Purpose
The
purpose of the Research Page is to serve as a resource to
executive coaches, executives, HR and OD Professionals, researchers
and others involved with Executive Coaching who are interested
in promoting, conducting and accessing research on executive
coaching. A great deal of practice wisdom is available in
books published by executive coaches and in articles in a
variety of industry and trade magazines. Relatively few reports
of empirical research are available, however. Fortunately,
there is a growing interest among practitioners and scholars
in the study of executive coaching. This site will provide
those interested in executive coaching with an opportunity
to announce their research and solicit help, access descriptions
of research related publications, and post their research
related questions, ideas or other announcements.
James
Hunt is the editor of the TECF Research Page. Those who would
like to post to the Research Page can reach James at Huntj@babson.edu.
All postings should be closely related to the specific field
and activities of executive coaching. Potential postings will
not be peer reviewed but will only be reviewed to determine
their fit with the purpose of the Research Page. The editor
of the Research Page and the Leadership Group of the Executive
Coaching Forum reserve the right to withhold postings not
directly related to the purpose of the Research Page.
Current
Research Programs and Projects
We
invite scholars, graduate students and practitioners in the
field to share their current research efforts with others,
and ask for help as needed. If you would like to post in this
area, please e-mail your name, affiliation, contact information
and a brief (no more than 250 word) description of your work.
Research
Literature
We
will post and continually update articles and books that report
on quantitative or qualitative research on executive coaching.
We will be posting listings and abstracts of articles on executive
coaching processes, outcomes, research methodology and research
oriented literature reviews. Postings that describe previously
published research reports based on empirical data for either
theory building or theory testing in executive coaching is
appropriate. We will also post literature reviews or research
methodology papers, if in our view they would be useful to
researchers in the field. We will not be posting information
about conceptual articles or books on the research page. We
are happy to post information describing previously published
research sponsored or conducted by consulting firms or corporations,
if the methodology and the nature and/or size of the sample
is clearly explained in the publicly available research report.
Each posting will include the name of the article or book,
reference information and a brief abstract or one-paragraph
description of the work. If you would like to suggest the
posting of an appropriate work, please
e-mail your suggestion with reference information
to the editor of the Research Page.
Contents
(click on a heading to jump to it)
Current
Research Programs and Projects
- Successful
Executive Coaching from the consumer's Perspective.
Research
Literature
Coaching
Process
- Executive
Coaching, An Outcome Study
- Can
working with an executive coach improve multisource feedback
ratings over time? A Quasi-experimental field study.
- Executive
coaching: it’s not just about the executive
- Needs
and outcomes in an executive development program, a matter
of perspective
- Behind
closed doors: What really happens in executive coaching
Literature
Reviews
- Executive
coaching: it’s not just about the executive
- Executive
coaching: a comprehensive review of the literature
Outcome
Studies
- Executive
Coaching, An Outcome Study Can
working with an executive coach improve multisource feedback
ratings over time? A Quasi-experimental field study.
- Creating
value and enhancing retention through employee development:
The Sun Microsystems experience.
- Behind
closed doors: What really happens in executive coaching.
- Executive
coaching as a transfer of training tool: effects on productivity
in a public agency.
- The
impact of executive coaching and 360 feedback on leadership
effectiveness.
Research
Methodology
- Coaching
at the top: Assisting a chief executive and his team.
- Reflecting
on Mary Kralj’s Case Study.
- Constructing
a literature from case studies: promises and limitations
of the method.
Current
Research Programs and Projects
SUCCESSFUL
EXECUTIVE COACHING FROM THE CONSUMER’S PERSPECTIVE:
Adaptive
and Developmental Learning is a new research study by TECF
board member James M. Hunt, DBA, Associate Professor of
Management, Babson College. It will be published in Research
in Management Consulting, Fourth Edition, Tony Buono, Editor,
Greenwich, CT: Information Age Press, August 2004. The
study reports on in depth case analyses of fifteen successful
executive coaching engagements. Both coach and executive
were interviewed for the study, and a grounded theory methodology
was utilized to perform a content analysis on the interview
transcripts. The study examined how coach and executive
define successful outcomes, the processes by which successful
outcomes were achieved, and the impact of the organizational
context on the outcomes of coaching. The results of the
study are a series of hypothesis regarding successful executive
coaching activities and the factors that facilitate successful
outcome. See the Power Point presentation describing the
study.
Research
Literature
Coaching
Process
Wasylyshyn, Karol (2003). “Executive Coaching,
An Outcome Study,” Consulting Psychology Journal,
Vol. 55, No. 2, 94 – 106.
From the abstract:
This article presents the results of a study that explored
factors influencing the choice of a coach, executives’
reactions to working with a coach, the pros and cons of
both internal and external coaches, the focus of executive
coaching engagements, indications of successful coaching
engagements, coaching tools executives favored and the sustainability
of coached executives’ learning and behavior change.
Editor’s
comment:
Eighty-seven executives completed a survey for the author.
The author points out in the text that the reader must take
into account that the executives participating in the survey
were all previous clients. Nevertheless, the author makes
interesting observations from the research about both coaching
processes and outcomes.
Smither,
James; London, Manuel; Flautt, Raymond; Vargas, Yvette &
Kucine, Ivy (Spring 2003). “Can working with
an executive coach improve multisource feedback ratings over
time? A Quasi-experimental field study.” Personnel
Psychology, Vol. 56, (1), pp. 23 – 44.
From
the abstract:
This study examined the effects of executive coaching on
multisource feedback over time. Participants were 1,361
senior managers who received multisource feedback; 404 of
these senior managers worked with an executive coach to
review their feedback and set goals. One year later, 1.202
senior managers (88% of the original sample) received multisource
feedback from another survey. Managers who worked with an
executive coach were more likely than other managers to
set specific rather than vague goals (d = .16) and to solicit
ideas for improvement from their supervisors (d = .36).
Managers who worked with an executive coach improved more
than other managers in terms of direct report and supervisor
ratings, however, the effect size was small (d = .17).
Editor’s
comment:
The previous article will be of particular interest to executive
coaches who routinely work with 360 feedback results as
well as to researchers interested in both the outcome of
executive coaching interventions as well as the length of
time/number of sessions of coaching provided and the possible
relationship between number of coaching sessions and outcomes.
Orenstein,
Ruth (2002), “Executive coaching: it’s
not just about the executive.” Journal of Applied
Behavioral Science, Vol. 38 (3), pp. 355 – 374.
From
the abstract:
This article challenges the prevailing understanding of
executive coaching as an exclusively individual intervention.
It discusses executive coaching as a complex and demanding
process that encompasses multidimensional interrelationships
among the individual, the organization and the consultant.
It presents four premises that guide the process, including
the role of the unconscious in individual and group behavior,
the interaction between the individual and the organization,
multilevel organizational forces, and the consultants use
of self as a tool. It describes and analyzes three illustrative
excepts from actual coaching cases conducted by the author
in the manner proposed by the article.
Bernthal,
Paul; Cook, Kevin & Smith, Audrey (December 2001). “Needs
and outcomes in an executive development program, a matter
of perspective,” Journal of Applied Behavioral
Science, Vol. 37, No. 4, pp. 488 – 512.
From
the abstract:
The processes and outcomes associated with an executive
assessment program for development were evaluated in a field
setting. Data concerning the activities of 104 executive-level
managers were drawn from three sources: program participants,
development team leaders and professional assessors. Development
activity and outcome showed positive relationships to several
personal factors, especially motivation, self-efficacy,
and preference for intrinsic incentives. Development activity
also showed positive relationships to situation factors,
especially interpersonal support. Implications for promoting
the success of an executive assessment and development program
were discussed.
.
Hall,
Douglas; Otazo, Karen & Hollenbeck, George (Winter 1999).
“Behind closed doors: What really happens in executive
coaching.” Organizational Dynamics, pp. 39 –
53.
-
This
paper presents an exploratory and descriptive study of
the reported coaching experiences of 75 executives from
Fortune 100 companies. Topics addressed in the paper include
the reasons for seeking out coaching, the use of internal
vs. external coaches, the role of trust, interventions
that were helpful vs. those that were not, and hypotheses
regarding the outcomes that occur in executive coaching.
.
Literature
Reviews
Orenstein,
Ruth (2002), “Executive coaching: it’s
not just about the executive.” Journal of Applied
Behavioral Science, Vol. 38 (3), pp. 355 – 374.
This
article has a particularly robust literature review, including
several important historical references. See description
under “Coaching Processes” above.
“Kampa-Kokesch,
Sheila and Anderson, Mary (Fall 2001). “Executive
coaching: a comprehensive review of the literature.”
Consulting Psychology Journal, Vol. 53, No. 4, pp. 205-228.
From
the abstract:
Executive Coaching as a consultation intervention has received
attention in the literature within the past decade. Executive
coaching has been proposed as an intervention aimed toward
helping executives improve their performance and consequently
the performance of their overall organization (R.R. Kilburg,
1996c). Whether or not it does what it proposes, however,
remains largely unknown because of the lack of empirical
studies. Some also question whether executive coaching is
just another fad in the long list of fads that have occurred
in consultation and business. To explore these issues and
the place of executive coaching in consulting practice,
this article critically examines the literature on executive
coaching.
Outcome
Studies
Wasylyshyn,
Karol (2003). “Executive Coaching, An Outcome
Study,” Consulting Psychology Journal, Vol.
55, No. 2, 94 – 106.
See
description under “Coaching Processes” above.
Smither,
James; London, Manuel; Flautt, Raymond; Vargas, Yvette &
Kucine, Ivy (Spring 2003). “Can working with
an executive coach improve multisource feedback ratings over
time? A Quasi-experimental field study.” Personnel
Psychology, Vol. 56, (1), pp. 23 – 44.
See
description under “Coaching Processes” above
Elsdon,
Ronald & Iyer, Seema (1999). “Creating value
and enhancing retention through employee development: The
Sun Microsystems experience.” Human Resource
Planning, Vol. 22, No. 2, pp. 39 – 47.
This
paper reports on the experience of Sun Microsystems in making
career coaching widely available to employees. The purpose
of the program was to help Sun employees take a more self-directed
approach to the management of their careers. In contrast
to the initial concerns held by some stakeholders, results
of the program show that employees taking advantage of career
coaching services were less likely to leave Sun.
Hall,
Douglas; Otazo, Karen & Hollenbeck, George (Winter 1999).
“Behind closed doors: What really happens in
executive coaching.” Organizational Dynamics,
pp. 39 – 53.
For
a description of this paper, see the “Coaching Processes”
above.
Olivero,
Gerald: Bane, Denise & Kopelman, Richard (Winter 1997).
“Executive coaching as a transfer of training
tool: effects on productivity in a public agency.”
Public Personnel Management, Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 461 –
469,
From
the abstract:
This study exams the effects of executive coaching in a
public sector municipal agency. Thirty-one managers underwent
a conventional managerial training program which was followed
by eight weeks of one-on-one coaching. This study group
was compared with a control group that received training
alone. The treatment group showed a significantly greater
increase in productivity than the control group. Descriptions
of procedures, explanations for the results obtained and
suggestions for future research and practice are offered.
Thach,
Elizabeth (2002). “The impact of executive coaching
and 360 feedback on leadership effectiveness.”
Leadership and Organization Development Journal, Vol. 23,
No. 3 and 4, pp. 205 – 214.
From
the abstract:
Does executive coaching really work? This action research
study answers these questions by tracking the progress of
281 executives participating in a six month coaching and
360 feedback process. The results suggest that the combination
of multi-rater feedback and individual coaching do increase
leadership effectiveness up to 60% - according to direct
report and peer post-survey feedback.
Research
Methodology
Kkralj,
Mary (Spring 2001). “Coaching at the top: Assisting
a chief executive and his team.” Consulting
Psychology Journal, Vol. 53, No. 2, pp. 108 – 116.
Dunning, David (Spring 2001). “Reflecting on
Mary Kralj’s Case Study.” Consulting
Psychology Journal, Vol. 53, No. 2, pp. 117 –118.
Lowman,
Rodney (Spring 2001). “Constructing a literature
from case studies: promises and limitations of the method.”
Consulting Psychology Journal, Vol. 53, No. 2, pp. 119 –
123.
This
series of articles begins with a coaching case study. The
follow-up articles then explore the promises and challenges
of using case study research in the study of executive coaching,
particularly given the rather immature state of scholarship
in the field. Recommendations can be gleaned from these
articles about approaches that can be make case study research
more useful.
