What is the Difference between Executive Coaches and Business Coaches?

Executive coaching overlaps with, yet differs from, business coaching. Both disciplines focus on getting results in organizations, recruiting and developing talent, building teams, and achieving extraordinary results.

However, the business coaching client primarily needs to create a viable business that runs without him or her. The owner probably runs a simpler operation with fewer resources than the executive coaching client. Also, the owner doesn’t have the level of business sophistication or education of the typical executive, or require the top-level experience of an Executive Coach.

There are also differences between Executive Coaches and consultants. Generally, consulting is a more in-depth and lengthy process than coaching.

Consulting involves diagnosing an organizational problem, conducting analyses, and solving problems on behalf of the client.  Most consultants provide coaching as part of their engagement, especially when they present findings one-on-one to their client and help the client confront the need for change and how to make change.  Similarly, many Executive Coaches do some consulting, for instance when they conduct research to understand whether an executive team is aligned, or when they assess a company’s leadership development process.  However, Executive Coaches for the most part require the client to conduct their own research, draw their own conclusions, and set their own path.  Executive coaches ask powerful questions, make suggestions and observations when appropriate, provide tools, and lead the client towards a successful course of action and improvement.

Find out more:
What is executive coaching?
Why hire an executive coach?