01/ 28/ 2008
by Tamara E. Holmes
As a small-business owner, you have a bird's-eye view of your business, but sometimes there's value in getting an outside perspective on how to move your company to the next level. A business coach can not only help you identify key strategies to make your business grow, he or she can also hold you accountable for taking the necessary steps.
Business coaching is a relatively new field in which a professional helps you to identify key areas in your business that you'd like to grow or areas in which you'd like to make changes. A business coach then helps you come up with a step-by-step plan to do so, as well as a timeline for making it happen. Since you'll likely meet with the coach either in person or by phone at least once a month, you'll have to report on whether you're making progress and whether you're in fact adhering to your plan.
For all the handholding, there is an investment involved. According to a 2008 study by executive coaching firm Sherpa Coaching and the Tandy Center for Executive Leadership at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas, business coaches typically charge between $285 and $300 per hour. However, the best coaching relationships don't last forever, that same study found. More and more, coaches are suggesting limited engagements, with 59 percent saying that coaching designed to achieve a particular goal should take place in six months or less.
So how do you go about finding the right coach for you? Here are a number of tips to keep in mind.
Experience counts. Just because someone has some coaching experience under his belt does not mean it's the right experience for you. People use coaches for their personal and professional lives so make sure that the person you hire has worked with other business owners, particularly those with businesses at the same level of growth as your own. There are issues unique to entrepreneurs that you will want your coach to help you with.
Check for credentials. While your state likely does not require any special licenses or accreditation in order to be a coach, there are organizations that offer their own training and certification programs. Among them are the International Coach Federation and Coaching and Leadership International. Some business schools offer certification programs, as well, such as North Carolina State University's Business Coach Institute. Ask potential coaches whether they've taken part in a certification program, and then look up the program to see just how much training it took to get certified. You can also work backwards and find an accrediting organization that you trust and look for a coach that has completed that training.
Time matters. While a coach can't know for certain how long it will take you to achieve your desired results, he or she should be able to estimate how many sessions it will take before you see some changes. Ask prospective coaches how long they'd suggest you meet with them based on the goals you'd like to achieve. If they suggest that you'll need to meet with them indefinitely, keep looking. A good coach will have a timetable in place in order to track results. If you come up with additional goals at a later time, you can always extend your sessions then.
Trust your gut. In order for a coaching relationship to be successful, you're going to be sharing sensitive information about your goals and possibly your fears. For that reason, it's important that you feel comfortable with your selection's coaching style. Just as different business owners have different personalities, so too do coaches. By sitting down and talking with perspective coaches, you can get a sense of whether their style is likely to turn you off or to help you and your business soar.
Sherpa study: http://www.sherpacoaching.com/SherpaExecutiveCoachingSurvey2008.pdf
