In response to seeing a "how to pass your Scrum Master/Agile Coach Interview" we've created a way for employers to call BS on candidates who could otherwise dupe their way into a coaching role.
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How to Hire an Agile Coach
1. How to Hire an Agile Coach
@JASONLITTLE | LEANINTUIT.COM
2. OK, WHAT THE HELL?
Job Description:
⢠This role is to provide direct coaching and support to programs, projects & teams that are standing up, actively planning, and executing using an Agile operating model that is being developed and adopted by <GROUP>.
⢠The Senior Agile Delivery Coach will provide leadership in the deďŹnition of the agile blueprint and plan for delivery entities in the area of agile organization design; enablement of best practices that includes successful on-boarding,
training, implementation and deployment of accelerated delivery principles for projects within <GROUP>. The Senior Agile Delivery Coach will provide direct support to the larger (Tier 1 & 2) programs while supporting indirect and SME
support through the team of Delivery Coaches to the balance of the <GROUP> portfolios.
Must Have Skills:
⢠Minimum 5+ Yearsâ experience in an Agile delivery/transformation/training/coaching role
⢠Minimum 5+ Yearsâ experience in large organizational transformations
⢠Proven experience in coaching agile software development and/or delivery teams with regard to helping organizations adapt to an agile methodology and mind set.
⢠Someone with a passion for agile, pragmatism about what agile looks like during a transformation; and a genuine commitment to helping people and organizations get better at what they do.
⢠Hands-on experience and previous accountability for delivery outcomes using Agile practices.
⢠SigniďŹcant experience working with Agile methodologies, (Scrum is key)
⢠Prior experience in Software development and exposure to modern technologies (Strong software development background)
Must Have Soft Skills:
⢠Be an effective communicator at all levels, in both structured and non-hierarchical, informal structures
⢠Strong negotiations skills and ability to create âwin-winâ outcomes.
⢠Outstanding customer service attributes both internally and externally
⢠Problem Solving / Analytical Thinking Skills
⢠Strong political savvy and sensitivity to cultural diversity
⢠Willingness to confront and be confronted
⢠Ability to work successfully with other strong egos
⢠Expertise in Training, Mentoring and Coaching
Nice To Have:
⢠CertiďŹed or Equivalent Experience in at least one Agile Delivery Methodology (CSM / CSP / CSC /PMI-ACP / SAFe )
⢠PMP or Prince2 Practitioner designations an asset
⢠Experience in DevOps is an asset
⢠Clientâs Experience
Practice Management:
⢠Decisive coaching and mentoring of teams around client's <method> Delivery methodologies
⢠Facilitate deďŹnition & sharing of accelerated delivery best practices through informal communication channels and/or formal training sessions
⢠Support the on-going modiďŹcation and implementation of a new Target Operating Model for agile delivery
Portfolio Governance:
⢠Work with the executive team and key project stakeholders to facilitate portfolio planning sessions for ďŹscal and on-going portfolio planning
⢠Support the changes required to project delivery and governance roles to affect a more delegated authority at the project team level
⢠Provide input in the development and maintain ongoing the portfolio reporting that accurately reďŹects the project health and ďŹnancial status of agile projects
⢠Evolve the center of excellence governance process by providing insights from the active programs / projects
Program/Execution:
⢠Consult on agile model speciďŹcs that apply to the unique attributes of large programs, including organizational design around a product enabled delivery approach.
⢠Show the way - enable and maintain processes and communication to support geographically distributed delivery for agile
⢠Work with team members and team lead to facilitate risk-based prioritization sessions for iteration planning
⢠Support team through work list preparation (reduction to smallest part), and estimation techniques (Planning Poker)
⢠Execute Workshops and Leadership Seminars
Deliverables:
⢠Creation of the agile blueprint for large programs and dedicated LOB through intake engagement and discovery approaches in partnership with business and TS leaders.
⢠Strong direction and guidance towards the achievement of the target Agile operating state for programs and LOB.
⢠Agile enabled delivery teams
⢠In-team active coaching
⢠Mentoring on agility including junior coaches within Agile CoE
⢠Engagement / Initiation support
⢠Value and BeneďŹts Realization through agile enablement
⢠Health Checks and Risk Monitoring
⢠Governance Design
kick ass developer
agile mindset
coach teams on our
prescriptive method
Willingness to confront and
be confronted?
work with executives
evolve governance process
mentor/train coaches
team-level process
coaching
evolve agile transformation
roadmap
any certiďŹcation please!
4. WHERE PEOPLE THINK COACHES WORK
C-Level
Various
Resources
SVP Delivery
VP LOB 1 VP LOB 2 VP Tech
Program Mgr Director
QA Mgr Dev Mgr Mgr
Director
Business
IT
C-Level
SVP of
something
VP LOB 1
Director
Mgr
5. WHERE COACHES ACTUALLY WORK
C-Level
Various
Resources
SVP Delivery
VP LOB 1 VP LOB 2 VP Tech
Program Mgr Director
QA Mgr Dev Mgr Mgr
Director
Business
IT
C-Level
SVP of
something
VP LOB 1
Director
Mgr
6. WHY?
C-Level
Various
Resources
SVP Delivery
VP LOB 1 VP LOB 2 VP Tech
Program Mgr Director
QA Mgr Dev Mgr Mgr
Director
Business
IT
C-Level
SVP of
something
VP LOB 1
Director
Mgr
Objective: Make pilot
team in LOB 1 more
agile.
7. DIFFERENT SKILLS NEEDED
C-Level
Various
Resources
SVP Delivery
VP LOB 1 VP LOB 2 VP Tech
Program Mgr Director
QA Mgr Dev Mgr Mgr
Director
Business
IT
C-Level
SVP of
something
VP LOB 1
Director
Mgr
TEAM LEVEL COACHES
MULTI-TEAM, MANAGEMENT, PROGRAM LEVEL
COACHES
EXECUTIVE LEVEL COACHES
11. THE METHODOLOGY BIGOT
Strengths: knows their method inside
and out, knows how to apply it and
probably has lots of stories and
anecdotal evidence.
Weaknesses: dismisses ideas from
other methods, can become defensive
when their method is attacked or
misused.
Natural Habitat: Can be observed at their native <method> conferences
and trolling people on their <method> speciďŹc Linked In forms
Spotting One: number of times they say their method of choice in the
interview. Answers most questions with how their method works.
Challenging them: Tell a story where their method didnât work and what
happened or how theyâd work in an environment that uses multiple
methods.
Thatâs not how <method> works, youâre doing it wrong!!!!
12. THE GRANOLA EATER
Strengths: cares deeply for people,
brings more than âagileâ tools, extremely
thoughtful, deliberate, warm and caring.
Weaknesses: may not have a thick
enough skin for enterprise coaching, or
hostile environments.
Natural Habitat: The local hemp or organic food store.
Spotting One: Can become preachy at times, is EXTREMELY offended by
this slide. (sorry!) 8-D
Challenging them: The organization has decided to layoff 100 people, 12
of which are on teams you coach, what would you do?
âyou need to build a learning org so we can all learn and share!â
13. THE PRAGMATIST
Strengths: well read, brings well-
rounded tools/ideas from multiple
disciplines, well connected to many
different communities.
Weaknesses: may confuse you with too
many options, may seem egotistical
due to their knowledge, will complain I
missed something in this preso
Natural Habitat: Multi-discipline conferences, re-posting IFL Science
posts on Facebook.
Spotting One: number of times they suggest ânon-agileâ tools/ideas,
answers most questions with âit dependsâ, and/or answers questions
with stories.
Challenging them: Ask how they operate in a highly regulated
environment with established standards.
âhereâs something I saw at another org, it might just work for youâ
14. THE ZEALOT
Strengths: cares for people, ďŹrmly
believes in the Agile Manifesto,
courageous, inspiring at times, courage
of convictions
Weaknesses: may lash out when
values/principles arenât enacted, unable
to budge from âtheir viewâ of what Agile
is.
Natural Habitat: Trolling Linked In forums telling everyone their wrong.
Also tweeting out how wrong I am during this preso. (make sure to take
me!) 8-D
Spotting One: Gets preachy when challenged about ideas that contradict
the agile manifesto, may have a messiah complex, might walk out of this
preso after reading this. (sorry!) 8-D
Challenging them: Ask them what theyâd do in a harsh environment, or
toxic culture that needs time to transition and âjust canâtâ follow the
values/principles yet.
âagile is mindset. You canât DO Agile, you have to BE Agileâ
15. THE TEAM PLAYER
Strengths: curious, extremely relatable,
strong at establishing great
relationships with teams quickly,
helpful and genuine.
Weaknesses: may âgo nativeâ and try to
protect the team, might not be able to
(or interested in) address organizational
barriers due to strong team focus.
Natural Habitat: In their basement writing code or contributing to open
source projects in their spare time.
Spotting One: Goes right into the details of the project or technology
during the interview, wants to meet the team before deciding to join.
Challenging them: How would they operate in an environment where
senior leadership wants standard tools/practices across teams.
âcool! show me what youâre buildingâŚwhat technology are you usingâŚâ
16. THE DISRUPTOR
Strengths: stupidly courageous,
understands interconnectedness of
organizations, fair, takes the bullet for
the team/org, swears sometimes.
Weaknesses: can be disruptive for the
sake of disruption, appears egotistical,
writes offensive coach proďŹles, tells
brutal truth, swears sometimes.
Natural Habitat: Unemployment ofďŹce.
Spotting One: challenges everything, asks âwhy notâ instead of
following the status quo, attacks problems head-on, probably has long
hair and wears shirts with funny slogans.
Challenging them: go for it and see what happens.
âletâs try thisâŚbetter to ask for forgivenessâŚâ
17. THE INTELECTUAL
Strengths: wicked smart. skilled at
simplifying complex problems, helps
people attach meaning to their
observations through their knowledge
Weaknesses: uses words like
âobsequiousnessâ, may be long on
theory - short on experience, might
make you feel dumb.
Natural Habitat: Quora.
Spotting One: wears jeans and a sport coat, may or may not be named
Chris, has a nice haircut.
Challenging them: tell a story about how you applied <that theory>
âColoniality may be thought as an initially imposed epistemologyâŚâ
18. THE COACHâS COACH
Strengths: Upbeat, extremely
inquisitive, authentic, genuine,
empathetic, doesnât need context to
help coach people through challenges
Weaknesses: might not have worked on
a software team before, may be too
âcoachyâ at times, may not be disruptive
enough when itâs needed
Natural Habitat: A retreat, or top of a mountain.
Spotting One: asks more questions than you do. Uses open ended
questions and deliberate language.
Challenging them: say âstop freaking coaching me and tell me what
youâd do!!!â
âwonderful story! Tell me more about why you think that worked!â
20. FINDING AND HIRING A COACH
1 Where will your coach play?
2 What skills are the most important?
3 What do you expect?
4 Match 1 - 3 with the candidate
5 Creative interview tips, and how to decide
21. FINDING A COACH
WHERE WILL YOUR COACH PLAY?
Organization
Executive
Management
Team/Project
1
24. MATCHING YOU AND YOUR COACH
what you want what theyâre offering
4
25. INTERVIEWING AND DECIDING
5 Visualize your
candidateâs proďŹles
decide what tradeoďŹs youâll make
let the team interview the candidates
hire 3 for a week to audition them
always start with an exit strategy