The impact of executive coaching on self‐efficacy related to management soft‐skills

Purpose – Executive coaching has become an increasingly common method to skill development. However, few rigorous empirical studies have tested its capacity to generate outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the links between executive coaching and self‐efficacy in regard to supervisory coaching behaviors. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reports on a pretest‐posttest study of a leadership development program using three training methods: classroom seminars, action learning groups, and executive coaching. Data are collected in a large international manufacturing company from 73 first‐ and second‐level managers over an eight‐month period. Findings – Results indicate that, after controlling for pre‐training self‐efficacy and other training methods, the number of coaching sessions has a positive and significant relationship with post‐training self‐efficacy. Results also show that utility judgment, affective organizational commitment, and work‐environment support have each a positive and significant relationship with post‐training self‐efficacy. Practical implications – The paper first suggests that an organization that wishes to improve its return on investment with regard to coaching should implement a program with multiple sessions spread over a period of several months. This paper also suggests that organizations should consider coaching from a systemic point of view, that is, taking into account not only the design but also individual and situational variables. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the scientific literature by investigating, with a solid methodological design, the capacity of executive coaching to increase self‐efficacy related to management skills.