What is a business coach, and why do you need one?

A business coach is an experienced guide who works with business owners to improve decision-making, develop strategic plans, and strengthen leadership skills.

Rather than telling you exactly what to do, a coach helps you find your own best path forward — building the confidence, clarity, and strategic accountability you need to run a successful business.

At The Alternative Board (TAB), we see business coaching as more than just advice. It’s a mix of mentoring, structured planning, and entrepreneurial collaboration that can help you grow profits, lead with confidence, and align your business with your personal vision.

Watch what it’s like to work with TAB and experience business coaching in action

What do business coaches do?

A business coach isn’t the same as a business consultant. A consultant often focuses on a single problem and provides ready-made solutions, sometimes implementing them for you.

A coach takes a different approach. They help you develop the skills and insights to address challenges yourself, not just for today, but for the long term. This means you gain the tools to navigate a wide range of situations, from recruitment and operations to leadership and succession planning.

In TAB’s case, our coaches also act as entrepreneurial mentors and facilitate peer advisory boards, giving you the added benefit of learning from other SME owners’ experiences.

How will working with a business coach benefit your organisation?

There are many benefits that business coaching can give your business. Here are just a few:

1. Strategic planning

A business coach looks at your entire business, helping you identify opportunities for improvement and growth. TAB coaches use the Business Builder’s Toolkit, an exclusive member platform, to support leaders in creating actionable, long-term strategies.

“It is no exaggeration to say that TAB was a turning point in my professional life. The support that I received from my TAB coach and the other members of our board was a key element in the improvement of our business. TAB helped us to define our company vision; to set goals; to plan strategies to achieve those goals and most importantly for me - not let me off the hook if I was slacking!”

Tyler Lappage

Owner of Nabarro Poole

2. Accountability for the Business Owner

A coach provides strategic accountability, helping you stay focused on the actions that will move your business forward. This could mean following up on quarterly goals, refining your leadership approach, or addressing weaknesses you’ve identified.

“Peer ‘accountability’ was the primary motivation for me. A year on from joining TAB, I’ve discovered that the benefits are much more, both for professional and personal development. Monthly Board meetings with structured agendas and takeaway commitments, backed-up by monthly 121s with Jo, my TAB coach have helped me create renewed purpose, direction and a process leading to better business decision-making.”

Paul Kempton

Director of Footprint Music Group Ltd

3. Experience and business knowledge

A good business coach will likely have been there, seen and done it. They are business professionals with business ownership or senior leadership behind them (all of TAB’s coaches have a minimum of 10 years of experience). When you work with a business coach, you gain access to this experience to help you run a stronger business.

4. Business growth

By helping business owners improve the running of their businesses, developing their skills, and offering the benefit of their own experience, having a business coach could catalyse greater business growth and a stronger support structure for the organisation’s future.

Why Business Coaching Works

A key reason business coaching works is the combined benefits it gives both the business and the business owner or leader: 

1. Personal development through mentoring

A good business coach listens carefully, asks the right questions, and helps you address the root of a challenge. This approach can have a significant impact on your personal development, helping you achieve greater business clarity and balance.

Read more about how business coaching supports personal development.

Identify your personal vision

Everyone has a different vision of success, and a business coach will help you develop a clear vision statement that reflects what truly matters to you. These statements aren’t always about financial targets — they might include more time with family, greater involvement in your local community, or building a business you can eventually sell.

Once your vision is clear, your coach will provide the strategic accountability to keep you aligned with it, ensuring that the decisions you make in your business always support that end goal. Read more about identifying your personal vision.

Be a happier business owner

“My working life before TAB was extremely challenging and often pretty lonely. It’s often obvious what needs to be done within a business, but TAB gives you the confidence, support, and momentum to take action. The monthly meetings challenge you. I’d have no hesitation in recommending TAB. It has changed my working life – which in turn has made me a happier person.”

Anna-Marie Eardley

Director at Waterloo Quay Properties

Interested in learning more? Get in touch with TAB UK today to explore how joining a peer board could benefit you and your business.