Some educators think of literacy coaches as teachers who help students refine the strategies they use to comprehend text, but "literacy coach" is more commonly used to describe an educator whose clients are teachers. In this capacity, literacy coaches provide job-embedded professional development that helps teachers build their capacity to make informed instructional decisions. Middle level and high school leaders typically hire the second kind of literacy coach because they recognize that increasing teacher capacity is an excellent route to increased student achievement. The success of a literacy coaching program depends on the steps school leaders take before initiating it. In this article, the author discusses what school leaders need to know first before hiring a literacy coach.