You run a business. You and/or your partners have decided that you need some outside, objective help with some sticky problems that you know are costing you a good deal of money. Some people tell you to hire a consultant. Others tell you to hire a coach. This begs the question: What is the difference between consulting and coaching? Is there really a difference in the first place?

At FutureDecisions LLC we are involved in both consulting and coaching so we think it is important to differentiate between the two- so here it goes!

Although some people will tell you that there is no difference between coaching and consulting other than semantics, there are plenty more who disagree. A coach’s objective is to challenge clients to become better leaders by drawing forth clients’ own wisdom and enhancing their own capabilities.  Coaches do not tell clients what to do, as a consultant might. Coaches do not set up clients’ plans for them.  A coach facilitates clients in creating their own plans. The coach’s job is to provide support to enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that clients already possess.

Business or leadership coaches are similar to those who coach in the sports or personal training world. They work with you to bring out your inner abilities. They want to see you performing at the highest level. Consultants are focused on making an organization run more “perfectly” by sharing their expertise in a particular area or areas. Coaches are focused on bringing an individual to peak performance; the enhanced skills realized by an individual through the coaching process will provide long-term benefits to both the client and his/her organization.

Perhaps the difference between consulting and coaching can be summed up like this: A consultant’s efforts involve sharing his/her expertise with a client in order to assist the client in improving business operations. A coach partners with his/her client in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires the client to maximize personal and professional potential.

The next time you consider bringing in someone from outside your business to assist with an issue, think about this: Would a coach or a consultant better serve me? Each has their place, choosing the correct role up front can save you both time and money in the long run and lead to superior results.  At FutureDecisions we offer both consulting and coaching services and work with each client to assure he/she is receiving the right service that best meets his/her needs.

This coming Friday, June 19, 2009 Kevin Williams of FutureDecisions and Kit Stookey of Practical Matters Consulting will be presenting the Sacramento Area Organization Development Networks June Program.

For details click here!

We previously told you that we had taped a program for a local television show, it is to be aired this Sunday night. We know most of you cannot watch our local cable channel so we are providing a link to an editied version of the show.

Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG2YauHH7kM

Here is some recent data we came across here at FutureDecisions that dramatically demonstrates the aging workforce.

Labor Force Above the Age of 40

   Year                                                 Percent
1980 ——————————–38.6%
1990 ——————————–40.1%
2000 ——————————-48.2%
2010 ——————————–51.4%

Recently Karen and Kevin had the opportunity to film a segment for a local television show moderated by our friend and colleague Brian Moffitt. Catch us on June 14 on Sacramento Cable local channel 17 (for more details click FutureDecisions Managing Partners now T.V. Stars?), if you do not have a chance to see us then we will post the show to our website after it appears on the air.