Purpose – This essay aims to emphasize the genus of learning relationships as comprised by interaction among the partners. The genus of both mentoring and coaching is a learning relationship characterized by communicative interaction

Design/methodology/approach – Conventional mentoring and coaching prescriptions are compared in terms of their treatment communicative interaction. Currently popular distinctions between coaching and mentoring are based on formal and conventional beliefs about what each endeavor is supposed to do. Although assumed to be distinct, each is incompletely understood as a communicative enterprise, and inconsistent prescriptions abound in the popular literature. Four kinds of learning goals are identified, and these are aligned with four kinds of relationship characterized by the employment of different kinds of speech acts.

Findings – The paper finds that coaching and mentoring are perhaps better examined by way of the learning relationships constructed by the communicative interaction that characterizes those relationships, rather than the continued search for formal or conventional distinctions.

Practical implications – When coaching or mentoring endeavors are examined in light of the nature of communication involved, it becomes easier to identify and change unproductive learning relationships by changing the communication.

Originality/value – The paper suggests a radically viable alternative to initiating, maintaining and using mentoring and coaching effectively.

Coaching, Communication, Learning methods, Mentoring