Why Coaching Supervision is Important

Coaching Supervision plays a critical role in maintaining and evolving the quality and integrity of a coach’s work. Supervision also supports the overall profession of coaching, and is recognized by the top global professional coaching bodies—EMCC (European Mentoring & Coaching Council), ICF (International Coach Federation), and AC (Association for Coaching), as integral to the field.

Supervision is important primarily because it provides coaches with a structured approach to reflect on their client work with a qualified and accredited supervisor, who is also an experienced coach. Supervision allows coaches to take both an in-depth and broad-based view of their coaching practice through the lenses of Self, Client, and Client System. Its inherent value is in its three functions: 1. To further develop skills and competence; 2. To provide support for coach well-being and resilience; and 3. To strengthen self-awareness on professional standards and ethics, and consider systemic aspects and stakeholders.

Supervision is important for coaches so they can be their best coach selves for their clients, and in this way benefits their clients and the client’s organization. Supervision,

  • deepens insight and learning and develops the 5Cs—Competence, Confidence, Connection, Compassion, and Creativity; 
  • increases self-awareness to notice blind-spots, self-limiting mindsets, and biases; 
  • fosters a broader perspective and deeper understanding of their client and situation; 
  • cultivates the ability to focus attention and more closely connect, emotionally and intellectually, with the leaders and the systems in which they work; 
  • enhances the capacity for experimentation with alternative coaching approaches by leveraging intuition and imagination to develop collaborative solutions with clients; and
  • develops coaches’ trust in themselves and their capacity to be both courageous and vulnerable, especially in times of uncertainty.

 

A growing number of coaches are accessing supervision in support of their client work. They are bringing questions into supervision to reflect on such as,

  • 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘮 𝘐 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘨𝘰𝘢𝘭𝘴?
  • 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘢𝘮 𝘐 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴?
  • 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘢𝘹𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴?
  • 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵?

 

As a coach, what questions do you have that would benefit from the safe, reflective dialogue that is supervision?