The structure of a contracting session in coaching
Often people say that a contracting conversation sounds and feels quite procedural. It sounds like it but it doesn’t have to be it.
In coaching we rename contracting as goals and partnership and we put three elements to it.
- Agreeing on how coach and coachee will work together
- Explaining and defining coaching
- Exploring the coachee’s goals
Goals involves touching briefly on what the coachee is hoping to achieve. What is the reason for coming to coaching now? Do they have an overarching goal for the programme? A few questions to explore the importance and impact of those goals rounds this out.
The relationship stage covers three areas: the general atmosphere and dynamic the coachee wants to create; the level of assertiveness and challenge they would find helpful; and the level of accountability they want the coach to hold them to. Questions like “do you work best when you chase yourself on goals, or when someone else chases you?” and “how do you want to handle it if you haven’t completed your actions by the next session?” work well here.
Next steps explains what happens after the first session, for example that questionnaires will be sent to help the coachee think about their goals in more detail before the first proper coaching session.
Close with a brief reflection: what has the coachee noticed or learnt? What are they looking forward to?
A few principles worth keeping in mind
Leave as much as you can to paperwork. Agreements on timings, contracts and the like can be sent by email rather than talked through in the session itself.
Contracting in coaching is more than a set of technical agreements. There is an element of coaching within it, an opportunity to find out more about the coachee as well as reaching agreements about how you will work.
Options for structuring the contracting session
The contracting session can be done in a number of different ways, depending on coach and coachee availability, time pressures, and whether the coachee has experience of coaching. In all cases, starting the relationship with some form of contracting is important.
- Option 1 is a standalone contracting conversation before coaching begins, with no paperwork sent in advance. This is likely to be the first substantive conversation with the coachee and typically takes around 15 to 20 minutes.
- Option 2 involves sending paperwork and questionnaires in advance. The session starts with contracting and then moves into a coaching plan session. This tends to take 45 to 60 minutes.
- Option 3 suits coaches who are not yet using coaching plans. The contracting conversation is followed by a brief pause and then a standard coaching session on a topic of the coachee’s choice, usually within 60 minutes in total.
Tips for the contracting conversation
The first session has elements of coaching within it, but it is not a full coaching session. It has a slightly different purpose.
On timings, contracting typically lasts between 15 and 30 minutes. On planning, you can book the contracting session in advance, or move into it naturally when you first make the offer to coach someone.
On focus, you are aiming to identify a goal for the coaching programme, contract on how you will work together, and give the coachee a taste of what being coached feels like.
Use roughly half the available time on goal setting, asking enough questions to get a good sense of the goal, what achieving it would mean, and why this is the right topic to bring to coaching. Use the remainder to work through the contracting structure.
Coaches will naturally talk more during the first session than in standard sessions. That is fine, but aim to have the coachee speaking as much as possible. A few rules of thumb: have the coachee speak within the first minute rather than opening with a long explanation; always ask about a topic before sharing your view; and put practical information in emails wherever possible rather than explaining it during the session.
A note on confidentiality
Coaching is a confidential activity, within the standard safeguarding measures that all helping professions observe. It is not mandatory to discuss confidentiality during the contracting conversation, the paperwork you send, particularly the Code of Ethics, covers this clearly. Some coaches choose to raise it anyway to give the coachee reassurance. Do whatever works best for you and the coachee.
Final thoughts
In our coach training we teach contracting alongside the coaching plan session. It is good to know both structures and to be able to move between them smoothly. I hope this approach to the first session works for you, do let us know how you get on.
Contracting is one of the foundation skills we teach on our ILM Level 5 coach training. If you’re thinking about a coaching qualification, take a look at the course details or see upcoming dates.
