President’s Message

As the world evolves rapidly, coaches play a crucial role in helping clients navigate the complexities of a VUCA and BANI environment. The growing emphasis on mental health and holistic leadership compels us to expand our capabilities and adopt integrative approaches that support both clients’ professional and personal growth. Whether through digital platforms or new disciplines, we must remain present, empathetic, and forward-looking to meet evolving needs.

The Asia Pacific region is rich in culture, steeped in ancient philosophies, values, and nuances that remain largely untapped in the field of coaching. As APAC turns 17, we have started to experiment with new ideas while preserving our distinctiveness. To this end, we have started two new committees, Special Projects and Team Coaching, to drive innovation and meet the emerging coaching needs, always striving to be the Coaching Voice for Asia Pacific.

Like last year, EXCO spent two days in January reflecting on past lessons and developing forward-looking strategies to stay relevant. We thank members and non-members for your input at the recent APAC Coaching Voice Survey. The key results:

Trends:

• 90% have attended APAC events before, with 50% at least three times.
• The most popular offerings are Monthly Talks, the Coaching Conference, Newsletter, and Team Coaching Circle, followed closely by Pro Bono Coaching, Research, and networking events such as Walk and Talk.
• Scheduling conflicts and other commitments are the biggest barriers to participation.
• Emails remain the top communication channel, followed by newsletters and APAC social media/website.

Motivations:

• More than 80% are keen to use APAC to connect with the coaching community. This includes speaking engagements, coaching opportunities, access to resources, speakers, and clients, listing in the coaching directory, and pro bono coaching.
• 86% are interested in regional coffee catchups, with midweek slots from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM (SGT) being the most preferred.
• 75% are interested in attending Coaches Wellness Retreat.
• 53% are interested in an Asia Pacific signature coaching certification.

New Suggestions:

• Future Talks: Topics on business, leadership, parenting, cross-culture, influence, self, and well-being.
• Newsletter: Marketing strategies, book synopses, coach features, and Asia coaching research.
• Events: Coaching Bootcamp, technology, AI for coaching, and individual coffee meet-ups.

Trends around coaching and business coaching in Asia remain popular.

What’s Next
We hear you and here are some quick wins that you can enjoy:

• Business Boost (26 February 2025): Join us for a meditation practice led by an expert to boost wellness, followed by your cross-sharing of business opportunities and challenges. Hear from fellow coaches on how to brand yourself and grow your coaching business. Contact Programme Chair, Mei Yan, for details.
• Team Coaching Circle: Now held monthly and led by different coach supervisors with themed approaches. Contact Team Coaching Chair, Alicia Kwan, if you have case studies.
• Paid Coaching Opportunities: Available in June with a Silicon Valley university. Express your interest to Community Service Chair, Jyoti Sapra.
• Research Updates: Deputy Chair for Research, Sampada Inamdar, and her committee are working on impactful coaching findings that will be shared regularly. Stay tuned.
• 2025 Biennial APAC Coaching Conference (24-25 September 2025): This will be held F2F in Kuching, Malaysia with engaging interactions. Mark your calendar. If you are interested in speaking, sponsoring, or contributing, please contact 2nd Vice President and 2025 Conference Chair, William Tan.

EXCO and our committees are committed to staying meaningfully busy for you. Our mantra this year is to Serve and Grow Together.

With the arrival of the Lunar New Year, I wish you a prosperous year harvesting fulfilments!

Warmly,

Irene Chia
President, APAC