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Ep 52: Duty of Care and the Future of Coaching with Dr. Benita Mayhead
Episode 5218th February 2026 • The Coaching Catalysts • The Coaching Catalysts
00:00:00 00:36:51

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As a coach, how can you practice ethically in an industry that’s largely unregulated? In this episode of the Coaching Catalysts podcast, co-hosts Sarah Bramall and Rebecca Daniel are joined by Dr. Benita Mayhead, executive coach, supervisor, and author of Duty of Care in Coaching. Together, they dive deep into what it means to practice ethically in a largely unregulated industry, exploring Benita’s pioneering research on “duty of care”, both how coaches understand it and how it shows up in their practice.

Benita, Rebecca and Sarah explore the evolution of ethics in coaching, the increasing complexity of work faced by experienced practitioners, and predictions for the profession’s future, including the growing prominence of supervision.

The episode encourages coaches to reflect on their own sense of responsibility, learning, and curiosity, and reminds us all of the power of collaboration and care, both for clients and for ourselves as practitioners.


Highlights:

02:56: Benita shares the origin story of her book, Duty of Care in Coaching

05:20 Benita’s doctoral research shines a light on what duty of care means to practitioners

07:39 A crucial explanation of duty of care

09:50 Duty of care shows up in multifaceted ways in coaching

11:38 Benita notes the importance of supervision, especially as coaches become more experienced and handle more complex cases

16:43 There is a growing focus on our duty of care in light of AI and digital advancements

20:50 Benita predicts continued fragmentation in the coaching industry but also a growth in the focus on supervision

24:08 The importance of supervision from a legal perspective.

29:09 Insight into coaching practice: Benita and her team focus on deep-dives with leaders

30:04 Two-word checkout.


​Connect with us here:

Website:

https://www.thecoachingcatalysts.com

Work with us:


Our roundtable discussions for internal coaches here:

https://www.thecoachingcatalysts.com/organisationalcoaches

Find out more about our supervision service here: http://bit.ly/coaching-collective

To book a call: https://tidycal.com/coachingcatalysts/explorationcall

​To become a professional coach supervisor with The Coaching Catalysts, head here: https://www.thecoachingcatalysts.com/supervisiondiploma


For ICF mentoring see here: https://bit.ly/catalystsmentorcoaching


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https://www.linkedin.com/company/thecoachingcatalysts

Sarah: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahbramallcoaching/

Rebecca: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielrebecca/

And our Whatsapp here:

https://wa.me/15557022689

About Dr Benita Mayhead:


Dr. Benita Mayhead has been in the field of learning and development since the 1980s, beginning her career in human resources within large corporates. Today, she enjoys her role as an executive coach and coach supervisor, collaborating with mid to senior level leaders, teams and fellow coaches.

Benita has an MA and a professional doctorate in coaching and mentoring, both obtained from Oxford Brookes University. Her doctoral research focused on the ethics and duty of care of executive coaches. Her research has been published in various journals, and in 2023, Henley Business School honoured her with the Research Paper of the Year award for one of her contributions. She continues to write, and a book is underway.

Her two daughters, family and friends come first for Benita, as does keeping fit and well. Living in Surrey with her husband, she can be found out walking with her dogs, most often at sunrise.


Connect with Benita:

Website: https://benitamayhead.com/


Social Media:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/benita-mayhead-840ab95/

https://www.instagram.com/thedutyofcarecoach/

Produced by winteraudio.co.uk




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