A new model of MENTORSHIP
The Integral Agile Mentorship Program
was designed to help people build a career as an Agile Leader.
The people who have a natural aptitude for agility - a servant leadership mindset, systemic thinking, empathy, accountability, playfulness, and a desire to help and nurture others - make the best Scrum Masters and Coaches. We find that if these kinds of people are invested in and committed to learning, it's possible to make a jump into this career, even with no prior technology experience.
The program is intensive, and consists of a combination of training and mentorship that spans 4-6 months.
After completing the program, you will be evaluated by other coaches on our team, and any soft areas will be identified and developed so we can prepare you for the placement process.
So why are we doing this, and why do we do it for free?
There has been a dilution of Agile's original intention which was to focus on people rather than processes, and the magic we often saw when teams experienced being in an agile state has been replaced by the encumbrances of certificates, rules, and frameworks. While those things can be helpful, it’s important not to lose sight of the human side of Agile transformation - relationships, trust, mutual support and a desire to achieve a goal as a team. We are passionate about restoring the original intent, and we enjoy watching our people grow.
If this program’s only result is to get more people out into the world who are capable of inspiring others to implement effective Agile transformations, then we will feel like we have done some good.
Over the course of this mentorship program we hope to nurture a mutual interest in working together. We are always looking for integral and agile minds to grow our Integral Agile team.
We are a group of like minded people whose mission is to change people’s lives for the better. We want to be the best, and the only way we can be the best is by growing our community and cultivating a diversity of perspectives which challenge our assumptions and force us to expand into new ideas.
The very idea of Agile Transformation today lacks an understanding of what we're really asking of people.
We are asking people who have learned how to successfully perform (and keep) their jobs to completely change the way they work and think. Transformation needs to be approached with empathy and care. Employees and leadership should be guided in order to best adapt their roles to a new set of unfamiliar expectations.
What others are saying
"Since journeying with you I've become part of your community, been able to grasp a more in-depth understanding of Agile, and most importantly gained a more holistic approach. I am grateful and thankful."
Carin Payle
"Leor presented a wealth of relevant information in the course, but he focused on and drilled us on the most important bits so we can hit the ground running in our first scrum master job."
Brian Gerard
As I was returning to the IT market, and I had many doubts and with the mentorship I was able to understand in practice how to apply this to my current challenge, thank you for the opportunity and learning.
Lara Parodi - São Paulo - Brazil.
"Leor's ability to break down complex concepts and make them accessible was impressive, and I feel confident in my ability to apply these principles to my future professional endeavors."
Dylan Auerbach
"There are wo many tools you have shared with us to make team and project work better and more fulfilling. I look forward to continue applying these tools with future teams."
Rebecca Sass
"Leor’s enthusiasm for teaching and mentoring is evident from day one, and he is particularly skillful at explaining concepts and theory in simple and practical ways."
Philip Parente
Applications are being accepted using the form below.
Mentorship testimonials
My goal when I started the Program was to gain a better understanding of the theory and practical implementation of Agile and my Scrum Master Certification.
Since journeying with you I've become part of your community, been able to grasp a more in-depth understanding of Agile, add more tools to my toolbox, and most importantly gained a more holistic approach. This will continue to add value to my interactions moving forward.
I am grateful and thankful. The ride has been exhilarating!
Kind regards
Carin Payle
"I recently had the pleasure of taking Leor's Integral Agile course and I must say that I enjoyed the experience more than I initially expected. Leor's teaching style is engaging and informative, and I came away with a solid understanding of both Agile methodology and how it meshes with the Integral framework. Leor's ability to break down complex concepts and make them accessible was impressive, and I feel confident in my ability to apply these principles to my future professional endeavors. Overall, I highly recommend Leor's Integral Agile course to anyone looking to deepen their understanding of Agile and its role in business."
Dylan Auerbach
"I recently had the pleasure of taking Leor's Integral Agile course and I must say that I enjoyed the experience more than I initially expected. Leor's teaching style is engaging and informative, and I came away with a solid understanding of both Agile methodology and how it meshes with the Integral framework. Leor's ability to break down complex concepts and make them accessible was impressive, and I feel confident in my ability to apply these principles to my future professional endeavors. Overall, I highly recommend Leor's Integral Agile course to anyone looking to deepen their understanding of Agile and its role in business."
Dear Leor,
I want to personally thank you so much for all the time and knowledge you have shared with us during the mentorship program. I have gotten so much more out of the course than I could have imagined, and it keeps giving.
What I thought I was getting through my time-investment was a complete understanding of the meaning of some buzz-words I had vaguely heard about and thought might be fitting concepts for me personally - scrum and agile. And yes, I did get that knowledge out of the sessions. Your way of teaching the basic (and in depth) concepts of agile, scrum, kanban, etc. was executed in a spiral form. We talked vaguely about concepts that meant little to us, in conjunction with other topics that we could relate better to from daily life. Then those terms and concepts kept coming back into your presentations with more and more details, and with more and more scrum/agile specifics. You built on the concepts in a way that made it easy to understand and internalize. It was an effective way of presenting us with the information in a non-overwhelming way, but still drilling into our brains bit by bit. It helped that we could go back and listen to the lectures again - some topics click faster than others. Some topics I needed to listen to a few times for it to make sense. The bare-bones (well-fed bones in this case) were so effective and fun. You added reading material, links and other resources to enable us dive deeper into the subject and really think about what scrum and agile could mean for us personally. We had the opportunity to discuss and ask questions during class. The feedback and input from other participants was also incredibly valuable.
The part I didn't expect to get out of the experience was the team cohesiveness and team learning experience plus project work that we are currently working on. Knowledge is one thing, but confidence in that knowledge is a different game altogether. The team collaboration and project work is giving me the confidence to use the knowledge I have gained from your classes and apply it. It gives me the opportunity to question myself out loud in a safe environment and learn from mistakes and successes. It gives me the opportunities to learn from the questions and challenges that other team members have.
It was a commitment from my side. I took my agreement to show up and be engaged seriously. This is something I really wanted to learn, so my inherent motivation was strong. I made it work within my existing responsibilities because it became quickly apparent to me that it was indeed a good fit for me.
I admit I was a little bit skeptical about some things. Scrum and Agile are most successful when the team really buys into the concept. When we started this, I wasn't sure whether I was buying it or not. I do though. I absolutely buy it. There are wo many tools you have shared with us to make team and project work better and more fulfilling. I look forward to continue applying these tools with future teams.
Thanks so much for this experience. I am currently working on getting my resume up to Agile standards and applying for jobs. I am positive about this pivot in my career. I know it is the right path. Thank you for the knowledge and confidence you have enabled.
sincerely,
Rebecca Sass
The Integral Agile mentorship program was fantastic!
Leor Herzfeld embodies the spirit of Agile and by combining it with Integral Theory, he has created a powerful toolkit for success.
Leor’s enthusiasm for teaching and mentoring is evident from day one, and he is particularly skillful at explaining concepts and theory in simple and practical ways.
Different perspectives from his teammates enrich an already extremely immersive program that is hands-on, engaging, and quite often fun. Highly recommended for anyone looking to break into the world of Agile!
Sincerely,
Philip Parente
What I liked most about the mentorship program was how there was a clear focus on what we needed to know to be effective as a scrum master. When independently researching agile and scrum, I came across an overwhelming amount of information. Leor presented a wealth of relevant information in the course, but he focused on and drilled us on the most important bits so we can hit the ground running in our first scrum master job.
Sincerely,
Brian Gerard
I was very happy to be able to participate in this Integral Agility mentorship, as I was returning to the IT market, and I had many doubts about the role of an agilist/scrum master and with the mentorship I was able to understand in practice how to apply this to my current challenge, thank you for the opportunity and learning.
Lara Parodi - São Paulo - Brazil.
During the IA Mentorship Program I was able to learn how to really implement the 4 values of the Agile Manifesto and the Agile practices. The focus was not only on roles, ceremonies, artifacts and process, but also on learning how to really put the values into practice, i.e. having a human perspective, giving autonomy to the team and creating a united, enthusiastic and motivated team.
I am very grateful to have been able to participate in this mentorship program. I was honored to learn from people who have transformed so many companies and teams and who know the real challenges of this process in practice.
I learned that I have a purpose, that I can actually make the world a better place, because every time someone on my team turns off their computer with a happy face because they had a great day at work, they will be a better husband, partner, or son, and I will be a part of that.
I am also thankful for making friends with people from different parts of the world and having the opportunity to read great books with them. I believe that this experience was certainly a lever and had a great impact on my personal development.
Regards,
Debora Cabral