After much deliberation and resistance from members to previous plans to streamline its accreditation process, the International Coach Federation (ICF) board has decided to continue to offer three levels of accreditation: ACC, PCC and MCC. The announcement was made at the ICF Global conference, the first to be held outside the US, which attracted more than 900 delegates.
ICF Global president, Janet Harvey, at the conference, issued a call to action to all coaches. “I wonder if our humility stands at cross-purposes with our intention to see humanity flourishing. Now’s not a time to shrink back in humility. If we are to sustain our profession and make our way across the finishing line and be declared as such, every one of us must be a leader. Stand tall, stand your ground and don’t shrink back,” she said.
The ICF will be looking to make some improvements to the three levels of credentialing. For example, it is looking at how it assesses performance and knowledge. A survey of members found 6.75 per cent were happy with the credentialing process, with the main complaint from those not satisfied, was that it takes too long. Those rating highly cited communication. PCC applicants who have gone through an ICF-accredited school are happier than those presenting portfolios.
The ICF is developing a new multiple-choice written examination for portfolio applicants. It now has 106 chapter leaders in more than 50 countries and operates in 110.
ICF presence in Asia Pacific is on the up – there are now 18 chapters
in the region. Eastern Europe now has 10 chapters, and is experiencing “explosive growth in the number of members”, said Harvey.
The Middle East and Africa, too, are high-growth areas, she said, predicting innovation from the region as there is resistance to non-directive coaching.
As Coaching at Work went to press, the ICF had 8,780 credential holders in 86 countries and 700 more applications for credentialing than in the same period the previous year.
Coaching at Work Volume 7, issue 6