? Is the employee comfortable with him? Does he feel good accompanied, is a natural alliance between the two created? Is the coach demanding enough with the employee, will he be sufficiently challenger ? It's not always easy! Is he aware of his objectives ? How is he going to make him work in the face of his goals? Employees must dare to let themselves be carried away, take a little distance and take a step back before making a decision.”