candm Title Coaching and Mentoring – What They Are and How to Make the Most of Them
Author Jane Renton
Publisher Profile Books
ISBN 978 1 846 681899
Usefulness 3/5
This well-researche, engaging book describes the history and evolution of the coaching and mentoring industries. The author states that she approached her exploration with a healthy degree of cynicism.
‘What coaching and mentoring are’, is dealt with extensively, with case studies and 35 pages of mini-biographies of contributors in coaching, psychology and business.
I particularly like the focus in chapter 2 on mentoring – it can be marginalised in some books. Chapter 4, ‘Regulation’, provides a useful analysis of coaching and mentoring associations.
Chapter 5, ‘Does coaching work?’, focuses on the thorny issue of evidence-based ROI with an interesting case study using financial data.

Chapter 6, ‘How to pick the right coach’, looks at the methods used by four organisations to select their coaches. There is a checklist, but I felt more practical tools could have been provided.

It’s not clear to me who the target audience is. Renton says her aim is to provide a practical layman’s guide. The 214 pages in this book include only one checklist, and the case studies are short of tangible learning tips.
However, someone bringing coaching into an organisation for the first time would benefit from the useful insights.
Caroline Taylor