Employment Coaching

It’s a phrase many employment advisers will recognise:

“I just want a job with no stress.”

But what happens when a client is searching for something that doesn’t really exist?

In this final episode of the series, Claire explores how to respond when clients say they want a stress-free job.

She looks at why this isn’t really about the job itself - but about fear, perception, and confidence.

She shares practical ways to help clients break down what “stress” actually means, identify specific triggers, and begin building confidence in their ability to cope.

If you’re working with clients who feel stuck, overwhelmed, or fearful about returning to work, this episode will give you a simple, practical way to move the conversation forward.

Listening is one of the most important skills in employment coaching. But there’s a big difference between simply hearing what a client says and truly listening to understand them.

In this episode, Claire explores the concept of active listening and why it can transform your conversations with clients. She introduces the OARS method from motivational interviewing - a simple framework using open questions, affirmations, reflections and summaries - and explain how these responses can help clients feel heard, understood and supported.

She also shares one of the most powerful (and often overlooked) coaching techniques: the use of silence.

If you support people through job search, career change or employment barriers, these techniques can help you build stronger relationships and unlock deeper conversations with clients.

For more practical coaching tools and techniques, subscribe to the Employment Coaching newsletter or visit the Careerology website to explore our training courses for employment advisers and supported employment professionals.

LinkedIn has become one of the most powerful tools in the modern job market - yet many jobseekers are still using it in exactly the same way they use traditional job boards.

In this episode, Claire shares what she's learned from running LinkedIn training sessions with employment advisers and jobseekers.

She explores why LinkedIn is far more than a vacancy search platform and how it can be used for market research, employer engagement, and building meaningful professional connections.

She also highlights three common mistakes that jobseekers make on LinkedIn - and how employment advisers can help clients use the platform more effectively.

If you’re supporting clients with job search, career change, or employer engagement, this episode will give you practical ideas you can immediately share with the people you support.

For more practical tools and insights like this, subscribe to the Employment Coaching newsletter, or visit the Careerology website to explore our popular training course: Finding Jobs in the Hidden Market.

Caseload management is one of the biggest sources of stress for employment advisers - and yet it’s rarely talked about openly.

In this episode, Claire unpacks the real reasons caseloads become overwhelming.

Whether you’re drowning in referrals, stuck with clients who aren’t progressing, buried under paperwork, or struggling to discharge appropriately, this conversation will help you step back and see the bigger picture.

Claire shares the three core foundations of effective caseload management - successful beginnings and endings, efficient systems and processes, and strong clinical integration - along with a simple four-stage client journey framework that can transform throughput and reduce burnout.

If this episode resonates, subscribe to the Employment Coaching newsletter for practical tools and reflections each week - or visit the Careerology website to explore our Caseload Management training for employment teams who want calmer systems and stronger outcomes.

Job or career - does it really matter?

In this episode of the Employment Coaching Podcast, Claire explores a question that often divides opinion in supported employment: are we here to get clients a job, or to help them build a career?

She unpacks how the meaning of “career” has changed - from traditional linear progression to today’s fluid, boundaryless journeys.

She reflects on why focusing solely on quick job outcomes can sometimes lead to poor retention, and how one powerful conversation about future hopes, values and purpose can transform not only job satisfaction but long-term stability in work.

You don’t need to be a qualified careers adviser to do this well - sometimes one well-placed question is enough.

If you’re supporting clients into work and want stronger, more sustainable outcomes, this episode will give you a fresh lens to use in your practice.

********************

To receive more practical insights like this, subscribe to the Employment Coaching newsletter, or book a place on our Career Coaching Tools & Techniques training course.

Disclosure is one of the most complex and emotionally loaded conversations in supported employment - especially when a client’s health condition or disability isn’t immediately visible.

Should they tell an employer? When? How much? And what are the risks… or the benefits?

In this episode, Claire unpacks the practical and psychological realities of disclosure (or, as it’s increasingly called, managing personal information).

She explores the three broad client groups you’ll likely see on your caseload, the legal context around reasonable adjustments, and a simple five-step framework you can use to guide clients through this decision with confidence.

This isn’t about telling clients what to do - it’s about helping them make informed, empowered choices.

If you’re working in IPS, Connect to Work, or any employment support programme supporting people with hidden health conditions, this episode will give you clarity, structure and reassurance.

***********************

To receive more practical tools like this, subscribe to the Employment Coaching newsletter, or visit the Careerology website to explore our latest IPS and supported employment training courses.

Career decision making is something we support clients with every day - and yet it’s often one of the hardest parts of the work.

Some clients get stuck weighing up options, others swing from one idea to the next, and some simply can’t move forward at all, even when they’ve done “all the right thinking”.

In this episode, Claire explores four common ways people get stuck in career decision making - drawing on years of coaching practice and real client scenarios.

She looks at influence vs independence, research vs action, intuition vs logic, and preparation vs practice - and why getting stuck at either end of these spectrums can quietly stall progress.

This episode is designed as a reflective tool for employment advisers and employment specialists.

Whether you use it to think differently about a client on your caseload - or about your own career decisions - it may help unlock new insight and movement.

********************

To explore more reflective tools like this, subscribe to the Employment Coaching newsletter or visit the Careerology website to see our latest training for employment advisers and specialists.

Homework is a core part of many coaching and therapeutic approaches - yet in employment support, it’s often overlooked, rushed, or applied in a one-size-fits-all way.

In this episode, Claire explores what we really mean by “homework” in employment coaching, why it matters so much, and how the tasks clients do between sessions can shape motivation, confidence and progress.

She reflects on common mistakes, such as setting standardised tasks or overwhelming clients with too much to do, and explains why homework should always be tailored to the individual.

Claire also introduces her simple Three Cs model for setting effective homework - clarity, commitment and contingency - and explains how using this framework can strengthen the coaching relationship, provide valuable insight into a client’s situation, and help clients move forward in a realistic and sustainable way.

********************

For more practical reflections on employment coaching, supported employment, and day-to-day practice, you can sign up to the Employment Coaching newsletter - or contact us to discuss training for your service.

Sign up to the newsletter here: https://careerology.kit.com/employment-coaching

View our training courses:

https://careerology.org/adviser-training/

In this episode of the Employment Coaching Podcast, Claire tackles a topic that has become increasingly controversial in employment support: volunteering.

With IPS firmly established as a Place-Then-Train model, many services have concluded that supporting clients into volunteering is no longer appropriate.

But is that really what the IPS model says - or have we misunderstood it?

Claire explores where this confusion came from, why volunteering is not the same as pre-vocational training or sheltered employment, and how short, time-limited volunteering placements can support - rather than derail - competitive job outcomes.

Drawing on years of practice and service leadership, she shares three practical rules for using volunteering ethically and effectively within IPS.

This episode is likely to spark debate!

********************

Get weekly employment coaching tips with our free newsletter:

https://careerology.kit.com/employment-coaching

In this episode, Claire is joined by Mitch Mitchell, a training coordinator and long-standing supported employment practitioner, for a thoughtful conversation about what “everyone can work” really means in practice.

Drawing on decades of experience across supported employment and SEQF, Mitch shares real examples of working with people who don’t present as “immediately employable” - and how creativity, employer engagement and a strong belief in vocational profiling can open doors that might otherwise remain closed.

Together, Claire and Mitch explore unconscious bias, organisational fit, employer engagement, and why, under pressure, practitioners sometimes drift away from the very principles that underpin supported employment.

This episode is a timely reminder of why creativity, confidence and belief still matter - perhaps now more than ever.

Want to know more about Mitch’s training courses?

Email him at: [email protected] or find him on LinkedIn.

********************

Get weekly employment coaching tips with our free newsletter:

https://careerology.kit.com/employment-coaching