Use of Executive Coaching Might Have Peaked
<p><strong>Boston — June 19</strong><br />Coaching of corporate employees might have passed its peak in popularity, according to a survey of 2,000 human resource executives by Novations Group, a global consulting and training firm based in Boston. </p><p>One-third of the organizations that provide executive coaching report they rely less on it than in the past. <br /><br />Respondents were asked, "Which of the following best describes your organization’s use of coaching?"<br /><br />Their answers are as follows:</p><ul><li>We increasingly rely on coaching: <strong>19 percent</strong><br /></li><li>We rely on coaching at about the same rate as in the past: <strong>48 percent</strong><br /></li><li>We rely less on coaching: <strong>33 percent</strong></li></ul><p>“According to the findings, markedly fewer companies are expanding their use of coaching than are curtailing it,” said Novations Executive Consultant Michelle Knox. “These are the first data we’ve seen that suggest that use of coaching may be slowing.”<br /><br />Executive or employee coaching increased dramatically over the past decade or more, Knox said. </p><p>“So, it’s understandable that such enormous growth would slow somewhat, but now it appears there may even be a slight downturn," she said. "No doubt this is due to senior management pressure for greater accountability and cost containment.”<br /><br />But there will be a cost if less coaching is available at the middle and senior levels, Knox said. </p><p>“Most of those leaders who in recent years were able to make a successful transition to the next level benefited from coaching,” she said.<br /><br />About half of major organizations never embraced the coaching boom, Knox said.<br /><br />The Novations Group Internet survey of 2,046 senior human resources and training and development executives was conducted by Equation Research.</p>
