A Mentor Isn’t Always a Coach

I’ve been a writer/journalist for the better part of 25 years. While I consider myself has having a gift for stringing words together, I am under no illusions that I can do it alone. No matter where I work, I consistently say that my best friend is a copy editor, since he/she not only will pick up my mistakes but help improve the quality of my work. One of my favorite sayings (which I believed I coined) is, “Even Jesus had an editor” (you know, the New Testament was written after Jesus’ death).

In the channel and business world, we call these people coaches. They are the specialists who have developed methodologies and processes that they instill in their clients to help improve their businesses.

The VAR Guy yesterday posted a blog questioning whether VARs and MSPs need coaches? The masked blogger (have you ever noticed that The VAR Guy is nowhere to be found when Joe Panettieri is around?) says the buzz around coaches has been high lately, especially in the wake of the coaches summit at CompTIA’s Breakaway last week. He doesn’t really come down on one side or the other, but leaves the impression that weight is unevenly distributed in favor of coaches.

Here’s the truth: The buzz is very high, but not high enough. And the buzz is misdirected.

At Breakaway, Service Leadership’s Paul Dippell organized a “Coaches Summit,” which brought together about two dozen of the channel’s best-known professional development practitioners. The goal was to lay the foundation for developing common standards for promoting and measure the performance of these coaches. In other words, they were seeking a higher degree of marketable professionalism. It’s not a bad idea. But the question I ask: Is a coach necessarily a professional educator?

Call them coaches, mentors, business consultants or boards of directors – they serve a basic function for the VAR and MSP business: to provide governance and leadership to a business owner/manager. It’s a simple maxim of business that everyone – whether they’re cognizant of it – has a coach or boss. Everyone needs a governor to help guide their business decisions, check their thinking and/or hold their feet to the fire. Everyone needs someone who questions and challenges their thinking.

Does this mean VARs and MSPs need pros like TruMethods, 4Profit, Stuart Selbst Consulting or Service Leadership? These are good services that provide valuable training and field-proven methodologies for growing and managing technology businesses. The benefit of signing up with coaches such as these provide the education and structure that is often lacking in the toolboxes of rank-and-file solution providers. Coaches are a particular benefit to smaller VARs who often lack the business acumen to develop and mature their operations.

But these coaches are not the only option. Everyone VAR or MSP has a mentor, confidant or collaborator who they bounce ideas off, compare strategies and seek constructive criticism. Just look at the members of the Big Apple Chapter of the Ingram Micro VentureTech Network. These guys meet regularly to compare notes, share ideas and level expectations. The same could be said for HTG Peer Groups, whose working groups compete on performance in a friendly cooptation to spur professional development. Is this coaching? No. But this kind of networking provides a ground for VARs to check their thinking.

Beyond the concept of channel-specific coaches, there is no shortage of business and professional development coaches in the world. I know a number of vendor and VAR executives who engage with professionals who do little more than ensure that they’re setting goals, maintaining a steady workflow and consistently executing on their agenda.

Sometimes coaching is just maintaining close contact with noncompetitive peers. In developing my business, The 2112 Group, I’m developing a network of peers to collaborate with, but also to share experiences and check my thinking. I have a weekly call with my virtual board of directors who will quiz me on what I’ve done, am I on plan and what’s next on my agenda.

I don’t think the question is if VARs and MSPs need coaches. My answer is squarely yes, they do. The real question: What is a coach? We shouldn’t be so quick to draw narrow lines around the definition. A coach or mentor is really anyone who provides trusted, reliable guidance that aids in the development of your business. If that’s a pro, fantastic. If it’s your cousin Joey, just as well, so long as it helps you learn and grow.