ActionCOACH on the boom of business coaching
Published: 12 November 2019
More than two decades after it was first pioneered in the UK, business coaching has risen in popularity. According to the latest IBISWorld report, the estimated worldwide revenue of professional coaching in 2019 is $12.7billion (£9.9billion) and it’s a profession that doesn’t show signs of stopping any time soon.
Brad Sugars was the first to introduce the concept after founding ActionCOACH in 1993 and bringing the idea to British business owners in 2001. A 2015 global coaching study by PricewaterhouseCoopers indicated just how much the profession has advanced over that time, with revenue totalling $898million (£701million) in Western Europe alone.
A survey conducted by independent research firm WorkBuzz had more than 350 business coaching clients provide information on how ActionCOACH business growth coaches have impacted their businesses. It revealed that 87 per cent of those coached for less than 12 months considered the investment worthwhile, increasing to 96 per cent for those coached for one to two years, and rising to 100 per cent when businesses had been mentored for three to four years.
Ian Christelow, co-founder of ActionCOACH UK, says: “When you consider the journey that someone takes from taking up a sport in their youth to reach a significant level of success, the coaching over time shows a cumulative impact.
“This is similar in business, too. The survey makes it clear that, just like sports coaching, the longer the investment, the more valuable the returns on that investment.”
Before ActionCOACH, there were plenty of consultants that would come into a business, execute a project and perhaps leave the owner with a big list of faults, but there wasn’t anyone who could coach you to a better business and life. ActionCOACH works closely with business owners, either on a one-to-one setting or in a group coaching environment, where they focus on implementing strategies that have an impact on not just their businesses, but personal lives, too.
Caroline Haxton from Scotia Cabins took part in the survey. She says: “We are more organised, powering through and completing tasks we have been putting off for years. We now have skills to break down what appear to be overwhelming tasks, thus getting them done without freaking out.”
Ian adds: “ActionCOACH continues to blaze the trail and serve as the business coaching industry’s most innovative company. When 96 per cent of respondents in the survey said they would recommend ActionCOACH, our business coaching firm now boasts a client satisfaction rating higher than Apple for three consecutive years.”
