what leadership coaching is (and isn’t)
Some days, it feels there’s a coach for everything. With unique experiences, strong opinions, and so many clients to be served, why wouldn’t there be?
Coaching is a broad and beautiful space—there’s so much opportunity to make a difference a difference. But from the client’s perspective, it can get confusing. With so many different types of coaching in the market, what exactly is leadership coaching? And why is it a smart investment for leaders and organizations?
Having spent years in the client and coach seat, I know these questions well. Let’s break it down.
Coaching Isn’t monolith
Coaching comes in many forms—life coaching, sports coaching, business coaching, and more. Within leadership coaching alone, you’ll find niches like:
Business coaching
Entrepreneur coaching
Manager coaching
Executive coaching
For organizations, the focus is often on manager coaching and executive coaching. Here’s how they differ.
Manager Coaching: A Resource for Growth
Manager coaching is designed to support frontline and middle managers in their development, often through 1:1 sessions that help them apply lessons learned on the job and in leadership programs. While manager coaching can be a one-off experience, it’s most impactful when integrated into larger initiatives or developmental pushes.
For organizations, manager coaching offers a unique balance: it’s designed to be both a perk that managers value and an investment in their effectiveness. This consistent, scaled resource helps managers lead with greater confidence, reinforcing their growth while also signaling that the organization values and cares for their development.
The high impact is undeniable. Managers who engage in coaching often report feeling more capable and empowered in their roles. This increased confidence translates into tangible benefits: stronger team leadership, higher levels of engagement, and greater loyalty to the organization. In fact, investing in manager coaching in support of broader leadership development yields an 88% ROI.
Executive Coaching: A Leadership Multiplier
On the surface, executive coaching might look similar to manager coaching—it’s also a 1:1 developmental experience. But dig a little deeper, and it becomes clear that executive coaching serves a distinct purpose. While manager coaching focuses on reinforcing and building on new learning, executive coaching is about helping executives learn and respond in real time. It helps them let go of what they think they already know and expand their capacity to tackle the complex, often “wicked” problems that arise across their teams and the broader business.
Executive coaching is a powerful business investment first and a perk second. Leaders exist in a world of constant ambiguity and complexity, where their role is to make sense of chaos, set direction, and create clarity for their teams. Yet, these executives often lack their own safe, focused space to reflect and do the critical work of sense-making and direction setting. Coaches step in to provide that space—so leaders can show up as the steady, visionary guides their organizations need.
The return on investment and impact of investment speaks for itself. Leaders who fully engage with an executive coach make faster, more resilient decisions. They leverage their team’s unique strengths more effectively, build cultures that prioritize generative and expansive customer-first solutions, and avoid the pitfalls of ego-driven leadership. In short, they exponentially expand their capacity to think and lead, transforming their impact on the organization.
Think of an executive coach as a leadership force multiplier. They don’t just support individual leaders—they enhance the capacity of the entire leadership bench, amplifying the organization’s ability to thrive.
Internal vs. External Coaches: Different Strengths
You’re onboard with the value of coaching, so what kind of coach is right for your needs? Both internal and external coaches can unlock a leader’s potential, but they do so in different ways.
Internal coaches bring a deep understanding of the organization. Over time, they develop the kind of contextual knowledge and savvy that helps leaders navigate unique internal dynamics. However, their proximity can sometimes work against them. Because they’re embedded within the system, leaders may undervalue their insights or view them as “too close” to the players or culture.
External coaches, on the other hand, offer a fresh perspective and extensive experience. They bring broad insight across industries, regions, and even cultural norms, giving them the ability to dislodge deep-set assumptions and biases. By offering the distance leaders need to see their own context more clearly, they help the proverbial fish become aware of the water they swim in. However, external coaches come at a cost and can be difficult to scale without the right external partner.
The perceived and real investment in external coaching shifts how leaders engage. Since professional executive coaches require approval and show up as a line item in the budget, leaders tend to approach the experience with a heightened sense of commitment and urgency, maximizing the value of the engagement
The Executive Coach as a Leadership Partner
Think of an executive coach not as a luxury or employee benefit, but as a high-impact leadership multiplier. They’re more than a retention lever—they enhance the speed, quality, and durability of your leadership’s impact.
When you view coaching as a non-negotiable investment, how does that change your approach? Could it help leaders deliver their full, unique value at scale?
Before We Go
I’d love to learn from your thoughts on what executive coaching means to you and how you set them up to multiply leadership impact.
Stay tuned for a deeper dive into the ROI of coaching—the data almost speaks for itself!
