Ethical Guidelines and Standards Flashcards

A coach discovers that two of their current clients are in a direct competitive conflict within the same organization. The CELC ethical standard requires the coach to:

Answer: Disclose the situation to both clients, assess the conflict, and likely decline to coach both parties

Coaching two clients in direct conflict creates a dual relationship that compromises neutrality and objectivity; ethical practice requires transparency and likely disengagement from one or both relationships.

The CELC ethical standard on fees and compensation requires coaches to:

Answer: Clearly communicate all fees, payment terms, and financial arrangements before the engagement begins

Transparent communication about all financial arrangements prior to contracting is an ethical requirement that prevents misunderstandings and maintains the integrity of the coaching relationship.

Which action by an executive coach would most clearly violate the ethical standard of non-discrimination?

Answer: Declining to coach a client solely because of the client's religious beliefs

Refusing to coach a client based on protected characteristics such as religion constitutes discrimination and violates the CELC ethical standard of providing coaching services equitably.

A coach is invited to present at a conference and plans to use a case study based on a client engagement. What is the ethical requirement?

Answer: The coach must obtain explicit written consent from the client or ensure complete anonymization that makes identification impossible

Using client information for professional purposes requires either explicit client consent or thorough anonymization that makes the client entirely unidentifiable.

What does the CELC ethical standard of 'maintaining appropriate coach presence' primarily refer to?

Answer: The coach's ability to stay fully engaged, aware, and attuned to the client without projecting the coach's own agenda

Coach presence refers to the ethical and professional capacity to be fully attentive and responsive to the client, listening deeply without allowing the coach's own biases or agenda to interfere.

An organization asks an executive coach to use coaching sessions to gather performance data on a client to support a termination decision. The ethical response is to:

Answer: Decline this role since it fundamentally compromises the coaching relationship and the client's trust

Using coaching as a covert performance evaluation tool fundamentally violates the trust and confidentiality that define the coaching relationship and is categorically unethical.

Under CELC standards, what is the ethical basis for maintaining ongoing supervision or peer consultation as an executive coach?

Answer: Supervision supports the coach's ongoing development, ethical decision-making, and management of countertransference

Supervision and peer consultation are ethical obligations that help coaches manage their own reactions, maintain objectivity, and continue developing competence in service of client welfare.