What is Mentor Coaching?
Mentor coaching is a relationship in which the mentor supports the coach to develop their coaching skills and competencies by reviewing and discussing together the coach's work. This is a process that operates over an extended period to enable the coach to incorporate and embed the learnings through practice. This is not a coach coaching another coach nor is it coach supervision.
I am an ICF registered Mentor Coach and have extensive experience mentoring coaches in training and employees working as internal coaches within their organisation.
I offer individual and group mentoring to coaches working towards ACC accreditation and to internal and external coaches seeking to develop their skills and competence and build their confidence.
Mentoring for Coach Accreditation with ICF
The International Coaching Federation (ICF) requires coaches who want to become credentialled, via the Portfolio path and the ACTP path, to complete 10 hours mentoring with a Mentor Coach.
According to the ICF, Mentor Coaching means: “a credential applicant being coached on their coaching skills rather than coaching on practice building, life balance, or other topics unrelated to the development of an applicant’s coaching skill.”
Mentor Coaching provides the opportunity for the credential applicant to share their coaching skills with an experienced Mentor Coach who can provide feedback regarding their use of the ICF Core Competencies. Mentor Coaching should take place over an extended time in a cycle that allows for listening and feedback from the Mentor Coach, and reflection and practice on the part of the individual being mentored.
What would a mentoring session be like?
At the outset we will contract for the relationship we want to create and how we operate within that relationship. We will review this each time we work together.
A typical mentoring session is based on reviewing a live coaching session observed by the mentor or a recording of one of your coaching sessions (both dependant on your client's consent). We would start with your personal observations of the coaching session; what competencies you used a lot and the impact these had, and what you did not do or did very little of, and the impact these had. I will share what I observed and we would then have an in depth discussion of the session, what competencies were being demonstrated and what your thinking was at various stages and how that was impacting your coaching and your client. You can ask whatever questions or voice any concerns that arise for you. We would typically conclude by reviewing your learnings and what you will focus on in your subsequent coaching sessions.
