Scrum Alliance Launches New Facilitation Certification Course

The Agile Coaching Skills – Certified Facilitator (ACS-CF) course focuses on effective group facilitation with an emphasis on mindset and practice.

Scrum Alliance, one of the largest membership organizations in the agile community, today announces a new certification course: Agile Coaching Skills – Certified Facilitator (ACS-CF). This course, taught by experienced agile practitioners, equips attendees from any professional background to be effective facilitators.

Much more than running meetings, facilitation guides the processes groups use to collaborate and arrive at decisions.

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“Facilitation skills have never been more important for today’s professionals,” said Scrum Alliance Chief Executive Officer Tristan Boutros. “In an age of ever-more meetings, workshops, and ways of working, being able to create engagement and drive collaboration with stakeholders is vital to creating great outcomes.”

“We are offering a certification in a professional competency we know to be in demand with the launch of ACS-CF,” Boutros said. “Any professional who wants to be a great facilitator will benefit from this course, and we’re thrilled to bring it to the community along with our other industry-leading certifications.”

The course is designed for anyone interested in facilitation. It’s also ideal for existing Scrum Alliance members who want to develop this important skill that is the backbone of agile coaching and leadership. People on the path to Certified Agile Coach and members who hold the Certified ScrumMaster, Certified Scrum Product Owner Certified Agile Leadership, or another certification will get the benefit of expanding their professional toolkit with this offering.

The ACS-CF will contribute to showing proficiency in facilitation for people aspiring to become a Scrum Alliance Certified Agile Coach. CAC candidates should include their certification in addition to other evidence of facilitation experience and education as part of the evaluation process.

ACS-CF will be available in virtual and in-person formats, featuring training with a Scrum Alliance-approved instructor and live facilitation practice. Learning objectives include:

  • Setting the stage
  • Understanding the group’s context and needs
  • The orientation of a facilitator
  • Facilitating through conflict
  • Forwarding the action
  • Facilitation practice

“Scrum Alliance has just developed a facilitation skills certification class,” said Bob Galen, Certified Enterprise Coach and a Subject Matter Expert involved in creating the ACS-CF. “Facilitation skills are essential within agile contexts for scrum masters, product owners, coaches, and other roles.”

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“While there are many facilitation classes in the market, the critical differentiator of this class is a focus on the mindset of the facilitator and the opportunity for immersive practice,” said Galen. “Yes, you’ll learn new facilitative skills. But the real key is to hone your skills to adapt to emergent challenges and have the foundational mindset and nimbleness to facilitate teams and groups to overcome them.” People interested in registering for this course can search for a course date, time, and format that works for them.

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