Choose your pathway
Take the CEC standalone, as ICF Level 1 for the ACC (15 weeks), or paired with CLC or CODC as ICF Level 2 for the PCC (25 weeks).
You've spent years leading people. The Certified Executive Coach (CEC) program teaches you to coach leaders instead — with 70 ICF accredited training hours, a direct route to an ICF credential, and the tools to build an executive coaching practice or an internal coaching function.
PCC pathway: add CLC or CODC, 25 weeks · No prerequisites · Morning, afternoon & evening class times · Installment plans available
Organizations hire Certified Executive Coaches to sharpen how their CEOs, leadership teams, and managers think, decide, and lead. The work covers strategic thinking, communication, conflict resolution, team building, performance management, and career transitions — the problems senior leaders face every week.
Executive coaching engagements typically run three to twelve months, and some coaches work on retainer. Companies either bring in external coaches or train leaders in-house to coach, so the credential serves both an independent practice and an internal role. What does an executive coach do?
Your leadership experience gives you credibility with executives. The CEC program gives you the other half: a disciplined coaching method that helps leaders reach their own answers.
Experienced leaders often find this the hardest shift to make — and the one clients value most. The CEC program trains it through live practice on real executive scenarios.
Executive coaching usually happens inside an organization, which adds people and responsibilities that one-on-one life coaching doesn't have.
The leader, their manager or HR sponsor, and the coach agree on goals and success measures at the start.
Feedback from peers, direct reports, and assessments gives the leader a clear picture of how they're seen.
Clear boundaries on what the sponsor hears keep trust intact on both sides.
Progress is tied to behavior and business results the organization can see. Coaching in the workplace
No prior coaching experience is required. Most participants bring years of management or professional experience and want a credential that matches it.
C-suite and senior leaders planning a next chapter built on what they already know about leading.
People leaders building an internal coaching capability or coaching high-potential managers directly.
Professionals adding a coaching offer to existing client relationships and longer engagements.
Entrepreneurs who want to coach other founders, or lead their own teams with a coaching approach.
Life and career coaches adding corporate clients, where fees and engagement lengths are typically higher.
Coaching isn't a licensed profession, so HR teams, procurement, and coaching platforms rely on International Coaching Federation credentials to screen coaches. On its own, the CEC is an ICF Level 1 program for the ACC. Paired with the Certified Life Coach or Certified Organizational Development Coach program, it becomes an ICF Level 2 program for the PCC.
Instruction from an ICF accredited program. The CEC delivers 70; the ACC needs 60 and the PCC needs 125.
Ten hours where a credentialed mentor reviews your coaching against the ICF Core Competencies. Included with Level 1 and Level 2.
Real coaching you log for your application. Every hour you earn through Symbiosis's Credentium™ platform counts as a paid hour.
ICF credentials carry the same weight whether your training was online or in person, and wherever your clients are based.
An ICF credential shows a sponsor that your training, ethics, and coaching hours meet an independent international standard.
Training from a non-accredited provider may not count toward an ICF credential. CEC hours count, and carry forward when you add CLC or CODC for the PCC.
The PCC needs 125+ training hours, so it takes two programs. For executive coaches, both pairings do more than add hours: each widens the work you can take on.
The Certified Life Coach program adds 95 ICF hours of core coaching depth. Executive clients rarely bring only work problems, and the CLC equips you for everything behind the title.
The Certified Organizational Development Coach program adds 95 ICF hours focused on organizational development & change management, taking you from individual leaders to leadership teams and entire companies.
Every class works through real executive coaching challenges and real-life leadership situations, built on the ICF Core Competencies.
Coach leaders through tension between peers, teams, and stakeholders.
Help leaders set direction, delegate, and hold teams accountable.
Support difficult performance conversations and fair, clear expectations.
Coach managers to grow their people and build succession depth.
Help leaders identify capability gaps and plan how to close them.
Improve how leaders work across functions and with their peers.
Turn strategic intent into measurable goals leaders commit to.
Guide executives through promotions, transitions, and next moves.
Help leaders articulate a direction others want to follow.
Ready-to-use materials you'll take into client engagements from day one.
You learn. You practice. You get ICF credentialed. You build a practice. AI supports every stage, and humans stay in charge.
AI woven into your learning and coaching conversations, helping you explore ideas more deeply and build real coaching resources as you go.
Included52 realistic AI coaching personas, available around your schedule. Rehearse tough conversations before you have them with a client.
IncludedCoaching hours that count as paid hours toward your ICF credential, plus AI-powered ACC/PCC exam prep and full-length practice tests.
With Level 1 & Level 2An SEO-enabled client-facing profile, business-building tools, and a global community of fellow coaches to grow with — free, for life.
IncludedA guided process that fits around a senior role, from your first class to your ICF application.
Take the CEC standalone, as ICF Level 1 for the ACC (15 weeks), or paired with CLC or CODC as ICF Level 2 for the PCC (25 weeks).
15 weeks for the CEC, or 25 weeks on the Level 2 pathway. One two-hour Zoom class a week at a time that suits you, with recordings for weeks when travel or board meetings get in the way.
Work through live coaching scenarios in class, then keep practicing with Cognium™'s 52 AI personas between sessions.
On Level 1 or Level 2, work with an ICF credentialed mentor coach and complete your performance evaluation.
Receive your Certified Executive Coach certification, log your coaching hours through Credentium™, and apply for your ACC or PCC.
Pay in full, or choose an easy payment plan.
The ICF charges its own application fee when you apply for your ACC or PCC. Planning to use an employer development budget? Request program details and an advisor will send what your company needs. Compare all programs on our pricing page.
Join a live 45-minute session with a senior program advisor and ICF credentialed coach.
45 minutes · Live on Zoom
Morning, afternoon, & evening slots
Common questions about becoming an ICF credentialed executive coach and about the Symbiosis Certified Executive Coach program. Still curious? Join our free live session and ask us directly.
A Certified Executive Coach is a trained coaching professional who works with CEOs, senior executives, managers, and business owners on leadership and business goals such as strategic thinking, decision-making, communication, conflict resolution, team performance, and career transitions. Certification shows that the coach has completed structured training in a coaching method and ethics, rather than relying on leadership experience alone.
The Symbiosis Certified Executive Coach program runs for 15 weeks, with one live two-hour class per week. If you pair the CEC with the Certified Life Coach or Certified Organizational Development Coach program as an ICF Level 2 program for the PCC, the combined pathway takes 25 weeks.
Yes. The Certified Executive Coach program is accredited by the International Coaching Federation for 70 training hours. That is above the 60 training hours the ICF sets as the minimum for the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential, so the program can be taken as an ICF Level 1 program on its own.
Yes. When you take the CEC as an ICF Level 1 program, it includes the 70 training hours, 10 mentor coaching hours, and the performance evaluation by an ICF assessor that the ACC requires. It also includes Symbiosis Credentium™, which helps you earn your 100 client coaching hours, and prepares you for the ICF credentialing exam. You then submit your application to the ICF.
Not on its own. The PCC requires 125+ training hours from an ICF Level 2 program, and the CEC provides 70. To reach the PCC, you can pair CEC with either the Certified Life Coach (CLC) or the Certified Organizational Development Coach (CODC) program. Either combination provides 165 ICF training hours, 10 mentor coaching hours, a PCC performance evaluation, and Symbiosis Credentium™, and the Level 2 pathway takes 25 weeks. You still need 500 client coaching hours and a passing score on the ICF exam to be awarded the PCC.
Choose based on who you want to coach. The Certified Life Coach program (95 ICF hours) adds depth in core coaching skills and the whole person behind the executive role, which suits coaches working one-on-one with leaders on transitions, confidence, and work-life decisions. The Certified Organizational Development Coach program (95 ICF hours) extends your work from individual leaders to leadership teams and entire organizations going through development and change, which suits HR and L&D leaders, consultants, and coaches who want enterprise engagements. Both pairings reach the PCC training requirement, take 25 weeks, and cost the same. An advisor can help you decide.
The ICF counts three kinds of hours. Training hours are instruction from an accredited program: CEC provides 70 hours, against a minimum of 60 for the ACC and 125 for the PCC. Mentor coaching hours are sessions where a credentialed mentor reviews your coaching against the ICF Core Competencies: 10 are required and are included with Symbiosis Level 1 and Level 2 programs. Client coaching hours are hours you spend coaching real clients: 100 for the ACC and 500 for the PCC. Every coaching hour you earn through Symbiosis's Credentium™ platform counts as a paid hour.
Coaching is not a licensed profession, so organizations need another way to judge a coach's training and standards. HR and talent leaders, procurement teams, and coaching platforms commonly look for an ICF credential because it confirms accredited training, ethical standards, mentor review, and logged coaching experience. ICF credentials are recognized in more than 140 countries.
Leadership experience gives you credibility with executives, but coaching is a different skill from advising or managing. Consultants and managers usually provide answers; coaches ask questions that help the leader reach and own their own answers. Experienced leaders who take the program often say the most valuable part was learning that difference and practicing it on real executive scenarios.
No. The Certified Executive Coach program has no prerequisites and can be taken standalone. Many participants pair it with the Certified Life Coach or Certified Organizational Development Coach program, which broadens their coaching range and is required to reach the 125+ training hours for the PCC.
Yes. Classes run once a week for two hours, with morning, afternoon, and evening class times to choose from. Every live class is recorded and available in the online campus, so you can catch up after travel or a board meeting without falling behind.
Yes. Many organizations train leaders in-house as executive coaches rather than, or in addition to, hiring external coaches. The CEC program is designed for both paths: building an independent executive coaching practice or coaching within an organization.
Executive coaches generally charge more than life, health, or wellness coaches, and engagements often run three to twelve months, with some coaches working on retainer. Fees vary widely with market, niche, experience, and credential, so treat any published average as a rough guide rather than a promise.
The Certified Executive Coach program costs $1,599 standalone. As an ICF Level 1 program for the ACC it costs $2,623, including 10 mentor coaching hours, the performance evaluation, and Credentium™. The CEC cannot reach the PCC on its own; the ICF Level 2 package pairing the CEC with either the Certified Life Coach or the Certified Organizational Development Coach program costs $4,147 and takes 25 weeks.
Easy payment plans are available. EmpowerAI™, Cognium™, and Lumyx™ are included with every option. The ICF charges its own separate application fee when you apply for your ACC or PCC credential.
Yes. The program is delivered entirely online through live, instructor-led Zoom classes and an online campus with reading and reference material. ICF credentials are recognized internationally regardless of whether training was delivered online or in person. Symbiosis Coaching has certified more than 10,000 coaches across 50+ countries since 2008.
An advisor from the Symbiosis Coaching team will contact you to walk through your options, answer questions about the ICF pathway, and help you choose between the standalone, Level 1, and Level 2 options. There is no obligation to enroll, and you receive your free copy of The Essential Guide to Becoming a Coach immediately.
What executive coaches do, who hires them, and how engagements work.
How organizations use coaching to develop leaders and teams.
ACC, PCC and MCC: what each requires and how to apply.
Which accredited program path fits the credential you want.
How Symbiosis compares on hours, format, and price.
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