From the President

by Susan R. Meyer,
MMC
president@certifiedcoach.org

Let
the Celebration Begin!

It’s March. There are signs that, in my part of the world, winter will
be ending soon. It’s also prime college basketball season and many in
the US will be glued to their televisions watching March Madness. I hope that
all of you around the world will be glued to the IAC VOICE, blog
site, LinkedIn
and Facebook
pages as we begin a year-long celebration of our 10th anniversary.

Looking Back

The IAC^® was the brainchild of Thomas J. Leonard, who is often credited
as the founder of the modern coaching profession. It began with research conducted
by Michael “Coop” Cooper in the spring of 2002. The original Board,
created in the summer of 2002, consisted of Thomas, Coop, Laura Hendershot and
Susan Austin Lawler. The organization was launched as the International Association
of Certified Coaches.

Initially, membership was free and the entire CoachVille community automatically
became members. By 2003 the organization, under President Michael “Coop,”
was renamed The International Association of Coaches. It was established on
March 11, 2003 as a nonprofit organization incorporated under the New Mexico
Nonprofit Corporation Act. At this time, Coop stepped down as President, a role
assumed by Barbara Mark. Shirley Anderson chaired the Board of Governors.

It had taken Thomas over a year to develop the first international standards
for coaching certification. This was based on the 15 Proficiencies, a result
of reviewing 20 years worth of best coaching practices. Susan Austin Lawler
was a prime force in the creation of this document. The result was a rigorous
certification process that goes beyond just academic or vocational qualifications.
The certification embraces universal guidelines, principles, proficiencies,
standards and behaviors that make a coach a great coach, regardless of profession
or geography. The standards continue to evolve in response to client requirements
and expectations of the industry.

After
Thomas’ untimely death, the IAC negotiated with Dave Buck, new
owner of CoachVille and was granted the rights to the Proficiencies.
In 2005, president Barbara Mark and the IAC began the lengthy process
of developing its own intellectual property, creating the multi-national
process that led to the development of the IAC Masteries™. Beginning
in 2006, president Natalie Tucker Miller saw the project through its
completion. The team that developed the new IAC Coaching Masteries™
worked diligently for over 24 months to provide a model of coaching
skill that embodied universal sensibilities as well as an evolving
understanding of coaching. These were released in 2007 and formally
adopted as the IAC’s sole standards in 2008.

As more people come to realize that great coaching can make a significant difference
in their lives, the marketplace has responded with more coaches from all walks
of life and more professionals incorporating coaching skills into their work.
Academic and vocational training for coaches has also become a growing field.
To better reflect the influence of coaching skills throughout many professions,
in 2007, the IAC changed its name to International Association of Coaching.

In 2008, President Angela Spaxman’s efforts included creating a process
for licensing schools teaching the Masteries™. Angela also spearheaded
a strategic planning process that reinforced our mission, strengthened the infrastructure
and set the groundwork for increased learning opportunities.

Bob Tschannen-Moran became the IAC’s fifth President in 2010 and was
tasked with implementing the strategic plan. During his tenure, in response
to our desire to document lifelong learning, we created the Learning Agreement
Process and developed a research initiative.

With the help of a strong Board of Governors during my own term, which began
in 2012, we have been able to fully implement the Learning Agreement process,
and have reexamined our certification process to create a second level of certification

To date, more than 13,000 coaches in over 80 countries have subscribed to our
newsletter and we have more than 800 active members worldwide. Due to its simplicity,
flexibility and very high quality standards, an increasing number of coaches
aspire to IAC certification.

Looking Forward

Under the editorship of Beth Ann Miller, the VOICE will have a new look, a
new feel, and expanded content. Let us know what you think.

We’re also expanding our webinars. In late February, Kim Ades launched
a monthly webinar series about IAC member benefits. These are educational webinars
in response to frequent messages from members who don’t know what benefits
we offer or don’t understand how to take the best advantage of a benefit.
They will be archived in the member benefits area of the website so that you
can access them at any time. Although the presenter will give their contact
information, these are pitch-free.

In March, we will be continuing the series of interviews with successful IAC
coaches. Ed Britton interviewed several of our Asian coaches last year and these
are available on the website. In March, I will kick off the North American series
with an interview with Aileen Gibb. This will be followed by interviews with
Natalie Tucker Miller and Doris Helge. We’re planning on at least one
interview a month for the next year.

Members of the IAC Board of Governors will continue to facilitate two calls
a month – one exclusively for IAC members and one open to members and
non-members. By the end of March, we will also have a members’ forum on
the website. Please drop in to a call or log in to the forum to maintain contact
with other members, raise concerns, share ideas and get advice.

Lifetime Membership

Last month I promised to reveal the mystery of multiple lifetime memberships.
In our first year, Natalie Tucker Miller, Anna Dargitz Hodge, Shirley Anderson,
Susan Austin Lawler, Angela Spaxman and Ruth Ann Harnish showed their faith
in the IAC by becoming lifetime members for $1,000. This means that Anna, as
one of the first people to have continuous membership is now a double lifetime
member and Natalie, who was also part of that first group and is a past President,
technically has three.

I can’t guarantee you thee lifetimes or even three lifetime memberships,
but, the IAC would like to offer you one lifetime membership. From March 2013
through March 2014, if you would like to demonstrate your support of all we
are doing and help the IAC grow, you can become a lifetime member for $1,200.
We’ll issue you a special certificate and display your name proudly on
the website.

And, Finally, Because You asked …

As you know, we recently changed our coach designations to Master Masteries
Coach, Certified Masteries Coach and Masteries Practitioner. In response to
a reminder from one of our members, we will get new banners and logos as well
as revised certificate out to you this month.

Some of you have asked for more information on practice building. There are
many fine articles in the archives, and, to save you from a lot of hunting,
we’ve created an ebook that will be available to all members by the end
of March.

Our Canadian members have been asking for liability insurance and for years
we’ve been unsuccessful in finding a provider. We finally have found one!
Check the Member
Benefits section for details.

Finally, some of you are experiencing email overload. I want to assure you
that the IAC will never send you promotional materials. We don’t have
affiliate relationships with any of our benefit providers. We do, however, want
to be sure that you are aware of opportunities and events. Whenever possible,
we’ll be combining events into one email. I hope that this reduces clutter
for all of you.

I’m looking forward to finding more ways to help each of you move along
the path to coaching master. Please continue to let me know what the IAC can
do for you.

With
warm wishes for your success,
Susan R. Meyer

Susan R. Meyer, MMC is President of Susan R. Meyer, Coaching and Consulting
and of Life-Work Coach. She provides personal and executive coaching
and facilitates seminars on topics including life planning, emotional
intelligence, leadership development, communication, and coaching
skills for managers. www.susanrmeyer.com.