Through accreditation, we build trust and confidence in the coaching and mentoring profession for the benefit of everyone.

Welcome to the International Authority for Professional Coaching & Mentoring

We thank you for visiting our site and wish to take the opportunity to say a little more about who we are, what we stand for and explain why accreditation matters.

Who we are?

We are an authority on the accreditation of individual coaches, mentors and training providers, and in-house corporate coach/mentoring programmes, who can demonstrate the highest standards expected within the profession. Our members can be found worldwide, and we promote the importance of only working with accredited providers to the hiring public.

Established in 2004 as ECI Accreditation Limited, and now recognised as the IAPC&M, we are an independent organisation, run by coaches and mentors for the benefit of coaches, mentors and training providers globally.

Who we accredit?

We accredit independent coaches, mentors and coach/mentor training providers to ensure that they are operating at the highest possible standards. We also work with corporations to accredit in-house coaching/mentoring programmes.

What we do:

• We are committed to supporting individuals, training providers and corporates to obtain their professional accreditation status.
• We provide accreditation to enable practitioners to demonstrate they have the highest levels of professional capability in the industry.
• We are committed to supporting everyone personally and professionally with their CPD requirements.
• We are an inclusive organisation, open to exploring strategic alliances as well as adopting new ideas and practices that benefit everyone.

Who monitors us?

We are approved as an accreditation body by the International Regulator of Coaching and Mentoring (IRCM), the Coaching and Mentoring Industry Ombudsman.

Why we do what we do?

People matter! We passionately believe they must be protected from practitioners who have not met and demonstrated the stringent capability levels expected by us for the industry. We passionately advocate that consumers only work with accredited practitioners for their own safety and well-being. Consequently, we only promote professionals working to the highest possible standards.

Our why:

• We believe that everyone has the right to be protected from non-accredited coaches, mentors and training providers.
• We believe that every coach, mentor and coach/mentor training provider must be accredited to practice.
• We believe our accreditation standards establish the industry standard that everyone should expect.
• Our sole focus is making everyone aware of why accreditation matters and the added protection that affords them Click here
• We are not afraid to challenge the status quo and the taken-for-granted assumptions that surround our industry, for the benefit of the hiring public.

What we stand for:

We stand up for you! We stand up for the importance of accreditation in the coaching, mentoring and coach/mentor training profession, as well as within corporations who have coaches, mentors and/or corporate training programmes.

Our motto clearly expresses our beliefs and purpose:

‘Through accreditation, we build trust in the coaching and mentoring profession for the benefit of everyone’

Our mission:

Our mission is to increase public confidence and raise industry standards by enforcing a vigorous and comprehensive accreditation process that ensures the highest capability expected of professional coaches and mentors.

Relationships matter: 

We are here for you!

Coaching and mentoring is relational. We never lose sight of this and always endeavour to maintain the ‘human element’ with all our clients, be they members, volunteers or networking partners. We don’t have an email culture, we prefer to talk with you about your requirements and the support your need. A tea, coffee or smoothie via Skype, Zoom, the telephone or even face-to-face is what’s important to us.

Total support:

We support all our members through the specific skills, knowledge and expertise offered from each of our departments:

• Accreditation supports coaches, mentors, training providers and corporates in applying for, upgrading and renewing their accreditation, formally re-assessed every three years. The process is regularly reviewed to ensure that our accreditation methods and standards are comprehensive and in-line with the demands of the industry and the hiring public.
• Education supports coaches, mentors and training providers by providing webinars and educational information for the development of skills, knowledge and business-building capability.
• Professional Standards is responsible for providing the Code of Professional Conduct and outlining the requirements for Continued Professional Development (CPD), a core element of the accreditation process. This department also manages the complaints procedure. 

Doing our bit:

As best we can, we are doing our bit for the planet. We reduce the amount of paper we use by only sending electronic copies of certificates and logos. We are truly a paperless organisation. We host our meetings over the internet to save travel, and if a journey is required, we will attempt to complete this in the most environmentally friendly way possible. If we can do more, we will find a way to do it.

Join us:

There is so much that we can achieve together, and we invite you to join us in ensuring that ‘Through accreditation, together, we will build trust in the coaching and mentoring profession for the benefit of everyone’.