First and foremost a note: administering assessments is outside the role of a coach. Assessment tools are administered by someone trained to do so and very often they must be certified in that tool.
How do assessments fit with coaching? Coaching happens after the assessment. The assessment is used for the information and the coaching is to develop an action plan and strategy based on that information.
When are assessments used? While sometimes assessments are standard procedure, the ideal is to be intentional and use assessments when it is helpful for the individual client.
How do you decide whether to use an assessment? Consider what the client wants and what information will be helpful in moving forward. Specifically, explore the benefits and the risks:
Pros
- Insight and Awareness – assessment tools can create awareness both in the process of taking them and in the results and there is an opportunity for new insights.
- Depth of information – assessment tools provide depth in the outcomes which means the information goes further than the surface level.
- Tool for Further Exploration – assessment tools can be a foundation for individual work in exploring options and processes.
Cons
- May Limit or Give Misdirection – sometimes assessment tools seem to close doors to areas of passion or the interpretation can misdirect focus.
- Accuracy – depending on the circumstances under which an assessment is taken, the accuracy of the results varies.
- Expense – assessment tools may be time intensive and can be expensive.
Ideally assessments are administered because they will help the specific client, are administered by someone certified in that tool, and are immediately followed by coaching with someone who has completed the coach training for full coaching certification.
