The Coaching Approach is a report by ATD Research, written in collaboration with the ATD Forum. It aims to examine the use of coaching as a managerial tool and provides insights on how learning leaders can more effectively develop and sustain successful coaching programs. Although coaching is a powerful tool, only about a quarter of organizations heavily incorporate it into their talent development portfolio. This Study poses some key questions:

• Have organizations identified the skills that managers need to be effective?

• Do learning leaders provide managers with the learning opportunities associated with the necessary skills?

• Do organizations emphasize, measure, and recognize coaching?

This Study also introduces the Coaching Effectiveness Index (CEI), a comprehensive, straightforward, and actionable measure of coaching effectiveness in organizations. By comparing CEI scores among groups of organizations, the Study identifies best practices related to implementing, growing, and sustaining coaching.

The Coaching Approach provides findings based on a blended research approach. To obtain quantitative data for the Study, ATD Research sent a survey to learning leaders at organizations of all sizes and across all sectors in June 2014. The survey closed in July 2014, with 575 learning professionals responding. To supplement the survey-based findings, ATD Research conducted interviews with learning leaders to obtain greater insights into how leading organizations are incorporating coaching into their talent development offerings.