Chapter 9: The Coach 229The Coach
This chapter provides detailed information regarding who coaches
and coaching modalities and boundaries.
Internal vs. External Coach
Organizations implementing a considerable amount of coaching
may find it cost-effective to dedicate internal staff to the role of
coach and to use external coaches in only specific situations.
Apart from considering cost and resource issues, there are some
specific situations where either internal or external coaches may be
preferable. Hall, Otazo, and Hollenbeck (1999) suggest the use of
internal coaches when a quick intervention is needed and detailed
knowledge of the corporate culture is critical. In contrast, external
coaches may be more appropriate when highly sensitive or
confidential issues must be addressed or when a coach with
extensive and diverse experience is needed.
External coaches are preferable when
providing sensitive feedback to senior agency leaders (for
political reasons, this can be difficult for an internal coach);
specialized expertise from a wide variety of organizational and
programmatic experiences is necessary;