book

Professional Coaching for Agilists

by Damon B. Poole, Gillian Lee

March 2021

Beginner

240 pages

6h 17m

English

Addison-Wesley Professional

Read now

Unlock full access

What Is Professional Coaching?Who Is This Book For?What Makes Professional Coaching Valuable for Agilists?What Is in This Book?
What Is Professional Coaching?Supportive BehaviorsProfessional Coaching DefinedCoaching TerminologyProfessional Coaching Is Not the Only ToolPeople Do What They Want to DoFocus on the Person Instead of the IssueOur Coaching Toolbox: Principles, Objectives, and TechniquesObjective-Based CoachingStarting a Coaching Conversation Objective: Rapport BuildingObjective: Identify the Session PurposeObjective: The Aha MomentObjective: Forward Motion (aka Planning)Objective: The Associated GoalIdentifying the Session Purpose versus the Associated GoalObjective: Learning and GrowthAn Example Coaching ConversationPowerful Questions: The Primary Tool of Professional CoachingYour Mindset Determines the Kinds of Questions You AskThe Seven Characteristics of Powerful QuestionsPowerful Question Anti-PatternsApplying Professional Coaching to Teams and OrganizationsChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
Professional Coaching Starts with PermissionThe Session PurposeThe Session Purpose Is a Specific Outcome for the ConversationThe Coachee’s True Session Purpose Is Probably a Surprise to Both of YouAn Example of Determining the Session PurposeSuccess Criteria for the Session PurposeExploring the Coachee’s Mental LandscapeForward Motion (aka Planning)Excitement, Motivation, and ResolveReal Next StepsAccountabilityA Coaching Approach versus Managing and Project ManagingLooking for DiscrepanciesClosing a Coaching SessionWhen You Are Running Out of TimeTurning Loose Ends into Coaching AssignmentsMoving Wrap-Up Actions Earlier in the ConversationCoaching TechniquesCoaching Technique: PersonalizingCoaching Technique: DepersonalizingAn Extended Example of Professional Coaching“The Standup” Take 1: No Assistance Requested“The Standup” Take 2: The Scrum Master Reaches Out to an Agile Expert“The Standup” Take 3: The Scrum Master Reaches Out to a CoachChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps

Neutrality: The Absence of DistortionFully Absorbing InformationPresencePatienceGoing with the FlowEmotional IntelligenceConsider Your ResponseReflecting the Coachee in Your ResponseCreate a Space That Invites Inner ReflectionCoaching Technique: NotifyingMaintain the Coachee’s Point of ViewAvoid Paraphrasing When CoachingUse Reiterating Instead of Paraphrasing to Move the Conversation ForwardHelping the Coachee FocusInvite PrioritizationCoaching Technique: SummarizingKeep the Session on Track without Taking the Coachee Off TrackCoaching Technique: Orienting to Session PurposeOrienting to a New Session PurposeUsing the Team to Augment Your CoachingA Complete Summary of Professional CoachingShaping Your Coaching SelfChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
Resisting the Urge to Provide Unsolicited ExpertiseHandling Explicit Requests for ExpertiseProactively Raising Awareness of the Value of CoachingCoaching Technique: RedirectingCoaching Technique: HighlightingSharing Expertise with a Professional Coaching MindsetSharing the “Minimum Viable” Amount of ExpertiseFeedback Is a Form of ExpertiseGiving Praise and Criticism Is Like Playing a Game of Hot and ColdReturn to Professional Coaching as Soon as PossibleWe All Have Blind SpotsApplying a Coaching Mindset to TeachingCreating a Self-Serve Knowledge-Sharing EnvironmentUsing Agile and Modeling AgilePublishing Your CapabilitiesCatalog of ServicesGuidelines for Sharing Feedback and ExpertiseAdditional Considerations for Sharing Feedback and ExpertiseEmbrace Not KnowingAcknowledge the Coachee’s ContributionsEncourage the Coachee’s Learning and GrowthWhat if Their Approach Is Not as Good as My Approach?What if They Make a “Bad” Decision?Receiving Feedback as a CoachChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
Connecting People with Their Best SelvesPersonal InventoryCreating a Personal InventoryOur Differences Shape Our ChoicesShifting from Obstacles to GoalsCoaching Technique: Orienting to GoalsCoaching Technique: Determining Goals and VisionProviding Feedback on the Coachee’s JourneyCoaching Technique: EncouragingCoaching Technique: AcknowledgingCoaching Technique: ChallengingCoaching Technique: CelebratingRewiring Our Thought PatternsWhat We Do Now Is How We’ve Succeeded So FarCoaching Technique: ReinterpretingCoaching Technique: ReevaluatingCoaching Technique: RepatterningCoaching Technique: ReflectionThe Role of Emotional Intelligence in RewiringMore Opportunities for the Coachee to Rewire Their Thought PatternsOpportunities for Coachee Self-ImprovementTeam Self-CoachingSupporting Coachee Improvement EffortsChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
Bring Your Whole Self to CoachingBuilding Rapport with HumorCoaching Technique: LighteningThe Practical Application of IntuitionCoaching Technique: IntuitionMetacognition: Translating Your Experience into CoachingLeverage Your Emotional IntelligenceSocial AwarenessSelf-AwarenessSelf-ManagementRelationship ManagementEmotional Intelligence in ActionResponding to the Coachee’s FeelingsCoaching Technique: ReleasingExperiment and Take Risks to Grow as a CoachConsider Specialized Tools and TechniquesVisualizationRole-PlayingInterruptingIncorporate Coaching Skills into Your Everyday InteractionsPursue ExcellenceSelf-CoachingSelf-RetrospectivesChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
The Best Results Emerge from Self-Organizing TeamsGrowing a Team toward Self-OrganizationFacilitation Structures and Practices That Maximize Coachee ChoicePowerful Activities—Powerful Questions for TeamsExample: Team with the Best Results EverExample: Shared VisioningAdditional Opportunities for Team CoachingCase StudiesThe Nonviolent Communication RetrospectiveA Tale of Two TeamsAn Organization-Level Coaching ConversationChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
Discovering the Work That Needs DoingDoing the WorkGrowing AgilityUsing Agile and Coaching to Become AgileManaging Coaching Work via a BacklogMeasuring AgilityWhat’s Your Coaching Engagement Model?Coaching Contrasted with Other ServicesCoaching versus TherapyCoaching versus ConsultingUsing Professional Coaching as a ConsultantThe Coaching Agreement for the Coaching EngagementCreating a Coaching AgreementCreating a Coaching Agreement with a TeamCreating a Coaching Agreement with LeadershipCreating a Coaching Agreement in the MomentCoaching Behaviors That Require a Coaching AgreementTurning Verbal Agreements into Written AgreementsThe Path to Creating a Coaching AgreementChapter SummarySelf-AssessmentSuggested Next Steps
Guidelines for the ExercisesExercises for Chapter 1Exercises for Chapter 2Exercises for Chapter 3Exercises for Chapter 4Exercises for Chapter 5Exercises for Chapter 6Exercises for Chapter 7Exercises for Chapter 8Additional Exercises
Our Coaching PrinciplesCoaching ObjectivesBehaviors to Do and AvoidProfessional Coaching Starting ReferenceGuidelines for Creating Powerful QuestionsAdditional Powerful QuestionsGuidelines for Sharing Feedback and ExpertiseGuidelines for Staying in the Coaching Mode as Much as PossibleExample Descriptions of an Agile Coach and Professional CoachingExample Coaching Agreements—For Individuals, Teams, and OrganizationsExample Service OfferingsCoaching TechniquesRecommended Resources

Overview

Coach Individuals, Teams, and Organizations to Greater Success with Agile

As Agilists work to increase an organization's Agility, they will run into major obstacles with mindset shifts, moving to self-organization, and organizational adoption. Over the past decade, more Agilists have been using Professional Coaching to help individuals, teams, and the organization as a whole uncover these obstacles and move forward faster.

In Professional Coaching for Agilists, Damon Poole and Gillian Lee draw on their experience with thousands of Agile coaches and practitioners to show you how to use Professional Coaching to accelerate your Agile adoption. The authors' approach of "learning by doing" teaches by using well-honed exercises, real-life stories, and example coaching conversations.

This guide is framework-independent and has been designed for Agile Coaches, Scrum Masters, and any Agilist involved in Agile adoption. It teaches high-value coaching skills, step by step, from "coaching by objective" to managing mutually successful engagements.

Leverage coaching to create aha moments that lead to real change
Learn dozens of coaching techniques and more than a hundred powerful questions
Help people uncover blind spots and assess their opportunities more clearly
Offer your expertise while maintaining your coaching mindset
Help people improve performance by connecting them with their values, goals, and strengths
Blend professional coaching with group facilitation so both work better
Become a great coach by making coaching a natural extension of who you are

The coaching exercises and resources in the appendices are available as free downloads. Register your book for convenient access to downloads, updates, and/or corrections as they become available. See inside book for details.