CELC Ethical Guidelines and Standards 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A coaching client shares information suggesting their company may be about to commit fraud. Which CELC ethical principle is most directly tested in this scenario?
- Continuing professional development
- Balancing confidentiality with legal and ethical obligations to report wrongdoing (Correct answer)
- Maintaining appropriate session frequency
- Using evidence-based coaching models
Correct answer: Balancing confidentiality with legal and ethical obligations to report wrongdoing
This scenario creates a tension between the confidentiality obligation to the client and legal or ethical obligations that may require disclosure, which is a core ethical dilemma addressed in CELC standards.
Question 2: What is the ethical purpose of establishing clear boundaries at the beginning of an executive coaching engagement?
- To limit the coach's liability and reduce the risk of lawsuits
- To define roles, expectations, and the scope of the relationship so both parties can engage safely and effectively (Correct answer)
- To ensure the client does not contact the coach outside scheduled sessions
- To prevent the client from developing emotional dependency
Correct answer: To define roles, expectations, and the scope of the relationship so both parties can engage safely and effectively
Clear boundary-setting at contracting creates a safe, structured container for the coaching relationship, clarifying roles and preventing confusion about expectations and scope.
Question 3: An executive coach is asked by a client to provide a reference for the client's new job application. Ethically, the coach should:
- Always agree because supporting client goals is the coach's primary obligation
- Decline immediately as any contact outside sessions is unethical
- Carefully assess whether providing the reference could compromise the coaching relationship or create a dual role, and discuss with the client (Correct answer)
- Agree only if the client offers additional compensation
Correct answer: Carefully assess whether providing the reference could compromise the coaching relationship or create a dual role, and discuss with the client
Serving as a reference creates a potential dual relationship and role confusion, requiring the coach to thoughtfully evaluate the impact on the coaching relationship before agreeing.
Question 4: Which of the following best exemplifies the CELC ethical standard of cultural competence in executive coaching?
- Using the same coaching framework universally regardless of client background
- Adapting coaching approaches to respect and incorporate the client's cultural context and identity (Correct answer)
- Avoiding discussion of cultural topics to remain professionally neutral
- Referring all clients from underrepresented groups to coaches from the same background
Correct answer: Adapting coaching approaches to respect and incorporate the client's cultural context and identity
Cultural competence requires coaches to recognize, respect, and adapt to the cultural identities and contexts of their clients as part of ethically sound practice.
Question 5: When a coach uses psychometric assessments as part of executive coaching, what is their primary ethical obligation regarding the results?
- Share results directly with the sponsoring organization for workforce planning purposes
- Ensure the client fully understands the assessment's purpose, limitations, and how results will be used before administering it (Correct answer)
- Use the results to diagnose the client's psychological conditions
- Keep the results entirely confidential from the client if the sponsor requests this
Correct answer: Ensure the client fully understands the assessment's purpose, limitations, and how results will be used before administering it
Informed consent requires that clients understand the nature, purpose, and use of any assessments before they are administered, and results generally belong to the client.
Question 6: A coach notices the client is consistently resistant to feedback and becomes defensive in sessions. The ethically sound approach is to:
- Document the resistance and share it with the sponsor as evidence of the client's unsuitability for leadership
- Name the pattern with the client and explore it as potentially valuable coaching material (Correct answer)
- Avoid giving feedback to prevent conflict and maintain a positive relationship
- Terminate the engagement immediately due to lack of client engagement
Correct answer: Name the pattern with the client and explore it as potentially valuable coaching material
Naming observed patterns and exploring them with the client is a coaching intervention that honors the client's autonomy while addressing behaviors that may be limiting growth.
Question 7: What distinguishes coaching from mentoring from an ethical standpoint in the CELC framework?
- Coaching is always shorter in duration than mentoring
- Coaching focuses on the client's agenda and self-discovery while mentoring involves the mentor sharing their own expertise and experience (Correct answer)
- Mentoring is only appropriate for junior employees while coaching applies to senior leaders
- Coaching requires formal certification while mentoring does not
Correct answer: Coaching focuses on the client's agenda and self-discovery while mentoring involves the mentor sharing their own expertise and experience
The ethical distinction lies in the coach's role as a facilitator of the client's own insight versus the mentor's role as a guide who shares personal experience and expertise.
CELC Ethical Guidelines and Standards 3
A coaching client shares information suggesting their company may be about to commit fraud.
Which CELC ethical principle is most directly tested in this scenario?