“Your company is hiring a new ScrumMaster or Agile coach. You have the job description, and you have candidates who have the appropriate certifications. Now what? Agile coaches or ScrumMasters need more than simply having the knowledge or the certifications. They must be able to win over a group, gain their trust, and — ideally — be liked by their teams.

Transforming a group from a different project management method, such as Waterfall, to Agile takes not only knowledge but trust. If these developers, testers, technical writers, and other specialists are supposed to change their way of working after years of doing it one way, they need to be convinced that the new way is better or at least no worse. This is a difficult task if they will not even listen to their new coach or ScrumMaster.

According to Aldo Civico’s article in Psychology Today, “3 Ways to Build Rapport and Influence Others,” there are three important attributes a person should have when trying to build rapport and influence another’s position. The first is to enter the world of the other; be led by curiosity. The second is to get their point of view, and the third is to listen actively. These are all branches of the same tree, with the result that the person feels that they are being heard”.  – Scott Gould, excerpted from the article, “ScrumMasters, Agile Coaches, and the Cult of Personality”, at ScrumAlliance.org, click here to read the article in its entirety.

Well said!   PMO Advisory offers courses throughout the year designed for project professionals interested in Portfolio (PfMP), Program (PgMP), Project (PMP & CAPM) Risk (PMI-RMP) Management, and Agile (PMI-ACP) certifications.