Leadership development: an external-internal coaching partnership.

Professional coaching is a leadership development strategy that has the potential to improve individual and organizational performance, retain leadership talent, support succession planning, and help healthcare leaders meet professional and personal goals. The authors describe the development and benefits of a partnership between an external and an internal coach who joined forces to provide individual and group coaching to 64 clinical leaders in a health system. Program evaluation demonstrated an excellent return on investment. Recommendations for implementing professional coaching programs in other healthcare organizations are provided.