ICF has gone through several evolutions of change over the past few years. In one big evolution they revisited the core coaching competencies and released a new core coaching competency
model in 2019. Shortly after that new competency model was released, the ICF decided that it
was time to move beyond one-on-one coaching based on trends in the industry of coaching. In
2020, they solidified this by releasing brand new Team Coaching Competencies. These team
coaching competencies are an extension of and align directly with the New Core Coaching
Competency Model.
The new team coaching competency model acknowledges first, that coaching can be effective
for multi-person clients. It also acknowledges the work of coaches who partner with teams and
organizations extends beyond professional coaching. The team coaching competencies
acknowledge and legitimize multiple modalities for working with teams. These modalities are
team building, team training, team consulting, team mentoring, team facilitating, and team
coaching.
In addition to the team coaching competencies, ICF has also introduced a new certification
focused on team coaching: the Advanced Team Coaching Certificate (ACTC). Unlike the ACC,
PCC, and MCC which are considered credentials, the ACTC is an add-on certificate showing that
an ICF coach has also been trained in team coaching. In order to qualify for the ACTC, a coach
must hold an ACC, PCC, or MCC and must complete a minimum of 60 hours training in team
coaching, mentoring in team coaching, and reflective supervision. The competencies the team
coaching must cover are found in the team coaching competencies as spoken of previously.
The team coaching competencies align with the New Core Coaching Competency Model as
described below.
In alignment with Competency 1 Ethical Practice, the following items are focused on team
coaching:
- Coaches the client team as a single entity
- Maintains the distinction between team coaching, team building, team training, team consulting, team mentoring, team facilitation, and other team development modalities
- Demonstrates the knowledge and skill needed to practice the specific blend of team development modalities that are being offered
- Adopts more directive team development modalities only when needed to help the team achieve their goals
- Maintains trust, transparency, and clarity when fulfilling multiple roles related to team coaching
In alignment with Competency 2 Embodies a Coaching Mindset, the following items are focused
on team coaching:
- Engages in coaching supervision for support, development, and accountability when needed
- Remains objective and aware of team dynamics and patterns
In alignment with Competency 3 Establishes and Maintains Agreements, the following items are
focused on team coaching:
- Explains what team coaching is and is not, including how it differs from other team development modalities
- Partners with all relevant parties, including the team leader, team members, stakeholders, and any co-coaches to collaboratively create clear agreements about the coaching relationship, processes, plans, development modalities, and goals
- Partners with the team leader to determine how ownership of the coaching process will be shared among the coach, leader, and team
In alignment with Competency 4 Cultivates Trust and Safety, the following items are focused on
team coaching:
- Creates and maintains a safe space for open and honest team member interaction
- Promotes the team viewing itself as a single entity with a common identity
- Fosters expression of individual team members’ and the collective team’s feelings, perceptions, concerns, beliefs, hopes, and suggestions
- Encourages participation and contribution by all team members
- Partners with the team to develop, maintain, and reflect on team rules and norms
- Promotes effective communication within the team
- Partners with the team to identify and resolve internal conflict
In alignment with Competency 5 Maintains Presence, the following items are focused on team
coaching:
- Uses one’s full range of sensory and perceptual abilities to focus on what is important to the coaching process
- Uses a co-coach when agreed to by the team and sponsors and when doing so will allow the team coach to be more present in the team coaching session
- Encourages team members to pause and reflect how they are interacting in team coaching sessions
- Moves in and out of the team dialogue as appropriate
In alignment with Competency 6 Listens Actively, the following items are focused on team
coaching:
- Notices how the perspectives shared by each team member relate to other team members’ views and the team dialogue
- Notices how each team member impacts the collective team energy, engagement, and focus
- Notices verbal and non-verbal communication patterns among team members to identify potential alliances, conflicts, and growth opportunities
- Models confident, effective communication and collaboration when working with a co-coach or other experts
- Encourages the team to own the dialogue
- In alignment with Competency 7 Evokes Awareness, the following items are focused on team coaching:
- Challenges the team’s assumptions, behaviors, and meaning-making processes to enhance their collective awareness or insight
- Uses questions and other techniques to foster team development and facilitate the team’s ownership of their collective dialogue
In alignment with Competency 8 Facilitates Client Growth, the following items are focused on
team coaching:
- Encourages dialogue and reflection to help the team identify their goals and the steps to achieve those goals
