Coaching Roadmap - The Journey

Coaching Roadmap - The Journey

Session hosted by:

Bryan Stallings Bryan LinkdedIn (bryan.m.stallings@yahoo.com) and Samantha Denning Samantha LinkedIn (samantha@fwdresolutions.com)

What we did:

• Reviewed some aspects of a ScrumMaster's role where coaching competency is vital

• Agreed that there is a considerable gap in the knowledge / experience / competency of a skilled agile coach over that of a newly minted ScrumMaster

• Discussed the lack of "one sure way" to develop one's capabilities in the competencies required of an effective ScrumMaster, Team Coach, Agile Coach, etc.

• Presented the Agile Coaching Competency Framework (see Agile Coaching Institute website for details) as a well-accepted model in the community for defining the competencies of the agile coach role.

• Walked through and around the model (see the photo) and participants were asked to reveal which competency was their strength, and which, should they strengthen it, could be of best use by their teams.

• Described the Co-Active Coaching program for developing professional coaching competencies

• Demonstrated professional coaching via a live demo

• Responded t0 participant questions

Takeaways:

• There gap in the knowledge / experience / competency between a skilled agile coach and a ScrumMaster with little experience.

• Most ScrumMasters and Agile Coaches rely primarily on a limited application of the mentoring competency. In other words, these individuals are merely telling others what to do.

• Mentoring is NOT the same as coaching, though one does use some coaching skills when mentoring effectively.

• The road to competency is a journey without "one sure way" to develop one's capabilities.

• The Agile Coaching Competency Framework (see Agile Coaching Institute website for details) offers a well-accepted model.

• Many individuals in these roles are applying the descriptor "coach" to themselves without any actual competency beyond that of an agile practitioner. Among those in the agile community refering to themselves as coaches, there is a need to increase awareness, expertise and competency.

• Among agile coaches, professional coaching is the least understood and applied competency, and therefore the area which presents the greatest opportunity for learning.

• Professional coach training either focuses on coaching an individual (for example, Coaches Training Institutes's Co-Active Coach training) or a system of individuals (for example, CRR Global's ORSC training).

Thank you to the fantastic people that joined us for the session!