EVENT GUIDE MELBOURNE CAREER EXPO  7
1. Professional CDAA Members
Career Coaching requires a unique 
and broad set of coaching skills, 
career and labour market knowledge 
underpinned by career development 
theories and tools. Career Development 
Association of Australia (CDAA) 
members complete comprehensive 
training and 30+ hours of Continuing 
Professional Development (CPD) 
annually to maintain their knowledge 
according to high professional and 
ethical standards. As a client of a 
CDAA member you have assurance of 
receiving excellent products or services 
and recourse should you ever need it.
2. Industry Experience
You need a CDAA practitioner with 
the background in, experience of, 
and understanding of, your specific 
career needs, with expertise in your 
industry and profession. Each industry 
How to choose a Career Coach
By CDAA Victorian President, Melita Long
Working with a Career Coach can help you choose, plan and manage your career and personal brand, 
get a new role or promotion and paid what you’re worth. Here are some guidelines to help you choose 
the right Career Coach or Career Development Practitioner (CDP).
and profession has its own 
unique language, acronyms, 
and idiosyncrasies.  CDPs come 
from diverse professional back­
grounds, e.g. Education, Psychology, 
Human Resources, Commerce 
and many specialise in specific 
areas or age-groups providing 
in-depth knowledge.
3. Career Tools & Methodologies
Career tools include psychometric 
profiling, strengths, values and 
leadership assessments, and various 
coaching methods, underpinned 
by career development theory, 
e.g. Gallup, Harrison, Hollands, 
Morrisby, MBTI, Strong and VIA. 
A good CDP uses a few tools. 
A great CDP uses many tools and 
tailors them to their client’s specific 
needs. Career coaching is not a 
one size fits all.
4. Coaching Style
CDPs use a variety of coaching styles 
depending on their training and personal 
preferences, including client-centric, 
narrative, practical and strength-based 
approaches. Like counselling, you need 
to work out which style works best for you. 
Plus, the more exposure a CDP has to all 
aspects of different careers, the better they 
understand what works and doesn’t in 
various career contexts.
5. Personal Fit
Once you find a CDAA member with the 
right background, experience, tools and 
techniques – you need the right fit, like 
finding a good psychologist, GP or personal 
trainer. I recommend coaches who offer an 
initial free consultation to experience who 
is right for you.
For career support go to the CDAA stand 
at the Melbourne Career Expo or online: 
https://www.cdaa.org.au 
Find a 
Career 
Specialist
You can find the CDAA Workshops and 
Career Advice area in front of Exit Door 19 
at the Melbourne Career Expo.
Please make a booking when you 
arrive at the Career Expo as sessions 
can fill quickly. 
The Career Development Association 
of Australia is proud to offer visitors 
at the Melbourne Career Expo with the 
following FREE career support:
 Free Career Counselling sessions
 Free Express Resume Checking service
 Subject Selection Specialists (when available)
 Career Advice Workshops
CDAA.org.au

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