Value Creation in a Coach Developer Social Learning Space: Stories of openness and making a difference

Previous studies concerning Coach Developer learning have demonstrated notable deficiencies in the provision offered to practitioners, commonly reporting what they experienced was prescriptive instruction of how to deliver coach education courses – a practice starkly in contrast to the espoused theoretical underpinnings of the courses themselves. This Participatory Appreciative Action and Reflection investigation (PAAR; Ghaye et al., 2008) aimed to better understand the value created for, and through, 10 participants recruited to a 9-month Coach Developer professional development programme that was designed not to prescribe, but to guide, their learning. Data were collected through individual and group interviews, field notes and professional discussions. Additionally, this study aimed to investigate the extent to which the identification of short and long value flows could provide insight into Coach Developer learning. Two main themes were constructed, namely; (a) Openness to finding new ways of developing others, and (b) Making a difference. Embracing the concepts of value creation, as well as short and long value flows, illuminated the importance of the consideration of Coach Developers’ predispositions, non-prescribed guidance by programme facilitators, and the power of value creation stories. These findings illustrate how value creation concepts can potentially help to understand Coach Developer learning.