Profession & Regulation
Coaching is not licensed. It’s not unionized. There are no universal standards for practice, nor specific requirements that qualify one to use the term “executive coach”.
A business leader in the Southwestern US says: “Coaching has enjoyed an excellent reputation for years, but as more people claim to be coaches, who have little or no background or ability in it, horror stories are starting to mount. I think we are headed toward voluntary or enforced regulation.”
To be declared a profession, a line of work needs certain characteristics. Is coaching a profession? By the most basic definition, perhaps. According to BusinessDictionary.com, a profession is “an occupation, practice, or vocation requiring mastery of a complex set of knowledge and skills through formal education and/or practical experience.”
Coaching can be called a profession, but it is not an organized profession. There is no single governing professional body, no union nor any licensing requirements. According to a Wikipedia entry, “Professions usually have professional bodies organized by their members, which are intended to enhance the status of their members and have carefully controlled entrance requirements.” No such universal group exists for executive coaching.
Will coaching become an organized profession? There are precedents. Certified Financial Planners once had very poor public recognition. In a couple of decades, they built national standards and licensing processes. Paramedics have gone through the same transformation in the last three decades. Time will tell us whether executive coaching finds unity as an organized profession.
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