Sometimes it is helpful for a project to have a person with technical savvy involved in the project, but not making minute by minute technical decisions. I'm not sure how to patternize this, though.
One of the best things about being a Head Coach is that you can potentially do it offsite. This is a boon for all of us consultants suffering from Airplane Butt.
Not clear to me how you can do this off-site.? --- Alistair Cockburn
You need someone to tend the flame on-site. At the Chrysler Comprehensive Compensation I had Ron Jeffries helping me. I think with a more experienced team you could do it without an Assistant Coach. Except, I've never seen such a team. Any time one threatens to form, either management or head-hunters break it up.
I think often about how to do this off-site, even part time, since this otherwise delightful position has caused me Automobile Butt from driving there every day. I believe that there has to be a coach on-site. I spend a huge amount of my time bouncing from desk to desk, sitting in this or that short conversation about whether to do A or B, or what might be wrong with C.
Earlier on it was about how do we format this method (and we'd refactor it instead). Maybe someday they'll start having questions I can't help with. (I don't really believe this, of course.) When/if they do, they'll still have questions and they'll still need someone to go to.
From Brooks? we have the notion of the Chief Programmer. Been there, done that, and there are similarities. The difference is that I have wound up not assigning myself much work at all. Once in a while I'll do something that seems particularly hard to get simple. Or something that has to be done quickly and there's no one faster available. Mostly I just coach.
This Assistant Coach position has been difficult in a couple of ways, and one of them is in not getting to run the ball. But I think it has been important that I did it that way. The effect has been that the TEAM has done it all. They can continue to do it even if I die from Automobile Butt.
My take: I don't see how it can be done without an Assistant Coach, or maybe very frequent Video Conferencing. --Ron Jeffries
From where I sit, Ron, you are not giving yourself enough credit with the term Assistant Coach. A head coach works with coaches, not necessarily assistant coach. I have been in your position, which is why I wondered how a coach can work off-site. Probably Kent can, because he can talk at a much different level with you than you talk with your team. Other than that, I agree with everything you say.
-- Alistair Cockburn (by the way, if when I write the word 'coach' too often, it starts to look and sound like 'roach' to me, as in cockroach... for you Hunting Of The Snark fans, it works a bit like Lewis Carrol's portmanteau words).
Is "cockroach" pronounced "co-roach"?
You're right though, I should be called Coach if Kent is Head Coach. I'll bring that up when I renegotiate my deal with Kent.
I love it. I can't wait to be your co-roach sometime. Alistair Cockburn
See original on c2.com 