Executive Coaching Models: Which One to Use and When

The executive coaching models most coaches use with leaders are three-way contracting with the sponsor, GROW, CLEAR, OSKAR and coaching built on 360-degree feedback. None of them is exclusive to executives; what changes is how you apply them when a company pays, a sponsor expects results and the leader's behavior affects a whole team.

This article is about that executive context. If you want the general description of each model, read our guide to coaching models and methodologies, and for the many acronyms that circulate without a clear origin, which coaching frameworks are real.

                Key takeaways
                In executive coaching the first framework is the contract: coach, leader and sponsor agree on goals and on what information is shared.
GROW suits concrete decisions and performance goals; CLEAR suits longer engagements where the relationship and the context matter.
OSKAR helps a leader stuck in problem talk; 360 feedback gives the engagement an outside view to start from.
Most engagements combine several models in sequence.

            

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What makes executive coaching different?

Three things change the way you use any model with an executive:

There is usually a sponsor. The organization pays and expects something in return: a leadership behavior, a team result, a transition handled well.
Confidentiality has a third party. The leader needs to speak freely, and the sponsor wants to know whether the investment is working. You need an agreement on what goes back to the company.
Goals connect to the business. A personal insight matters, but the engagement is usually judged on what changes in how the leader works with others.

That is why the first framework in an executive engagement is not a session model. It is the contract.

What is three-way contracting with the sponsor?

Three-way contracting is an agreement between coach, coachee and sponsor (usually the leader's manager or HR) at the start of the engagement, often with a review meeting halfway and at the end. It answers three questions: what should change, how you will know, and what information the sponsor receives.

The ICF Code of Ethics supports this structure. Standard 1.1 asks coaches to communicate with clients, sponsors and other involved parties before coaching begins and to agree on roles, responsibilities, confidentiality and financial arrangements. Standard 2.2 asks for a clear agreement among all parties on what information is exchanged and how.

When to use it in an executive context: always, whenever an organization pays. In practice, agree with the sponsor on general progress and attendance reporting, and keep session content between you and the leader unless the leader decides to share it.

How does GROW work with executives?

GROW (Goal, Reality, Options, Will) was developed by Sir John Whitmore with colleagues and became widely known through his book Coaching for Performance, according to Performance Consultants, the firm he co-founded. Our GROW model guide walks through each phase with questions.

When to use it with a leader: a concrete decision (restructuring a team, handling a conflict with a peer), a performance goal or a session where the leader arrives with a clear topic. Its strength with executives is speed: it ends with a commitment and a date.

Watch out: leaders tend to rush from Goal to Options. Spend time in Reality, especially on their own part in the situation. That is where the coaching value usually is.

When is CLEAR better for leadership coaching?

CLEAR (Contracting, Listening, Exploring, Action, Review) is credited to Peter Hawkins, who formulated it in the 1980s, according to Businessballs. Its first and last stages make it different from GROW: each session starts by agreeing what the conversation is for and ends by reviewing how it went.

When to use it with a leader: longer engagements where the relationship between coach and leader carries the work, and topics that involve the leader's context (their team, their board, the culture). Listening and Exploring give room for what the leader feels about the situation, not only what they plan to do.

Watch out: with an executive who wants quick answers, CLEAR can feel slow. Explain the structure at the start so the contracting and the review feel useful, not like ritual.

How does OSKAR help a leader who is stuck?

OSKAR (Outcome, Scaling, Know-how and Resources, Affirm and Action, Review) was developed by Mark McKergow and Paul Z Jackson around 2000, according to sfwork, McKergow's site. It is a solution-focused model: instead of analyzing the problem, it looks at the desired outcome, where the person is now on a scale and what already works.

When to use it with a leader: an executive who keeps describing the problem in more detail without moving, a change initiative where people feel stuck, or a leader with low confidence. Asking "where are you on a scale from 0 to 10, and what got you there rather than to 0?" usually shifts the conversation to resources the leader already has.

Watch out: if the issue needs understanding first (a conflict with a long history, an ethical dilemma), going straight to solutions can feel dismissive.

What is coaching based on 360-degree feedback?

Here the engagement starts with a 360-degree assessment: the leader's manager, peers, direct reports and sometimes clients rate specific leadership behaviors, and the leader rates themselves. The coach helps the leader read the gaps and choose one or two development goals. The Center for Creative Leadership's guide Leveraging the Impact of 360-Degree Feedback (Fleenor, Taylor and Chappelow, 2020 edition) describes how to build these processes into leadership development, according to its publisher.

When to use it with a leader: at the start of a development engagement, when the sponsor wants a measurable baseline, and again at the end to see what changed.

Watch out: agree in the contract on who sees the report. Protect the anonymity of raters, especially in small teams, and debrief the results in a session, never by email.

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Which executive coaching model should you use? Comparison table

Model	Origin	Structure	Best for in executive coaching	Watch out
Three-way contracting	Practice consistent with ICF Code standards 1.1 and 2.2	Coach, leader and sponsor agree goals and reporting	Every engagement paid by an organization	Unclear limits on what the sponsor learns
GROW	John Whitmore and colleagues, Coaching for Performance	Goal, Reality, Options, Will	Concrete decisions and performance goals	Rushing past Reality
CLEAR	Peter Hawkins, 1980s	Contracting, Listening, Exploring, Action, Review	Long engagements, context and relationships	Can feel slow to results-driven leaders
OSKAR	Mark McKergow and Paul Z Jackson, around 2000	Outcome, Scaling, Know-how, Affirm and Action, Review	Leaders stuck in problem talk; change	Too fast for issues that need understanding
360-feedback coaching	Leadership development practice (CCL guide)	Multi-rater assessment, debrief, goals, re-measure	Baseline and evidence for the sponsor	Confidentiality and rater anonymity

How do you combine models in one engagement?

A typical sequence for a leadership engagement:

Three-way contract: goals, measures, reporting and confidentiality agreed with leader and sponsor.
360 feedback: a baseline and one or two development goals.
Sessions with GROW or OSKAR: GROW when the leader brings a decision, OSKAR when they are stuck. CLEAR's contracting and review at the start and end of each session keep the work aligned with the contract.
Mid-point review with the sponsor: what is changing, what to adjust.
Closing: a second 360 or a structured review, and a final three-way meeting.

For the tools that fit inside those sessions, see the 10 most used executive coaching tools.

How do you measure results in executive coaching?

Agree on the measures in the three-way contract, before the first session, and keep them few. Useful ones describe behavior other people can see: how the leader runs meetings, how they give feedback, how they delegate. Ask the sponsor and the leader to describe what they would notice if the coaching worked, in their own words, and write it down.

Then check those same descriptions at the mid-point and at the end. A second 360, or a short set of questions to the people who rated the leader at the start, shows whether others see the change. Add the leader's own view and the sponsor's, and you have three angles on the same goal.

Keep the measures tied to what the coaching can influence. A team result depends on many things besides the leader; a change in how the leader handles conflict is something the engagement can own.

How does CoachPro Tools support executive coaching?

In CoachPro Tools, the Organizations module includes a leadership 360 among its 19 organizational instruments: you send it per person and role (the leader, their manager, peers, team and others), choose whether responses are anonymous and see aggregated results with a minimum threshold that protects small groups. You can share reports with the sponsor (summary, full or one department) and set when the link expires.

For the engagement itself, contracts with e-signature accept several signers, so leader and sponsor can sign the same agreement. Live Notes has a GROW template, the visual templates include GROW and a 30/60/90 plan, and there is a guided Executive Leadership protocol. The platform includes +312 interactive tools. Plans are 30 USD a month, 157 USD a year or a one-time 297 USD.

Executive coaching with evidence

Leadership 360, contracts signed by leader and sponsor, and +312 interactive tools: 30 USD/month, 157 USD/year or a one-time 297 USD.

See plans and pricing →

Frequently asked questions

What are the most used executive coaching models?

Three-way contracting with the sponsor, GROW, CLEAR, OSKAR and coaching based on 360-degree feedback. They are not exclusive to executives; the difference is that the engagement involves a sponsor and goals tied to how the leader works with others.

What is the difference between executive coaching and leadership coaching models?

In practice the same models are used. Executive coaching usually refers to senior leaders with a sponsoring organization, while leadership coaching can include new managers. The sponsor and the reporting agreement are what change most.

Which coaching model is best for executives?

There is no single best one. GROW works for concrete decisions, CLEAR for long engagements where context matters, OSKAR for leaders stuck in the problem, and 360 feedback for an outside view. Most engagements start with a three-way contract and combine several models.

What does the sponsor see in an executive coaching engagement?

Whatever you agree in the contract. The ICF Code of Ethics asks for a clear agreement among all parties on what information is exchanged and how. A common arrangement is that the sponsor sees attendance and general progress, and the session content stays private.

Is there an executive coaching models PDF?

You can turn the comparison table in this article into your own one-page reference. If you use the models with clients, also keep the original sources at hand: Performance Consultants for GROW, Hawkins for CLEAR and sfwork for OSKAR.