Anyone who keeps a keen eye on Linkedin might have noticed I recently changed my job description to Agile Guide. I feel “guide” more accurately reflects what I do: part coach, part advisor, part teacher.
I work as a consultant – a hired gun – but “consultant” is a very vague term and covers a lot of ground. Plus a lot of people in the technology industry have a very negative view of consultants. I’ve been known to share that view myself so while consultant might be an accurate description it was also vague and open to misinterpretation.
Many people consider me an Agile Coach, and I have worked as an agile coach. However – as I’ve written before – this too is a conflicted term. Most of us who go by the title “agile coach” like to talk about helping people help themselves, unlocking the individual, respecting the individual as the expert, and so on. I agree with a lot of that and I do it. Sometimes.
I also know what professional coaches do and I don’t feel I’m one of them. I have a lot of respect for real coaches. Such coaches put their own opinions second and I don’t. I am prepared to tell people the way I think it should be – they are free to ignore my advice but I’m prepared to say it.
Thats why I also regard myself as part teacher: not just direct training sessions (which I do) but also one-on-one and in small free format group sessions.
So what title should I use?
I’ve struggled with this for years. My epiphany came a few weeks ago: Agile guide. I help others to get more agile, coaching is one tool but so is direct advice and teaching.
Hadn’t others thought of “Agile Guide”. So I checked out LinkedIn myself. One person. Someone I respect, someone I call a friend: Woody Zuill.
I checked in with Woody and his thinking parallels mine.
So I’m an Agile Guide – I help individuals, teams and enterprises become more agile in a digital world.
Part coach, part advisor, part teacher, plus thinker and route finder. I use skills of coaching, teaching and consultancy.
Who knows, maybe, it will catch on. After all, as Woody pointed out, we have both changed the world already.
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