Self-improvement is sought by many Americans, whether for health and diet, work and careers, skills, or spiritual growth, and the American self-improvement industry stands at an impressive $9 billion in value today. Some of this self-improvement can be highly effective for a workplace like an office, and an executive manager at a company may hire an executive coach so that can function even better as a boss and as a person who must connect with the other people around them. After all, an executive is no ordinary pencil-pusher; this person’s decisions, effort, and their ability (or lack thereof) to motivate others can make a major difference in how well or badly a business functions, and that means that clients, customers, and profits are all on the line and are riding on how well an executive can work. If an executive feels that he or she could do a better job, or if that manager receives feedback to the same effect, an executive coach can be found and hired for the job. A career coach can have a similar effect for various workers, and help transform a client into a truly efficient and motivated worker.
An Executive Coach
What kind of people choose to become an executive coach, and what is their industry like? About 37% of them are between 46 and 55 years old, old enough to have a lot of experience working with clients and knowing his business and human psychology both work. These coaches are well-paid; often, they may make $3,500 per hour, given the importance of their work, and on average, an executive coach will work with a client for a period of seven to 12 months. And the personal coaching industry is predicted to grow about 6.7% per year from 2016 to 2022, and it may reach a value of $1.34 billion by the year 2022. A 2016 study, meanwhile, 99% of coach practitioners had received some sort of coach-specific training, and 89% of those who received such training got it from a professional coaching organization. Executive coaching, then, comes from a background of expertise and skill, and this can yield great results. Other professionals, such as organizational development consultants, may have similar backgrounds. A client who hires one can inquire about that professional’s backgrounds and qualifications if need be.
Executive Coaching Done Right
What does an executive coach do? These professionals, while they often have backgrounds in therapy, will not actually act as therapists, neither will they actually solve the client’s problems for them nor give industry-specific advice. Instead, an executive coach will help guide the client to realize and find solutions for their problems through a guided question and answer session, or several of them. They will also act as private sounding boards for ideas and help provide clarity for the client and how they think, and they can also challenge assumptions to help expand the client’s mind and challenge them to “think outside the box” and develop new ways of thinking. Only if asked will the executive coach actually give advice.
Hiring an executive coach is not a sign of inferiority or trouble; rather, it can even be a status symbol, and many companies see an executive coach as a way to invest in their higher-up managers to get the most out of them. Often, the human resources (HR) department will recommend the use of such a coach, and the person being coached may be relatively new to their job and need some guidance on how to perform their new job better. Conversely, an executive coach may be hired and used if the coachee is being groomed for a higher position. An executive coach may also be hired for more traditional reasons, such as if the client has some people issues or a personality that some find unsuitable for their role in the workplace.
Hiring an executive coach is a good idea only if the manager is receptive to it and if they are going to stick around. Someone who is on the verge of quitting, for example, would not need a coach, or someone who does not believe that they need one.
