In 2009 Kauffman & Bachkirova posed the question “Does the coaches’ background make a difference..?” (p.3). This paper outlines research conducted to explore how coaches’ prior career experiences can affect their relationships with clients. Data from reflections of four experienced executive coaches, all with senior executive prior careers, and of a client of each of the coaches was examined using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The findings indicate that coaches’ backgrounds can make a difference with coaches feeling more confident and better able to question, probe and challenge and clients feeling better understood and greater confidence in their coaches and their coaching.
To improve the social participation of newcomer immigrants, social mentoring programs for newcomers have gained in popularity. This paper attempts to bring some clarity to the practice of social mentoring for newcomers by focusing on an important step in the mentoring process: matching. Through insights from practice, this research provides an overview of the most common matching criteria in social mentoring programs for newcomers. Criteria include, participants’ needs, goals, skills, expectations, interests, language, age and gender. The findings provide important insights for policy and practice and offer a solid starting point for further empirical research into matching migrant newcomers.
This study investigates the supervision of workplace coaches and factors that may influence its use. Drawing on the theory of planned behaviour and focusing on German-speaking countries, we conducted an online survey with open and closed questions to gather the experiences and perspectives of 121 coaching practitioners. Most coaches used supervision, though somewhat irregularly, in different forms and with different focuses, and less than what they thought ideal. A positive attitude impacted positively upon supervision use. Perceived time and cost involved, and prior experiences with supervision also appear to influence supervision use, while coaching association membership had no impact.
Inter-organizational mentoring (IOM) occurs whenever the mentor and mentee belong to different organisations. IOM has grown recently in the light of professional associations. This work proposes a model for implementing IOM programs based on a literature review on mentoring best practices and experts’ experience. The model, completed with a focus group with 20 experts in IOMPs, highlights differences to be considered in implementing IOMPs, compared to traditional mentoring programs. This paper fills the gap in implementing IOMPs and provides keys to mentors and program coordinators for their efficient implementation.
This pre-post exploratory feasibility study examined a 6-week, multifaceted, self-guided positive psychology intervention to support the well-being of health and wellness coaches during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 40% of 634 participants completed the post-intervention survey, using the interventions on 60% of possible days, a majority finding the intervention helpful or very helpful. Regressions demonstrated improvements post-intervention in anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction for participants whose initial scores were not optimal. The intervention appears well-received, feasible, and supportive of coach well-being. Future research might find this cost-effective, flexible, and convenient intervention useful in supporting well-being more broadly, including during future health crises.
This study aimed to explore how Muslims in the UK experience coaching using the Ershad framework. The data was derived from four semi-structured interviews that were conducted after a coaching intervention. The study adhered to interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) for data analysis. Four themes emerged from the data: “it aligned with our faith”; “I felt comfortable”; “an eye-opening experience”; and connected to deeper self. Findings highlighted that participants valued a culturally sensitive approach, grounded in the principles of effective coaching, and thus support the idea that culturally specific coaching approaches may be beneficial for certain groups of people.
Nurse leaders manage complex workplace demands. Coaching skills are a core leadership competency which can assist them in their roles. However, training alone may not always effect positive leadership change. This randomised trial sought to compare outcomes of leadership coaching training, with and without follow-up support, against waitlist control. Psychometric and professional achievement outcomes for 86 Australian nurse leaders were tracked for six months. Trial results provide empirical support for the hypothesis that leadership coaching training, paired with coaching follow-up, yields superior outcomes to a training only approach and, versus control, in terms of leadership and communication-related outcomes.
Emerging literature indicates the critical value of employee coachability for individual, coaching practice, and organisational effectiveness across contexts. To expand our understanding of coachability and maximize its application within organisations, we require a greater understanding of its antecedents. Thus, this paper explicates and examines trait, motivational, and behaviourally based individual differences underlying employees’ coachability. Findings from this investigation demonstrate feedback orientation, expressed humility, and the instrumental feedback motive significantly influence employees’ coachability. This research contributes to the growing body of coachability literature and provides a strong foundation for enhancing its identification and development in organisational settings.
The COVID-19 global pandemic accelerated inclusive education professional development programs to help teachers get up to speed with inclusive pedagogical practices. The purpose of this study is to explore mentors’ and mentees’ reflections about their experiences of participating in an inclusive education professional development program. The study was conducted using a qualitative approach within an interpretive paradigm and it was done as a case study of a professional development program in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Twenty-five mentees and five mentors were purposively selected to participate in semi-structured interviews and complete a questionnaire. It was found that the professional development program provided a milestone of achievement in terms of empowering both mentors and mentees to be able to implement inclusive pedagogical practices. It is concluded that inclusive education can be achieved by any teacher or faculty member if they are committed to dedicating time to read and learn about it.
Mentoring is recommended as particularly relevant to women entrepreneurs. This paper examines female entrepreneurs’ experience of mentoring and how it contributed to success. It identifies the elements of successful mentoring for women entrepreneurs and evaluates its contribution to entrepreneurial success. An interpretivist approach was adopted using a qualitative research design. In-depth interviews were conducted with 24 women entrepreneurs. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. Most participants expressed the view that mentoring was “vital”. The most significant form was found to be peer mentoring. The paper contributes to knowledge by adding peer and online mentoring to the menu of mentoring techniques.