Over the years Coaching has evolved as a key enabling tool in the armoury of successful CEOs. CEO position in itself, is quite a lonely one in many respects. It’s natural that CEOs, therefore, are in the lookout for a sounding board, a thinking partner who is unbiased, and unvested, to reflect on their thoughts, ideas, dreams, and business plans. CEO Coaches over the years have bridged this gap quite successfully; a CEO Coach supports successful CEOs to become even more successful.

The question though is that, how to find the best CEO Coach, who is the right one for a given context?

Coaches come in different types, shapes, and forms. So, the first step is to see whether the Coach is focused on supporting CEOs and their businesses. A specialized CEO Coach is one who focuses only on coaching the CEOs, and is aware of the CEO’s context, their eco-systems, and their working environment. This ensures higher chances of success from such an engagement.

Second is to see whether the CEO Coach has the relevant experience in coaching the CEOs in the areas that we need support with. For example, SME CEOs looking for scaling-up their businesses, say 5 to 7 times, need to check whether the CEO Coach has the relevant experience of working with the CEOs of such high-growth businesses, and enabling such CEOs scale-up successfully.

Similarly, if one is looking at enhancing their Leadership Presence, and thereby their leadership impact, one needs to see whether the CEO Coach has the experience of working with CEOs, successfully enhancing their leadership impact.

Third is to see the reputation and standing of the CEO Coach in this competitive market. This may include years of experience, Coaching certifications from institutions such as International Coaching Federation (ICF), their commitment to the cause, their contributions in terms of thought leadership, and so on.

Engaging on a conversation with a few short-listed CEO Coaches would be a good idea, before choosing one of them. These short conversations would help understand whether they are the right match for your context, considering what you need to achieve as the outcome from such an engagement.

Engaging with the best CEO Coach helps CEOs gain clarity, become capable of choosing appropriate directions, actions, and accelerate their journey towards their desired outcomes.

About the Author :

PK Narayanan , CEO Coach, supports Entrepreneurs, Business Owners and CEOs Scale-up their Business, Enhance their Leadership Presence, and position their business for long-term success.

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