Coaching at Carleton

Carleton University provides one-on-one coaching to staff and faculty. Coaching at Carleton is an opportunity for focused, personal development with the support of a certified personal and professional coach. Internal coaches are available to work with you to meet your goals.

What is Coaching? Coaching is a goal-focused partnership between coach and coachee and a strengths-based approach to personal and professional development. It involves an open and honest one-on-one dialogue, structured to achieve desired results. Coaching leverages the coachee’s strengths and creates space explore possibilities and remove obstacles. Its purpose is to allow staff and faculty to trust themselves to:

contribute to their own development;
think/act in potentially challenging situations; and
take initiative to address issues as they arise.

Research has shown that coaching has positive impacts on self-efficacy, motivation, stress reduction, and commitment to the organization (Sonesh, Coultas, Lacerenza, et al., 2015). To read what some Carleton employees have to say about how they benefitted from coaching, take a look at their testimonials.

: There are many reasons you might choose to work with a coach. These include, but are not limited to the following:

Exploring your leadership and management style

Enhancing personal motivation and accountability

Navigating inter-personal dynamics

Achieving a greater sense of efficacy

Seizing a professional or personal opportunity

Leveraging your strengths to accelerate results

Generating a compelling vision for your career and making plans to get there

Managing work-life balance

Adapting to new roles and responsibilities

Identifying and removing barriers to personal and professional progress

Creating or dealing with change and transition
: You may work with a coach for up to six (6) sessions, each lasting approximately 1 hour.

Sessions are confidential and may take place in person (public safety measures permitting), over the phone, or via Zoom/Teams, preferably every two weeks.

Limited email access to the coach is available in-between sessions for urgent matters.

Coach and coachee will determine a meeting schedule at the outset of the coaching relationship.

Please allow at lease 24 hours before cancellations, except in case of emergency.
: There are some things to consider when selecting a coach and assessing fit:

What are the coach’s background and qualifications?

What is their approach and their availability?

Is the conversation going well and do I feel comfortable with this person?

Am I more aware of my strengths and resources after our conversations?

A valuable question to ask yourself is, “can I partner with this person to reach a goal that is personally meaningful to me?”

You can access the profiles of Coaching at Carleton coaches here.
: All Coaching at Carleton coaches adhere to the ICF Standards of Ethical Conduct. They respect “the strictest levels of confidentiality with all client information unless release is required by law” (ICF Standards of Ethical Conduct). In other words, all the information you share with your coach is strictly confidential to the full extent of organizational and legal obligations. When you contract to work with a Coaching at Carleton coach, the boundaries of organizational and legal confidentiality will be discussed with you.

Information that will be shared for reporting purposes is:

the division you work in (e.g. Finance and Administration);

whether you are staff or faculty;

the number of sessions you attend; and

the general topic discussed

Upon entering into a coaching relationship with a coach at Carleton, you will be asked to sign an internal coaching agreement. This agreement outlines the time commitment, your personal ownership over the coaching relationship and the results you desire, and the coach’s commitment to maintain confidentiality and abide the ethical guidelines of the International Coaching Federation.

You can find a sample agreement here.
: Coaches value honesty and they strive to remain open, authentic and transparent in service of their clients. If the coach ever says or does something during coaching sessions that upsets you or doesn’t feel right, you can address the issue with the coach or the Professional Development Officer.
: To sign up for coaching at Carleton, simply browse the list of available coaches and send an email inquiry to the coach of your choice. The coach will get back to you within a few business days to set up a time to meet for an introductory session.
: Please reach out to us at learninganddevelopment@carleton.ca for any further questions or inquiries.