Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey: 2011

Power to the People

The Path to Personal Development

People are getting more attention. Training budgets are rising. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen such aggressive spending plans.

What will be done with this flood of funds? It’s not going back to the same old places. Behind the scenes, there’s a revolution going on. Business as usual is not enough. People want more from their jobs, and they are going to get it.

Case in point: a Fortune 500 firm. The top fifteen executives are asked what they really want. They don’t want more money. They are not concerned about work-life balance. What they want is more personal development.

Power to the people.

Case in point: Fortune 100. Highly paid technicians and engineers are ‘topped out’, without any real career path. Training executives bring in workshops on self-discovery and communication. Self-awareness is good for the soul, and it’s good for business, too.

Power to the people.

Case in point: Fortune top 20. A new President comes to HR and says: “I’ve been here two weeks, and I already know we have a problem. All these people, and no new training for five years. Tell me what you want. I will find the money.”

Power to the people.

With this backdrop, we present our annual report on executive coaching. The Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey offers insight into leadership development, based on information from coaches and those who hire them. Now in its sixth consecutive year, The Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey is co-sponsored by executive education departments at the University of Georgia, Texas Christian University and Miami University.

Personal development is intriguing, because it is more than training. Training means: “I get knowledge.’ Self-improvement means “I get better.” Personal development means more. It’s about relationships, communication and business behavior. Personal development carries with it a price, an obligation to help others develop, too.

One-on-one coaching is the most personal kind of personal development. Based on the longest running research in the field, this report will tell you where personal development has been . . . and where it is going.