Template: a 12-week coaching program you can copy

A coaching program is the plan behind a set of sessions: what the client wants to achieve, what you'll work on each week, and how you'll both know it's working. Without one, sessions tend to drift into whatever came up that week, and three months later neither of you can say what changed.

The template below runs for 12 weekly sessions in three phases. Copy it, fill in the brackets for your niche, then adjust the weekly topics for each client. Below the template there's a guide to each phase, a worked example, a five-step session template, and a table for stretching or shrinking the 12 weeks.

The coaching program template

Copy the whole block into a doc for each new client. Everything in brackets is yours to fill in.

PROGRAM DETAILS
Program name: [PROGRAM NAME]
Coach: [COACH NAME]
Ideal client: [WHO THE PROGRAM IS FOR]
Main outcome: [WHAT THE CLIENT WANTS TO ACHIEVE]
Length: 12 weeks
Session frequency: [WEEKLY / BIWEEKLY]
Format: [ONLINE / IN PERSON / GROUP]
Between-session support: [EMAIL / MESSAGES / WORKSHEETS / OTHER]

PHASE 1: FOUNDATION (WEEKS 1–3)
Focus: Understand the client's starting point and agree on a direction.

Week 1: Starting point and goals
Session focus: Explore the client's situation, expectations and main goal.
Activity: Complete a starting-point assessment.
Between-session work: [FIRST ACTION OR REFLECTION].
Progress check: What would meaningful progress look like?

Week 2: Strengths and challenges
Session focus: Identify useful strengths, habits and obstacles.
Activity: Review what is helping or holding the client back.
Between-session work: [STRENGTHS OR CHALLENGES EXERCISE].
Progress check: What can the client build on?

Week 3: Build the action plan
Session focus: Break the main goal into manageable steps.
Activity: Agree on priorities and milestones.
Between-session work: Complete the first agreed action.
Progress check: Is the plan realistic?

PHASE 2: BUILDING PROGRESS (WEEKS 4–8)
Focus: Put the plan into practice, develop skills and work through challenges.

Week 4: Take the first steps
Session focus: Review early actions and identify what needs attention.
Activity: Work through one immediate challenge.
Between-session work: [NEXT PRACTICAL ACTION].
Progress check: What has the client learned?

Week 5: Develop key skills
Session focus: Explore a skill connected to the client's goal.
Activity: Practice it through an exercise or real-life scenario.
Between-session work: Use the skill in a relevant situation.
Progress check: What feels easier, and what needs more practice?

Week 6: Review and adjust
Session focus: Discuss progress, setbacks and changing priorities.
Activity: Compare current progress with the starting point.
Between-session work: Update the action plan and complete one priority task.
Progress check: Does the original goal still fit?

Week 7: Work through obstacles
Session focus: Identify barriers slowing progress.
Activity: Explore possible responses and choose one to test.
Between-session work: Try the agreed approach.
Progress check: What changed?

Week 8: Strengthen consistency
Session focus: Build routines that support progress.
Activity: Identify useful habits, reminders or support systems.
Between-session work: Follow the agreed routine.
Progress check: What helps the client stay consistent?

PHASE 3: INTEGRATION (WEEKS 9–12)
Focus: Apply new skills, review results and plan what comes next.

Week 9: Apply the learning
Session focus: Use new skills in more challenging situations.
Activity: Plan for a situation the client previously found difficult.
Between-session work: Put the plan into practice.
Progress check: What did the client handle differently?

Week 10: Build independence
Session focus: Help the client make decisions with greater confidence.
Activity: Review a recent decision or challenge.
Between-session work: Take responsibility for the next agreed step.
Progress check: Where is the client becoming more independent?

Week 11: Review achievements
Session focus: Compare the client's current position with the starting point.
Activity: Review actions, lessons and remaining challenges.
Between-session work: List achievements and areas for continued work.
Progress check: Which changes should the client maintain?

Week 12: Completion and next steps
Session focus: Reflect on the coaching experience and plan ahead.
Activity: Complete a final review and create a forward plan.
Between-session work: [ONGOING ACTION OR COMMITMENT].
Progress check: What will the client do after the program?

ONGOING CHECK-INS
At the start of each session, ask what the client has tried, learned and wants to address. Use their answers to adjust the plan. If the client skipped an agreed action, ask what got in the way before moving on.

PROGRAM COMPLETION
Final outcome: [WHAT THE CLIENT HAS ACHIEVED]
Key lessons: [MAIN INSIGHTS OR SKILLS]
Remaining priorities: [AREAS FOR FURTHER WORK]
Next steps: [ACTIONS TO CONTINUE]
Client feedback: [WHAT WORKED WELL AND WHAT COULD IMPROVE]

How to use this template

The template gives you the order of the work, but you still have to decide what each week means for the people you coach. Do this once, before your first client starts:

1. Define the outcome. Write down what clients should be able to do by week 12, specifically enough that you could check it. "Lead a team meeting without a script" is checkable. "Feel more confident" isn't.
2. Describe your ideal client. Note who the program is for and what they're struggling with. A new manager and someone changing careers need different skills in week 5 and different homework between sessions.
3. Set milestones. Break the outcome into three or four smaller results (roughly one per phase), so you can tell at the halfway point whether a client is on track.
4. Order the sessions. Keep the template's shape: understand where the client is starting, do the practical work in the middle, and review at the end.
5. Pick activities. Choose an exercise, worksheet, or set of reflection questions for each session, and drop any that don't move the client toward the outcome.
6. Plan the between-session work. One small action per week that the client can finish before the next call, like trying a new approach in a real meeting.
7. Schedule progress reviews. Weeks 6 and 11 are built in as review points. Use them to compare where the client is now with where they started, and change the plan if the goal has shifted.
8. Plan the last session. Decide ahead of time how you'll close: what changed, which goals are still open, and how the client keeps going on their own.

How to structure a coaching program

Most programs move through the same three stages. First you learn where the client is and agree on a goal, then they spend most of the program doing the work, and at the end they review progress and plan how to keep going alone. The template gives those stages 3, 5, and 4 weeks.

Foundation (weeks 1 to 3)

Spend the first three weeks learning the client's situation, agreeing on a goal you can both check, and working out what will help or get in the way. By the end of week 3, the client should have a written plan and have finished the first action on it.

Building progress (weeks 4 to 8)

This is the longest phase, because it's where the client actually changes what they do. Start each session with what happened since the last one: what they tried, what worked, and what didn't. Use that to choose the next skill or obstacle to work on, even if it means skipping the topic the template has for that week.

Integration (weeks 9 to 12)

In the last phase, the client takes on harder situations with less help from you. Compare their progress with the goal from week 1, and use the final session to plan how they'll keep going after the program ends.

How many sessions should you include?

That depends on the goal and how much the client can do between sessions. Twelve weekly sessions give you three weeks to set up, five to practice, and four to apply and review, which is enough for most single goals. A narrow goal might only need six weeks, while a big change like a career move can take six months. The table further down shows how to adapt the template either way.

According to an International Coaching Federation guest article, sessions usually run 30 minutes to an hour (that's a guest author's general guide, not an ICF standard).¹ Thirty minutes is often enough for a check-in on a single action, but intake sessions and reviews usually need the full hour.

Plan the work between sessions

Most of the client's progress happens between calls, when they try things in real situations. Give them one task a week that fits into their normal week: practicing a skill in a specific meeting, keeping a short daily log, or having one conversation they've been putting off. Then start the next session by asking how it went.

A coaching program example

Say a client wants to speak up more confidently in meetings. In the foundation phase (weeks 1 to 3), they list the meetings where they stay quiet, figure out what stops them, and agree on a goal, like making at least one point in every weekly team meeting.

In the building phase (weeks 4 to 8), they prepare two talking points before each meeting, try them in smaller meetings first, and practice what to do when their nerves kick in. In the integration phase (weeks 9 to 12), they speak up in larger meetings without preparing notes with you first, look back at what's changed since week 1, and decide how they'll keep practicing.

The plan gives each session a job, but you can still change course when something comes up, like a big presentation landing in week 6.

Coaching session template

Using the same five steps every session means the client knows what to expect, and the hour doesn't drift. The order matters most: reviewing last week's actions before choosing today's focus keeps one week connected to the next. Change the questions to fit the topic and the stage of the program.

CLIENT AND SESSION DETAILS
Client: [CLIENT NAME]
Date: [DATE]
Session number: [NUMBER]
Topic: [SESSION TOPIC]
Duration: [DURATION]

1. CHECK-IN
Ask how the client is doing and what feels most important today.
Opening question: [CHECK-IN QUESTION]

2. REVIEW PREVIOUS ACTIONS
Discuss what the client tried, what worked and what they learned.
Review questions: [QUESTIONS ABOUT PROGRESS]

3. AGREE ON THE SESSION FOCUS
Identify the issue or goal the client wants to work on.
Main focus: [SESSION GOAL]

4. EXPLORE AND PLAN ACTIONS
Use questions, discussion or exercises to explore the topic. Agree on practical next steps.
Key insights: [CLIENT'S OBSERVATIONS]
Agreed actions: [ACTION 1] [ACTION 2]
Support or resources needed: [DETAILS]

5. CLOSE THE SESSION
Summarize the main points and confirm the client's next steps.
Client takeaway: [MAIN LEARNING]
Next check-in: [DATE OR TIMEFRAME]
Notes for next session: [FOLLOW-UP TOPIC]

Adapting it: 6 weeks, 6 months, 1:1 or group

You can shorten the program, stretch it out, or run it for a group. Whatever you change, keep the outcome you set at the start and change how long you take to get there.

If you run it as a group, agree on ground rules in week 1: confidentiality, cameras on or off, and what happens when someone misses a session. Plan for mixed experience levels too, for example by giving more experienced participants a harder version of each exercise. Our guide to group coaching covers formats and pricing.

If you're still setting up your coaching business, how to start an online coaching business covers the rest of the setup. When you're ready to sell this program, our guide to coaching packages covers how to structure and price it. And for a shorter introductory offer, the five-day challenge template gives you a day-by-day plan.

Frequently asked questions