by Susie Li
The 2010 Shanghai Coaching Conference, "The Centre of Coaching in China: Advancing to International Excellence," was a great success. Hosted by the IAC Shanghai Chapter, the event took place on Friday, 19 March 2010 at the Grand Mercure Hotel.
The 101 participants included coaches, executives, educators, trainers and human resource professionals. Most were from Shanghai, in addition to attendees from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia and Japan. Our Keynote Speaker Natalie Tucker Miller flew in from the US especially for this event.
The conference began with a panel discussion, "The Role and Impact of Coaching for Individuals and Corporations in China," facilitated by Angela Spaxman, Past President of IAC (pictured above). Out of the discussion, some insights emerged regarding coaching Chinese people in China. Culturally, coaching is from the US. When putting coaching into the context of Chinese society, it is worthwhile to note a couple of things. First of all, building rapport and trust may take a few sessions before a Chinese client opens up. Further, Chinese people are non-confrontational; they do not open up when challenged.
The group discussed desirable applications for coaching Chinese people in China, including parent coaching to support parents and parents-to be, in addition to coaching for young children to support their development as they grow. With regard to corporate clients in China, they would evaluate a coach in terms of their qualification, their integrity and their passion as a coach.
After the panel discussion, a choice of concurrent sessions was offered, including "The Essentials of a Masterful Coach," "A New Map for a New Age—Corporate Coaching Culture," "Roadmap to Becoming a Professional Coach" and "Successful Executive Coaching Model in Japan."
As an introductory exploration of professional coaching and coaching in China, the 2010 Shanghai Coaching Conference was very well-received. Many participants enjoyed the conference tremendously, finding it a wonderful opportunity for sharing and exchanging. Many were inspired by it, as seen by the birth of various initiatives:
* Experienced coaches from Hong Kong and Taiwan are committed to go for their IAC and ICF certifications.
* Ms. Bonnie Chan, an IAC-Certified Coach, will be going to Shanghai regularly to give small group talks, and to participate in exchanges about coaching and IAC masteries.
* Highly experienced coaches started a dialogue towards organizing a coaching reflection retreat in a nature-connected venue.
* A trainer will explore a practical coaching approach for his clients’ companies.
* A participant has committed to become a parenting coach.
* On April 12, 2010, Mr. Jiang Yu succeeded Bonnie Chan as the new President of the IAC Shanghai Chapter (http://www.certifiedcoach.org/chapters/chapters.html#China) . He invites conference participants to contact him for further conversation about the topics discussed.
* Participants have formed their own interest groups from the conference.
* Ms. Natalie Tucker, IAC Certified Coach and Lead Certifier from the US, expressed that there are more similarities than differences between coaching in the US and Asia. There were also discussions as to how the IAC can support the development of coaching in Asia.
Thanks to the precious time and efforts of many volunteers, in particular from the IAC Shanghai Chapter, for making the Shanghai Coaching Conference a successful event, from which many initiatives begin.
Susie Li, Career Coach, supports her clients to identify their unique personal qualities and leverage them in a suitable career and organization, so that they thrive in a career they love.
