How to Choose the Right Team Coach

As team coaching becomes an increasingly popular intervention, it’s crucial to do your due diligence when selecting the right coach for your team and organisation. Doing so will help ensure your investment will yield positive outcomes for you and your team.

To support your search, we’ve put together this handy guide with key considerations to demystify how to choose the right team coach, step by step.

Consideration #1 Coaching Experience

When it comes to coaching a team, experience matters! To get an in-depth look at a prospective coach’s experience, consider asking the following:

  • How long have they been coaching? What kind of organisations have they worked with? At what level?
  • How experienced are they in team coaching versus individual/executive coaching or group coaching?
  • What approaches do they use with teams? Are they more focused on team facilitation, team development, consulting or pure team coaching?

To dive deeper into your prospective coach’s experience, we recommend you:

  • Request a detailed Team Coaching Profile – specifically outlining their team coaching interventions, their coaching philosophy and stance.
  • Ask for a case study or reference – particularly in relation to other teams they have worked with. This will give you a sense of how they work and partner with their clients, so you can assess whether their approach would be a good fit for your team and organisation. You may find case studies readily available on their website, so this is a great place to start.

Consideration #2 Training & Credentials

Anyone can call themselves a coach or a team coach. So, it’s essential you confirm that your new team coach has the professional accreditations that ensure they are who they say they are and have the necessary training and credentials to have a positive impact on your team. Consider asking the following:

  • How have they trained as a coach?

Excellent team coaches will have trained in several methodologies, principles and approaches. They will be able to work emergently and effortlessly with a range of tools and modalities, which they tailor to each team and its unique needs.

They will also be committed to continuing their professional development – so pay close attention to recent training and CPD (continuing professional development) they have completed.

  • What additional training have they done specifically in team coaching?

Both the Association for Coaching (AC) and the International Coach Federation (ICF) outline specific competencies for team coaches. Selecting a coach that has trained specifically in team coaching as well as individual coaching is essential.

  • What accreditations do they hold as a coach?

Professional coaches should be accredited with one of the professional coaching bodies, including:

  • The Association for Coaching (AC)
  • The International Coach Federation (ICF)
  • The European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC)

Professional accreditations ensure they have met stringent educational and CPD requirements, can demonstrate professional coaching competencies and adhere to strict ethical guidelines.

Their level of accreditation can also give you an idea of their experience by indicating the number of coaching hours they have completed.

Team coach accreditation is still in its infancy; the International Coach Federation (ICF) have recently launched theirs and the Association for Coaching (AC) is about to do the same – but this is also something worth asking about.

  • Do they hold membership to a professional coaching body?

You will likely find these on their website, coaching profile, email footer, or LinkedIn profile. Key memberships to look out for include:

  • The Association for Coaching (AC)
  • The International Coach Federation (ICF)
  • The European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC)

Consideration #3 Supervision

  • Are they participating in regular supervision?

It’s essential that a coach working with your team is engaged in supervision.

This reflective practice allows coaches to unfold the complex dynamics and patterns that emerge when working with teams; it also helps ensure they uphold ethical and coaching guidelines and have the confidence and creativity to ensure your team – their client – receives the best possible service.

Consideration #4 Co-Coaching

  • Do they offer co-coaching? And would this approach suit your team?

Co-coaching is a collaborative coaching method in which individuals work together to coach each other. Led by a professional coach, in a team coaching scenario each member alternates between the roles of coach and coachee, providing mutual support, feedback, and guidance that allows all participants to share valuable insights and experiences and support their peers.

The International Coach Federation stipulates that interventions for teams of more than 15 should be delivered by co-coaching. From our experience at MU Team Brilliance, we have found co-coaching to be invaluable with teams of more than seven, so we work to this ratio.

Consideration #5 Relationship

At its core, coaching of any kind whether for an individual, a group or a team, is relational. It is essential that you and your team can find a connection with your team coach(es), which we recommend you establish in a couple of ways:

  1. Let the team interview or chat with the coach, and/or
  2. Invite multiple coaches to pitch

Before meeting the coach either on a call or via a pitch, it’s crucial you align with your team on what is important with regards to the relationship with the team coach and ask question to uncover information needed for your team to feel confident in the partnership.

Here are some questions you may like to ask your prospective coach(es):

  • Can you describe your approach to team coaching?
  • Can you describe a team intervention you are particularly proud of and why?
  • What is the most interesting CPD you have completed in the past 12 months and how have you integrated it into your practice?
  • How might we experience working with you?
  • What is an ethical dilemma you have faced with a team and how did you handle it?
  • Can you give an example of an issue you have taken to coaching supervision over the last 12 months? What did you learn and how have you integrated the learning into your practice?
  • What is your understanding of our business and culture?
  • What is motivating you to work with our team?

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