Agile Coach: A Therapist

We know that the human body is prone to ailments against which it is not able to defend by means of the immune system. In order to counter the effects of the illnesses, we seek diagnosis, followed by medication to restore the normal bodily functions.

Project Health Check and Treatment Options

Software delivery teams can be compared to the human body to some extent. We have the brain, which consists of the CXO level of management, who make the decisions involving all the moving parts and their roles. Then we have the actual moving parts (project managers, engineering teams). And finally we have the support groups; viz. maintenance teams, infrastructure, tools etc. These groups are much like our vital organs like lungs, kidneys etc.

Flaws in such a set up can be result from factors like misaligned project goals, unhealthy team dynamics, issues with skills and process inconsistencies. That is when it becomes important to pin-point weaknesses that are responsible for degraded team performances and treat them accordingly. Some of these issues (“root causes”) could be resolved by extreme, precision doses ("surgery”) while several others need a more patient, holistic approach to treatment (“therapy”).

What’s ailing agile teams?

Agile is a mind-set. It’s based on a set of values, principles and rules. Core agile principles stress on teams making constructive decisions based on their own retrospection and the kind of expertise they have within their teams.

Despite that, only following those set of rules does not guarantee successful deliveries of valuable software. With the exponential rate of change in technology and business scenarios, teams need to adapt and learn and maturely respond to uncomfortable situations. These complex scenarios lead to unhealthy symptoms and the health check results will be worrisome.

This is where an Agile Coach comes into picture. But when organizations hire agile coaches (mostly external), they expect quick fixes to all their problems using precision doses. The Coach is often looked at as an expert surgeon, who will come in, assess the damage, fix the broken parts and magically improve delivery standards. Is this expectation fair?

Agile Coach: A harbinger of boosted, long lasting immunity

Let’s look at some of the key responsibilities of an Agile Coach:

• Trainer and mentor: An agile coach’s first role is training the team in agile values and principles. But it does not stop there. Most people attend agile training but fail to actually make the changes required to successfully transform to Agile. Even the best or the longest training sessions will not be able to cover all the scenarios that a particular team will encounter. In such a scenario, the coach mentors the team and provides the guidance so that the team can resolve the specific issues. The coach keeps focus on people and continuous improvement all the time; and provides the team a platform and guidance for improvement all the time.

• Facilitator: The Agile Coaches facilitate the core agile meetings and ceremonies with playfulness and a collaborative spirit, thereby bringing more rigor and structure to the agile ceremonies and other collaborative events. They understand how to address some of the team’s dysfunctional behaviors and help them in achieving maximum success. 

• Motivator: Much like human beings every team functions differently, and it is the unbiased view of the agile coach that will help in motivating the team to the vision that the organization has towards making the change to agile and achieving its business goals. 

• Process Enabler: The agile coach ensures that team is following the right agile processes in true spirit and in-line with the agile values and principles. An Agile coach is an observer of the entire process map for the team or organization. Process driven coach’s focus more on creating measurable change and subsequent improvements in the delivery processes. It is more about helping teams rethink their existing practices and get over their assumptions of what works and what can’t. It is about broadening their perspectives and helping them adapt to a changing environment.

It will not be a true to say, that the above qualities are the “only” things that an agile coach should bring to the table. But it gives an idea of what is the difference between one-time quick-fix models to continuous improvement.

“Becoming Agile” is an evolutionary change, a slow and steady culture change. By being agile, the teams cultivate the right value system in place, where there is more value and respect for people over process. Most importantly, there is the mind-set of continuous improvement at a sustainable pace.

Therapy literally means "curing" or "healing". Agile Coaches can truly cure the traditional mind-set which have hampered software delivery teams in the past. Much of the Coach’s work is about changing individuals’ and teams’ mind-set, the mental models and short-cuts which they have built up over years. Once teams are driven enough to think and operate within those principles, they become self-sufficient. Remember, this change play out over time.

Find a good therapist. Be Agile, Scale Up!

Please feel free to put forward your comments or reach out to me at [email protected].

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this post are the author's own. The author welcomes and respects any difference of opinion.