About John
Hi, I’m John and I provide Rownham Coaching’s coaching, consulting and training services.
I’m an International Coaching Federation accredited coach, Solution Focused Coaching Practitioner and experienced agile consultant, specialising in developing leaders and improving organisational agility.
I’m familiar with the challenges of change and transformation. I help teams to deliver great products, leaders to lead and organisations become more effective, productive and enjoyable to work in.
I’m not wedded to any particular agile approach, I’m more concerned with ways of working and thinking that will help achieve goals in each unique organisational context. I often focus on foundational behaviours to further progress, supporting your chosen methodology and target culture.
I have broad experience which helps me understand the pressures that individuals and teams face as they work to improve their capabilities and balance their life outside work. I don’t just theorise, I have hard earned experience working alongside teams across organisational levels from senior leadership to front line operational teams.
I’ve worked with organisations ranging from start-up to enterprise scale, formed in the publishing, telecommunications, finance, defence and public sector arenas. I’ve employed DevOps, Continuous Delivery, Lean, Agile, Kanban, Scrum and most things in between.
I’m often asked to write and talk about the things I do and experience. I’ve spoken at many conferences, including keynotes. Nothing focuses the mind, or encourages thorough research like presenting ideas in front of hundreds of experts in the field. You can learn more about my talks and topics in the talks page.
I was part of the early DevOps and Continuous Delivery Community, championing culture and new ways of working, I spoke at the second DevOpsDays conference in 2011, and at numerous others since. I am co-creator of one of the first practical DevOps workshops, Experience DevOps.
The Agile community has played a big part in my development, and keeping my skills grounded, useful and up to date. I like to contribute back to the community through talks and I've been one of the main organisers of the Agile Bath & Bristol Community for over a decade.
About Our Name
Rownham Coaching Ltd is named after a small riverside area near our base in Bristol, England, it is a firm favourite for walking coaching with clients.
Rownham Ferry was an early crossing of the River Avon first via a presumably rather muddy ford and later in the 12th century by ferry. Different crossings, including the famous Clifton Suspension Bridge, and intriguingly titled ‘Brunel’s Other Bridge’ replaced the ferry. Today the area remains a welcome break from the city with small green spaces, wooded areas and a considerable quantity of mud.
Rownham Coaching Ltd was previously named Cotelic, Telic meaning purpose and ‘Co’ invoking for any of those useful traits like ‘continuous’, ‘coaching’ , ‘cocreate’, ‘collaborate’. We changed the name in Summer 2022 due to similarities with a brand of medicine.