Return on investment guaranteed: effecting transformation and sustaining change with coaching

Purpose – This paper aims to demonstrate how commercially effective business coaching can and should be implemented. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on both external sources and personal experience both as a coach herself and as the Director of Coaching for a specialist coaching company, the author discusses the main obstacles to successful coaching and how they should be overcome to maximise the return on investment for the sponsoring organization. Findings – The piece delivers accessible suggestions for increasing the return on investment of coaching programmes. Practical implications – With these suggestions in mind, the common pitfalls can be avoided, allowing companies access to the best, and most profitable, coaching. Originality/value – Where other authors examine the benefits of coaching in terms of productivity and personal benefit for employees, the author brings into play the often‐forgotten commercial element, explaining how to ensure that the coaching implemented is a success in every sense.