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Industry Direction

Coaching and Mentoring Industry Challenges

The IRCM CIC Steering and Advisory Committees are an integral part of the Industry Direction Department.  These Committees provide advice, guidance and/or recommendations for changes to the IRCM CIC’s Codes of Conduct and where required, recommendations for the industry direction.

The IRCM CIC’s challenge is to grow consumer confidence in the industry through an international industry Code of Ethics, Standards and Core Competencies; as well as providing a clear direction for the coaching and mentoring industry.

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The challenges faced across the coaching and mentoring industry are:

within the Education sector, as education is provided by formal government-mandated education bodies and private commercial training organisations and individual coaches and/or mentors.  All these types of organisations provide education/training (full in-depth and detailed courses, short courses, and workshops) to coaches, mentors, and others.  The consumers are known as their students.  It recognised that these students may come from outside the industry but they may also be coaches and/or mentors working within the industry. 

Formal Education Bodies are simply Universities, Colleges, and Schools; where the educational content and standards are determined by the countries government Education Department.

Private Commercial Training Companies are commercial organisations that have been set up by individuals who may be coaches and/or mentors, or may not be.  The educational content and standards for these organisations are not controlled by the countries government Education Department.

Coaches and/or Mentors who provide training are recognised as Private Commercial Training Companies and simply coaches and/or mentors who have selected to run training for their clients.  The educational content and standards for these organisations are not controlled by the countries government Education Department.

with the Coaches and Mentors who provide their services to their Clients; the individuals and/or organisations who are recognised as their Consumers.

These challenges centre are around how Consumers identify the competence, qualification, and quality of each coach and/or mentor.

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Industry Direction

with the Commercial Organisations that work in or are involved in or represent the coaching and mentoring industry.  These challenges centre around:

  • how individuals within the industry represent themselves and behave as organisations.
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  • how consumers identify the competence of each organisation within the industry; whether the organisation is a single individual or a larger number.
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  • organisations outside the industry who may provide one or more products and/or services to the coaching and mentoring industry, and how they manage their relationships with individuals/organisations from within the industry.

... define education standards for a country but its remit is to support the industry through the content elements of each training course – ethics, standards, and core competencies.

The IRCM CIC recognises that:

  • ‘Authorisation’ and ‘Approval’ for Formal Education Bodies is provided by each Government's Education Department.
  • 'Approval' for Private Commercial Training Organisations is provided by IRCM CIC Accredited/Registered Professional Bodies.
  • 'Approval' for Coaches and/or Mentors who provide training is provided by IRCM CIC Accredited/Registered Professional Bodies.

... define the mininum content elements of each training course – ethics, standards, and core competencies.

The IRCM CIC recognises that:

  • ‘Authorisation’ and ‘Approval’ for Formal Education Bodies is provided by each Government's Education Department.
  • 'Approval' for Private Commercial Training Organisations is provided by IRCM CIC Accredited/Registered Professional Bodies.
  • 'Approval' for Coaches and/or Mentors who provide training is provided by IRCM CIC Accredited/Registered Professional Bodies.

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The challenges that centre around Education relates to how prospective students, recognised as Consumers, determine what is in the content of the courses and/or workshops; and whether the content relates to the industry requirements or not.

Education/training should be driven by the history, needs, and regulation of an industry, through the industry recognised Codes of Standards, Ethics, and Core Competencies as published by the IRCM CIC.   

These organisations include, but is not exclusive to:

Professional Bodies provide support for the coaches, mentors, and private commercial training companies in the coaching and mentoring industry: who are known as their members.

Support Groups provide localised, generally face-2-face support, for coaches and/or mentors.

Industry-related organisations are any company; whether a coach, mentor, education/training, professional body, support group, contractor, agency, etc.; that trades within the coaching and mentoring industry.

Although not truly within the industry, Supporting organisations have a role to play within the industry and may be defined as:

  • ‘agency’ or ‘marketing’ or ‘coaching/mentoring’ organisations where the coach and/or mentor is providing a service to the organisations’ clients, either through the organisation or directly through a contract/agreement negotiated by the supporting organisation.
    The coach and/or mentor may be employed by the organisation or may be contracting their services to the organisation.  Although these organisations do not form part of the coaching and mentoring industry, the coaches and/or mentors employed by these organisations fall within the remit of the Industry.
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  • a business supporting organisation where the coach, mentor, organisation within the industry contracts to use their services or purchase their products.  These organisations include accountants, solicitors, website hosts, website developers, etc.

Non-industry related organisations are any company that is not within the coaching and mentoring industry, who employ coaches and/or mentors; either directly as employees or by sub-contract.

These are defined as ‘client’ organisations where the coach and/or mentor is providing a service to the owners, directors, or staff within the organisation.  The coach and/or mentor may be employed by the organisation or may be contracting their services to the organisation.  Although these organisations do not form part of the coaching and mentoring industry, the coaches and/or mentors employed by these organisations fall within the remit of the Industry.

Consumers are those individuals/organisations who benefit from the services and/or products provided by the coaching and mentoring industry; clients, students, members of Professional Bodies/Support Groups, and staff (of all levels) of organisations.

    • Members of Professional Bodies
    • Members of Support Groups
    • Students of Education Bodies/Training Organisations
    • Clients of Coaches and/or Mentors

PLEASE NOTE: A consumers advisory committee will be added to the structure in a later phase of the Steering and Advisory Committee development.

Coaching and Mentoring covers every conceivable industry from personal life, through business, through sports, through personal/professional development, etc.  The remit of the IRCM CIC is not to determine the standards, ethics, and core competencies of individual industries; but to ensure that the coaching and mentoring standards, ethics, and core competencies are robust.

In other words, whether a coach is a personal life coach, a business coach, a rugby coach, an athletics coach or a business mentor, an athletic mentor, etc.; the coaching and mentoring ethics, standards, and core competencies should remain the same.  

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Currently, all information provided by and correspondence with the IRCM CIC is in English.