Certified Agile Facilitator™

ACS-CF Certification

Successful completion of the 2-Day ACS-CF training course means you are not only a Certified Facilitator, you are also entitled to enjoy 2 years of membership of the Scrum Alliance. That brings access to exclusive member-only information, resources and materials.

Certification Renewal

Your certification will be active for a 2-year period, at that time you will be asked to follow the Scrum Alliance renewal process.

To renew the certification, individuals must achieve and record 20 SEUs (Scrum Education Units) and pay a renewal fee.

Professional Development Units (PDUs)

The also course earns you 14 PDUs (Category A) within the PMI. PDUs can be used toward PMP, PMI-ACP and other certifications.

This training course focuses on developing skills in agile coaching and facilitation. It begins by discussing the concept of facilitation, including what it is, when to use it, and the qualities of a good facilitator. The participants are then taught to prepare for a facilitation session by understanding its purpose, desired outcomes, group dynamics, context, and group norms. They also learn to assess the level of psychological safety within the group and create a facilitation session plan using a canvas.

The course emphasises the importance of setting the stage before the session begins. This involves familiarising oneself with the facilitation space, getting into the right mindset, and delivering effective opening words to engage participants. Additionally, the use of hooks or icebreakers is explored to create a positive and interactive environment.

During the session, participants are taught how to manage the flow of the session and maintain energy and engagement. They learn to utilise their voice, energy, and movement effectively as facilitators and discover various techniques to keep participants involved.

The importance of inclusion is emphasised, and participants learn how to be inclusive facilitators. They are introduced to the concept of different personas in a group and strategies for handling conflicts that may arise. The course also focuses on developing listening skills, exploring emotional intelligence models, and decoding emotions through micro-behaviours.

We then prepare for and conduct a group facilitation session. Participants receive feedback on their performance to enhance their facilitation skills. They also learn about three facilitation orientations and the four C's of session planning.

Visual facilitation is another topic covered in the course, highlighting the power of using posters to engage participants. Examples of posters for facilitation are provided, and participants have the opportunity to practice creating their own. Additional resources for learning visual facilitation are suggested.

Group decision making is addressed, discussing the challenges associated with making decisions as a group and exploring the roles of decision-makers and consensus-building techniques such as diverging and converging.

The course concludes by reviewing real agile coaching workshop scenarios and reflecting on ways to make them more engaging. Participants learn from these scenarios and gain insights into effective session closure techniques.

Overall, this training course equips participants with the necessary skills and knowledge to become effective agile coaches and facilitators. They learn how to create engaging facilitation sessions, foster inclusivity, manage group dynamics, and make informed group decisions. The course emphasises the importance of effective communication, active listening, and understanding emotions to create a positive and productive facilitation environment.

The ACS-CF course is designed for individuals who have a passion for facilitation and want to make a real difference in their careers, industries, and teams. Facilitation is recognised as a crucial skill in today's modern world. The course is suitable for various types of individuals, including those who aspire to become empowering and impactful facilitators, Scrum masters aiming to become Certified Scrum Professional® - ScrumMaster (CSP®-SM), Agilists working towards becoming Certified Agile Coach® (CEC or CTC), individuals who want to enhance their career prospects through facilitation skills, and anyone who believes in creating happier teams and improving meeting experiences.