CELC Ethical Guidelines and Standards 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An executive coach discovers that their client is engaged in financial misconduct that harms employees. According to CELC ethical standards, what is the coach's primary obligation?
- Immediately report the misconduct to authorities without informing the client
- Confront the client about the behavior and clarify the limits of confidentiality as established at contracting (Correct answer)
- Continue coaching without addressing the issue to maintain confidentiality
- Terminate the engagement immediately and inform the client's board of directors
Correct answer: Confront the client about the behavior and clarify the limits of confidentiality as established at contracting
CELC ethical standards require coaches to address concerns directly with the client and reference confidentiality limits discussed during contracting, rather than unilaterally reporting or ignoring the issue.
Question 2: Which principle best describes why executive coaches must avoid giving direct advice or telling clients what to do?
- Legal liability prevents coaches from offering recommendations
- Coaching preserves client autonomy and self-determination as a core ethical value (Correct answer)
- Clients are not capable of following advice effectively
- Direct advice falls outside the billable scope of coaching services
Correct answer: Coaching preserves client autonomy and self-determination as a core ethical value
Client autonomy and self-determination are foundational ethical principles in executive coaching, requiring coaches to facilitate the client's own insight rather than prescribing solutions.
Question 3: A coach is approached by the sponsoring organization to provide a detailed progress report on an executive client. What is the ethically appropriate response?
- Provide full details since the organization is paying for the coaching
- Decline entirely and provide no information to protect absolute confidentiality
- Share only information the client has explicitly agreed to disclose, as established in the three-party agreement (Correct answer)
- Ask the client informally if it is acceptable and proceed based on their verbal response
Correct answer: Share only information the client has explicitly agreed to disclose, as established in the three-party agreement
Ethical practice requires a three-party agreement that clearly defines what information will be shared with sponsors, and coaches may only share what falls within that pre-agreed scope.
Question 4: When must an executive coach disclose a potential conflict of interest?
- Only when the client directly asks about conflicts
- Before the coaching engagement begins or as soon as the conflict arises during the engagement (Correct answer)
- After the engagement concludes to avoid biasing the relationship
- Only if the conflict materially affects the coach's financial interests
Correct answer: Before the coaching engagement begins or as soon as the conflict arises during the engagement
CELC ethical guidelines require proactive, timely disclosure of conflicts of interest either prior to contracting or immediately when a conflict emerges during the engagement.
Question 5: An executive coach realizes mid-engagement that the client's issue has evolved into a clinical psychological matter beyond the coach's competence. The ethical action is to:
- Continue coaching since the coach has established rapport and ending would be harmful
- Seek additional training immediately and continue the engagement without informing the client
- Acknowledge the limits of coaching competence and refer the client to an appropriate mental health professional (Correct answer)
- Consult a peer coach and proceed with the coaching work
Correct answer: Acknowledge the limits of coaching competence and refer the client to an appropriate mental health professional
Coaches are ethically required to recognize the boundaries of their competence and refer clients to qualified professionals when issues fall outside those boundaries.
Question 6: Which scenario represents a violation of the CELC ethical standard regarding multiple relationships?
- Coaching an executive in a different industry than the coach's background
- Coaching a senior leader while simultaneously consulting for the same organization on a restructuring project (Correct answer)
- Coaching two executives from different companies in the same sector
- Coaching a client on both leadership presence and strategic communication goals
Correct answer: Coaching a senior leader while simultaneously consulting for the same organization on a restructuring project
Simultaneously holding coaching and consulting roles with the same organization creates a dual relationship that compromises the coach's objectivity and creates conflicting obligations.
Question 7: Under CELC ethical standards, what does the principle of 'do no harm' require of executive coaches?
- Avoiding all emotionally challenging conversations that might cause discomfort
- Ensuring that coaching interventions support the client's wellbeing and do not cause psychological, professional, or organizational damage (Correct answer)
- Refusing to coach clients who are in high-stress leadership roles
- Limiting sessions to no more than one hour to prevent emotional fatigue
Correct answer: Ensuring that coaching interventions support the client's wellbeing and do not cause psychological, professional, or organizational damage
The 'do no harm' principle requires coaches to consider the holistic impact of their interventions on the client's wellbeing and avoid actions that could cause harm across psychological, professional, or organizational dimensions.
CELC Ethical Guidelines and Standards 2
An executive coach discovers that their client is engaged in financial misconduct that harms employees.
According to CELC ethical standards, what is the coach's primary obligation?