ABSTRACT
The subject of why some leaders and managers are reluctant to be coached is more complex than it at first appears. What does a ‘reluctant’ leader or manager look like, and how is this reluctance both manifested and understood? Surely, someone who is reluctant to be coached will make sure they are not a recipient of coaching! In some cases this is true, and we can only speculate about the reasons for their reluctance, but there is another group who do experience reluctance at the prospect of working with a coach, and for whom it is difficult to decline the offer of coaching. This may be because it is part of a leadership development programme, part of an organisation-wide initiative to foster particular behaviours, or for other reasons of this kind, where there is an expectation (possibly from a higher authority) that the leader or manager will be coached.
