From the Editor
Autumn has officially hit New England, which means bundling up and enjoying the last of the foliage. Recent family emergencies have had me on the road quite a bit and I found myself feeling grateful for the beautiful scenery here in New Hampshire – a welcomed distraction. It’s in these moments of crisis that you recognize how blessed you are to be surrounded by beautiful things, and even better, beautifully-spirited people. (And, I’m happy to report that my family is on the mend and life is good!) This month we’ve got quite the assortment of articles and announcements to share with you. Please enjoy all of the advice, updates, and insight that our incredible contributors have to share! Is there something you’d like to see in the VOICE? A particular subject you’d like us to address? Please don’t hesitate to contact us at voice@certifiedcoach.org with comments, questions, event notices, or article contributions. We are always looking for new perspectives and look forward to hearing from you. Best,
Beth Ann Miller is currently pursuing an MFA in Writing and is a native New Englander. She has a professional background in editing and higher education, and enjoys working with youths in the arts. Her stories have appeared in online and print journals and she is perpetually at work on new creative projects.
Contents From the President – Vicki Zanini From the Archives: Certification Barriers – Busted! – Barbra Sundquist Path to Mastery: How to be an Observer in a Coaching Triad – Ed Britton How Coaches and Recruiters Can, Together, Protect Our Clients’ Investment – J. James O’Malley Meet the Coach – Sandy Tremp IAC Monthly Open Chat From the President Greetings,
This is one of my favorite quotes and naturally came to mind as the IAC received the preliminary report last month from Nina East, the marketing and branding consultant hired earlier this year. And, of course, you will also recognize Nina as our own beloved certifier and founding member. Nina knows the IAC, she’s been here since the beginning, and we are fortunate to have her on board as we take a close look at “what lies within” and how we share that with the world. It turns out that we know quite well “what lies within” and this is stated very clearly in the IAC Strategic Plan which is available in its entirety on our website. Here is an excerpt: The IAC:
This was true when it was written in 2010 and is certainly true today. We understand that we are more than a certification organization, although this remains an important function. We are also a coaching mastery organization where coaches gather, network, learn, grow and inspire one another. We continue to witness this in conferences and at chapter meetings. We certainly experience this in our leadership meetings. And we are beginning to see some very exciting opportunities to experience this virtually in the Path to Coaching Mastery, and the Coaches Book Club. (Email Terri Hase at treasuer@certifiedcoach.org for details!) We continue to attract coaches who are committed to not only certification but coaching mastery. We are well equipped and positioned to support these coaches and we plan to get even better at it. And better at sharing our message with the world – phase 1 of the website makeover is well underway! Finally, I am thrilled to welcome Jinny Wang to the IAC Board of Governors. She is an IAC licensee and chapter president from Taiwan and is well known for her leadership skills and many contributions to the IAC. To read her biography and learn more about her, visit the IAC website. Be sure and stay connected and informed through our social media channels and of course the VOICE. It’s been said before but I’ll say it again, the best is yet to come!
From the Archives: January 2009 OK, so you’re keen to get your IAC certification in 2009, but you perceive some barriers to getting those two passing tapes. Here are some suggestions to help you out. Barrier #1: I don’t have any paying clients to tape coaching sessions with. Solution: The tapes that you record for IAC certification don’t have to be with paying clients. You can coach anyone and submit those tapes. Many coaches record sessions with their buddy coach or triad partners. In fact, coaches make very good subjects for certification tapes because they tend to be very “coachable” (i.e. open, articulate and eager to take action). Don’t know any coaches you could ask? Try attending a local coaches networking meeting, joining an online networking site such as Mastery Coach Exchange, or posting an invitation on a coach discussion board such as Coactive Network, NewCoachConnection or CoachTalk. If you are enrolled in a training program, ask your instructors for suggestions. And don’t overlook your fellow students: they will likely be just as keen as you to link up with a practice partner. Another option is to ask family, friends and colleagues if they would be interested in being coached, or if they would like to refer someone. You can say something like, “I’m working towards my coach certification. Normally I charge $X for a 30-minute coaching session, but I’d be willing to coach you for free (or a reduced rate) in exchange for letting me record the call.” And don’t be shy about asking – remember, you are giving them the gift of coaching! Barrier #2: I don’t have a way to make recordings. Solution: For years I have been recommending Audio Acrobat for making mp3 recordings. AudioAcrobat is great (it’s the service I use) but it costs $20 a month. Here’s a free alternative: Calliflower is a new service that gives you a free bridge line and mp3 recording of your call. Barrier #3: I did my coach training using the 15 Proficiencies, and now the IAC is using the IAC Coaching Masteries™. Do I have to relearn everything? Solution: No, you don’t have to relearn everything. You can relax. Think of the IAC Coaching Masteries™ as being a big umbrella, under which most coaching models fit comfortably. The skills you learned with the 15 Proficiencies (or other coaching models) will serve you well in the IAC certification process. Not convinced? Consider for a moment the Mastery titles – such as Clarifying; Engaged Listening; Inviting Possibility. Doesn’t that sound like what most coaching schools teach? They may call the skills by different names, but the ideas remain the same. So my question for you: will 2009 be your year for adding IAC-CC after your name? I sure hope so!
Path to Mastery: How to be an Observer in a Coaching Triad Think the observer drew the short straw in a coaching triad? Think again. The observer role is the difference between a coaching session and a coaching triad. Observers can spend between 30 minutes and 5 hours with a session recording plugged into their ears, and with the IAC Coaching Masteries Ebook in front of them. They focus on how a good session can be transformed into a masterful session. Your time as an observer may be some of the richest learning that you experience on your path to mastery. The observer provides suggestions for how a coaching session might be improved based on the IAC's 9 Coaching Masteries ®. This may be done simply by listening to the coach and coachee (client) in a live session and commenting afterward, or, perhaps more profitably, by repeated listening to the session recording and providing written suggestions for improvement. Here is a suggested process:
When coaching quality is approaching excellence and extra effort is needed to fine tune it to meet Mastery level, the following approach can be used.
To discern truly masterful coaching, there is one more lens to look through – the lens of the coachee. Masterful coaching is deeply transformative; much more than 'technically correct.' Coaching becomes masterful when the coachee is moved to discovery and achievement that supersedes themselves. You can hear it in their voice, see it in their eyes and observe it in their sustained performance and accomplishment. While all 9 Masteries must be rich in evidence, the defining quality of masterful coaching is the profound change that elicits sustained transformation. Listen for it!
Ed Britton is a career and leadership coach who lives in Calgary, Canada. He also serves the IAC as the Director of Development and leads the Path to Mastery coaching triads program. Ed has a background in the physical sciences, in adult education and leadership development. After living in China for 10 years, Ed looks forward to a Canadian winter and cross country skiing! If you would like to participate in the Path to Mastery coaching triads program, please contact Ed at ed.britton@certifiedcoach.org.
How Coaches and Recruiters Can, Together, Protect Our Clients’ Investment Simply put, an executive search professional – or “headhunter” – is a hired gun whose job it is to find talented executives for firms outside of their organization. Companies pay well for these services (typically a third of the newly hired executive’s first year total cash compensation) and it therefore stands to reason that they want to protect their investment. However, keeping newly hired executives continues to be a challenge. Some 15 years ago, a study by the Center for Creative Leadership found that 40 percent of external hires failed in their new positions within 18 months. Today, data suggests that this number may be as high as a whopping 60-80 percent within 24 months. In fact, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, 2014 could outpace 2013 for executive turnover. A total of 1,246 chief executives departed American firms in 2013, according to Challenger, the highest number since 2008. Such a failure is expensive both in personal terms and also in direct costs. In addition, companies also pay for lost productivity of others, negative PR and the decreased productivity of the next hire during the time it takes to get him/her up to speed. Most companies these days are obsessed with managing risk but, ironically, the biggest risk may be losing our own executives. Companies are simply not doing enough to ensure the success of their newly hired executive and consequently failing to protect the company's investment. I could say that my job as a headhunter is done and close the file once my client hires the executive. But, in my opinion, that’s not how the executive search industry ought to operate. We are changing people’s lives and the relationship we build with the candidate during the hiring process obligates us to make sure that both the company and the newly hired executive are set up for success. We can’t just sell the job and hope that things work out. That’s why we’re huge advocates of coaching during the onboarding period to protect our clients’ investments. In our experience, placing hundreds of senior level executives in new roles, professional coaches can have a tremendous impact on a company’s ability to retain executives, particularly within the first 18 months. A study conducted last year by the Stanford Graduate School of Business and The Miles Group found that while nearly two-thirds of CEOs and half of all other senior executives do not receive coaching or leadership advice from outside consultants or coaches, 100% of those who received coaching said that they enjoyed it. It’s always easy to “talk the talk”, but more challenging to “walk the walk”. That’s why, to demonstrate to our clients and to the new recruit our belief in the importance of on-boarding, we provide a dedicated on-boarding coach for newly hired executives – at our expense – for the first 90 days. We believe that this kick starts a desire and commitment to continued success by the client, newly hired executive and the recruiter. It is our hope that the client will see the value and convert this 90 day assignment to a full 12 month engagement with the coach to maximize results. This type of program shortens “startup” times for new executives, increases learning and accelerates action while improving productivity. But most of all, it’s designed to make sure that our mutual client’s investment is protected.
J. James O’Malley is a Partner at talentRISE. Jim has over 25 years of experience in developing HR and talent acquisition solutions to ensure that leadership talent aligns with changing business needs. His past leadership roles include leadership roles with Fifth Third Bancorp and Huron Consulting Group. Contact him at jomalley@talentrise.com.
A big hello to my coaching peeps worldwide. Aren’t we just the most blessed people?! God brings us all such amazing clients that stretch and expand us as much as we encourage them to do the same. What an amazing job we have and what an opportunity to spread love and compassion! A little about me: I live in the Valley of the Sun: Phoenix, Arizona, USA where we get to romp and play under sunny skies while much of our country is blanketed in snow. I share my empty nest with my amazing hubby of 33 years, Scott, and our two 4-legged kiddos Bella (Boston Terrier who keeps us laughing) and Sophie (Las Apaso who is my independent little buddy). We are blessed with 3 loving sons, 1 daughter-in-love and one more new daughter-in-love coming in March, as well as another we hope will be adding to the family one day soon, who brings with her a bubbly bundle of 2 year old joy named Gracie. #SO BLESSED! Not only have Scott and I been married 33 years, but we have had the privilege of working together most of those years. We ministered to hurting people our first several years of marriage through the church Scott pastored. He then finished his master’s degree and became a counselor in 1994. When I started school at Coach University in 2001, I joined his practice and soon he was won over to the powerful practices of coaching. Though we successfully work together, our marriage has been anything but perfect and wasn’t always mutually fulfilling. Yet, we both were committed and knew God was using each of us to mirror back to one another rough edges He wanted to reshape. Through this process we developed a Marriage Model we use in our workshops and with our clients. We address the dynamic that is often present where one can feel under-empowered while the other partner appears over-empowered. Helping couples equalize, find balance, and put their Loving Creator at the center of their lives and relationship enables them to produce the fulfilling relationship they desire. Well, I’ve about used all my allotted 400 words so I better close. If you’d like to write and let me know how you work with your clients I’d love to meet you.
www.RenovateMyRelationship.com
Date: November 20th, 2014 The calls are open to all our wonderful VOICE subscribers as well as our faithful members. Terri Hase, MMC, current IAC Board Member and IAC supporter extraordinaire, will be hosting.
Congratulations to Teresa Genesin from Buenos Aires, Argentina who recently earned the Masteries Practitioner Designation!
Your Feedback We'd love to get your feedback on any issue related to the IAC. Do you have any questions, concerns, encouragement or ideas for improvement regarding membership benefits, certification, the VOICE, the direction of the organization or anything else at all? Please send an email to voice@certifiedcoach.org. Please help us improve. |
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