I wear multiple hats. I am a life coach and an evaluator. At first glance, life coaching and evaluation are like oil and water, lacking any obvious relationship. While life coaching is focused on personal goals, evaluation relies on data for program assessment. Typically, clients ask me to serve as their life coach or as their program evaluator. Despite the obvious differences, life coaching and evaluation can join together like two peas in a pod.
Contemporary evaluation practice requires a variety of roles. Volkov (2011) explains that evaluators must serve multiple roles, which includes coaching. According to the International Coaching Federation, coaching is a partnership, consisting of a “thought-provoking and creative process,” designed to facilitate change. In evaluation capacity building (ECB), evaluators can utilize coaching to cultivate an organizational evaluation culture.
Evaluation can also benefit life coaching. Program evaluators use data to determine how well programs are doing. My clients and I regularly discuss how they can evaluate their own efforts in achieving their goals. Clients determine the data they will use to reflect on their progress. Sometimes, clients hire me as their life coach and their primary goal is to develop a new program. For these clients, evaluation-related questions naturally emerge such as “How will you know when you are successful?” and “What do you hope to accomplish at the end of the program?” Consistent with the life coaching emphasis, there is often a focus on personal development issues relevant to the client (e.g., maintaining work-family balance) in addition to the client’s progress in developing the program.
Although they can function as separate entities, as partners, coaching and evaluation facilitate positive changes for individuals and organizations.
www.nourishyourpath.com
References
Volkov, B.B. (2011). Beyond being an evaluator: The multiplicity of roles of the internal evaluator. In B.B. Volkov & M.E. Baron (Eds.), Internal evaluation in the 21st century. New Directions for Evaluation, 132, 25-42.
Contemporary evaluation practice requires a variety of roles. Volkov (2011) explains that evaluators must serve multiple roles, which includes coaching. According to the International Coaching Federation, coaching is a partnership, consisting of a “thought-provoking and creative process,” designed to facilitate change. In evaluation capacity building (ECB), evaluators can utilize coaching to cultivate an organizational evaluation culture.
Evaluation can also benefit life coaching. Program evaluators use data to determine how well programs are doing. My clients and I regularly discuss how they can evaluate their own efforts in achieving their goals. Clients determine the data they will use to reflect on their progress. Sometimes, clients hire me as their life coach and their primary goal is to develop a new program. For these clients, evaluation-related questions naturally emerge such as “How will you know when you are successful?” and “What do you hope to accomplish at the end of the program?” Consistent with the life coaching emphasis, there is often a focus on personal development issues relevant to the client (e.g., maintaining work-family balance) in addition to the client’s progress in developing the program.
Although they can function as separate entities, as partners, coaching and evaluation facilitate positive changes for individuals and organizations.
www.nourishyourpath.com
References
Volkov, B.B. (2011). Beyond being an evaluator: The multiplicity of roles of the internal evaluator. In B.B. Volkov & M.E. Baron (Eds.), Internal evaluation in the 21st century. New Directions for Evaluation, 132, 25-42.
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