What is the purpose of coaching?

What is the purpose of coaching? Can we define that for the world, or should each business define the goals of their coaching program and strategy? I think the later. A recent article titled “Coaching, does it add value” by Maurice Duffy seems to offer an opposite point of view.

Duffy believes that too often, coaching is implemented “to address specific personal development needs, and becomes a 'soft' patchy interaction that meanders for months, making the coach money and the individual happy” but producing no measurable benefit.

Perhaps your coaching program was put into place in order to address personal development needs; assuming these needs meet the needs of the organization. Perhaps it is put into place to improve “soft skills” such as interpersonal communication. While I believe Duffy takes too harsh of a viewpoint on coaching, it IS important to fully define the purpose of your coaching program before investing a dime.

Read Duffy’s full article at: http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2009/07/14/51419/coaching-does-it-add-value.html