Executive Coaching: Should Australian Coaches Be Accredited?

This article explores the question of wether theand not a regulatory requirement.
executive coaching industry in Australia shouldSo will regulation be compulsory and is it
require coaches to be accredited? Let’s facenecessary for the industry to try and set a
it the number one sports people, world renownedstandard for executive coaching through
leaders and politicians all have highly credibleaccreditation programs?
coaches. Are executive coaches exempt fromIf indeed it does, it would beg the question
showing their credibility through accreditation orwether a Welch, a Branson, a Murdoch or a Lowy
qualification?would require accreditation or qualification to
This debate has been buzzing around thejustify their existence as an executive coaching
Australian corporate coaching world over theprofessional?
recent past and is becoming increasingly relevantFurthermore, as with the psychologists and social
now that the impact of executive coaching isworkers would it be advisable that the practitioner
being felt.have some support and opportunity to debrief
More and more organisations are adoptingtheir challenging scenarios with those who have
executive coaching programs with their seniorsuccessfully walked down similar paths before
management and leadership teams and theirthem?
experiences have overall seemed to prove quiteAll these questions are relevant and their answers
positive.are not that straight forward.
With the interest in executive coaching on the riseForm the way the executive coaching industry is
more and more executive coaching professionalsheading in Australia I wouldn’t be surprised if
are entering the market to take advantage ofsome sort of accreditation or experiential success
this fairly lucrative industry.would become a requirement before any
But who are those that are claiming that theyexecutive coaching program was to be accepted
indeed can coach at senior leadership levels andand implemented.
promise to transform organisations into profitableThis will become especially relevant when more
enterprises with a satisfied and happy workforce?and more executive coaching professionals enter
Is the attraction of a helping hand, shared burdensthe market. Not only will it serve to ensure high
and a promise of future success sufficient tostandards of coaching excellence but will also
entice Australian business to dig deep and invest inweed out those who simply don’t cut the
executive coaching no matter the qualification ormustard.
experiential successes of the coach?As far as support for executive coaching
While admittedly there are many worthy andprofessionals in concerned unfortunately I cannot
experienced executive coaching professionalssee any immediate movement to make this
there is no regulation as yet as to executivecompulsory.
coaching accreditation.If executive coaches preach the value of
There are coaching organisations as well ascoaching surely it should apply to them as well?
academic programs to cater for those executiveAfter all can we ever be objective about
coaching professionals that choose accreditationourselves?
and qualification but it is solely at their own peril