Agile
How to change mindset – the Jahnun lesson
As a coach helping organizations become agile, I’m asked how to change the mindset of the people, how to help them see things in a
Agile
5 steps to get unit tests going
Once you start unit testing, you will find significant benefits to your design, throughput, quality, and peace of mind. However, it is not easy to start in an organization that’s not used to it. Here are a number of practical tips:
Agile Leadership
How can HR people make a difference in an Agile transformation?
Transformations naturally start with a change in the process and the tools, which inevitably create tension that is supposed to catalyze a deeper change in other elements of the culture. Many implementations struggle and even get stuck at that stage. This is the hard part since it is mostly about people’s behaviors and habits and it takes time. This is exactly where HR professionals come in! I’m not trying to say that only at this stage HR people start partnering and pushing the transformation, I am only emphasizing their importance at this stage. HR departments are key in leading Agile transformations to long, lasting and truly impactful ones.
Agile Leadership
3 steps towards better team work
Working with teams I sometimes feel that teamwork is similar to the weather: everybody talks about it but not much is done. When I talk about teamwork I mean doing the work together, as a team. Advising with each other is good, planning together is necessary, going to lunch as a group is fun and like the other activities, is probably a good way to get nearer to team work. However , as said above, I’m talking about doing the work together. And here are 3 steps that will help you get nearer to that worthy cause.
Agile Mindset
Setting Goals For Improvement – Leading vs. Lagging
Let’s say we want to improve quality. We decide to use the Scrum framework. The scrum framework talks about sprints, sprint goals, daily scrum, and many other things, yet it doesn’t directly discuss quality. There is a leap of faith here: we believe that if we will use the scrum framework, quality will improve.
Agile
The Product Manager / Product Owner AS A Scientist
We’ve all heard it before – “Talented technology team builds amazing product!” That… doesn’t create the impact that they wanted, not enough customers end up buying or the users aren’t happy with it or
This is an especially common problem with companies that have a “brilliant” idea or technology that someone goes developing in their garage (if startup) / innovation product development group (if enterprise). This could be a new product or just a new feature of an existing product. Typically, the Product Owner or Product Manager in the organization specifies what to build. If they’re somewhat Agile, they even work closely with the organization to build it incrementally and hopefully deliver it continuously. But still, even then, too often the product or features don’t provide the expected impact/benefits. Overcoming this challenge is a common theme that is discussed by attendees at our SAFe POPM Course.
Agile Mindset
The Professional Developer
Last week I called a technician to repair an electrical shutter that was broken. The technician did a good job in general, but there was one particular thing he did that made me think of him as a true professional. Was it the tools he was using? No. Was it the technique? He was working fast, but no, it wasn’t that. It was the moment he asked me for a broom to clean up after him. That was when I realized he was a pro.
Agile Mindset
Relentlessly expanding our tools set
We are relentlessly expanding our tools set
We at AgileSparks help companies create effective, efficient and
Agile Mindset
The Danger of Small Batches Addiction
When we talk about the benefits of working with small batches we talk about risk reduction, about improving flow, and getting quick feedback.
I call these reasons “scientific”.
I believe that the main reason for working in small batches is getting things done. The value of getting things done is mainly a moralistic one. It is good to get things done – it does good to your soul.
This leads us to the dark side of working in small batches – The Addiction.
Agile Mindset
Keeping The PI Planning Momentum
In his book, “Confessions of a Public Speaker,” Scott Berkun tells us that when speaking, once the lights go out, you have everyone’s attention. Then you need to fight to avoid attrition.
In a similar fashion, at the end of the SAFe PI Planning event you have the entire organization’s attention (read more about it in a small post I published some time ago called “PI Planning Magic!”), and as time passes you start losing it.
The question is how do you keep this attention and energy, climaxed at the final confidence vote where everyone raises their hands to indicate their belief in the plan, throughout the Program Increment (PI).
