How to Get Sponsorship for Coaching as a Director
Coaching is not just for Executives. If you are a rising star in your organization, you can get coaching too! And yes, as much as $20,000.
(Supercorgi, Teddy the Corgi, Barcelona, Spain)
I got coaching sponsorship as a Group Product Manager with a budget of $12,000. I got a chance to work with someone so in demand now she only coaches VP and above from FAANG. She was and is an amazing human being.
When I was first thinking about leadership or executive coaching, there was no precedent. The company had a small L&D budget (~$300) and I had never heard of anyone else getting sponsored for coaching. So, I took a chance. I felt stuck and I felt the lack of mentorship, and it was impacting my ability to continue to scale my impact. I went to my manager and then the CEO. I pitched them on coaching as a part of my compensation increase, and it worked! They agreed to sponsor coaching and asked me to come back with options. And I found her.
When she first told me her price, I thought I misheard. When I got her invoice and saw the numbers, I thought I was reading it wrong. I was nervous to even open the PDF in the email after the first glance as if it would cost me money to open it. And then I thought, no way is my company going to approve this.
But they did.
And you can do it too.
Here’s how.
How to Ask for Sponsored Coaching
Focus on what the company gains. Many people frame their ask as: “This will help me address performance feedback or grow my career.” That's great, but what’s in it for the company? Flip the conversation and its head and frame it in terms of additional impact that you’ll be able to deliver.
“I want to improve my delegation, which will help my team get more done in a similar timeframe.”
“I want to work on strategy and influence, so can I get buy-in for larger projects and changes that will drive additional users or revenue.”
“I want coaching on better navigating a turbulent business environment and evolving leadership, so I can do the same for my team and increase morale.
Ask them to refer coaches if they agree to sponsor coaching. If they referred them, then they need to pay the cost right?
Some companies already have coaching they prefer to work with (e.g. Airbnb, Paypal, Google, etc). Make sure you ask (or ask your manager to ask) so if such agreements already exist you can take advantage!
Don’t let Learning and Development budgets anchor you on how much they’re willing to pay. At larger companies, approving $3000 is not very different from approving $20,000. To give you a sense, here’s how much you should budget for company-sponsored coaching:
Executive Coaching (VP, SVP, C-Suite): $20,000+ for 12 months
Leadership Coaching (Director+, Very High Potential Managers): $12000+ for 12 months
Entry level coaching (job search, out of pocket): $5000+ for 12 months
*Most coaches (myself included) give decent discounts for clients paying out of pocket— don’t let the upfront cost deter you from exploring!
Tie it to compensation negotiations (e.g. new job, regular performance-based raises, when you’re getting promoted, etc). It’s smart to negotiate for coaching as a part of your compensation package upfront.
Instead of a sign-in bonus, a $10k drop in base salary, or a relocation package, consider negotiating for ongoing coaching. Financially, $10k in base means $7k take home (vs. $10k+ for coaching). And if the coaching helps accelerate your career, you’ll get promoted sooner and make up that difference easily.
On the company front, supporting coaching may be easier to accommodate because it’s considered an expense (which may be a different department or budget entirely), and allows the company to better stay within compensation bands. Win-Win.
Putting It All Together
To start, in your next 1:1 or performance review, bring up coaching. Once you get a verbal “let’s learn more”, then invest some time in various options. Finally, when you have something, raise it in another 1:1 or share it via email before the discussion:
Hello [name], we've been discussing hiring a coach for me so that I can [be more strategic, be more empathetic, build influence]. This will (e.g. increase the success that [impactful project x] is a success; e.g. increase my bandwidth as a team leader to take on additional work like project xyz; e.g. help me develop and scale as a leader, which in turn allows Team A to hit goal X.)
I did research on potential options from courses to certifications and believe that working 1:1 with a coach is the most effective approach. After multiple conversations, I believe that Yue Zhao, former Chief Product Officer turned career coach, is the best fit. She has relevant experience as an operator, founder, and executive herself, and has been coaching for many years aspiring executives like myself. You can learn more about her and her coaching here: https://www.yuezhao.coach.
I have attached the invoice for the company to sponsor a 12-month engagement with her. I can also share a document with specific milestones we want to accomplish together and an invoice for the engagement. Please let me know if this or other additional information is needed.
There you have it. Tweak it to your voice and situation.
Remember, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.
And finally, if you are interested in working with me 1:1 on career coaching, you can Schedule a free intro session to get started!