The professional bodies exist to ensure that Coaching and Neuro Lingusitic Programming (NLP) Practitioners meet professional standards.
It’s important, for your protection and peace of mind, that standards are set within professions working with people. Whether it’s doctors, lawyers, physiotherapists or coaches, there are professional bodies behind them to help uphold standards.
Coaching:
In the case of coaching, this body is The International Coach Federation (ICF).
They have set a definition and philosophy of coaching, as well as establishing a set of ethical standards that ICF members pledge to uphold (the Code of Professional Standards.) This is designed to protect and preserve the integrity of the coaching. As a customer wanting to hire a coach, you can be confident that an ICF registered coach has been trained to a high level of expertise.
Further details at: http://www.coachfederation.org/ICF/
Neuro Lingusitic Programming (NLP):
The Association of Neuro-Lingusistic Programming (ANLP) is an independent organisation with an established public reputation for promoting standards, professionalism and good practice in NLP. Given that NLP is one of many unregulated professions, they strive to protect the reputation of the NLP Professional by encouraging standards, ethics and professionalism; they raise awareness of NLP by communicating with the public and giving them the reassurance they seek.
Further details at: http://www.anlp.org/