Understanding the Difference Between Career Counselling & Career Coaching: A Guide for HR Leaders

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought significant changes to the workplace, reshaping the way we think about careers and how we support employees in navigating their professional journeys. In response to this "career shock," both career coaches and internal career counsellors have emerged as key players in helping employees regain control and thrive in their careers (Akkermans, J., 2020). However, while both career coaching and career counselling aim to enhance career success, they serve different roles and provide distinct types of support. This blog post delves into the differences between career counselling and career coaching, providing HR leaders with insights into how each can be used effectively in their organizations.

What is Career Counselling?

Career counselling is typically provided by internal resources—such as HR professionals, managers, and leaders—who work closely with employees to help them navigate their career development. It’s particularly focused on the "mechanics" of a career: planning key career moves, identifying opportunities for development, and understanding the dynamics of the organizational culture. While career coaches are external professionals who typically focus on performance, wellness, and personal growth, career counsellors help employees make informed decisions about their career paths within the specific context of their organization (Autin, K. L., 2020).

The role of the career counsellor has become especially important in recent years. The rapid changes in the job market, accelerated by the pandemic, have led to increased demand for internal resources to guide employees through periods of transition. Career counsellors play a crucial role in improving both individual career success and the overall health of the organization. Studies have shown that organizations that invest in career counselling can see improved employee engagement, retention, and long-term organizational effectiveness (Autin, K. L., 2020).

Career counselling can be broken down into five key pillars:

1. Capabilities, Competencies, and Skills – Understanding the skills an employee needs to progress in their career.
2. Key Experiences – Helping employees gain critical experiences that will prepare them for future roles.
3. Values and Career Anchors – Identifying what drives an individual’s career decisions and aligning it with organizational goals.
4. Personality and Mindset – Assessing how an employee’s personality traits and mindset influence their career path.
5. Social, Family, and Economic Context – Recognizing how personal circumstances affect career decisions.
   
   

Career counselling is a highly personalized experience. The complexity of career decisions, influenced by individual aspirations, organizational dynamics, and broader societal factors, makes it essential to have counsellors with specific expertise in navigating these intricacies. Key skills for career counsellors include:

• Active listening – To understand the employee’s aspirations and concerns fully.
• Social perceptiveness – To recognize the nuances of different career paths within the organizational context.
• Service orientation – To support employees in achieving their career goals.
• Organizational navigation – To help employees move through different roles within the company.
• Diplomacy and Influence – To effectively manage career conversations and advocate for employee growth.
• Goal setting and resourcefulness – To assist in defining clear career objectives and leveraging available resources to achieve them.
• Functional career knowledge – To have a deep understanding of the career paths and talent families within the organization.
  
  

Career counselling plays a crucial role in employee development, and the outcomes can be transformative both for the individual and the organization as a whole. In many organizations, HR leaders and managers who have received career counselling training can conduct these critical career conversations. This makes it essential to equip HR teams with the right skills and resources to manage career counselling effectively.

Building Career Counselling Capability in Your Organization

If you're looking to build or strengthen your career counselling capabilities, partnering with experts like BOLDLY can be a valuable step. BOLDLY helps organizations train HR professionals and managers to manage career counselling conversations effectively, ensuring they have the skills and resources needed to guide employees through critical career decisions. With the right training, HR leaders can drive employee engagement, retention, and overall organizational success.

The Role of Career Coaching

While career counselling often takes place internally and focuses on career development within the specific context of the organization, career coaching provides an external, unbiased perspective that can help individuals develop further in areas like behavior change, competency development, wellness skills, and self-reflection.

Career coaching typically focuses on broader aspects of personal and professional development, beyond the specific organizational context. Coaches work with individuals to address their overall career aspirations, leadership potential, and personal growth goals. While career counsellors understand the inner workings of the organization and help employees map out career moves within that framework, career coaches bring expertise in adult development, career exploration, and helping individuals step into new career opportunities, often outside of their current organization’s infrastructure.

Some key differentiators of career coaching include:

• Behavioral Change – Career coaches often focus on helping individuals develop new behaviors or skills that will enhance their professional growth. This could include leadership development, confidence building, or improving interpersonal communication.
• Competency Development – Coaches work on developing competencies that are crucial for career success, such as emotional intelligence, resilience, and problem-solving abilities.
• Wellness Skills – Career coaches can support employees in managing stress, work-life balance, and maintaining well-being while advancing in their careers.
• Self-Reflection – Coaches help individuals gain clarity about their personal values, career goals, and motivations, often through tools like assessments, visioning exercises, and goal setting.
  
  

In contrast to career counselling, which typically focuses on supporting an employee within the context of the organization, career coaching involves a more holistic approach to personal and professional growth. Career coaches bring an external perspective and can work with employees across different stages of their career, whether it’s preparing for a major career transition, developing leadership skills, or pursuing personal fulfillment.

Integrating Career Counselling and Coaching

To truly support your employees' career development, it’s essential to integrate both career counselling and coaching into your organization’s talent strategy. Career counselling can guide employees within the organization's structure, while career coaching can provide them with the tools and mindset to excel in broader career goals. By offering a blend of both resources, organizations can provide employees with comprehensive support, fostering long-term employee satisfaction, engagement, and retention.

At BOLDLY, we specialize in providing external coaching to complement your internal career counselling resources. Our team of expert coaches is dedicated to helping individuals develop the competencies, mindset, and strategies they need to succeed in their careers. Whether you’re looking to build out an internal career coaching program or support specific employees with personalized coaching, we’re here to help.

In summary, while both career counselling and career coaching are essential components of career development, they serve different but complementary roles. Career counselling focuses on guiding employees through the organizational framework, helping them plan their career paths, and offering support during transitions. Career coaching, on the other hand, helps individuals develop broader competencies, behaviors, and skills that will serve them throughout their careers. By leveraging both, HR leaders can create a well-rounded career development strategy that drives both individual and organizational success.

If you're interested in learning more about how BOLDLY can help your organisation, we invite you to explore our or write to us at here.

References

1. Akkermans, J., Richardson, J., & Kraimer, M. L. (2020). The Covid-19 crisis as a career shock: Implications for careers and vocational behavior.
2. Autin, K. L., Blustein, D. L., Ali, S. R., & Garriott, P. O. (2020). Career development impacts of COVID-19: Practice and policy recommendations. Journal of Career Development, 47(5), 487-494.