Mentoring, coaching, consulting, and counseling are terms that tend to be confusing for managers. It is important to understand what each of these terms refer to so as to decide the best approach to follow at any given time in the workplace environment. Mentoring, coaching, consulting, and counseling are all leadership approaches that are different in their own right. All the same, they all advocate for the same objective which is the improvement of human performance. There is no leadership approach that is the best; each situation requires a different approach. The focus of this paper is to look into these four leadership approaches and the specific cases where each of them would be applicable. While mentoring, coaching, consulting, and counselling all make use of similar communication skills and they are aimed at improving human performance, they are all different in the specific roles that they accomplish.
The International Coach Federation defines coaching as the process of bringing clients together in a creative and thought-provoking process with the goal of inspiring them to maximize their professional and personal potential (McWilliams & Beam, 2013) . The goal of coaching is to improve behavioral performance and thus facilitate the success of the individual, both personally and professionally. The results of the coaching process are usually measured through the achievement of a certain goal. In the coaching approach, the coach helps groups or individuals to discover themselves and their abilities so that they can take charge towards the achievement of a certain goal. The focus areas in the coaching approach are the goals of the person being coached. The coach strives to help them discover their hidden potentials so that they can make the necessary performance and behavioral changes. The communication style used in coaching is non-directive, and it involves asking of questions, listening and giving feedback.
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A coach gets their students to get hands on in the task at hand as they watch them. They will then have them list down their ideal results when performing the specific task, compare them with the current results them work out a plan to achieve the goal. A real life example is a case where a worker is learning how to use the computer. The coach will have them use the computer to the extent that they know. They will then figure out the difference between the reality and the ideal results the plan how they will bridge the gap. The coach will be concerned in the measuring tracking of the worker’s results as they figure out ways that they can fine tune the training along the way. Coaching is most effective in a situation where an individual is highly motivated to accomplish some change and they just need someone to guide them through the process.
The goal of mentoring is to support and guide an individual towards professional and personal growth. The process of mentoring is usually conducted with the end goal being the succession of a certain post. In this approach, the mentor transfers tacit and formal knowledge best practices, skills, mind-set, experience, and wisdom to their mentee. The mentoring approach is mainly focused on the career/personal goal of the mentee (Briefi Group, 2019) . The communication style used in the mentoring category can be both directive and non-directive, and just like the coaching category, mentoring involves asking of questions, listening and giving feedback. The role of a mentor is to do something and have the mentee try to emulate the same. In this case, consider some workers who need to learn how a certain new software operates. In this case, the mentor will get to the computer and use the software from start to the end as the mentee watches. They will then have the mentee try and repeat what they just did, as they guide them through the process.
The goal of consulting is to transfer specific skills and knowledge to an individual. A consultant is an individual who is an expert in a certain technical or professional field, who is called upon for a specific need. Consulting is usually l earning-based on a learning curriculum that is pre-determined. The communication style used while training is more directive than non-directive, and it involves more of telling, advising, and asking of question (Priest, Kliewer, Hornung & Youngblood, 2018) . A consultant would come in handy when a worker needs to understand the functioning of certain equipment in the office. For instance, a consultant will guide a company through the process of strategy planning, problem solving, and planning for new purchases. Consider a company that needs to purchase new computers to enhance the operation of the workers. However, the management is not sure of how to go about with the process. In such a case, they will hire a consultant who will conduct an analysis of the company situation, the type, number, and specification of computers needed, and also assist in the budgeting and purchasing process.
The goal of counselling is to improve performance that is perceived to be below standard plan in this with the end results being focused on the improvement of performance. It is the duty of the counsellor to instruct, correct, and confront the person in question so that there can be behavioral and attitudinal change (Wild, Shambaugh, Isberg & Kaul, 2019) . The communication style used in counseling is similar to the one used in training. It is more directive than non-directive, and it involves more of telling, advising, and asking of question. Counselling is different from the other three categories in that counselors have been trained to help and diagnose a client who has emotional issues.
A counsellor would come in handy in a situation where a worker has experienced some past traumatic experiences that are hindering their proper functioning. For instance, a worker whose work needs them to travel around often might be traumatized by a tragic accident that they experienced when they were young. In such a situation as this, it would be important to connect the worker with a counsellor. The counsellor will guide them through the process of overcoming their fears so that they can perform their duties more comfortably.
Define Executive Coaching
Executive coaching is an advanced form of coaching whereby a trained coach is involved in a professional relationship with a client with the goal of enhancing the management or leadership performance of the client. The coach makes use of a couple of tools such as dialogue and inquiry to guide the client through the process of examining and developing their decision making process, experimenting with different thinking strategies, and taking up action steps to guide them towards the achievement of their. Executive coaching does not in any way involve telling people what they need to do. Rather, the coach gives the client the chance to experiment what they need to do based on their intentions (McWilliams & Beam, 2013) . Executive coaching works well for high potential employees within a company and it helps boost their effectiveness and productivity.
While mentoring, coaching, consulting, and counselling all make use of similar communication skills and they are aimed at improving human performance, they are all different in the specific roles that they accomplish. Coaching is the process of bringing clients together in a creative and thought-provoking process with the goal of inspiring them to maximize their professional and personal potential . The goal of mentoring is to support and guide an individual towards professional and personal growth, the goal of consulting is to transfer specific skills and knowledge to an individual, while that of counselling is to improve performance that is perceived to be below standard plan in this with the end results being focused on the improvement of performance.
References
Briefi Group. (2019). The differences between coaching and mentoring. Retrieved from https://www.brefigroup.co.uk/coaching/coaching_and_mentoring.html
McWilliams, A., & Beam, L. (2013). Advising, Counseling, Coaching, and Mentoring: Models of Developmental Relationships in Higher Education - The Mentor. Retrieved from https://dus.psu.edu/mentor/2013/06/advising-counseling-coaching-mentoring/
Priest, K., Kliewer, B., Hornung, M., & Youngblood, R. (2018). The Role of Mentoring, Coaching, and Advising in Developing Leadership Identity. New Directions for Student Leadership , 2018 (158), 23-35. Doi: 10.1002/yd.20285
Wild, J., Shambaugh, R., Isberg, J., & Kaul, P. (2019). Facilitation, Coaching, Mentoring, and Training: Understanding the Differences. Retrieved from http://www.amauta-international.com/iaf99/Thread3/Wild.html
