4 What makes an effective coach developer?

Figure 7 Thinking about what makes an effective coach developer

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Figure 7 Thinking about what makes an effective coach developer

The International Coach Developer Framework, developed by the International Council for Coaching Excellence (ICCE), suggests coach developers are:

The most important person here is the participant – the person being coached. While coach developers should be mindful of meeting the needs of the coaches they support, this should also be framed by the needs of the participants. This three-way relationship is represented in Figure 8. Notice how the participant is at the top and centre. Improving the participant’s experience of being coached should therefore be the focal point in every relationship between a coach and coach developer.

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Figure 8 The three-way relationship between participant–coach–coach developer

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An image that has three figures representing a coach, coach developer and participant. Arrows connect all three to signify a close relationship between them. By each figure there is a text box. The words in these boxes are: Coach: Who is the coach coaching, what and how are they coaching. Does this meet the need of the participant? Coach Developer: What type of support can the coach developer provide which helps the coach improve the experience of the participant? Participant: What are the needs of the participant relative to the context they are being coached in?

Figure 8 The three-way relationship between participant–coach–coach developer

Now you understand the importance of this three-way relationship, and some of the key questions coach developers might ask themselves, you can turn to the question of what – from a coach’s point of view – makes an effective coach developer. More precisely, how do coaches describe the knowledge, skills and personal qualities of a coach developer which hone and improve their own knowledge and practice? In the next activity you’ll watch three experienced coaches share their ideas and thoughts about effective coach developers.

Activity 3 What makes an effective coach developer?

Timing: Allow about 20 minutes

Watch the video below. What skills, knowledge and personal qualities do the coaches say make someone an effective coach developer?

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Transcript: Video 4

COACH 1

An effective coach developer, I would say, would be someone that listens to me and helps me be myself as a coach, someone that helps me coach, what to coach and how to coach, and how to coach the person that I'm coaching, and someone who is empathetic.

COACH 2

So some of the most effective coach developers I've worked with manage to really stretch me and challenge me and give me a new thought process, an ability to reflect in a different manner. But at the same time, they've always understood the context and the environment I'm working in, and being really fair and honest, as well.

COACH 3

An effective coach developer is someone who gives up their time and you have an ongoing relationship with them. So someone who I can pick up the phone to, drop an email to them if I have a query or if they want to challenge my thinking. Because ultimately, that helps me improve my day-to-day work.

COACH 2

Fundamentally, I'm there as a coach to benefit my players and make sure my players grow and excel to their best capabilities. And without the assistance or the help and the development with a coach developer, I don't think I'd be in a position to make sure that they can grow as much as possible.

COACH 1

And it has to be someone that builds a relationship with you over time and someone that you feel can help you all the time and into the future.

COACH 2

Some of the most effective coach developers that I've worked with in my time, I've really felt that they've invested time in me personally and my development and my growth. And they've been, first and foremost, just really good teachers. And they've been able to create positive environments in which I can share knowledge and share information without fear.

End transcript: Video 4

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Discussion

The coaches featured in the video refer to a range of qualities they thought effective coach developers should possess. They thought effective coach developers should:

1. Show a willingness to help coaches learn and develop and invest time into this process.
2. Demonstrate empathy and listen to the coach and understand the context and environment they work in.
3. Stretch and challenge a coach’s thinking and their practice.
4. Create a positive learning environment where information and knowledge can be shared and discussed without fear.
5. Help a coach improve the experience of the participants they are coaching.

Effective coach developers have a positive and meaningful impact on a coach’s knowledge, decision-making and practice. Very effective coach developers are also highly skilled and possess considerable expertise which they apply consistently. Acquiring this expertise takes time and experience, alongside the ability to reflect on practice.

In whatever context and role you support coaches, it is important that reflection is built into your work. In the next section you’ll consider how expertise as a coach developer can be described and explained: knowing this gives you a clearer vision of what you might be aiming for in terms of making your own practice more effective.