In a previous post we raised questions around what Agile Coaching is and how to hire a qualified, experienced Agile Coach to assist in your Scrum or Agile adoption.  In this post we take those ideas further in tying them back to the ScrumMaster – the internal coach.

An Agile Coach should not be a permanent member of your team or organization.  Agile and Scrum are different ways of doing work.  Once people have achieved sustaining the new way of doing work, they don’t need a coach full time.  They may call upon that coach from time to time as they further their journey but think of it like a personal trainer.  Once that trainer has successfully helped you change your eating and exercise habits, you don’t need them as often as you did at the beginning of your adoption.

As providers of Agile and Scrum Coaching services, our Definition of Done is achieved when organizations no longer need us.  A prime indicator of this is when the Scrum Masters are strong and are executing the role as intended:  servant leader to the Organization, the Product Owner and Team.

Agile and Scrum are different ways of doing work.  Getting people to change is no easy task so it takes the right mix of knowledge, people skills and personality to motivate people to change.

Jeff reminds us that the first role fired when sports teams do not perform is the Coach.  Now granted, you cannot coach those who are unwilling but Jeff asks why we continue to pay peoples’ salaries who do not perform the work they were hired to do?  And wouldn’t someone who is an experienced coach know how to motivate people?  How to identify those unwilling and appropriately work with the organization to inspect and adapt accordingly?

There are many who mistake the ScrumMaster for an admin function when it is the Change Agent in the organization.  This is the role that teaches, guides and coaches everyone on how to deliver business value faster with Scrum and with Agile values and principles – to transform the world of work.

Do you want to learn more about how to transform the world of work? Click here to view our upcoming classes and register for our next CSM or CSPO course.