ICFH Business Development Cohort

Proposal: ICFH Business Growth Cohort (Pilot)

Need: A consistent theme across membership:

Coaches are skilled at coaching, but many are still working to build sustainable, consistent practices.

Common challenges:

  • Generating a steady flow of clients

  • Structuring and pricing offers

  • Marketing in a way that feels aligned

  • Retaining clients over time

The opportunity

Pilot a cohort of ICFH members focused on building viable, sustainable coaching businesses while also generating measurable outcomes for ICF Heartland reporting.

Proposed pilot

  • 5–10 ICFH members

  • Monthly sessions (60–90 min)

  • April/May launch

  • Virtual, facilitated, peer-driven

  • Structured to produce usable data by end of July

Focus areas

  • Client acquisition

  • Offer design and pricing

  • Marketing approaches

  • Client retention

  • Business tools and systems

  • Real-time problem solving

  • Data + reporting (key addition)

We will intentionally track outcomes to support July reporting:

  • Pre/post participant self-assessment (confidence, clarity, direction)

  • Number of clients gained during pilot

  • Revenue range changes (self-reported, optional bands)

  • Changes in offer structure or pricing

  • Session attendance and engagement

  • Qualitative feedback and case examples

Why this matters

  • Supports member sustainability

  • Increases engagement and retention

  • Expands the practical value of membership

  • Provides concrete impact data for ICF reporting

  • Additional value

  • Aligning with ICF continuing education credits.

Timing

  • Recruit: April

  • Launch: May

  • Data collection: Ongoing

  • Report-ready insights: NLT end of July

Do we need to vote?

Motion to approve a pilot with a ICFH member group, with a clear focus on both member impact and measurable outcomes for reporting.

Closing thought

There is a gap between being a trained coach and building a sustainable coaching practice. This pilot is a focused way to close that gap while generating meaningful data on member impact.