Written by Michael Collier and Julianne Jones
January 17, 2018
Coaches and Trainers Clinics are designed to help with specific challenges encountered on your way to a more Agile way of working. Organized by the training and coaching community, these free sessions are available during SGMSP18.
Our Trainers Clinic facilitator, Vivek Angrias, is a certified TBR (Training from the Back of the Room) trainer and speaker who started his career in scientific research more than a decade ago. He has experience working with clients from Fortune 50 to start-ups, spanning industries such as banking, retail, nonprofits, insurance, health care, and even the State Department. His expertise includes large-scale Agile transformations, organizational change, and leadership development.
Evelyn Tian is our Coaches Clinic facilitator. She’s a professional Lean and Agile Coach and Trainer, previously with Ericsson, where she headed up their Global Transformation Support Center. She has been passionately working with Lean and Agile transformations since 2009 and has nurtured several coaches and trainers through apprenticeship and mentorship programs.
Cherie Silas is a Scrum Alliance Certified Enterprise Coach (CEC) and an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) who has been coaching, leading, training, and mentoring people for most of her career. She’ll be our CEC/CST/CTC Retreat facilitator. Save the date for the CEC/CST/CTC Retreat on April 15.
And finally, our CSP Retreat on April 15 will be facilitated by Dana Pylayeva, who started her career in IT as a developer on a typical Waterfall project. While attending a conference back in 2004, she caught the Agile fever and realized that there was a better way to implement software projects.
Organizational Transformation: A Continuous Improvement Journey
“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” – Heraclitus
It's been said that permanence of change is the only constant. Our collective journey in transforming the world of work has only just begun. The world around us changes like an ever-flowing river. Sometimes that river is calm, hiding the deep depths of inertia. Other times, it’s flowing effortlessly around huge rocks of resistance.
Global SCRUM GATHERING® Minneapolis 2018 attendees will explore this topic with practitioner- and guide-level speakers who twist through powerful currents of individual motivation, organizational culture, Agile leadership, and organizational inertia.
Learn about implementing Agile across multiple teams, systems thinking, leadership influence, and cultivating a culture of experimentation. We know organizational transformation is a journey and invite you to challenge your thinking to accelerate personal transformation at SGMSP18.
TAKEAWAY MESSAGE: You never know when a chance coffee break conversation will connect you to a breakthrough idea, or when an open space event channels your thinking to actionable steps. The opportunity to meet and learn from your peers and seasoned practitioners is too big for you to miss!
Speak Minnesota to Me
Special thanks to Bria Johnson, CSM, for her insider’s guide to Minneapolis!
The Twin Cities are an often-overlooked destination with unique culture, slang, and Midwest cuisine. Learn some of the local lingo and plan to sample some of the area’s signature fare, inspired by Scandinavian immigrants.
General Phrases:
- Uff-da (oo-fh dah): Norwegian origin, this phrase is used to express sensory overload. It can be used to express surprise, relief, astonishment or exhaustion.
- Dontcha know (doh-nt-cha noh): Yep, it literally is “don’t you know.” We are trying to engage the listener and make sure they are on the same page versus asking them if they actually understand.
- You betcha (yuu-bet-cha): A form of agreement
- Skol (skohl): Scandinavian influence, translates into cheers or good health. We say it at Minnesota Vikings football games.
- Up North: It’s not a direction, it’s a place. It’s where all the lakes and cabins are and where the best fall foliage is. The actual direction is irrelevant.
- Minnesota Goodbye: It takes many handshakes and hugs to say goodbye in Minnesota. Usually people end up standing in an entryway for up to an hour while saying goodbye.
- That’s interesting or That’s different: These phrases are used instead of actually saying how we feel (passive aggressive in nature to avoid conflict).
- A Minnesota Joke: Come for the culture… stay because your car won’t start.
Traditional Foods:
- Hotdish: usually consisting of a combination of creamed soup, tater tots, and cheese
- Lutefisk: traditional Scandinavian fermented fish dish
- Juicy Lucy: cheeseburger with the cheese inside the meat patty
- Cheese Curd: solid pieces of curdled milk (cheese byproduct)
- Pop: Not Coke. Not soda. It’s pop!
- Nut Goodie Bar: candy bar manufactured in Saint Paul
- Lefse: traditional Scandinavian flatbread made with potatoes, flour, butter, and cream
- Walleye: fresh water fish native the area
To this, we say, “SKOL!” We look forward to seeing you soon in Minneapolis.
Michael Collier
Julianne Jones
North American Gathering Team Correspondents