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--- what_kind_of_questions_should_we_ask_if_we_are_hiring_a_coach [2019/05/15 09:18] – Buzzer round added hpsamios
+++ what_kind_of_questions_should_we_ask_if_we_are_hiring_a_coach [2019/05/21 07:09] – Added value discussion for transformation coaches hpsamios
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 A lot of organizations I work with have a need to hire coaches to support their transformation. Generally I find this is a two-stage process where the first interview is basically a first pass filter aimed at just determining basic skills while the second interview is a more evaluative discussion. The question is "what approach should we use to drive this second conversation?"
-====== Some Questions ======
+The following sections talk about some questions I’ve used in the past to help me understand fit.
+====== What Questions Should We Ask Prospective Team Coaches? ======
 The approach I've found useful is to set a more "situational" discussion. The idea is to have a a series of driving questions where there really is no right or wrong answer, but that the discussion will help uncover the thinking process, the framework, the person you are talking to has.
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   * Bonus question: “What was the last book you read?” Coaches need to be constantly learning. Books, blogs, etc are an indicator of this.
+====== What Questions Should We Ask Prospective Transformational Coaches?======
-====== Transformational ======
 Sometimes you are at the beginning of a transformation for an organization and so the issues you are working with are more related to working the initial contacts with a leadership team. Here are some questions that you might ask in this situations:
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   * "Describe a situation where you are working with a leadership group that are at odds over something - perhaps there is a discussion about the future of the agile rollout and people in the room are trying to see 'where they will end up' which is effecting the decisions. How did you facilitate?" Looking for decision where facilitation lead to approach that people agreed to try. "How did you clarify next steps?" is a possible follow on question - trying to avoid different interpretations of "the decision".
   * "What was the last organizational / coaching experiment you ran and what was the result?" Looking for a degree of comfort in risk taking, and understanding of how an experiment works (PDCA applied to the subject at hand). You will sometimes see people take a while to answer this which implies that they have not really been thinking about their coaching in this way.
-  * "If you were to hire a coach, what would you look for?" Looking for discussion more about characteristics, personality and approach. For example, "someone who is comfortable working with the CIO in the morning, and a team in the afternoon."
+  * "If you were to hire a coach, what would you look for and how would you prioritize the skills / values". Looking for discussion more about characteristics, personality and approach. For example, "someone who is comfortable working with the CIO in the morning, and a team in the afternoon." Also looking for some specific discussion around ability to manage client expectations, approach to work yourself out of a job, ability to find where people are at in client organization and start from there, and so on. Values and philosophy are part of this - see [[coaching_values_and_principles|Coaches Values and Principles]] for some thinking.
   * "The organization you are working with has read a lot about agile and are working to form teams. They understand the idea of a "two pizza team" but are struggling to form these teams in all cases. How would you convince the organization that having large teams is OK?" (Looking for a "non-religious" discussion of a principle that a lot of people think is basic. Aim is to focus on what works for the business. Typically interested in more thought out approaches, than just following standard thinking. Note: this might not be what you want in your transformation - it has been important in some I've worked. And this might be a useful type of question to ask of all coaches).
   * "You are about to facilitate a leadership workshop, involving 20 people of the extended leadership team. If I were to walk into the room where you are facilitating, what would I see? How would you conduct a session like this?" Looking for an environment set up for collaboration and joint decision making. Walls marked of with things like "Meeting Objectives", "Working Agreements", "Parking Lot", "Retrospective", Kanban version marked "Agenda". Room set up so that it is collaborative, seating around tables for example rather than classroom style. Perhaps a mention of a co-facilitator to pair with. Perhaps a mention of preparation work required to get there. Perhaps a discussion about engaging people in activities as quickly as possible, minimal use of PowerPoint and so on.