Ever imagined yourself sitting elbow-to-elbow with a roomful of C-suite leaders and business owners? Except this time, it’s not you who’s coming for advice. It’s them looking to you for guidance.
If you said yes, you’re not alone.
Plenty of coaches and would-be coaches see leadership coaching as the next level but the path isn’t always clear.
What does the work actually look like day to day? How’s it different from other coaching niches? And how do you even get started in a way that actually pays the bills?
That’s what this guide is here to answer.
You’ll get a clear picture of what business leadership coaching is, how it works, and the steps to start doing it yourself.
I’ll also break down niches you can focus on, what you can expect to earn, and the skills that get leaders coming to you for guidance.
By the end, you’ll know exactly what it takes and if you’re ready to step up and make it happen.
What Is Business Leadership Coaching?
Business leadership coaching is a niche for helping business owners, executives, and leaders hone their leadership skills. You’ll help them unlock their full potential, overcome business challenges, and create a positive impact within their organizations.
During your coaching sessions, you’ll work on their:
- Communication skills
- Time management practices
- Emotional intelligence
- Team collaboration dynamics
During the whole coaching process, you’re developing good leadership. Both within individuals and the whole organization, by empowering leaders to become their best selves.
What is leadership coaching (vs business leadership coaching)?
Both these areas share the goal of helping leaders grow. But there’s a key difference in scope.
- Leadership coaching: It’s a broader term for working with leaders at all levels and industries. You could work with managers in a corporate setting but also social and community leaders.
- Business leadership coaching: This zeroes in on leaders within business contexts. You provide more custom and strategic insights to accommodate their organizational needs.
What is business executive coaching (vs business leadership coaching)?
Both these niches revolve around providing support to businesses. But they work with different people and produce different outcomes too.
- Business executive coaching: You’ll work with senior leaders and top-level executives to develop strategies for high-pressure, high-stakes goals.
- Business leadership coaching: You’re helping a more general audience of managers, entrepreneurs, and leaders achieve more large-scale organizational outcomes.
What is corporate leadership coaching (vs business leadership coaching)?
These two services both focus on improving leadership skills and making a positive organizational impact. The difference lies in the how and why.
- Corporate leadership coaching: You guide leaders to align their leadership development plans with corporate strategy and culture.
- Business leadership coaching: You have wider goals, not limited to achieving alignment. It depends on the specific needs of the leaders you’re working with.
What Is a Business Leadership Coach?
A business leadership coach is a type of life coach who partners with business leaders so they can be more effective in their roles.
Think of a business leadership coach as a lighthouse keeper. You don’t steer the ship (and the hundreds of people depending on it). But you shine a light so they can find the best course forward.
Some of the most respected business leadership coaches in the world include:
- Robin Sharma: Bestselling author of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrarri, known for mentoring elite CEOs and world-class teams.
- Jay Abraham: A strategic advisor behind billions in business growth, helping leaders unlock hidden opportunities.
- John Mattone: Former coach to Apple’s Steve Jobs, specializing in leadership and cultural transformation.
While their styles differ, they all share one thing: they guide leaders to think bigger, act sharper, and get better results without taking the wheel for them.
What does a business leadership coach do?
Running a business and being a leader are two big roles to fill. That’s where leadership coaching comes in.
As a business leadership coach, this is what you’ll typically do:
- Give unique advice: Conduct personalized coaching sessions to help leaders overcome their leadership challenges.
- Encourage self-awareness: Inspire leaders to reflect on their strengths and uncover weaknesses for the sake of their personal and professional development.
- Equip with leadership skills: Guide clients so they develop better communication, time management, and decision-making skills.
- Provide impactful tools: Share methods and frameworks to enhance your client’s productivity and leadership style.
- Build stronger team dynamics: Guide leaders to develop emotional intelligence so they can have better relationships with their team.
Coaching business leaders is a rewarding career. You see the ripple effect, how your clients influence so many more people.
When a leader makes an impact, it doesn’t just change their business. It impacts their team, their clients, their family, and sometimes even their entire industry.
That’s why I also encourage industry leaders to get in front of an audience. Host their own virtual event. Guest on a podcast, and see how it makes a difference.
What do you need to be a business leadership coach?
To become a business leadership coach, you need:
- Experience or background in business, leadership, or management.
- A solid understanding of leadership development and business concepts.
- Growth and coaching mindsets for developing your client’s potential instead of giving direct advice.
- Core coaching skills, including active listening, powerful questioning, and goal setting.
- Business-building skills in marketing, sales, and client management, especially for running an online coaching business.
- Drive to continuously learn and develop as a professional coach.
- Certification or training from reputable leadership or executive coaching programs (optional).
4 Types of Leadership Coaching Niches
There are many aspects of leadership that clients need help with. Beyond business leadership coaching, there are other similar types of coaching niches you can explore:
1. Small business leadership coaching
You’ll focus on helping owners and managers of small businesses develop leadership skills for managing and improving team dynamics. With more close-knit operations and a smaller-scale business, they face unique challenges that you need to cater to.
- Annual salary: $60,000-$85,000
- Standout coach: Alan Melton focuses on building strong systems and leadership tools for sustainable growth.
2. Executive leadership coaching
Executive coaches help senior executives and C-suite leaders. You’ll focus on creating a strategic vision, high-level decision-making, conflict management, and increasing leadership presence.
- Annual salary: $90,000-$150,000+
- Standout coach: Marshall Goldsmith uses his practical, results-oriented coaching style to influence lasting change within leaders.
3. Behavioral leadership coaching
Behavioral leadership coaching helps leaders change behaviors and improve interpersonal communication. Guide clients as they develop their emotional intelligence, conflict resolution approach, and relationship management skills.
The principle is that doing the internal work is what truly makes an effective leader.
- Annual salary: $70,000-$120,000+
- Standout coach: Jennifer Kahnweiler, PhD‘s coaching approach transforms introverted leaders into confident and impactful ones.
4. Team leadership coaching
Team leadership coaches work with leaders to grow from each member’s strengths and weaknesses while making the team a cohesive and united unit. Think better employee engagement and collaboration.
- Annual salary: $75,000-$110,000
- Standout coach: Patrick Lencioni believes the key to business success is a healthier organizational culture built on trust, accountability, and teamwork.
How to Become a Business Leadership Coach
The path to becoming a business leadership coach takes some work. Here are actionable steps you need to follow:
1: Gain basic knowledge in leadership and business
To help your clients understand themselves, you must first understand them. Truly knowing where they’re coming from will make your coaching more impactful. You can:
- Read books, attend workshops, or take courses on effective leadership and coaching and leadership styles.
- Explore key leadership concepts like conflict resolution, negotiation, time management, and strategic decision-making.
- Get to know how businesses operate and what leaders need to focus on.
2: Develop your coaching skills
Being a great coach means mastering core coaching skills:
- Active listening: Fully focus on what your clients say and respond accordingly.
- Powerful questioning: Ask open-ended questions to inspire insights and self-discovery.
- Goal setting: Help clients define clear and SMART goals.
You can develop these skills by practicing with peers, enrolling in coaching training programs or learning from a mentor.
3: Get certified (optional but helpful)
Certification or any kind of formal training drills you down on competencies and ethics. It can help you give substance to your coaching sessions.
Leadership or executive coaching certifications can also open doors to corporate clients and higher-paying engagements.
If you decide to get one, make sure to choose a course that matches your niche. Go for those recognized by professional bodies like the International Coaching Federation (ICF).
4: Define your coaching niche and offers
Clarify who you want to coach. Are you serving:
- Emerging leaders?
- Senior executives?
- Entrepreneurs starting small businesses?
Based on your answer, choose a niche to specialize in and build leadership coaching offers unique to that specialty.
Your goal is to create packages or programs that tap into the actual needs of your target audience. With defined coaching offers, you can definitely stand out.
5: Build your online coaching business
Prepare to launch your online coaching business. If you’ll be doing things virtually, have applications for scheduling calls, hosting video conferences, communicating and collecting payment.
Consider these recommendations:
- Zoom for video meetings
- Calendly for booking appointments
- PayPal as a payment gateway
6: Secure clients and start coaching
Get coaching clients as a leadership coach effectively using:
- Client success stories or testimonials
- Social media content of your insights as a coach
- Email newsletters to continuously communicate with and attract clients
No matter which method you use to attract your first clients, the most important thing is to build strong coaching relationships.
When you connect genuinely with people, they’ll trust the brand you’re building.
7: Continuously improve your coaching and business skills
Leadership and business environments continuously evolve. You have to keep learning to stay relevant.
You can attend advanced coaching workshops and leadership development webinars from time to time. You can also stay current on business trends impacting your clients.
You can also learn how to become a business coach with this guide.
5 Business Leadership Coach Certification Programs
Organizations carefully consider your credentials before hiring you as a coach. One way to stand out is with a certification.
For business leadership coaches especially, you need a competitive advantage to earn your client’s trust and get high-paying clients.
Consider these top programs and training courses to get you started:
Business leadership coaching programs
Here are three leadership coaching programs from the most respected coaching and leadership development institutions;
- Center for Executive Coaching (CEC) Executive Coach Program: Gear up and learn executive and leadership coaching skills and tools. Best for coaches looking to coach senior executives.
- IIM Bangalore Certificate Programme in Leadership: This course blends coaching, leadership and behavioral sciences in one program. When you complete this, you’ll learn how to drive transformation at individual and organizational levels.
- School of Professional Studies Leadership And Performance Coaching Certification: This course is designed to help you impact your client’s individual and organizational performance with evidence-based coaching tools.
Business leadership training program
Aside from training as a coach, you can also train as a leader. Here are two leadership training programs
- Co-Active Training Institute (CTI) Leadership Development Program: Leaders learn how self-awareness and leadership frameworks can help in becoming more collaborative and agile. Best for coaches who want to put themselves in the shoes of their leader clients.
- Harvard’s Leadership Coaching Strategies: See how coaching strategies like active listening and feedback systems are used to develop talents and team performance.
How to Start a Business Leadership Coaching Business
Ready to become a business leadership coach? Starting your coaching business following this step-by-step guide:
- Clarify your coaching specialty: What area of business leadership coaching do you want to focus on? Narrowing your services makes it easier to attract the right audience and set yourself apart.
- Do the legal work: Register your business name and take care of any licences and permits that need to be filed.
- Build an online presence: Create a website and social media accounts so potential clients can easily find you.
- Develop your Magic Pill offer: Create coaching packages that feature your unique value proposition. Think unique and relevant approaches that actually make a difference in the lives of your clients.
- Build your brand authority: Stand in front of other people’s audiences during virtual events or podcast guestings. Do this to introduce what you do and increase reach.
- Sharpen your business skills: Learn about marketing and sales strategies to get coaching clients. Examples are leveraging client testimonials and asking for referrals.
- Improve based on feedback: Refine your coaching services and business model based on what works and what doesn’t.
How much do business leadership coaches make?
Your annual salary as a business leadership coach depends on your experience, reputation, and credentials. Here’s a rundown of what to expect:
- Beginner business leadership coaches (0-3 years): $40,000-$70,000
- Seasoned coaches with established practices (3-5 years): $75,000-$120,000
- Corporate business leadership coaches working with large organizations: $130,000+
If you want to know how much the salaries of leadership coaches are in general, check out this guide.
Lead the Way
The impact of business leadership coaching goes beyond you. You transform both individuals and the hundreds of other people in their organization.
To be a leadership coach, you need a blend of leadership knowledge, coaching skills, and business support.
With the right training and tools, having a successful business leadership coaching business becomes within reach.
Grow your coaching potential with a tried-and-tested system that has produced real results.
With my signature coaching program you can focus on what you do best while we help you follow through and land premium clients by:
- Creating and packaging a highly scalable, highly profitable offer
- Finding dream clients that are ready to invest in their business and in you
- Getting those sweet yeses when you sell naturally and with confidence
Access the 3-Step Blueprint to Become a Highly-Paid Coach today.
