Coaching supervision is a collaborative learning practice between a coach and their chosen coaching supervisor. The process enables the coach to build their coaching capability, knowledge and practice through deep reflection. The purpose is to create a safe environment for the coach to share their successes, mistakes and become more tuned in to the way that they work with their clients.
I have benefitted from having regular 1:1 coaching supervision for the past 10 years. At Aspire we have a team of experienced and qualified coaching supervisors who offer coaching supervision to others who may be new to of have significant experience of coaching. We focus what Inskipp and Proctor (1988) call the three main functions of supervision: Formative (developing the supervisee’s skills and helping the supervisee to understand and appreciate their abilities), Normative (ensuring boundaries are being maintained and that the supervisee is undertaking their work to the highest ethical standards within the contract agreed) and Restorative (discuss any emotional baggage the supervisee may be carrying either consciously or unconsciously from the coachee and the system).
Coaching supervision may include:
- Ethical issues and dilemmas
- Uncovering strengths and blind spots
- Supporting the coach in their assessment of ‘fit for purpose’ i.e. are they confident that they have the required skills, knowledge and have mechanisms for sign posting more complex work
- Looking at all aspect of the coach and client’s environment for opportunities for growth
- Offering frameworks to support the reflective process e.g. Seven Eye model (Hawkins and Shohet (1989)
The benefits of coaching supervision include:
- Increase self-awareness, particularly psychological processes
- Greater confidence
- Increased objectivity
- Heightened sense of inclusion and belonging
- Reduced feelings of isolation
- Increase sense of resourcefulness
- Identification of CPD needs
- Developing a sense of coaching mindedness, business mindedness and psychological mindedness