Is the Coach Affairs ranking live?

No. The methodology is published first, deliberately. The first live edition follows once verification is running and enough coaches have been through the dispute process.

Can a coach pay to be listed or ranked higher?

No. There is no paid placement in the ranking and no advertising within it. If that ever changes, the ranking will be discontinued rather than compromised.

How does a coach dispute their placement?

Every ranked coach can see the inputs behind their own score and file a correction. Corrections that change a placement are published alongside the ranking, with the date and the reason.

Why rank coaches across five different fields?

We do not rank across fields. Business, life, spiritual, technology and sports coaches are ranked within their own desk, because the evidence available in each is different and a cross-field comparison would be meaningless.

Ranking

Methodology in consultation

The Coach Affairs Ranking

Most coach rankings are lists of people who bought a badge. This one publishes its method before it publishes a name, so that when the first edition runs you can argue with the weights rather than guess at them.

What counts, and how much

40%

Verified engagements

Client-confirmed engagements over a rolling 36 months. Confirmed by the client, not the coach. Volume is capped so a high-throughput practice cannot outrank a specialist on count alone.

25%

Published outcomes

Whether the coach publishes what happened after the engagement closed, in a form someone else could check. Publishing a bad outcome scores; publishing nothing does not.

20%

Accreditation depth

Credential level, supervised hours and current supervision. Weighted by the rigour of the awarding body, not by its marketing.

15%

Independent follow-up

Our own contact with former clients at 12 and 24 months. Small samples, stated as small samples.

What we refuse to count

Follower counts: Measures distribution, not practice.
Self-reported testimonials: Selection bias with a headshot.
Paid placement: There is none, and there will not be. If that changes, the ranking ends.
Session price: Rate reflects market position, not quality — and it locks in who already had access.

What an edition will look like

Sample data — not a live ranking

Names, scores and movements below are invented. They exist to show the shape: every score sits next to the signals that produced it, and every coach is ranked within their own desk.

Coach Affairs ranking preview — sample data, not a live ranking
#	Coach	Desk	Market	Signals	Score
01 ▲2	Amara Okonjo Board succession and first-90-days work with incoming chief executives. Business	Business	United Kingdom	Verified engagements: 38 Accreditation: Master, 2,500h Published outcomes: Yes	94.2
02 ▼1	Henrik Solberg Industrial leadership teams through restructuring and plant closure. Business	Business	Germany	Verified engagements: 51 Accreditation: Master, 3,100h Published outcomes: Partial	92.8
03 —	Yuki Tanabe Player development across two professional basketball leagues. Sports	Sports	Japan	Seasons at level: 11 Licence: Elite, 2019 Development record: Independently audited	91.5
04 ▲5	Rosa Delgado Career transition for people leaving regulated professions. Life	Life	Spain	Verified engagements: 212 Supervision: Monthly, named Client follow-up: 24 months	90.1
05 ▲1	Kwame Mensah Distance running, camp-level through national squad. Sports	Sports	Kenya	Seasons at level: 17 Licence: Certified, 2026 Athletes to major final: 9	89.7
06 ▼2	Ingrid Vos Engineering leadership at the transition from builder to manager. Technology	Technology	Netherlands	Verified engagements: 77 Accreditation: Professional, 900h Published outcomes: Yes	88.9
07 ▲5	Arjun Nair Founder coaching through the first institutional funding round. Business	Business	India	Verified engagements: 64 Accreditation: Professional, 1,200h Published outcomes: Partial	88.0
08 —	Clare Doyle Spiritual direction and discernment work, thirty years in retreat settings. Spiritual	Spiritual	United Kingdom	Years in practice: 31 Safeguarding: Code signatory Supervision: Fortnightly	87.4
09 ▼4	Maria Fontes Youth academy development and the assistant pathway in São Paulo. Sports	Sports	Brazil	Seasons at level: 9 Licence: Elite, 2023 Players to first team: 14	86.6
10 ▼3	David Cho Product leadership and the executive team of late-stage companies. Technology	Technology	United States	Verified engagements: 45 Accreditation: Professional, 800h Published outcomes: No	85.9
11 NEW	Thandiwe Mokoena Sliding-scale generalist practice; access research. Life	Life	South Africa	Verified engagements: 340 Supervision: Monthly, named Client follow-up: 24 months	85.2
12 ▼2	Elena Marchetti Workplace contemplative programmes in health systems. Spiritual	Spiritual	United States	Years in practice: 18 Safeguarding: Code signatory Institutional review: Annual	84.4

Ranked withinBusinessLifeSpiritualTechnologySports

Questions we have already been asked

Is the Coach Affairs ranking live?: No. The methodology is published first, deliberately. The first live edition follows once verification is running and enough coaches have been through the dispute process.
Can a coach pay to be listed or ranked higher?: No. There is no paid placement in the ranking and no advertising within it. If that ever changes, the ranking will be discontinued rather than compromised.
How does a coach dispute their placement?: Every ranked coach can see the inputs behind their own score and file a correction. Corrections that change a placement are published alongside the ranking, with the date and the reason.
Why rank coaches across five different fields?: We do not rank across fields. Business, life, spiritual, technology and sports coaches are ranked within their own desk, because the evidence available in each is different and a cross-field comparison would be meaningless.

Argue with the method

The weights are not settled. If you coach, buy coaching, or run an accrediting body and you think one of these four inputs is wrong, the consultation is the point.

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