This paper examines the traits and relations of executive coaching, the “manager as a coach” approach and mentorship as the most prevalent forms of individual development of employees within organizations. This paper analyses the organisational context of the development of each of these approaches, as well as the definitions, working processes, theoretical approaches, practical benefits and implications for practical implementation. Upon examining literature, we have concluded that there is an insufficient conceptual determination of such approaches, which greatly hinders their mutual comparison, as well as their positioning in relation to other assistive approaches, such as consulting. On the other hand, this paper establishes the criteria for the definition of subcategories of such approaches, which enable a clearer theoretical and practical delimitation. The categorization of training models provided by Millward – instruction, internship, asking questions, self-evaluation and situated learning– is used as a framework for determining the similarities and differences between the analysed approaches.

Milana Malešev is a PhD student at the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade.