Karolina Golec-Szlawska
Agile Coach | ICAgile Authorised Instructor
With a rich educational background and diverse professional experience, I specialize in teaching Agile Fundamentals and fostering effective team collaboration.
My passion lies in helping individuals and organizations embrace agile methodologies to achieve their goals and drive successful outcomes.
Karolina – My Story
I am a Partner, Agile Coach, and Instructor at sprintzero. But that’s not where I started my Agile journey. I started it by being a software engineer at a big corporation in 2019 and since then, my role has grown beyond simple software engineering. I have taken on additional responsibilities as an acting scrum master, enhancing team processes and facilitating effective team collaboration.
As an instructor, I have facilitated several full-day events for groups of under 20 people. I specialize in teaching Agile Fundamentals, having recently earned my accreditation. I’m excited to share my knowledge and passion for agile methodologies with my students.
My educational background is quite diverse. I hold an engineering degree in Information Technology, a master’s degree in Applied Mathematics – Scientific Computing, and a PhD in Informatics and Physics (cross-field degree). I am also certified in Agile Team Facilitation (ICP-ATF), Agile Coaching (ICP-ACC), and Agile Fundamentals (ICP).
I have several years of experience in my field. My career journey includes a three-year PhD research project on Mass Spring System Simulation of soft tissues, followed by a year dedicated to raising my newborn daughter. I started at TomTom as a software engineer in January 2019.
One of my notable achievements is completing my PhD thesis while being nine months pregnant and defending it when my firstborn was only three months old. I’m often recognized for my exceptional interpersonal skills and extraverted personality, which set me apart in the software engineering field.
What inspires me most about teaching is seeing the spark of understanding in people when they grasp complex concepts through hands-on learning. I enjoy explaining intricate ideas and am fascinated by the neuroscience of teaching. My approach to teaching Agile Fundamentals is grounded in my belief in the agile methodology’s ability to address the challenges faced by large organizations. I’m committed to fostering collaboration and believe that teaching people how to work together effectively is a small but significant contribution to building a better future.
My teaching approach is based on the 4C’s model: connections, concepts, concrete practice, and conclusions. My classes are interactive, hands-on, and designed to keep participants engaged through group work, brainstorming sessions, and fun activities. I pride myself on my positive and infectious energy, technical expertise, and ability to share relatable stories from my own experience.
Outside of my professional work, I enjoy horse riding and various handcrafts, including beading, crocheting, and macrame, which I often create as DIY gifts for my loved ones. My diverse interests and multifaceted background contribute to my unique and effective teaching style.