Have you ever noticed that late projects only ever seem to get later? Why is it that any gains get absorbed and delays get compounded? Let’s say I have a mini-project where I have a builder adding a kitchen to a house, he will construct the walls and then I’ll have a plumber come in […]
I have been very fond of Scrum and a strong advocate for it since my first introduction to it about 12 years ago. But in recent years I have not been exposed to it so much, my current organization favors more of a Kanban approach to software delivery. However, this last few months I have […]
It may sound overly simplistic but in my experience products generally succeed or fail in correlation to the effectiveness of Product Ownership on the team. Mainly because we under-appreciate the importance and the difficulty of the Product Ownership aspects in the product creation process. In my opinion the choice of this role is far more […]
There is an ongoing debate about whether or not to use Estimates in your software development process, largely fueled by #NoEstimates, but as is often the case the battle has been picked up by many that have become over zealous without fully understanding but with great certainty tell you that you should never estimate. There […]
Holding another person accountable can be a scary thing, even just saying that sounds a big deal. And whilst it is a big deal, it doesn’t need to be scary. Feedback is a skill, and it one that you get much better at the more you practice. In theory feedback in the context of accountability […]
These are slides from the Agile Product Ownership Meetup, where we discussed the Discovery Phase of a product. A question came up this week following a discussion on story writing that I think bears further discussion. What really is the Minimum Viable Product? To explain my thoughts I will use the building of a Skyscraper as an […]
The ability to have ad-hoc spontaneous interactions with co-workers is invaluable. In physical spaces understanding this led to the end of offices and teams being co-located. Just imagine going back to a physical office where everyone had an individual office and you could only talk to co-workers if you had made an appointment in advance. […]
This is a touchy subject and one where I realise I am treading on thin ice by making sweeping generalisations on an emotive topic, however it is a topic that needs addressing. Surveys show that while the professional workforce in the USA is composed of 57% women – yes that’s right men are a minority. […]
I feel a little on the defensive recently, I have heard a Product Owner (ex PM) complaining that he could get it done quicker with Waterfall, and I have heard a number of people asking what was wrong with the old way and why Agile? Short-term memories, fear of change – especially for a very large […]
A question I have been asked a number of times is how do we “Scale Agile”? There has been so much discussion of scaling frameworks such as LeSS, and SaFe, or Nexus or D.A.D. or even the Spotify model, that we have become conditioned to assume that these are the solution to any scaling […]
Feedback takes many forms, some is explicit and some can be inferred, even the absence of interaction is a form of feedback. Some if obviously well-intentioned, and some less so, some is invited and some is thrust upon us. When you accidentally cut someone off in traffic, the feedback they give may be in the […]
The ability to have ad-hoc spontaneous interactions with co-workers is invaluable. In physical spaces understanding this led to the end of offices and teams being co-located. Just imagine going back to a physical office where everyone had an individual office and you could only talk to co-workers if you had made an appointment in advance. […]
Medical students are taught early to carefully consider the possible impact of their actions, this often translates to a bias towards inaction. A paradox when many of us consider them as being ‘fixers’. “Given an existing problem, it may be better not to do something, or even to do nothing, than to risk causing more […]
One of the most common reasons we reject people interviewing for coaching or product ownership related roles is an inability to grasp the purpose and value in splitting stories effectively, especially lacking an understanding of vertical slicing. This is also a commonly requested topic for me at the meetup or speaking engagements. Yet it is […]
