My recent ICF travels to Japan and South Korea

On October 7, ICF President Ed Modell, PCC, presented “what is coaching and the benefits of being an ICF member” at the American Chamber of Commerce Japan in Tokyo. His presentation included live coaching demonstrations and targeted human resource directors from large multi-national corporations and coaches in attendance.

On Saturday, the ICF Tokyo Chapter hosted a Global Coaching Forum in which Ed presented the value of ICF membership and the credential, ICF standards, the Global Coaching Study and Minimum Eligibility Requirements. Dr. Linda Semlitz addressed the psychological first aid in disaster recovery. The presentation included how coaches could provide appropriate support to people facing difficulties after the recent earthquake, tsunami and radiation.

A total of 70 coaches and personnel from coaching schools and human resource managers were in attendance. The forum ended with a party that went on through the evening celebrating coaching in Japan.

Finally, there was a meeting held that included myself and Ed, as well as key stakeholders from the coaching profession in Japan, including the ICF Tokyo Chapter, six coaching schools, a special interest group (SIG), and other groups. The conversation was around changes to the ICF Credential, membership eligibility requirements and other concerns affecting coaching.

Leaving Japan, we travelled to South Korea. The ICF Seoul Korea Chapter partnered with ICF Korea to host a one day coaching conference. Over 100 coaches, coaching school personnel, human resource managers and others attended a day coach learning. Ed Modell presented on “the value of ICF and the credential.”

Ed also did two coaching demonstrations to show the power of coaching. In addition, a panel of six PCC coaches told the audience why coaching was important in their lives and profession. Ed was also able to tell his life story about how he became a coach and his own personal transformation into coaching.

The coaching conference was a huge success. Members in both Japan and Korea were grateful that we came to visit them and honor them as members of the ICF global community of coaches.

Don Whittle is the ICF Director of Membership at ICF Global. He can be reached at don.whittle@coachfederation.org.  

ICF Strategic Plan: 101

The ICF is constantly working to advance the coaching profession by setting high standards, providing independent certification and building a worldwide network of credentialed coaches. But do you really understand the reasoning behind everything the ICF does?

Most associations work according to a strong strategic plan. Without one, it would be very easy to get wrapped up in work that may or may not have anything to do with the goals the association hopes to achieve. In fact, they may not even know what their goals are or how to get to where they want to be.

By having a strong strategic plan in place, the ICF remains focused and prepared to work toward the goals members have identified as important. Rather than pursuing a lot of good work, the ICF Board is making sure the association is clear on what activities will produce the best value for members.

The ICF Strategic Plan is set up as a living document [meaning that it will constantly be reviewed and measured against] that assists in the guiding efforts of association staff and volunteers. In other words, it is the ICF’s road map. It keeps us on the path we want to be on as an association, ensuring that we reach the goals we have identified as important.

Our long-term strategic plan was first prepared in 2006 and faced its first five-year evaluation last month at the ICF global Board of Director’s meeting. During this meeting, an updated strategic plan was approved.

The approved strategic plan includes:

Vision statement: In service of humanity flourishing, we choose to…

Core purpose: Lead global advancement of the coaching profession

Key strategies:

• Create attractive credible presence and voice for professional coaching; and
• Create global strategic alliances.

Three initiatives (or areas of focus for the next 18 months):

• Construct global standards system;
• Build high performance organization; and
• Become preferred resource for business community.

These strategies and focus areas will be supported and accomplished through various efforts and projects. To see a complete outline of the updated ICF Strategic Plan, please visit Coachfederation.org.

ICF Definition of a Mentor Coach

Greetings Colleagues,

In the April edition of Coaching World, ICF announced the approval of an improved ICF definition of Mentor Coach. As we continue on our journey toward improving the ICF Credential Program it is important that I provide the full context for this board decision.

Based upon the Credentialing and Program Accreditation Committee (CPAC) research, the following points are important and were considered in developing this policy change:

• Engaging with a qualified mentor coach for the purpose of core coaching competency, skill and behavior development is recognized globally as an effective professional development activity;
• The absence of a definition for "qualified" mentor coach has created inconsistency in the experience of being mentored everywhere in the world;
• The brevity of the current definition does not provide guidance for a person to select a suitable mentor coach for professional development and/ or preparation for a credential exam;
• That an ICF Credential is evidence of being a "qualified" mentor is valuable, it is not sufficient;
• Outside of North America, no credential is required to be a "qualified" mentor coach;
• Membership growth is higher outside of North America, e.g. during the first two quarters of 2011 the ratio is 39 percent North American to 61 percent in all other countries; and
• The creation of specific competencies (skills and behaviors) of a qualified mentor coach is recommended along with a training requirement and an assessment process to demonstrate qualification.

CPAC recommended a three-phase approach. The global ICF Board of Directors endorsed and approved Phase I for immediate implementation in order to:

• Improve access to higher quality mentor coaching outside of North America;
• Create a clear, simple policy that is easy to understand everywhere in the world;
• Provide guidance for an individual to select a qualified mentor coach that supports their professional development based upon their known needs and learning preferences; and
• Establish a basis from which to develop Phases 2 and 3 without perpetuating known inconsistencies around the globe.

The announcement in the April edition of Coaching World introduced the rationale for Phase I and can be viewed at http://www.coachfederation.org/includes/docs/April-2011.pdf. The policy change provides guidance for selecting a suitable mentor coach based upon experience and skills. The criteria were developed through dialogue with our large community of ICF Assessors and Faculty in ICF recognized training programs that currently provide mentor coach services. A waiting period is being established to respect individuals who are in the process of working with a mentor coach to complete a credential application process.

The committee is now working on Phase 2, to develop mentor coach competencies and will then proceed to Phase 3, to develop training and assessment processes and provide a globally consistent policy.

ICF is in the process of having the improved ICF definition of Mentor Coach policy translated into Spanish, French, German and Portuguese, which will be posted on Coachfederation.org as soon as it is available. In June, ICF will begin distributing a quarterly Credentialing Newsletter to provide continual updates on the work and accomplishments of the various CPAC Workgroups.

Sincerely,
Janet M. Harvey, MCC
Global ICF President-Elect

From Tragedy to Transformation

The date, September 11, 2001, after a successful career on Wall Street spanning over 25 years, I had just arranged the sale of the venture capital firm I was the CEO of, and watched the horror unfolding out my apt window facing the World Trade Center. My office was across the street overlooking the fountains. It was a beautifully sunny day. I had decided to stay home. I was in shock. I lost friends and colleagues and was in a deeply emotional state for several months.

I contemplated my future. What was in store for me I wondered. I looked back at my career/life and realized that what I enjoyed most was helping people to achieve their personally relevant goals. I had been a mentor, advisor, coach and didn’t even realize it at the time.

I decided to try my hand at being an independent business consultant. That lasted two years but wasn’t truly fulfilling for me. I would advise a company as to what to do, get paid and leave. One day I was introduced to a woman who was becoming a coach. I had no clue what she did but when she explained the process I was so intrigued that I asked her to coach me for a few sessions. At first I was skeptical. I am not one to open up easily but the process amazed me. So much so that I researched for an ICF certified coach program in the area, chose IPEC and enrolled.

Upon graduation I wondered how to best move forward in this new career. I had heard about the ICF and found the local chapter in NYC. I got the nerve up to attend a monthly meeting and was happily surprised how welcoming everyone there was. There were new coaches, coach wannabes and seasoned coaches attending. I networked, made friends, partnered with other coaches, and after several months was asked by the outgoing President to run for the Board.

My experiences as an active member of ICF-NYC are unforgettable. Over the next few years we focused on giving value to our members. We brought in informative speakers on topics members told us they were interested in. We offered workshops focused on how to grow your coach practice and improve core competencies. We organized groups of coaches to go out into the community and help those that weren’t able to afford our services. From helping college students, to career fairs, to local community groups we got members involved. I was elected chapter President in 2007. We won three global awards over those years. I hosted several webinars sponsored by ICF Global on our chapter best practices, wrote articles for Coach World, volunteered my time as part of the global chapter leader mentor program, spoke at three ICF annual conferences and now host Coach Chat Radio.

This past year, as Past President of the NYC chapter I have focused on mentoring those on the Board who will continue the legacy of our chapter achievements. This being my last year on the local Board, and with a lot of encouragement, I decided to run for a global board seat, was nominated and won the election.

As a new Board member I plan to offer my years of experience in business as a former CFO, COO and CEO, as well as a former chapter leader of one of the most successful chapters in the ICF to help our global organization advance the profession of coaching throughout the world.

For those who have sitting on the sidelines up until now, what can you do to contribute your passion and skills to expand the profession we care so much for?

Bernie Siegel, PCC, incoming 2011 Board of Directors member