Exploring how managerial coaches build their self-confidence and self-efficacy

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore how managers, acting as managerial coaches, develop their own self-confidence and self-efficacy through the practice of coaching their direct reports, with particular attention to the skills, knowledge and reflective processes that underpin this development. By examining managerial coaching from the perspective of the manager-as-coach, this study seeks to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of managerial coaching as a reciprocal developmental process and to extend extant managerial coaching literature beyond its predominant focus on coachee outcomes. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a qualitative research design, using semi-structured interviews with nine managers across multiple sectors. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis to explore how managers develop self-confidence and self-efficacy through a coaching practice. Findings The findings reveal that managerial self-confidence is constructed through everyday coaching practice, as managers reflect on coaching enactment and interpret feedback in ways that progressively strengthen their coaching self-efficacy. Originality/value This study offers original insight into managerial coaching by foregrounding the development of managers’ self-confidence and coaching self-efficacy, positioning coaching practice as a reciprocal developmental process.