Fort Lauderdale Executive Coaching Certification

Coaches are neither consultants (who focus on business results or solve business problems) nor therapists since they don’t provide advice. They are also not mentors. They do, however, ask important questions that help them to clarify the clients’ problems and to come up with a plan for resolving them. While executive coaches provide confidentiality to their clients and can act as sounding boards, they cannot fix hiring mistakes or change the mindset of incompetent executives.

Coaches begin by administering and interpreting comprehensive behavioral assessments and then interviewing a client’s superiors, peers, and direct reports to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the client within the context of his company. They can use this information to better understand what questions to ask, and what coaching methods to apply, so they can help their clients achieve their goals.

Once the client and coach have worked intensively together, they typically maintain regular contact (usually weekly) whether in person, by phone, or through videoconferences. The coach may offer follow-up communication for six months or a year following the end of the formal coaching engagement to encourage the client and learn how the client is doing with their goals.

Coaches come from a variety of backgrounds, and this can be either positive or negative. In searching for a coach, a company should not limit itself to only those with a specific industry background, since it is impossible to predict which coach will have a good rapport with which client. Due to the fact that there are no universally recognized qualifications for executive coaches, anyone may call themselves an executive coach and seek clients. It is inevitable that individuals who are patently unqualified will be weeded out by the market, however, they can do considerable damage and waste valuable time before they are eradicated from the market.

Many executives who work as executive coaches have backgrounds in business, including holding executive positions. A number of them are retired executives, though most are under retirement age. Some executive coaches have a STEM background, while others have an academic or arts background. It is usually business-oriented executive coaches who are most successful. They are highly knowledgeable about how businesses function as well as what it takes to be a successful executive.

When companies hire executive coaches, they should look for coaches who have experience within their industry. Those in the tech industry might benefit from the executive coaching services of someone who has worked in the industry before.

Certification Programs for Executive Coaches in Fort Lauderdale

Executive coaches are not all certified coaches, but many of them are. They want to make themselves known, and they want to demonstrate to prospective clients that they have studied executive coaching and have met industry standards.

Certification programs for executive coaches are available from several institutions, some of which are prestigious. Among the top schools offering executive coaching certificates are Harvard, Northwestern, and Georgetown Universities. Several other coaching certification programs exist, and their reputation ranges from highly regarded to highly suspicious.

The worldwide web has, of course, produced various organizations which claim to provide executive coaching certifications. These organizations will gladly accept money in exchange for some kind of certification. The best way to choose an executive coaching program is to look for testimonials and accreditation from respected coaches and the length of time the coach has been a trainer.

Accreditation by such a group as the International Coach Federation (ICF) is an indication that a coach certification program meets certain standards of professionalism and content, and it also increases the likelihood that the executive coach will be respected as he or she builds a clientele.

In the ICF, for example, there are three levels of accreditation for training programs. They recognize Accredited Coach Training Programs as comprehensive executive coach training programs, while they recognize Approved Coach Specific Training Hours as more à la carte than comprehensive programs. People who already have ICF credentials can get the ICP’s Continuing Coach Education certification.

Why Do Coaches Pursue Certification?

Are you able to be a good executive coach without any sort of certification or credential? Possibly. The same way an unknown athlete does well in the New York Marathon or an unknown politician earns success in politics, there will occasionally be an executive coach with the right combination of personality, wisdom, and skill.

Yet that is more of an exception than the rule. Choosing an executive coach who has recognized credentials and a long list of satisfied clients is much like choosing a lawyer with excellent qualifications and references for a court case. Because of this, even self-taught coaches or those with experience as business coaches who are naturally gifted for coaching need to obtain coaching certification. They know that they can always improve their skills, and certifications from accredited executive coaching programs can boost their competitive edge and enhance their attractiveness to companies interested in coaching their executives.

If they feel a certain coaching program is particularly beneficial, experienced executive coaches often pursue certification.

Executive coaches frequently pursue continuing education indefinitely, just as physicians, engineers, and lawyers do to stay current on industry changes, new techniques, and research. Executive coaches who demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning are less likely to stagnate in their technique and effectiveness, as well as keeping up with changes in the business climate, technology, and executives themselves.

For more information on Fort Lauderdale executive coaching certification or how to become certified as a Fort Lauderdale executive coach, please reach out to us today.