5 Questions to Ask Before You Hire a Coach

A free guide for leaders exploring coaching for the first time — or looking for a better fit.

What's Inside

Hiring a coach is a significant decision. The right coach can shift how you lead, think, and navigate change. The wrong one wastes your time and money. This guide gives you five practical questions to ask any coaching firm — so you can make a confident choice.

01

"How will I actually work with my coach?"

What to look for in session structure

02

"What does a typical engagement look like?"

How the engagement unfolds

03

"How will I know it's working?"

Identifying progress markers

04

"What credentials should my coach have?"

ICF credential levels

05

"How do I know if this coach is right for me?"

What to look for in a chemistry session

Written by the coaching team at ReAlign — drawing on 30+ years of combined experience working with leaders in transition.

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In the Field

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When leaders treat AI as a strategic imperative rather than a technical experiment, they're really asking whether their organization can metabolize change without fracturing the relational fabric that makes any tool worth using.

Earning and sustaining trust in the age of AIMcKinsey & Company · Aug 20

The metaphor of whitewater for organizational chaos is apt because it names the thing we most resist about sustained uncertainty—that trying to control it only exhausts us faster.

Beyond the Page Podcast ~Confronting Meta-Change with Courage and CompassionChoice Magazine · Aug 19

The hardest leadership moves happen at the seam between public accountability and private innovation—where you're trying to rewire systems that were never designed to learn.

Advancing American healthcare: An interview with Seema VermaMcKinsey & Company · Aug 19

The instinct to draw lines between "us" and "them" isn't a character flaw—it's an adaptive response that breaks down when the world changes faster than our nervous systems can recalibrate, which is why belonging work is less about inclusion tactics and more about helping people metabolize uncertainty without turning it into threat.

How to Create a Future Where Everyone BelongsGreater Good Magazine · Aug 6

When we're flooded, the body often knows what the mind can't yet name — which is why learning to read its signals isn't self-care theater, it's survival intelligence for anyone who leads through uncertainty.

Happiness Break: A Body Scan for Calm and EaseGreater Good Magazine · Aug 6