Designed with organizations in mind, the Atom Wave ICF Level 1 certified course for Internal Coaching is the only program in Greek specifically designed to integrate internal coaching within the organization. It equips participants with professional coaching skills for use in organizations, as well an operating framework that will allow them to combine professional coaching services with their functional role.
Internal coaching is the offering of coaching services provided by professionally trained certified member of the organization, who undertake coaching assignments with colleagues outside their line management responsibilities to support their professional development. The Internal coaching process is supported by the organization.
Internal coaching is one of the most effective strategies for creating a coaching culture, supporting organizational transformation, and increasing agility.
You will be able to coach with a pragmatic and brief coaching methodology, the Solution Focus which is particularly fit for the business environment.
You will learn how to use tested, practical coaching tools tailored to leadership and performance based on our experience of implementing coaching within organisations.
You will be able to design and manage an A-Z coaching assignment as you will be equipped with a full coaching KIT. Everything from the Coaching forms, to the detailed process steps, all the key factors to anticipate in communicating the program internally and educating the involved stakeholders (prospective coachees, coachees' bosses, top management).
As a coach you will feel empowered with a Solution Focused coaching mindset, your clients will get high ROI from a professional coaching service, and HR will grow its impact through supporting capacity building and transformation through coaching leaders through it.
Should you decide to work as an external coach, you will be even more equipped to handle executive coaching assignments as internal coaching is amongst the most complex forms of coaching offerings.
This program is designed for offering professional coaching within organizations. As such, it is addressed to selected members of an organization from ANY FUNCTION, who:
Admission Process
Admission is finalized after an interview with the Program Director about professional experience, aspirations for coaching, and a discussion of the suitability of this course to individual needs.
Module 1 focuses on the basics of coaching conversations and practice of the coaching skills required for a successful coaching relationship.
Workshop Topics
How to build an environment of trust within an internal coaching relationship?
When to coach and when not to: The Formula of Change
What is the structure of a coaching conversation?
What do we ask when we ask? The Solution Focus approach
What are the competencies for a coaching conversation: The ICF Competencies in Action
Duration: 2 days
Location: Athens, Dates TBA
In-Between Modules 1 & 2:
Peer Group Practice
Module 2 focuses on deepening coaching skills while tackling practical applications of coaching within the organizations.
Workshop Topics
Coaching Ethics and client cases
"Bracketing" the Manager role and transitioning into Internal Coach role
How to run an A-Z internal coaching assignment: Process & Flow
Internal Coaching Applications, indicatively IDPs, 360 fb, Check-in, Career decisions, collaborations
Practicing and observing the ICF Core Competencies
DATES: Live webinars on Thursday 17:00 - 20:00 for eight weeks between Module 1 & 2.
Workshops are highly interactive and take place via the ZOOM Platform.
In-Between Module 2 & program completion
Peer Group Practice
Real Client Practice
Module 3 focuses on consolidating learning through Live coaching with real clients and application of coaching competencies.
Workshop Topics
How to manage an A-Z coaching Assignment
• Creating an internal Coaching Framework with ROI
• Practicing and observing the ICF Core Competencies
• Live Coaching with real clients & Mentor Coaching
• Me as a coach and my next steps
Duration: 2 days
Location: Athens, Dates TBA
"... in the past I was expert in solving problems, now I am an expert in finding solutions"
"On a practical level, my colleagues and my manager noticed that I have changed the way I handle communications both orally and written. I am now focusing on what has worked and on strengths and I was told that this helps people "unlock" ..."
Using solution focus methodology helps you to delve deeper into a person's issue and shows the path for improvement/change without making any reference to the problem itself at all. As a coach you need to focus on the person's strengths & achievements, trigger the proper questions and the solution is there coming straight away from the coachee himself/herself it's amazing!
Bilalis Nikolaos - Head of HR Business Partnering Central Units / Internal Coach program participant - EUROBANK
It has exceeded expectations! The blended methodology of workshops, social learning digital platform and group peer / mentoring sessions accommodates for the different learning styles of the participant group, whilst pushing individual comfort zones.
Alexandra PHILIPIDOU - HR Manager & Internal Coach Certification participant - Praxia Bank
Our coaching methodology is based on the Solution Focus. The approach values practicality and is especially suited for working with leaders within organisations. The focus is on working with people strengths through defining the what is wanted, discovering the what is working and what contributed to that and on making practical progress. It leads to a positive and pragmatic way to work within organisations and beyond coaching it is helping instill a new culture of addressing people at their resources. For a short introduction to Solution Focus coaching watch our video here. More information about our Solution Focus Coaching Methodology here.
Olympia Mitsopoulou founded Atom Wave (then H2gO) in 2002. Since then, Coaching programs for over 100 client organisations internationally have been designed. Amongst client organisations are: AB, Alpha Bank, AXA, Eurobank, IKEA, L'oreal, Philip Morris, Vodafone.
The Atom Wave "Solution Focused Coaching Skills" program for Leaders was shortlisted for the 2014 European and Mentoring Coaching Council (EMCC) Best program award. In 2017, the ICF ACSTH "Internal Coach Certification" program was designed to address the challenges of the internal coaching. Measuring business impact and ROI of coaching is an inherent part of Atom Wave programs and it has developed the "Zoom In - Zoom OutTM" model for measuring Business Impact and ROI of Coaching.
Olympia is credentialed PCC coach by the ICF (International Coach Federation), Program Designer and Director of the Atom Wave "Internal Coach Certification" ICF ACSTH program , Certified by Coach U, Certified by SolutionSurfers in BRIEF Coaching and Team Coaching, and by AXIALENT in Conscious Business coaching. She is also a trained assessor for the European Individual Accreditation and the European Quality Award for the European Mentoring and Coaching Council. Her academic background is in Occupational Psychology (B.A. American College of Greece & M.Sc University of Wales, College of Cardiff).
Olympia is based in Lausanne, and splits her time between working in Switzerland and Greece.
Marialexia Margariti is an organizational psychologist (M.Sc.) & Certified Psychotherapist (M.A., ECP), Professional Certified Coach by the ICF (PCC), EMCC Assessor of training providers (EQA) & coaches seeking individual accreditation (EIA) and supervisor.
She spent a large part of her career in the corporate world, starting in the area of Human Resources, and later in the areas of brand management and advertising at European and global levels.
She has coached senior managers, individually & in teams, for more than 1.500 hours and has worked as senior trainer in large coaching & mentoring programs at local and international levels.
In the last couple of years she is supervising teams of students in coaching training programs (internal & external coaches).
Marialexia has served as Vice President Quality in EMCC's International Executive Board responsible for matters related to Ethics, Regulation, Diversity & Inclusion, competencies & CPD for coaching/mentoring/supervision. She is a founding member and former President of EMCC Greece. She is also member of European Association of Psychotherapy (EAP), National Organisation of Psychotherapy Greece (NOPG) and International Coach Federation (ICF).
Christiane is a Professional Certified Coach by ICF (PCC), Mentor-Coach ICF, Group Dynamics Trainer (DGGO) and EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management)-Assessor, ICF Assessor.
She brings more than 25 years of experience in management development for profit organizations in the pharmaceutical, automotive, telecommunications and insurance industry amongst others.
As Personal Development Manager and Department Head of Quality Management in an insurance company and Manager of Seminars in a software company, Christiane has gained internal experience of different organizational cultures and roles. Her intercultural competence widened while she lived and worked in China at Renmin University Beijing as visiting professor.
Her focus is change management, leadership, team and individual development in an international, fast-moving environment. She is a communications expert.
For the last couple of years her main focus has been on solution focused coaching with senior managers, career coaching, mentor coaching, intercultural training and working as a supervisor in the CAS (Certificate of Advanced Studies) “Leadership in Health Care”.
Her aim is to support people discovering and using their resources to achieve their best hopes by strengthening their self confidence.
She is fascinated by working in partnership with her clients, sharing insights, bringing humor and encouraging flexibility.
Since more than 10 years she is living in Switzerland close to Basel.
The program spans over a 10-week period. You should estimate an average of 2 -3 hours per week for practice and other course requirements not including attendance. Of course this varies according to each individual.
The Atom Wave “Internal Coach Certification” course offers LEVEL 1 coach education. The table below shows an indicative path to be eligible for the ICF ACC Credential.
Complete the Atom Wave "Internal Coaching Certification" training, accredited as coach education by the ICF.
Start coaching and get mentor coaching over a three-month period or longer with an eligible Mentor Coach including at least three hours of individual mentor coaching with a mentor coach.
Pass the Examination of Performance by submitting a recording and transcript that are at ACC level.
Completion of at least 100 client coaching hours following the start of your training.
Pass the ICF Credentialing Exam
Pay the required fees.
All the information about the process for accreditation at ACC level by the ICF are here.
The "Internal Coach Certification" is accredited as coach specific education for any type of coaching you may wish, even life coaching. However, it is focused on applying coaching within organizations and it was designed to meet the complexity of the role of the internal coach. If at some time after participating in this course, you decide to work as an external coach, you will be fully equipped with this course in terms of skills training as both internal and external coaches work in similar ways.
An Internal Coach is an employee within an organisation who has been trained and qualified as a professional coach practitioner and has specific coaching responsibilities with colleagues outside own line of management responsibilities.
Read about the role of coaching on change management schemes and how High-Performance organizations have relied on internal coaching to increase profitability.
What are the Internal Coaching DO's and DON'Ts? How is it different to external coaching. Download here a practical guide for your internal coaching scheme.
This is a very good question that is relevant not only for coaching but for most Leadership Development programs as well. Business Impact and measuring ROI is a core area of our own research about coaching and and as such we have incorporated in our ACSTH "Internal Coach Certification" program a simple yet effective methodology to calculate ROI of your internal coaching assignments.
In reality, Mentoring and Coaching can co-exist and compliment one another within organizations. Often the best mentors will practice elements of coaching in their mentoring discussions. However, they have different focuses and approaches. The key differences between Traditional Mentoring and Professional Coaching is that a mentor is an expert who provides wisdom, advice and guidance based on his or her own experience. The coaching relationship is a relationship of partnering and equality independent of hierarchical or professional differences. The coach is an expert in structuring thought-provoking conversations that help the client access their own resources and thinking around the topic. It does not include any advising or guidance from the coach.
