NCC Coaching Trends 2009 #10: Roberta Hill

NCC Coaching Trends 2009 Interview No. 10: Roberta Hill

Roberta Hill, MCC, is another successful coach who is a member of the New Coach Connection discussion list. In her blog, Assessments Today, Roberta shares news and tips about the appropriate use of assessments by coaches and trainers. I have been getting Roberta’s newsletter for several years, and knew she had a good grasp of assessments as used in the real world by coaches, so I was excited to have her as a guest in this series.

Roberta describes herself as a lay person when it comes to assessments, so I wanted her to respond to my views about coaches and assessments. Her response was articulate and insightful..

Here are my three observations about coaching and assessments, as I originally stated in my own interview for this series where I told why I think coaching is only just now emerging as a true profession, and has a long way to go.

1. Unless they bring it with them from previous life experiences, coaches lack an understanding of psychometric theory and basic statistics necessary to evaluate the validity and reliability of assessment instruments,
2. Coaches lack training in the ethical and appropriate use of assessments and the information derived from them, and
3. Due to this lack of professional training, coaches don’t know about and are unable to access the best assessments available, since vendors require proof of training before selling these tools.

As expected, while agreeing with me on several points. Roberta had her own slant to share. To start out, she made the important observation that many coaches are taught the mechanics of using an assessments without knowing the science behind them. Both mechanics and science are needed for the use of assessments to become an art. Roberta then outlined six trends in the use of assessments in the coaching community.  Listen to the recording to get it all.

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Click on the arrow to the listen to the interview now (38 min.). Or right click on the following link to download the MP3 file.

NOTE: This interview was not about how to use any one assessment tool or procedure. The March 2009 issue of Choice: The Magazine of Professional Coaching, will feature articles on assessments by Roberta and other leading figures in the coaching world. This issue will provide a valuable overview on the topic.

In lieu of promoting one of her own products or services, Roberta asked us all to consider making microloans to men and women in developing countries through Kiva.org. By loaning, not even giving, as little as $25.00 you can make a huge difference. My wife Nan and I will probably spend twice that or more when we celebrate our anniversary. Join her 1-Focus lending team or start your own!

Your host for the NCC Coaching Trends 2009 series is Don H. Morris. Don is a life and relationship coach in Memphis, Tennessee. Learn more at donhmorris.com. He is also the list manager for the New Coach Connection discussion list hosted on Yahoo Groups.