Training vs. Coaching

18/03/2025 18 min
Training vs. Coaching

Listen "Training vs. Coaching"

Episode Synopsis

What’s the difference between product training and product coaching—and why does it matter?
In this episode, Petra Wille and Teresa Torres unpack a topic that comes up all the time in product orgs: when do individuals and teams need structured training, and when is it time to bring in a coach? They walk through the core differences, share frameworks to help you decide what kind of support your team actually needs, and explore the skill-building journey from reading a book to mastering advanced discovery practices.
Whether you’re an individual contributor trying to sharpen your discovery skills or a product leader wondering how to support your team, this episode breaks it all down with clarity and real-world examples.

Tune in to learn:
✅ Why this conversation matters: Coaching is trendy, but is it always the right tool?
✅ Defining the difference between knowledge (training) and capability (skill-building)
✅ The role of flipped classrooms and experiential learning in product training
✅ Petra’s take on when coaching becomes valuable (hint: it’s not step one)
✅ Teresa’s 3 learning stages: concept, practice, and applying in context
✅ Why training is often a better starting point than coaching
✅ The case for community of practice as a “training alternative”
✅ When coaching really shines: dealing with org-specific or context-heavy challenges
✅ Coaching as a shortcut for product leaders (and the gap in leadership training)
✅ How coaching and training can work together — especially in scaled orgs
✅ Teresa’s flipped classroom model in practice (what it looks like in her courses)
✅ What makes a great product coach (hint: it’s not just experience at big-name companies)
✅ 7,500+ product coaches on LinkedIn?! A teaser for an upcoming episode on how to choose one