You may be a brilliant negotiator, a financial whiz or a technical genius. But do you have what it takes to manage other high-level employees? If your communication skills have been a sore spot during your annual reviews, a leadership coach might be able to help.
Once a tiny industry, dominated by boutique firms, leadership coaches have moved into the mainstream. The trend is driven partly by demographic shifts. In North America and Europe, the executive-age population--i.e., Baby Boomers--is nearing retirement. Companies need to start focusing on developing internal leaders, rather than just recruiting from the outside.
"There is going to be a real premium for companies to try to retain talent," says Mark Marcon, an analyst with Robert. W. Baird. "And the talent out there to replace the people retiring is going to be scarcer and scarcer."
Leadership coaches aren't just for executives who are struggling to get the job done. Those overlooked middle-managers, in fact, might be prime candidates. Leadership coaches often work with managers who have been highly successful, but see barriers preventing them from reaching the C-suite. Some are technical whizzes who don't have the interpersonal skills to manage a large staff.
In other cases, coaches are called in when there has been turnover on an executive team, and the senior officers need to get to know each other. Leadership coaches can help a new CEO adjust to his or her position, or aid a board trying to develop a succession plan.
Results of the first-ever global survey of coaches demonstrate how the young profession of coaching has gained a strong foothold in the marketplace and now contributes more than $1.5 billion (USD) to the global economy.
The International Coach Federation (ICF) commissioned independent research firm PricewaterhouseCoopers to conduct this groundbreaking study of coaches worldwide in order to evaluate the magnitude of the coaching profession.
From September to December 2006, nearly 6,000 coaches (both ICF members and non-members) in 74 countries were surveyed on their coaching practice and client demographic information, as well as revenue details.
The highlights of the survey findings include:
· The approximate annual worldwide revenue produced by coaching is $1.5 billion (USD).
· Coaches earn an average of $50,510 (USD) per year.
· 69% percent of coaches are female.
· The average coach is 46-55 years old, has coached for 5-10 years, and 53 percent of coaches have acquired an advanced level of education (i.e., Master's Degree or Ph.D).
· The majority of coaches maintain 11 active clients at any given time.
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Coaching clients tend to be 56 percent female/44 percent male, and between 38 and 45 years of age.
Sources: International Coach Federation, February 5, 2007 press release and www.Forbes.com, January 12, 2007