Why ops teams need a tech coach

How many winning sports teams have no coach? None, right? Yet how many business teams do you know who DO have a coach?

If you’re facing a familiar business problem, past experience likely provides an answer. But when you break new ground, you may be in need of new ideas. In either case, would you say no to extra support that elevates your operation to new levels?

Question is, where do you look for help?

Enter team coaching

A good coach provides an objective external perspective, empathetic interventions to smooth the bumps, an emphasis on self-accountability, and encouragement when the goal seems far off. A great coach is along for the ride, driving the team to the final whistle, come what may. Confidence born of experience under fire.

Often, the key to improvement lies beyond the obvious. For example:

* Balancing pace of user adoption with pace of change for best outcomes.
* Blending prudent planning with adaptability and course correction.
* Managing risk without the red tape.
* Rapid experimentation to overcome unknowns.
* Improve multi disciplinary collaboration

If you’re asking your team to overcome new challenges, expect to allocate a “learning budget” for the extra time it will take. Coaching can help you reduce this budget. Done well, these lessons will drive serial success on future initiatives.

What would that do for your confidence?

Consider your team's needs
Pick a challenging initiative—current or upcoming—and consider how coaching could help drive your team’s confidence in navigating uncertain waters*. Use the examples above and below if that helps.

Here’s one model that works, with further examples.

(*) Navigation is the subject of chapter 6 of Trusting Technology, a book about forming ideas, exploring opportunities with customers and colleagues, and building your future together. Order you copy here.