Pictured above (Colm Murphy, Head of Coaching Programmes, UCD Smurfit Executive Development)

14^th May 2021, UCD Smurfit Executive Development is delighted to be among the first three Universities globally, and the first in the EU and in Ireland, to have received accreditation by the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) Global for its Professional Diploma in Team Coaching at Senior Practitioner Level. The EMCC Global Team Coaching Quality Award (TCQA) is an accreditation for training programmes which have met a set of core standards, applied rigour in assessment, and demonstrated a track record of impactful and practical learning and development for team coaching practitioners.

Team Coaching is a relatively new practice compared to individual coaching and mentoring. EMCC Global has responded to this emerging field, working with a number of valued partners, including faculty from UCD Smurfit Executive Development, to develop the TCQA (EMCC Global Team Coaching Quality Award) and the ITCA (EMCC Global Individual Team Coaching Accreditation).

First launched in September 2017, the Professional Diploma in Team Coaching is a fully accredited programme (NFQ Level 9) designed to equip experienced coaches with the competence and confidence to provide a high-quality team coaching service, and with the ability to make sense of, and work with, the often-complex dynamics that they step into when they take on the role of team coach. The emphasis throughout the programme is on the practical application of knowledge to benefit the participant as a coach and their clients’ teams and organisations.

“The accreditation of the Diploma in Team Coaching at Senior Practitioner Level is a great validation for the quality of the programme. This accreditation is a recognition from international independent peers and is part of our guarantee that participants on the UCD Diploma in Team Coaching will receive a world class, internationally recognised qualification. The EMCC Global Individual Team Coaching Accreditation (ITCA) will now offer our team coaching alumni and future participants a pathway to be individually recognised as best in class in the field of team coaching.” said Colm Murphy, Head of Coaching Programme at UCD Smurfit Executive Development. 

Denise Whitworth, EMCC Global Vice President Accreditation, said: “This achievement is testament to the drive of Colm and his team. Colm himself provided valuable insight and leadership within EMCC Global as a valued member of the workgroup researching and drawing up the core standards for team coaching. His experience within UCD Smurfit Executive Development strengthened the standards themselves. Congratulations to UCD Smurfit School, and to Colm for ensuring the team coaching programme is one of the very first in this important and emerging field.”

“Increasingly organisations are realising that performance improvement is required at the level of the team, as well as at the level of the individual. Teams need to deliver ever more challenging outcomes in the face of often chaotic organisational change in this VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) environment. Coaching in all its formats is therefore becoming an ever-more important component of the strategy of forward-thinking organisations.” said Helen Brophy, Director, UCD Smurfit Executive Development.

September 2021 sees the fourth intake of the UCD Diploma in Team Coaching and the demand for the programme continues to be exceptionally strong. Participants should hold a primary degree and have completed either the UCD Diploma in Business & Executive Coaching or the UCD Diploma in Advanced Business & Executive Coaching. Consideration will also be given to applicants who do not fully meet this requirement but have substantial experience in business coaching and hold another accredited Business Coaching programme. Full programme details can be found online here.