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2026 ICF Coaching Futures Report

Envisioning Coaching's Next Horizon

This report does not predict a single future. Instead, it explores multiple scenarios shaping access to coaching worldwide. Grounded in global insights, foresight methods, and creative storytelling, we invite you to imagine what coaching could become and how today’s actions influence what comes next.

The future is not fixed. Help shape it.

I wonder if

coaches could start using VR for things like leadership simulations or team-building exercises? I read about a tech company in Singapore using VR to train employees. It feels like this could bring a new level of immersion to coaching, especially for skill development.

DeepakIndia
I am curious about

I am curious about how coaching, empowered by emerging technologies, can foster a new digital democracy — one that respects minorities, enables more direct participation, and supports more distributed decision-making.

Akihiko MoritaJapan
I am noticing that

(Based on conversations I participate in within ICF and EMCC communities) coaching is becoming more relational and emergent, less competency model-driven. Accreditation processes, especially at master levels, may evolve to reflect real practice more closely. Reflective practice and supervision are increasingly seen as essential ways to resource ourselves. I sense CPD is expanding into CPPD, where Personal development and inner work stand alongside professional learning as key to our growth.

Adrijana MilosavljevicSerbia
I am noticing that

competencies, while helpful to start with, become less relevant as we gather experience. Relational skills and collective work begin to matter more. Being able to bring the proper focus, mindset, and attention to match the coachee’s needs at any given moment is essential. Learning is less effective in silos and more transformational in collaboration with peers.

Harry MinasUnited Kingdom
I am noticing that

organizations are view coaching not as an exclusive, high-investment intervention for senior leaders, but as a democratised capability embedded across levels. More companies are experimenting with team coaching circles, internal coach certifications, and leader-as-coach models. The next frontier seems to be the emergence of coaching culture-where conversations become more reflective, feedback becomes more generative, and leadership is expressed through curiosity rather than command.

Kenneth WheelerIndia

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Ecosystem-centered Coaching: Futures Thinking for Real-World Impact

In this 4-part series, discover how futures thinking can empower you to navigate the evolving role of coaching within interconnected ecosystems. Through our four-phase framework—Observe, Envision, Anticipate, Act— you will learn how to prepare for the future of ecosystem-centered practices, integrate AI and new technologies, and embrace ethical, holistic approaches that create real-world impact for you, your clients, and your communities.

Apply the futures thinking loop to coaching

Futures Thinking fosters a mindset that embraces change, encourages innovation, and empowers action toward desired futures.

Apply the futures thinking loop to coaching

Futures Thinking fosters a mindset that embraces change, encourages innovation, and empowers action toward desired futures.

Top Articles

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