NEW ISSUE OF COMPASS TO BE PUBLISHED

The next issue of Compass: A Magazine for Peer Assistance, Mentorship and Coaching will be printed and distributed to all members of the Peer Resources Network in June. Several articles will focus on coaching, including (1) the results of a study on the impact of executive coaching with a Fortune 500 company; (2) the physiology of coaching and what happens in the body that makes coaching so successful; (3) how coaches help with difficult conversations; and (4) the anatomy of peer coaching and how it is used in the workplace.

To become a member of the Peer Resources Network and receive a free subscription to Compass as well as other benefits, go to http://www.peer.ca/PRN.html. The fee for a print copy for non-members is $15.00. An online version will be added to the other back issues available in July, 2004.

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You don't actually have to be intelligent if you can just create the impression. This can usually be accomplished by a reference to Kafka. Even if you have never read any of his - or her - works.

~ Bob Newhart ~

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BEST YEAR YET NOW AVAILABLE TO COACHES

Dory Willer, 2003 International Coach of the Year and Certified Individual & Organizational Coach
at Beacon Quest Coaching, has been conducting group workshops and business team consulting using the process developed by Best Year Yet (BYY). While the intellectual property of this approach used to be available only for group work, it is now being made available to private/individual coaches to add to their portfolio of tools for one-on-one work. The tremendous growth of business for the training franchises in the UK, Europe and the US is now requiring sub-contracting with coaches to handle the one-on-one year long coaching programs.

Licensing is now available for individual client coaching. Dory describes BYY as "a simple, yet powerful process for clients that creates a yearlong commitment involving creation of a personal strategic plan, tracking progress through an innovative web-based application, and one-on-one coaching sessions."

Dory invites interested coaches to join best selling author and creator of BTT Jinny Ditzler, a 25-year coaching veteran and the first woman executive coach, for an introductory teleclass explaining the benefits and features of becoming a BYY Licensed Coach. The course will take place June 30, 2004 at 12:00 noon ET. The telephone bridge number is: (503) 767-1200. The participants PIN number is: 13616.

For more information contact Dory Willer at (925) 473-4899 or by email at Dory@beaconquest.com.

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A man always has two reasons for the things he does - a good reason and the real one.

~ J.P. Morgan (1837-1913) ~

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ATTEND ANY OF FOUR TOP LEVEL COACHING CONFERENCES

Several coaching conferences are scheduled over the next few months. A selection of those conferences from the Peer Resources website include:

Association for Coaching Annual Conference
October 22, 2004
SAS Radisson Hotel, London, England
Request for Workshop Presenters Issued
seminar@associationforcoaching.com

International Coach Federation Annual Conference
November 4-7, 2004
Hilton Quebec (Conference Centre) Quebec City (Canada)
Request for Proposals Issued
Tel: (888) 423-3131 or (202) 712-9039; Fax: (888) 329-2423 or (202) 216-9646
www.coachfederation.org

11th European Mentoring and Coaching Conference
November 17-19, 2004
Hotel Bedford, Brussels, Belgium
Call for Papers:
David Megginsonm, Professor of HRD
Sheffield Hallam University
Sheffield S1 1WB, United Kingdom
+44 114 225 5210
d.f.megginson@shu.ac.uk

Worldwide Association of Business Coaches Conference
February 1-4, 2005
San Diego, California
Call for Proposals to Members of WABC:
Attn: Lorenda Franklen
membersupport@wabccoaches.com
Updates on conference information for all:
www.wabccoaches.com

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Never lend books, for no one ever returns them. The only books I have in my library are books that other folks have leant me.

~ Anatole France (1844-1924) ~

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FOUR NEW BOOKS AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW

Four new books have been added to the pool of books that will be sent to Peer Resources Network members at no charge in exchange for a review. The new additions include:
(1) The Mindful Coach: Seven Roles for Helping People Grow by Douglas K. Silsbee;
(2) The Mentoring Organization by Gordon F. Shea;
(3) The Hidden Power of Social Networks: Understanding How Work Really Gets Done in Organizations by Rob Cross and Andrew Parker; and
(4) Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking about Broken Promises, Violated Expectations, and Bad Behavior by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler.

To learn about the book review guidelines, go to: www.peer.ca/bookreviews.html. In some cases the selling price of each book more than offsets the fee to become a member of the Peer Resources Network. Adding in the other benefits of membership, this opportunity to receive a free book in exchange for a publishable review is highly worthwhile.

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Reality leaves a lot to the imagination.

John Lennon (1940-1980) ~

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THREE STUDIES TO GUIDE PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

Peer Resources continually scans the professional and popular literature for articles, books, videos and other useful reference materials. They provide a brief synopsis of the work as well as citation details and summaries in a searchable format on their site at www.peer.ca/SearchB.html. Here are some recent additions:

Turner, C.E. (2003). Executive coaching as a leadership development strategy. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Toronto, Canada.
Grounded theory, an inductive qualitative research methodology was used to generate a theory of executive coaching that emerged from the reported experiences of nine executive coaches and nine executive coach clients were the participants. Executive coaching is described as a learning-centered, work-based development paradigm. A six-phase coaching model was developed to identify key stages in the coaching process, and interview questions examined gaps brought out by the literature review. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at specific points in the coaching process in order to explore participants' experiences of executive coaching and to identify its benefits, limitations, and factors that contribute to its success. The main concern of the participants was woven into a grounded theory of executive coaching. This theory states that executive coaching is a confidential partnership between a skilled coach and a willing client that is based on motivation, trust, action, and reflection, and which works through the medium of dialogue and continuous feedback. Results showed that executive coaching sets in motion a chain of learning with a broad sphere of influence. Its direct beneficiaries are the executive and the organization; but its benefits filter beyond the local arena to include the executive's personal life and the organization's employees. Interpersonal concerns such as leadership, authenticity and self-awareness are typical coaching goals, and the effectiveness of executive coaching in achieving these goals is best measured qualitatively.

Laske, O. (2003). A developmental perspective on the ICF Core Competencies: Briefing for the ICF Board. Paper presented at the International Coach Federation Coaching Research Symposium, Denver, Colorado.
The briefing explains, by way of examples, what it means for the ICF to review their core competencies from a research point of view. The briefing also names some of the consequences of that view for training and certification, coaching practice, and coaching research. The author believes that if the ICF doesn't attend to adult development over the life span and its direct relevance to coaching, especially coach training, the ICF will have a troubled future. Download this this Word file. (Membership in the Peer Resources Network required.)

Pratt, L. (May 10, 2004). Ring up more sales with a telecoach: Sales managers lack the time to motivate staff. Financial Post, FE5.
Week-long retreats are a thing of the past for the modern sales force. Telecoaching with its low cost, coach-from-anywhere, just-when-needed focus has become an essential tool allowing managers more time for management tasks. And some people believe that telecoaching can be more effective than in-person coaching (a greater sense of confidentiality, more likelihood of a coach challenging a client when non-verbal cues are less apparent, more opportunity for brief follow-up on action goals, and increased opportunities for recognition of a job well done). One company mentioned in the article showed a 21 percent increase over a one-year period as a result of telecoaching and another group had a 22 percent increase in sales after eight-months.

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No one becomes a champion without help.

~ Johnny Miller ~

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OPPORTUNITY FOR SMALL BUSINESS COACHES

According to a recent report released by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) more than 100,000 small businesses will be started in Canada in the next five years. The bank's analysis is based on two factors: an aging and more educated population (55 and over) coupled with advances in technology, particularly the Internet, where Canada can boast the largest per capita number of Internet connected homes in the world.

Science and health-related businesses followed by financial and sales services have been the most popular form of small-business start-up. New businesses in British Columbia alone have nearly doubled that national average between 2002 and 2004 (Source: Start Me Up: A Look at New Entrepreneurs in Canada)

Unfortunately, data from the Superintendent of Bankruptcies for Canada indicate that there is a one-in-three chance that a start-up business will survive beyond its fifth year; and, in fact, only about three in four new enterprises survive for more than a year.

The combination of a high failure rate and at the same time a strong desire to start a business might mean an almost insurmountable gap between current reality and desired outcome. Coaches are exceptionally positioned to assist small business owners with exactly that gap and help them create a thriving business to make their dreams come true.

Paradoxically small business owners in their start-up phase may believe that their desire and determination may be all that is needed to make a success of their enterprise. In addition they may not understand the role of a coach or they may believe that money spent on coaching will detract from the capital they need to assist their business planning.

Here is an opportunity for coaches to offer attractive service packages, from pro bono coaching to fees based on results obtained over time. Starting a business can be an exciting, yet lonely and frightening activity. Given that many new businesses are being created by an older generation who may have worked for a salary and in groups, and coupled with the fact that they are likely to have family responsibilities, coaches are well positioned to help solo business leaders find balance, establish realistic expectations, and gain the support they need to achieve their dreams.

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The Coaching News is a free copyrighted publication of Peer Resources, 1052 Davie Street, Victoria, British Columbia V8S 4E3 Canada. All articles are written by Rey Carr unless otherwise indicated. Back issues are available online at www.mentors.ca/thecoachingnews.html. To subscribe or unsubscribe send an email to info@peer.ca.