I saw this LinkedIn post by Gitte Klitgaard and I captured this snippet from it—
Whether I do leadership coaching or any other kind of 1-1 coaching, I give people two options. The first option is more traditional coaching, where my questions help the coachee think and find the answers themselves. The second option is a mix of advising, coaching, mentoring, and suggesting.
I have not yet had clients, who chose option 1; people want to take advantage of my knowledge and vast experience in tech and leadership as well. That is why they hire me and not someone else 😉
I have been in the tech industry more than two decades, and I learned about people, management, leadership, tech, psychological safety, process improvement, change management, trust, communication, vulnerability, coaching, motivation, and many other areas, not least how to have general curiosity.
After all these years, my main coaching tools are still listening and caring about people 💕
The point I highlighted struck me. I’ve been experiencing the same for over twenty years of Agile Coaching.
My clients never engage me for my Professional Coaching chops (Gitte’s option #1). Instead, they’ve always engaged me for option #2.
Can I provide option #1? Of course. Can I include it in option #2? Certainly.
But it’s not where my value as an Agile Coach lies. It’s in my experience and ability to share it with my clients.
Why did I share this?
We need more people who can fully support option #2 in their Agile Coaching journeys. If you don’t have the experience to do it, then build that experience.
By the way, Gitte is an incredibly experienced and well-respected Agile Coach. If you’re in the market for one of those, I highly recommend her!
Stay agile, my friends,
Bob.
It’s a challenging time for Agile Coaches, Scrum Masters, and Change Agents. But the profession isn’t dying. It’s simply realigning around coaches with the chops, depth & breadth of experience, and skills to deliver value.
Please consider joining Peter Fischbach and me for our next Badass Agile Coaching Masterclass, beginning January 28th, 2025. Now is the time to raise your Agile Coaching competencies; there is no better way than our class.
We have significant DEI discounts available, so DM bob@rgalen.com for more info.
Thank you :)
I too think that is what will provide the most value :)
Most agile coaches can do neither option. Number 2 is the value prop. and it is a big one. How can we educate the market about this? The Agile Coaches Alliance is trying.