There can be comfort in structure. It’s why people love checklists, frameworks, and coaching programs. It feels like progress. You sign up for something structured and packaged, maybe a six-week executive coaching program with a workbook and a calendar of sessions — group calls on Tuesdays, recorded modules on Thursdays, a LinkedIn group thrown in for good measure. On the surface, it all looks very helpful. But there are differences when you compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching.
There’s a reason why some people get a dramatic outcome from coaching whilst others walk away with nothing more than a few bullet points they’ll never revisit. The difference isn’t just the content. It’s also the context. That’s where tailored coaching often has the advantage.
In this article we compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching, evaluating what each type of coaching is and the advantages and disadvantages.
Before we compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching, you can find out more about exactly what executive coaching is by reading our article ‘What is an Executive Coach?’ |
Table of Contents: Compare Executive Coaching Programs with Tailored Coaching
Compare Executive Coaching Programs with Tailored Coaching: What is an Executive Coaching Program?
Before we compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching, let’s define what we mean by ‘program’. An executive coaching program is usually a structured, pre-determined, time-bound process, often delivered online. Such programs can include anything from downloadable workbooks and pre-recorded modules, to live group sessions. There are a large variety of programs available out there, from those designed for niche topics through to those covering a breadth of concepts with a broadbrush approach.
Pre-built programs can be useful. Especially if you’re early in your career, or if you just want a general overview of coaching interventions — for example, how to improve confidence, boundaries or communication styles. A good program will introduce useful concepts and help you reflect. A great one might even help you identify a few blind spots.
But let’s not pretend they’re bespoke. The very thing that makes them scalable also makes them blunt.
The Limits of Generic Coaching Programs
Such programs are designed to try to cover as many people and business situations as possible. Even when targeted at a particular topic, by their nature such programs still need to appeal to as many people as they can.
No pre-designed course can account specifically for your business model, your team dynamics, the real reasons behind your stress, the stakeholders who are crucial to your progress and so on. You inevitably end up trying to squeeze your real-world experience into the mould of the content.
That’s not to say that executive coaching programs are inherently flawed. Many provide valuable insight and direction, especially for those looking for general content or an overview of a topic. But there’s a big difference between something that gives you some insight and something that solves your problems and progresses you to precisely where you want to be.
For example, take a founder in New York who’s leading a rapid-growth SaaS company with major culture issues post-Series A. A six-week modulated course probably isn’t going to be sufficient or fast enough. You don’t need a standard framework in this situation. You need a coach who can who can understand the specific politics, the people, the pressure and respond in real time with highly effective and precisely appropriate interventions.
That’s what really good tailored coaching does.
Compare Executive Coaching Programs with Tailored Coaching – When Tailored Coaching Can Provide Better Results
As we compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching, we turn now to tailored coaching. Tailored coaching does exactly what it says on the tin – it is precisely tailored to your unique circumstances and adapts as your situation adapts. It can be 1-on-1, team or group coaching, or even coaching provided throughout your organisation – regardless of the scale the approach is still the same, bespoke coaching that cuts out everything you don’t need and goes in-depth for everything you do.
Time Optimisation
If you’ve got a specific challenge — say, you’re a senior executive in London trying to navigate a major leadership restructure — then every hour matters. Spending several weeks watching videos or attending a weekly webinar is probably not going to be moving you far forward, and certainly not at the pace you need.
A single session with a coach who understands executive coaching and who can work with you personally, can do far more for your progress than any pre-built, pre-packaged program.
The False Economy
Here’s another myth: that executive coaching programs are cheaper. They can look to be, when compared on a hourly rate to individual executive coaching. But anything that you are spending on a standardised course that doesn’t actually solve your problem or take you to the next level is not a good deal.
If you work with a really good executive coach you can achieve in one hour what you would be lucky to achieve in months with a generic coaching program.
If it helps to know more detail about executive coaching costs when you compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching, you can see our article ‘How Much Does Executive Coaching Cost?’ |
What You Can’t Automate
There’s a lot of talk about AI replacing coaches – for the content-driven, generic end of the market, it probably will. AI can already churn out decent general leadership advice for example. It can even give you some diagnostic tools and frameworks.
But really good coaching is about being creative, suggesting new and unique solutions and working on a highly personalised basis – not just regurgitating commonly-cited information. It’s about seeing what someone won’t say, hearing what’s missing from the story, noticing the moment when someone looks unsure and asking why.
For example, if you’re a senior executive in New York working under pressure and managing competing priorities and political dynamics, the last thing you need is a one-size-fits-all model. You need a coach who gets it. Who understands the pace, the demands and the nuances of executive coaching in New York. Someone who can meet you at your level and move with you.
The ‘Bonus Value’ of Tailored Work
Here’s what most people don’t anticipate when they come into one-on-one coaching: the unexpected extras.
You show up with one problem. We solve it. Then suddenly there’s time left, we dig a bit more and what often comes up is something you didn’t even know was holding you back – often this can be more significant than the original reason you sought out coaching for.
That’s where the extra return on investment comes from. Not just in the speed of results, but in the depth of transformation.
Clients who have come wanting just to address issues around team performance have left not only having improved their team, but also having restructured their entire decision-making process into something exponentially better.
Others have arrived wanting tips on board communication and left not only with that. but also with an ambitious five-year vision and strategy.
That kind of impact just doesn’t happen in a pre-recorded or pre-prepared program.
For more insights about the usefulness of executive coaching for CEOs, read our article ‘Is Executive Coaching Worth it for CEOs’ |
Context Matters
Executive coaching programs can be a valuable tool to develop your general executive skillset. They are especially useful if you’re new to business, want a soft-touch starting point, or just need an overview of some basic skills and techniques.
But if you’re serious about making real, significant progress, especially if time and momentum matter, tailored coaching will take you much further, much faster.
It’s not just the outcomes. It’s also the process, the relationship – it’s the difference between a training resource and a transformational tool.
Whether you are based in London, New York or anywhere else, it’s worth investing in someone who understands your landscape. For example, executive coaching in London comes with a very different approach and cultural tone than executive coaching in New York does. The problems may be similar, but the context is not.
So the next time you want to compare executive coaching programs with tailored coaching, ask yourself this: Do I want more general knowledge without urgency? Or do I want rapid, targeted change?
Explore whether executive coaching is useful for you in our article ‘Is Executive Coaching a Good Investment?’ For more insights about how to choose executive coaching that improves performance and results, read our article ‘Best Executive Coaching Services’. To discover what the highest levels of executive coaching can provide, see our article ‘Advanced Executive Coaching’. |
Compare Executive Coaching Programs with Tailored Coaching: Our Tailored Executive Coaching Approach
At Mary Taylor & Associates we have worked with executives at the highest levels —CEOs, partners, founders, and board members — across the UK, US, and beyond. We have over 20 years’ experience of cutting through complexity, delivering clear solutions, and achieving tangible results. From unblocking growth to strengthening leadership teams, our executive coaching delivers where it counts.
Mary Taylor combines significant expertise as a corporate lawyer, psychologist and accredited coach, offering a truly unique approach with over 20 years’ experience working with senior professionals. This multifaceted background enables Mary to deliver new insights, creative solutions and measurable results.
We tailor every session to the client, leaning not just into their goals, but also into their world. We stay focused on the outcomes that matter and stand behind all of our work with a full client satisfaction guarantee.
If you’re ready to move past general information and into focussed action, we’re ready to help.
