How To Pick the Best Vancouver Business Coach

Understanding the Vancouver Market

Vancouver has a vibrant culture. Recently voted as the friendliest city in the world by a survey conducted by Big 7 Travel, a global travel media company. This city boasts an impressive list of accomplishments.

10th cleanest city in the world
4th largest cruise ship terminal in the world
A vibrant foodie scene
A robust economy
Stunning views
Moderate climate.

Vancouver is a unique place. Because of this, you may need to consider Vancouver’s culture when you pick your business coach. Why? If your business is being influenced by this dominant culture and you sell goods or services to other businesses in Vancouver, you will want to consider how people in Vancouver do business in your business plans. Some of the marketing and sales activities that are normally done in other areas will need to be modified for Vancouver.

Successful business coaches know the importance of understanding the business culture in each area. That’s why when you begin your search for a business coach, business consultant, or mentor, you will want to assess their understanding of Vancouver’s business culture because in some cases it will affect the success of the coaching relationship.

Do I Need a Business Consultant, Business Coach, or a Mentor?

That’s a great question! The best answer is you need all these skills if you can find the right coach.

A business coach will be trained in specific communication skills that can help you learn more about yourself and how you work best. They’ll be able to move you forward and provide accountability as you learn how to get things done that drive your business forward. They will have fine-tuned advanced training to help you keep moving forward.

A business consultant can be a good fit if you need someone to come in, analyze your business, and give you recommendations, so you know what the best direction is to go. Often a consultant will have a specialty, such as finance or operations, which they focus on. Unfortunately, they don’t usually have anything to do with helping you get things done. Once you get their report their job has been completed.

A business mentor will have valuable experience from being personally successful in your industry or from specializing in helping many clients in your industry. Both of these types of practical experience are valuable. They will help you avoid making costly mistakes or wasting energy working on revenue streams that won’t be profitable.

What to Consider When Choosing a Business Coach in Vancouver

Vancouver Business Coaches and Credentialing

Coaching in Vancouver is a self-regulated industry and the main governing body, the ICF (International Coaching Federation) has robust criteria for coaches to meet in their certification programs. Because the industry is not government regulated anyone can say they are a coach. Some of these self-professed coaches do not have any coach-specific training. Although they may mentor people, have an online program, or consult with people, they are not really professionally trained coaches. Therefore, the ownness is on you to verify their credentials and the extent of their training. Remember, the average professional coach will take 100-200 hours of specific coach training at the beginning of their career followed by approximately 10 hours each year to maintain their professional edge. Someone who takes a certificate program on a weekend online will not have the depth of skill a professional coach has.

At Rich Grof, we specialize in helping business owners. Our coaches bring real experiences, insight, and understanding of how to achieve success that will be valuable to your growth. On top of that, they are continually mentored by senior coaches on our leadership team. You can be assured that we are supplying the highest level of expertise and service that you deserve.

What past experience does your Vancouver business coach have?

Consider what experience each coach may have overall as well as your industry specifically when you choose a certified coach. Does the coach understand your industry and be attuned to the issues that are relevant to you? Do they have helpful information and resources that can help as you grow your success? Understanding what past experience a coach has can help you see possible areas that may be helpful to you. I personally have business experience in retail banking, retail, sales, and construction. This past experience has allowed me to bring value to many other industries including technology, hospitality, mining, and alternative financing.

The business coaches on our team have the experience that allows us to fit you with the right knowledge and expertise for each step in your business coaching.

Check references

Check references and testimonials from any past or present clients of your prospective coaches. Find out:

about the scope of work that was performed,
where they came up short and where they excelled,
what they would have wanted to change in the coaching agreement,
Any noticeable results,

Based on what you have learned from the references you spoke to does their coaching style fit with your business style? Can you see yourself in a working relationship with this coach? A strong coach will use client feedback to improve their processes and efficiency.

How does the coach work?

Every business coach has a process. If they don’t, they are waiting for the client to lead. This may work for some people. However, most people need a coach to keep them on track. Find out how the coach works. Look at:

Do they have weekly or biweekly calls?
Do they have content to review?
Is there a formal program with a manual and lessons?
Are they flexible to change the call to what you need?
Will they give support between regular coaching times for emergencies?
What extras do they charge for?

Our strategic approach for small business growth is centered on helping you discover your unique way to carry out your goals, that’s our way to achieve results. We do not have a cookie-cutter program instead we take the time to understand our clients, their businesses, and their mindsets, and provide them with the tools they will need to bring out their personal best.

Check the contract details

A lot of coaches use a one-year contract that holds you, the client, responsible for the term of the contract regardless of whether you’re still coaching or not. This doesn’t benefit you at all. Granted you will probably be able to tell if the coaching is working well in the first month or two. What happens if it doesn’t work? Make sure to see if there is a satisfaction guarantee or a trial period so that you can see if this is going to work for you. Most professional coaches will have a policy around payment and trial periods because they want to provide value to people not lock them into something that they have no value from.