When does an industry formally become a profession? The question is an

increasingly apt one for the world of business and executive coaching,

which has enjoyed extraordinary growth in the past 10 to 15 years.

While some argue that the coaching industry is slowly coming of age,

historically anyone with business experience across a wide range of

sectors – from real estate to psychiatry – has been able to hang out a

shingle. Without any clear qualifications or barriers to entry, coaching

is a free-for-all – anyone can be one.