Who we are
Claire Brown
While packing before a journey what is it that has to be there in your backpack?
My iPhone and a battery back-up. I love the fact I can do pretty much everything on it – stay in touch with others, watch a film, read a book, meditate, listen to music, get directions, research what’s around me…
What was the most impactful, trasformational experience you had, professionally or private? Why?
Moving into the agile world was one of the most transformative moves of my career – it literally felt as if work should always have been this way. Another was discovering the world of psychological coaching, which benefited me personally & professionally. I love helping others get the most from this way of working & seeing their confidence grow as they achieve outcomes they’re aiming for.
List three values on which you base your actions and your life.
- Helping others: be there for each other & treat each other respectfully as equals
- Integrity: honesty in all interactions, with courage to talk about even the difficult things
- Change: embrace it for the new knowledge, experiences & opportunities it bring
What is it in your job that you enjoy the most?
The professional coaching element of my job is by far what I most enjoy – bringing out the best in people by inspiring them to think differently or from fresh perspectives.
What episode related to your profession would you like everyone to know about? How do you think it can help other colleagues and why?
I earned my stripes (or gathered my scars!) working my way up through project and programme management routes, using PRINCE2 & MSP methodologies. Just when I was starting to flirt with the idea of programme directorship, I was presented with an opportunity to experiment with scrum – that’s when the agile bug bit me. Achieving the mindset shift from traditional waterfall ways of working made me fall passionately back in love with my career again. I threw myself into studying, moving up through the Scrum Master path into Enterprise Agile Coaching then expanding my knowledge & capabilities in psychological coaching. My dynamic combination of being an extensively qualified Agile Specialist & a Certified Professional Coach, coupled with a unique ability to incisively get to the heart of what’s going on, puts me in a great position to help leaders & teams in agile environments to thrive. I now specialise in coaching leaders to enhance their leadership agility when working with teams delivering organisational & transformational change, as well as coaching teams & individuals to help them embrace more collaborative & empowered ways of working.
Add a personal anecdote, the kind you’d put at the bottom of your résumé – or at the beginning, depending on your point of view – under hobbies and interests.
Everything happens for a reason – the only wonder is in knowing how long it’ll take to discover that reason & how we can best learn from it…