Joel Bancroft-Connors

With over 25 years in product management, program leadership, and Agile delivery, Joel works with teams in complex, regulated, and politically constrained environments to improve execution discipline, delivery predictability, and outcomes that matter.

Joel has partnered with organizations such as BMW, Salesforce, AOL, Hitachi, VMware, MassMutual, Costco, and multiple state and federal agencies. His work focuses on tightening Sprint execution, strengthening Product Owner practices, improving planned-to-done reliability, and aligning team-level delivery with strategic OKRs.

As a Certified Scrum Trainer and team coach, Joel has trained thousands of Scrum Masters, Product Owners, and delivery leaders worldwide. His sessions emphasize practical application over theory, giving students clear tools to turn Agile principles into actionable commitments, testable work, and improved completion rates.

He also brings cutting-edge insights in responsible AI usage for Agile teams. Joel integrates generative AI into backlog refinement, facilitation design, OKR alignment workshops, and live classroom adaptation, helping students and teams increase clarity, productivity, and value delivery without adding process overhead.

A contributor to the Agile Coaching Growth Wheel initiative, Joel continues to design advanced learning experiences that blend delivery rigor, strategic alignment, and modern AI capabilities, preparing students to excel in both current and future Agile environments.

I’ve worked with teams in every industry from data warehouses to legal software, and I have yet to find a place where agile doesn’t work. The focus on transparency and adaptation leads to more success, more of the time. Known as “The Gorilla Coach,” Joel brings his boundless energy and practical experience to every class, helping students master Agile with clarity, confidence, and measurable results.