BetterUp for Executive Coaching: A Mixed Bag of Experiences
Explore various user experiences with BetterUp's executive coaching services. The good, the bad, and the mixed.
The use of executive coaching platforms like BetterUp has become increasingly popular, especially as businesses seek to offer additional resources to support leadership and management. Below, we explore what users are saying about their experiences with BetterUp for executive coaching—covering everything from administrative experiences to user engagement and platform features.
Admin Experience: Easy Onboarding, Lacking Follow-up
From an administrative point of view, rolling out BetterUp within an organization is relatively straightforward. The company assigns a Customer Success Manager (CSM) who is helpful during the launch call. However, some users have noted that the support team can be less responsive than desired, especially when it comes to periodic reviews of account usage. If you’re looking to implement BetterUp for a group, it offers a more economical package, though the reporting functionalities have been described as basic.
User Experience: Quality Varies
As a user, the platform seems user-friendly and straightforward. After completing a 20-minute intake, you are given a choice of coaches to select from. Here's where opinions diverge: some executives are extremely pleased with their coaches, while others have chosen to change. Fortunately, BetterUp allows for such flexibility.
Scheduling & Communication
The platform makes it easy to schedule coaching sessions, with any changes quickly reflected in your calendar. Users have different options for reaching out to their coach, adding to the platform's flexibility.
Additional Resources
Besides the coaching sessions, the platform also provides a range of resources for additional reading and self-improvement, enriching the overall coaching experience.
A Former User's Perspective
A previous user who had access to BetterUp through Facebook around five years ago shared a less enthusiastic review. According to this user, the platform offered little added value over conventional methods like email for communication with the coach. The platform was described as a basic CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) SaaS app with simple features like messaging, file sharing, and calendar-based scheduling. The sense of being matched with a coach based on individual management styles or needs was lacking; it felt more like being assigned to whoever was available.
The Key to Success: User Engagement
The consensus appears to be that BetterUp can offer significant value, but this is contingent upon the user's willingness to engage with the platform and utilize its offerings. The efficacy of the coaching is also somewhat dependent on the quality of the match between the coach and the executive, which can vary.
Conclusion
While BetterUp offers an easy-to-use platform for executive coaching with a range of resources and flexible features, experiences vary widely in terms of coach quality and customer service. For organizations considering BetterUp, these testimonials suggest that it may be helpful to conduct a pilot program first to assess fit, especially given that coach quality seems to be a variable factor. Likewise, administrators should manage expectations regarding post-launch support and account reviews. The platform holds potential, but unlocking its full value seems to depend on both administrative support and user engagement.
