About Chris Gagné
I’m an Agile coach with nearly 20 years of experience in Agile software development, support, and operations. I leverage my product experience, technical understanding, and mindfulness training to build rapport with developers and leaders alike.
I’m passionate about helping individuals and teams realize their highest potential. I do this by teaching, mentoring, and coaching teams in the values, principles, and practices found within Agile and secular mindfulness.
I have experience in a diversity of industries, including e-commerce marketplaces, lead generation/management, and incident management. I am an Edmund Hillary Fellowship Fellow, the lead inventor on PagerDuty’s patented operational maturity model, and co-founded a startup with a successful exit.
My Coaching Stance
Start With Perfection
Every individual and team is doing their best possible work given the circumstances. Nobody is deficient or defective. When we come from a place of recognizing our inherent worth, we can see that there is no limit to what we are capable of when we creatively solve the problems together.
Each of you is perfect the way you are … and you can use a little improvement.
Joy = Performance
When leaders and teams learn how to unlock their intrinsic motivation, we become happier and have less conflict and suffering at work. This improvement in well-being is why I coach. The inevitable outcome of increased performance is why I can continue coaching.
We have three innate psychological needs—competence, autonomy, and relatedness. When those needs are satisfied, we’re motivated, productive, and happy.
―Daniel H. Pink in Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
Learning to Learn
The Agile frameworks were created and evolved by high-functioning teams. We can learn a great deal from them, and it’s best to broadly adopt them as a starting point. However, learning how to reflect honestly and experiment courageously is far more valuable.
An organization’s ability to learn, and translate that learning into action rapidly, is the ultimate competitive advantage.
—Jack Welsh
Speaking at New Frontiers, 2019
Enterprise and Startup Experience
Rigorous Training and Certification
Pragmatic Marketing Certified – Level III (PMC-III)
UCLA Anderson School of Management - MBA
Occidental College - BA, Economics
Contact Me
I’d love to speak with you! Click here to easily book a free 30-minute video consultation at a time that meets your needs. If these times don’t for you, send me a message and we’ll work it out.
I’m located in Tākaka, New Zealand and serve teams both in-person and remotely. I prefer to plan and train in person and coach remotely. My timezone, NZT, is ideally suited for teams and individuals in both the Americas as well as East Asia.
I also seek to provide long-term, pro-bono mentoring to a New Zealand entity or entrepreneur focused on innovative or scalable approaches to urgent or highly neglected issues, such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Send me a message.
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