Walking Their Talk, Sustainability, Inspiration
Robert Galen
Sustainability

I saw this wonderfully courageous and informative post by Sabine Canditt the other day where she wrote about Sustainable Scrum. 

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/sustainable-scrum-responsible-choice-sabine-canditt-x0gef

After just completing a The Week program facilitated by the amazing Ann-Marie Kong, it touched my heart.

That said, I wanted to highlight one comment reaction/interaction between Sabine and Erich Bühler 

Erich said—

Thank you for bringing this approach into the world! Scrum does provide an iterative approach for teams to create value, but its scope is limited to the product level and struggles with dynamics across the whole organization for several reasons.
Without updating the underlying business and financial model at a strategic level, Scrum alone cannot transform organization-wide sustainability.

Sustainability
Short-takes, Inspiration
Robert Galen
Sandy’s Take
Sandy’s Take
Short-takes, Personal Thoughts
Robert Galen
The Human Aspects of Agile Coaching
The Human Aspects of Agile Coaching
Coaching, ACGW, Personal Thoughts
Robert Galen
Keys to Building your Coaching Relationships

I talk a lot about the first step in coaching any client (individual, system, team, etc.) is to build a relationship, gain empathy and understanding, and then gain an idea of where/how to help initially. So, do NOT start to coach until you’ve done some relationship-building. 

But what does a coaching relationship, or a professional relationship in general, look like? What are aspects of that? Here are a few things that come to my mind—

  • Making + taking the time.

  • Explaining what you do—what is Agile Coaching.

  • Building some empathy; walking in their shoes; understanding where they are coming from.

  • Meeting them where they are.

  • Listening; reflective listening; building metaphors together.

  • Connecting with their language, not yours.

Keys to Building your Coaching Relationships
Personal Thoughts, Short-takes
Robert Galen
Privilege Awareness

I recently replied to a LinkedIn post by David Pereira. It was a wonderful post, and I applaud David’s boldness and courage in sharing it. 

Here’s a post comment from Stefan Wolpers—

While I agree fully with your personal stance regarding professionalism, David Pereira, some people will shy away, given the current economic climate. Some of the previously aggravated people may seek an opportunity to settle scores.

And here’s my comment—

I love the clarity (No BS) here. Clarity for David and clarity for those who want to work with and who don't want to work with him.
That said, David has the unique privilege that allows him to adopt this clarity. Many don't.

This post is not about David per se. Instead, he inspired me to write it.

Privilege Awareness

Rants

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Agile Coaches—Does the Direction of your Journey Matter?

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Agile Coaches—Does the Direction of your Journey Matter?

I had breakfast with my friend and colleague Leon Sabarsky the other morning, and we discussed the common evolutionary paths for many agile coaches. 

We came up with two primary directions if you will—

One is focused on moving from a background in software product development and then adding or emerging your Agile Coaching skills.

Indicators of this direction include—

  • I’ve developed software and products (Developer)

  • I’ve tested those products (Tester)

  • I’ve developed release pipelines (DevOps)

  • I’ve developed architectures and requirements (Architect, Business Analyst)

  • I’ve worked with software product customers and stakeholders (Business Domani)

  • I’ve led a variety of product development teams (Leadership-Management) 

All focused on IT, Technology, Software Products, and Business Agility.

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Let’s Stop Conflating Life Coaching with Agile Coaching

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Let’s Stop Conflating Life Coaching with Agile Coaching

They are not the same!

Conflation – Definition

the act or process of combining two or more separate things into one whole, especially pieces of text or ideas.

the process or result of fusing items into one entity; fusion; amalgamation.

I was listening in on a discussion the other day between two coaches. One raised the point that there was no place for practicing therapy in professional or life coaching. They emphasized that there was a line to be drawn between coaching and therapy.

That is—professional coaches were not therapists, and they shouldn’t go there. And it was a challenge because coaching often “butted up against” therapy, so it required self-awareness on the part of the professional coach to—

  • Thoroughly understand what professional coaching is;

  • Understand its core competencies and boundaries;

  • And, when sensing that the conversation was moving into therapy, to stop coaching and refer their client to a qualified therapist.

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What type of coach are you

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I don’t necessarily like it when we type-cast people into categories or types. So, on the record, I don’t necessarily agree with what Jem Jelly is putting down in this post of — The 3 Types of Agile Coaches. I’ve written about my thoughts before here.

But that being said, and assuming positive intent, I’m channeling a few other types of agile coaches (without any attributes) to share with you.…see if any of them remind you of yourself or another coach—

  • The Well-Rounded Practitioner Coach

  • The Change Artist Coach

  • The Don Quixote Coach

  • The Craftsperson Coach

  • The Purist Coach

  • The Pragmatist Coach

  • The Professional Coach

  • The Consultant Coach or The Benjamins Coach ($$$)

  • The Hammer (everything looks like a nail) Coach

  • The Badass (need I say more ;-) Coach

  • The 2-day, 3-day, or 4-day Class Coach

  • The Self-aware-less Coach

  • The Me-me-Me Coach

  • The “Do what I say, Not what I do” Coach

  • The Life Coach

  • The System-less Coach

  • The “I can change Them” Coach

  • The Nice Coach

  • The “Why am I coaching?” Coach

  • The “Sharing clickbait on LinkedIn” Coach

Wrapping Up

Well, Bob, what sort of coach are you?

I’d have to say…wait for it…wait for it…

I’m a Badass Agile Moose Coach, and I’ll leave it to you to figure out what that means.

So, instead of overreacting to Jem’s post, I thought I’d get a bit playful with it. But also give everyone something to reflect on.

Stay agile, my friends,

Bob.

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The Case for Well-Rounded Scrum Masters

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The Case for Well-Rounded Scrum Masters

I stumbled upon this discussion on LinkedIn about whether Scrum Masters need technical skills—in the most austere point, software development chops. 

I’ll capture the initial post by Stephanie Cully—

Take advice from people you actually want advice from. 👀

There is no research that shows that technical Scrum Masters make better coaches. In fact, in certain cases, having extensive tech experience can actually hinder your ability to concentrate on coaching and lead to excessive emphasis on technical details.

Carry on Scrum Masters. 👏

And then a response by Viktor Grgic—

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Beyond the Agile Certification Alphabet Soup

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Beyond the Agile Certification Alphabet Soup

The debate on the value of agile certifications has been raging on for decades. And one thing for certain is that it hasn’t dimmed the enthusiasm of the companies and organizations creating them.

For example, in 2016 I had a wild idea to explore and capture as many agile certifications as I could. I found 113, and I’m sure it wasn’t an exhaustive or definitive number.

Apparently, my work inspired Anthony Mersino to update the count in 2019-20. Bless his little heart. He found 270 at the time, over a 2x increase from my inventory. He called the post—The Circus of Agile Certifications, and I resonated powerfully with that somewhat snarky title.

Imagine that, 270 distinct certifications! I think it’s safe to say (pun intended) that there are probably ~300 unique agile certifications as I’m writing this post in 2023.

And the problem with most of these is that they are granted by simply attending a class and, in some cases, a quick exam. But are classes enough for learning, growth, and success in agile ways of working?

My answer would be a firm…No!

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It’s Super Easy to Nit-Pick

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It’s Super Easy to Nit-Pick

I read this LinkedIn post by Cliff Berg the other day, and it made me sad and a bit angry.

But not on the level you might think.

You see, I don’t care about Agile 2 or whether it’s better or worse than the original agile (Agile 1, Agile Manifesto, methods begun in the late 1990s and early 2000s, etc.). I don’t care to try to compare features, duel on definitions, complain about the past, or build my reputation by nit-picking something to death.

Sad

What makes me really sad is the apparent lack of respect that Cliff has for the past efforts and ideas of those whose thoughts he is building on.

What came to mind is that quote by Isaac Newton that says—

“If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants”.

I don’t see Cliff respecting or acknowledging those that have come before him. The people, the ideas, the methods, and the intentions. The original manifesto and movement created a tidal wave of changed thinking regarding how we build software. I think it, and they deserve more than he’s giving them.

I’ve copied his original post in-line below, and I’ve highlighted the positive acknowledgments he made to the original work—

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What Type of Agile Coach are You?

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What Type of Agile Coach are You?

Michael de le Maza offered the following metaphor for agile coaches and coaching on LinkedIn the other day

Pebble agile coaches vs. Diamond agile coaches.

Pebbles are well rounded. Diamonds have facets.

If you go to a restaurant and they have Chinese food and Italian food what would you think? What if they had Opus One and Two-Buck Chuck?

You wouldn't like that restaurant, right?

And yet many agile coaches pride themselves on being well-rounded. They coach Scrum and Kanban teams. They coach executives and individual contributors. They coach flow and culture. They coach marketing teams and software development teams.

These are pebble agile coaches. They are well-rounded.

Diamond agile coaches have facets. They specialize in one or two areas.

Think about the great agile coaches you know.

Are they pebbles or diamonds?

What do you want to be?

Here’s my LinkedIn reply:

Michael, it almost sounds like I have two choices as an agile coach:

Become (or stay) a pebble and say yes to everything. Stay average, stay mediocre, stay "pebbly". That being well-rounded is, in some fashion, bad or not good.
or...
Become a diamond. Shine in a few areas. Be excellent in a few things. Say no to things when I don't have the excellence or brilliance to meet the need.

I wonder if there is a sort of middle ground if you will and not polar or binary opposites? For example, can I become a cabochon? Can I be well-rounded AND shiny/with rounded facets?

I guess I don't view well-roundedness as a coach as being something less attractive. Saying 'yes' to everything, probably not a good idea. But, at least for me, I'm aspiring to be a well-rounded, shiny, cabochon of a coach ;-)

More details…

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Agile Coaching versus Professional Coaching

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Agile Coaching versus Professional Coaching

I think many in the agile community get confused about the difference between Professional Coaching (as defined by the International Coaching Federation or ICF) and Agile Coaching (as explained within the Agile Coaching Competency Framework or Agile Coaching Growth Wheel).

The clarity problem actually begins because the ICF definitions (certifications, competency models, ethics, etc.) are VERY clearly identified. And, since everything is so clearly defined, the many organizations who have ICF training are consistent in approach as well. There’s great clarity when a singular organization forms around a profession to capture its essence and guide its evolution.

The profession of agile coaching, if I can use that terminology, isn’t nearly as clear. It’s fractured, ill-defined, inconsistently agreed on and composed of organizational factions. The two frameworks I mentioned, while aligned, don’t agree on the standard coaching stances that make up Agile Coaching. Nor do any of the leading certification bodies (Scrum Alliance, iCAgile, Scrum.org, or Scaled Agile Framework). As I said, there is some commonality, but there is no way near the clarity that you gain from ICF in Professional Coaching.

The clarity problem is further exacerbated because I believe Agile Coaching is a superset of Professional Coaching. In other words, Professional Coaching is an activity (or stance) that is practiced while Agile Coaching. But it isn’t the only stance.

Even Agile Coaches are Confused

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ZERO Tolerance – What’s yours?

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I saw this post in LinkedIn and it caused me to stop and think about zero tolerance and my relationship with it. It has an interesting comment trail that’s worth reading as well.

First of all, I’m using this post and the associated article as inspiration for my response. I am NOT making or taking a political position. Nor am I supporting Joe Biden’s statement. But what I do want to say or ask is…

What is your Zero Tolerance Zone?

I actually think it’s a question that we each need to privately come to grips with. In quiet, when we’re reflecting on our values, principles, and how we’re going to “show up” in life both professionally and personally.

Exploring our boundaries where we’ll say—

  • Enough is enough?

  • Or report harassment in any form?

  • Or walk away from a consulting gig?

  • Or part ways with a colleague, partner, or employee?

  • Or walk away from a supposed friend?

  • Or call someone out publicly for their behavior?

With all of the risk that’s associated with these actions.

What’s the point of having principles and ethics if we’re not willing to take the ultimate action in them when the situation warrants it?

If you know me, I hope you know that I’m not an extremist. And I don’t take positions like this lightly. But I was inspired by this article to reflect on my zero-tolerance zone and to clarify my tolerance boundaries. And I’ve done that.

I hope it inspires you to reflect on your own. 

Stay agile my friends,

Bob.

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I don’t see HOW this HELPS?

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I became aware of Neil on Software just the other day via a LinkedIn post from a colleague. He referenced the “How to Deal with Difficult People on Software Projects” work that Neil has shared. I went through it a bit and I need some of your help.  

Why?

Because I simply don’t get the value. Yes, it’s—

  • Creative

  • Snarky

  • Novel

  • Interesting

  • On the surface, pretty cool, with neat graphics…

But is it helpful? I’m struggling with that.

Is it helpful to stereotype people in software projects? To put them in boxes and categorize them?

When people are incredibly complex beings in themselves. And, it’s not just that individual complexity that I find unique and uncategorizable, but nobody works in a vacuum. Individuals are part of organizational systems. With all of the increased complexity that it brings to bear.

Is it helpful in guiding my individual learning and growth? Is it helpful in guiding my interaction in organizational systems? And, importantly to me, is it helpful in meeting people where they are and with respect?

Perhaps you can help me in the comments on this post. Because right now, I’m pretty well triggered and not getting the value proposition…

Stay agile my friends,

Bob.