Question 1

What is ontological coaching, and how does it differ from other coaching styles?

Accepted Answer

Ontological coaching works at the level of the whole person, examining how habitual patterns of language, emotion, and body shape what a client perceives as possible. Unlike skills-based or goal-focused coaching approaches, ontological coaching treats these three domains as inseparable, and focuses on shifting how a person "observes" their situation rather than just what they do in it. Newfield Network is the originating institution for this approach in the United States.

Question 2

Is Newfield Network accredited by the ICF?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Newfield's Coaching for Personal and Professional Mastery (CPPM) program is an ICF Level 2 Accredited Coach Education Program. This means graduates meet the training-hours requirement for the ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) credential and can apply directly to ICF without additional coursework, provided they meet ICF's experience and mentoring requirements.

Question 3

What credential do I earn after completing the CPPM?

Accepted Answer

Graduates who complete the nine-month CPPM and log at least 50 coaching hours earn the Newfield Certified Coach® (NCC) designation, Newfield's proprietary credential. The NCC requires submitting a 40–60 minute recorded coaching session for evaluation. Graduates may also pursue ICF credentials (ACC or PCC) independently, as the CPPM satisfies ICF training-hour requirements at Level 2.

Question 4

How long is the program and what is the delivery format?

Accepted Answer

The CPPM is a nine-month program delivered entirely online (100% virtual). It includes three multi-day virtual intensives, two 16-week learning modules with live classes and peer groups, and individual mentor-coaching sessions. No in-person travel is required. The program has cohort start dates roughly once or twice per year.

Question 5

Who founded Newfield Network and when?

Accepted Answer

Newfield Network was founded by Julio Olalla, a Chilean-born philosopher and coach, in 1991. Olalla holds the ICF Master Certified Coach (MCC) credential and is regarded as one of the founders of the coaching profession. He previously co-founded The Newfield Group with Rafael Echeverria in the early 1990s before establishing Newfield Network separately in the United States.

Question 6

Where is Newfield Network based?

Accepted Answer

Newfield Network is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, United States. While its programs are fully virtual and have been attended by participants from over 63 countries, the organization's administrative and faculty base is in Colorado.

Question 7

What is the theoretical basis of Newfield's approach?

Accepted Answer

Newfield's ontological coaching framework draws on philosophy of language (particularly the speech act theory developed by Fernando Flores and J.L. Austin), the biology of cognition (Humberto Maturana and Francisco Varela), phenomenology (Martin Heidegger), and somatic practices. These traditions are integrated into a coaching model centered on language, emotion, and body as interconnected domains of human experience.

Question 8

Does Newfield's approach require the coach to have a background in philosophy?

Accepted Answer

No prior philosophy background is required. The CPPM introduces all relevant concepts as part of the curriculum. Students engage with the philosophical foundations experientially, through reflection, coaching practice, and peer work, rather than through academic study. The framework is designed to be practically applicable from the start of the program.

Question 9

Is Newfield Network right for clients who want practical, results-focused coaching?

Accepted Answer

It depends on what "results" means to the client. Newfield-trained coaches are fully equipped to work toward concrete professional and personal goals. What distinguishes the approach is that it often surfaces the deeper patterns in a client's language, emotional outlook, or physical habits that underlie the presenting challenge. Clients who feel that conventional goal-setting or skill-building has not produced lasting change often find this depth valuable.

Question 10

How does Newfield compare to other ICF-accredited coach training schools?

Accepted Answer

Newfield Network offers a single flagship program rather than multiple tiers or specialty tracks, and its methodology is explicitly philosophical rather than psychology-derived. Schools like the Coaches Training Institute (CTI) or iPEC offer broader program menus and are more aligned with humanistic psychology traditions. New Ventures West shares some philosophical overlaps with Newfield. The choice between schools often comes down to whether a prospective coach prefers a competency-based framework or a deeper ontological inquiry.

Question 11

What does a Newfield Certified Coach (NCC) credential tell me about a coach?

Accepted Answer

The NCC tells you the coach completed Newfield's nine-month CPPM, with its three multi-day intensives, supervised practice coaching, and mentor coaching, and submitted a recorded session assessed against Newfield's ontological coaching standards. It also means the programme was ICF Level 2-accredited, so the coach is eligible to hold an ICF PCC credential separately. What the NCC does not confirm is whether the coach actually applied for and received an ICF credential. Those are two separate steps. Ask whether they hold the NCC alone or also an ICF PCC, and how many hours they have coached since graduating.

Question 12

What should I ask a Newfield-trained coach before hiring them?

Accepted Answer

Ask them to describe what the three domains of ontological coaching (language, emotion, and body) actually look like in a session with a client. A coach with genuine command of the methodology can answer this concretely, not in abstractions. Ask whether they hold the Newfield Certified Coach (NCC) designation and, separately, whether they have an ICF credential. Ask how long they have been practising since completing the CPPM and what kinds of clients they typically work with. Finally, ask how they would know when a client's challenge is better served by clinical support than coaching. Newfield's philosophical depth is powerful, but coaches are not therapists, and a good practitioner understands the distinction.

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