In this Wicked & Agile Interview, we'll be speaking with Cheryl Hammond to talk about how Cheryl is combining her decades of agile consulting with decades of volunteer work promoting college access and success in the US. Agile principles like an experimentation mindset, outcome focus, using data to inform decisions, and above all inclusion and respect for people, align beautifully with the values professional educators have espoused for centuries. She’s using specific agile techniques to energize her space and help students and volunteers see their efforts—and themselves—in new ways.

About Cheryl Hammond:

Cheryl came from an under-resourced US school district that had no idea what to do with her - until she blundered into need-based financial aid and a life-changing education at Smith College. Smith paved the way for Cheryl’s career as a software developer, agile leader, and world-traveling consultant and conference speaker. Today she volunteers as director of college counseling for the Seattle chapter of Minds Matter, a community-based non-profit serving low-income high school students in the same zip codes where Cheryl grew up. She’s obsessed with making sure they don’t have to rely on luck to succeed the way she did.

About Wicked & Agile Interviews:

We meet with key Agilists and Leaders – like Cheryl Hammond – making big impact in their communities to learn valuable and inspiring insights through the personal experiences they share with us.

The vision of the interviews is to provide an understanding of how agile can help our communities and corporations in Wicked Problems and for our community and corporation leaders to help Agilists understand how they chip away at gnarly Wicked Problems.

At the end of each interview, our guests share their top Wicked Wisdoms.