Find a Coach

Use CoachConnect® to meet a certified coach who best matches your growth objectives.

Colleague maintains a cadre of over 70 International Coaching Federation (ICF)-certified coaches who place Federal employees at the center of their practice. To help you find the right coach, we created a ten-question matching tool.

Rooted in research

Finding the right coach is a delicate blend of art and science. Too often, however, the “art” of matching stands alone. We built CoachConnect® to bring more science into the mix — to embed academic, peer-reviewed research into the critical process of finding the right coach.

Curious to learn more? we invite you to survey a handful of studies and literature summaries here.

Built around trust, rapport and commitment

The result is a matching process that focuses on credibility, commonality and compatibility — the key inputs to a coaching relationship that’s grounded in trust, rapport and commitment.

 
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Factor Considerations
Coaching Experience • Has a coach delivered similar coaching services in the recent past? If a coachee is an aspiring SES candidate, for example, their ideal coach would have experience working with SESers.
Professional Qualifications • Is a coach professionally certified? Do they have an advanced degree in a field related to professional development?
Organizational knowledge (or lack thereof) • In some cases, a coaching relationship is strengthened if the coach has an “insider” perspective — that is, the coach has worked in the same organization as the coachee and may be familiar with some of the “political” changes. In other cases, an “outsider” perspective is more valuable.
Professional and/or personal commonality • Coaches who have navigated similar personal and professional challenges as their coachees may foster greater trust and rapport.
Toolkit • Experienced coaches should have a comprehensive "toolkit" - a range of techniques, tools and assessments that allow them to support a range of coaching relationships. Convsersely, a coach should be "technique-agnostic," meaning they are not tied to a single approach or solution.

 Step 1: Complete ten-question matching survey

It takes about three minutes to complete (we’ve timed it), and your responses will remain confidential.

If you feel a question is irrelevant or unimportant, submit the default response of ‘N/A.’ The questions are purposefully presented in no order of importance — focus on all questions equally.

 

Step 2: Review and rank your matches

In 24-48 hours, you’ll receive an email with your top three matches — their bios and percent match. Respond to the email with your rankings of the coaches.

 

Step 3: Meet your coach

We’ll send an introductory email to you and your coach — you’ll take it from there!