Celebrating a Journey to Masterful Agile Team Coaching: Cohort Edition
After a successful 2020 inaugural cohort “Coaching Agility from Within” we are several months into the next cohort program and preparing for yet another group of new cohort members to onboard by mid-May 2021.
Time flies when you are having fun!
In this article we want to give you an overview of our Cohort program as well extend a personal invitation to you: help us celebrate the completion of this journey with the first cohort graduates and possibly apply to join us this year as a cohort member.
Are you curious what joining our cohort could mean to your career and your leadership journey? We invite you to learn more!
What Is the ‘Coaching Agility from Within’ Cohort?
The goal of the cohort is to build demonstrable competency in agile team coaching where agile coaches are equipped with a deeper understanding and awareness of themselves so that they are able to lead and coach change in effectively coach agile teams and adapt to what is needed in the moment.
This cohort is designed to help you go from asking:
- How do I skillfully deal with resistance in my team?
- How do I navigate team conflict that arises in the moment?
- How do I help my team reach high performance?
- How can I tell if what I am doing even qualifies as team coaching?
- How do I coach leaders in my organization who just ‘don’t get it’?
- How can I stop feeling like I don’t know what I’m doing and worrying that someone will find me out?
To leading this:
- I see conflict as a source of energy for my team and I feel confident in my ability to work with it. I’m also not afraid to bring conflict forward if it’s impeding progress.
- I am clear about how I support teams in their journey to high performance and how I evaluate where a team is at when I engage with them.
- I am a skilled coach and it shows.
- I am confident in my ability to coach a team. I’m adapting both my leadership style and the way I engage, to support them in doing their best.
- I confidently and skillfully navigate tricky conversations with my colleagues and those in authority positions, in service of my team’s development.
- I am highly sought after because I’m masterful at leading change in Agile teams.
What Will You Gain From Being Part of This Cohort?
- Clarity in your own Team Coaching practice.
If you are an external coach, you will refine how you think about your own practice of Agile team coaching and how you contract with teams. If you are internal, you will refine how you talk about the outcomes of working with a coach and the outcomes teams can expect. In either case, you will become more clear about boundaries and what creates the best environment for teams to thrive.
- Personal Growth.
How we think is how we lead others. Continue the journey of personal growth that started for you in the foundational facilitation and coaching courses. When Agile coaches are able to come from a place of greater self-awareness, self-acceptance, self-mastery and self-authority then they show up for teams in a more powerful way with greater results.
- Proficiency in Coaching, Mentoring and Facilitation.
This part of the journey is steeped in real-world practice. You will be working with real teams and getting feedback along the way. This will deepen and refine your skills.
- Greater demand for your services.
People don’t contract for your services because of a piece of paper, they work with you because of the deeper work you have done to refine and master the craft of coaching teams and the positive impact you have when you work with others.
Our Vision For You
…is to become a leader who:
- Inspires and motivates high-performing Agile teams
- Grows other leaders
- Helps teams have difficult conversations with grace and ease
- Feels competent and experienced
The Right Fit for the Right Cohort Program
How will you know if you are the right fit for this cohort and if this cohort is the right fit for your leadership journey?
This in-depth 8 month program is rigorous, placing an emphasis on practice and feedback opportunities through skill drills, peer coaching, team coaching, ongoing group work, professional one-on-one coaching and one-on-one supervision of actual Agile coaching sessions. You will have ample opportunity to learn from your peers and bring real-world scenarios to the group for feedback and guidance.
If this sounds like you can fit this into your life, we would love for you to apply to this cohort program.
The Competency Certification Cohort!
Just one more note. You cannot go through the motions in this program. We expect that you will commit to the program and invest the time in your own learning, show up and engage, and express a sincere desire to improve. In return, you can expect that we will show up and engage and support and challenge you in your journey. We promise, the commitment will be worth it in the end!
Celebrating Those Who Completed This In-depth 8 Month Program
Join us in celebrating the ‘Bluebirds’! This fantastic group of agile coaches graduated their cohort at the end of 2020.
The events of 2020 created a unique experience for all of us and as a cohort group we put the principles of agility into practice as we all adapted to the changing landscape of 2020.
We were just days away from being together on the beach in North Carolina for the residential program when a world-wide pandemic was announced and after thoughtful dialogue we made the decision to postpone the residential and eventually held it remotely. While it was not our first choice the remote residential was a moving and meaningful experience – created out of clear intention by everyone to show up fully, connect with one another and deepen the practice of team coaching.
This group co-created an experience full of grace, generosity, and accountability for themselves and each other.
The best part about seeing this group of leaders thrive is knowing that while the official cohort has ended, their connectivity and their learning has not! These leaders continue to meet on a monthly basis to support each other!
They are also eager to support our current cohort members and look forward to potentially meeting and supporting YOU in our next cohort, which starts in May 2021!
Quotes and Notes from the Bluebird Cohort!
We asked our Bluebirds for quotes and notes about their experience. Here are the reflections from Dave Ross, Jennifer Bullock and Vicky Hora.
Dave: “As I reflect on our cohort last year, several things come to mind. It was a rigorous, almost year-long, process and fraught with all kinds of unexpected challenges (such as Covid, cancellation of the residential), but what kept us on track was incredible flexibility and leadership shown by Marsha and Kay, and peers who were driven to overcome and succeed no matter the obstacle. We kept going because we were being exposed to new concepts and techniques that challenged our existing thinking, and called us re-think some of our fundamental beliefs about Agility, Coaching, Mentoring, Teaching and Facilitation. There is something refreshing about seeing these topics, that I use in my everyday working life, from an entirely new perspective that brings revelations and insights I would not otherwise have. So I am indebted to Marsha and Kay for running the cohort, in this most difficult of years, and to my cohort-mates for enhancing what we learned in practice coaching circles, all of which lifted me up and helped me succeed.”
Jennifer: “I am fortunate to have been part of the inaugural cohort and of the awesome Bluebirds team. Despite the twists and turns of 2020, we worked together as a team to redefine what the cohort would look like and leaned all in to the experience. I learned so much more than I anticipated and have grown in the focal areas of coaching, mentoring, facilitating, and training, making this a memorable and valuable experience.”
Vicky: “The cohort journey with Marsha, Kay and my awesome Bluebirds/friends was gratifying and humbling, and the learnings gained have been invaluable. The journey has created more realms of possibilities for my life’s purpose that is all about – Making teams and people love their work through inspirational coaching, mentoring, facilitation and training!”
Are You Next? Apply to Join Our Next Cohort Program in May 2021
If you are ready, we’d love for you to put in your application to this cohort! We are excited you are ready to continue your learning journey and we are thrilled you want to accomplish it with the Cohort.
