An exploration of executive women's experiences of coaching and mentoring : an interpretative phenomenological analysis study

The slow pace of women’s advancement to senior levels in organisations is an ongoing topical debate. Resolving this issue through appropriate developmental support interventions is the subject of much discussion. An understanding of the use of coaching and mentoring to address this individual, organisational and societal problem is, however, underresearched in a UK context, and more widely. In the coaching and mentoring literature there is limited research concerning the voice of the coachee/mentee and even less research relating to executive women. This study sought to address this deficiency and explore the experiences of executive women who have been coached and mentored, in order to gain an understanding of the role of these interventions and how they assisted the women’s development. Qualitative research was conducted using an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) methodology and involved semi-structured interviews with twelve executive women, all of whom worked at senior levels in UK organisations. The data were subsequently analysed using Smith, Flowers and Larkin’s (2009) interpretive framework. The findings highlight the positive impact of coaching and mentoring on the careers of the executive women in this study. Mentoring provided early career and psychosocial support, while coaching provided later support and challenge that encouraged the development of skills, authenticity and identity; aided coping with and adapting to the work environment; and in some cases assisted with broader life decisions. The participants’ subsequent commitment to coach and mentor others was a further outcome of this research. This study contributes not only to understanding the context of a coaching assignment involving executive women, the ‘experience’ of coaching and mentoring, and the importance of the coaching relationship, but also to the application of such learning to assist others. The implications of this research expand knowledge and provide new insights to add to the limited literature on coaching and mentoring executive women in the UK.

Grantor dc:publisher

Oxford Brookes University

Year dc:date

2014

Author dc:creator

• De-Valle, Paula Jane

Contributors dc:contributor

• Gannon, Judie M.
• Koning, Juliette

• Doctorate in Coaching and Mentoring
• coaching
• mentoring

Statement dc:rights

• All rights reserved

Language dc:language

en

DOI dc:identifier

https://doi.org/10.24384/376m-ma71

OAI identifier oai:identifier

tle:c38c50b1-40c7-4739-8fca-ef99b188635b:d6bd9758-527a-46cd-bfe2-c433766e8fca:1