- Eight work groups will continue to meet throughout the year and hold discussions—providing recommendations to CPAC and the global Board to review. Work groups will focus on the future of the credentialing system, governance, carry-over activities relating to current process, assessment process improvement, quality coach learning, and body of knowledge.
- In January, the Board approved a credential reinstatement policy-view information
 . - In March, the Board approved definition of ICF Mentor Coaching was announced through Coaching World—view article . See timeline information above. The Association of Coach Training Organizations (ACTO) offers the following documents to assist with Mentor Coaching: Choosing a Mentor Coach , Recommended Practices to be an Excellent Mentor Coach , and Mentor Coaching Duties and Competencies .
- In May, an enhanced online credential application was introduced (no changes in credential requirements were made at this time).
2010
- At the January Board meeting, the Board discussed the purpose of ICF's Credentialing system and determined it was to:
- Protect and serve consumers of coaching services;
- Measure and certify competence of individuals; and
- Inspire pursuit of continuous development.
Following this clarification, the Board voted to maintain the existing three-tier credentialing system in place at least until January 2012. - It was also decided by the Board, that CPAC should be tasked with developing standards that will enhance the credentialing program while supporting its three-fold purpose. To help guide the Committee's work, the Board prioritized a list of topics and questions from the comments and input received by members and others during last year's credentialing proposal open comment period. Recommendations resulting from the work of the Committee were scheduled to be submitted to the ICF membership and others for comment, and then based upon results, submitted to the Board for approval and implementation.
- In February, two additional credentialing teleforum calls were held, allowing coaches to offer additional input on credentialing enhancements.
In March, the Board approved a two-year work plan presented by CPAC. The work plan involved the assistance of several work groups to be populated by ICF members and other stakeholders. The groups would review: - The current system;
- Governance of the credentialing process;
- Assessment process of applicants; and
- Qualifications of credential applicants.
- An application to participate in the credentialing work was made available on April 30.
- Later in the year, following comprehensive orientations for all work group participants, several work groups started their meetings to discuss a variety of topics. Discussions around the following topics occurred:
- A draft survey to verify the accuracy of client logs submitted with credential applications. A beta test of the survey was conducted successfully. The next step is to draft a proposal for the policy as a recommendation CPAC;
- A working/operational definition of Mentor Coaching and best practice guidelines to underpin this definition;
- A lapsed credential reinstatement policy;
- An assessable definition of coaching mastery for an interim refinement of the MCC credentialing exam process and exam process improvement recommendations, including review of the current MCC oral exam process. The work group drafted a recommendation for interim steps for improvement. The next step is for this recommendation to be reviewed for input by ICF members who have volunteered as reviewers and by the ICF Assessors prior to going to CPAC for review and submission to the global ICF Board; and
- Governance-it was discussed that it is in the best interest of the credentialing program if it is financially and managerially independent from the ICF.
For details on previous years, please download the ICF Credential Program Enhancements Overview document here. Additional Supporting Materials (all items are PDF format unless noted) | 
Why is the ICF refining its current
credential program?
Over the past several years, ICF has heard concerns from members about the current credentialing system related to fairness, consistency, and capacity. In order to continue to meet the growing global need for the ICF Credential, the ICF is taking steps, with the support of CPAC along with other volunteers, to refine the current credentialing system. Credentialing is about achieving professional status, ensuring ongoing education, and professional coaches making a commitment to staying current with knowledge and practice. The current system was developed over 10 years ago by visionary coaches and educators when ICF and coaching were both in their infancy. It is now time to build on the excellent foundation we have to ensure that our credential is globally consistent, fair, and administered in a timely fashion for our worldwide membership. 2011 Credentialing and Program Accreditation Committee (CPAC) Members Edmee Schalkx, PCC, Chair
Sören Holm, PCC, Vice-chair
Maryellen Myers, MCC, Vice-chair
Deborah Avery, PCC
Diane Bonneau, MCC
Sheri Boone, MCC
Hope Langner, MCC
Margaret Mann, MCC
Patricia Mathews, MCC
Maria Carneiro, PCC
Carmen Cordova, PCC
Flaminia Fazi, PCC
Connie Friman, PCC
Shyam Malhotra, ACC
Patricia Marum, PCC
Denise Pang, PCC
Frances Paquette, PCC
Daniela Trocan, PCC
Sandy Weiner, MCC Members of CPAC serve as the leads and co-leads of work groups supporting work on ICF's Credentialing Program. |
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