Recently I had the opportunity to give a guest lecture about "Agile Essentials" at a University of Applied Science. These students, the lecturer told me beforehand, would only be partly interested and engaged. Therefore I prepared for the worst...
While I watched the class going through the first group exercise it struck me: These students will seldom work in classical waterfall projects. They will seldom experience a boss, commanding and controlling them. They'll mostly experience an engaging workplace setting and a „boss" who leads them in a positive, encouraging way. Generally: An environment that helps them to bring out the best in them. Hopefully.
I thought back to my studies some years ago: Learning about phase gates, Gantt charts, sign off documents and all the like. Not one word about iterations, (Agile) values, the power of collaboration. We've come a long, long way since then. Learning about Agile is now part of the curriculum. What a blessing!
But our work as Agile Coaches is not quite done yet. To welcome these students in encouraging, positive and vibrant workplaces, more work needs to be done.
Therefore, as Agile Coach and Professional Scrum Trainer, I want to:
- ...work more closely with "Agile Coaches“, who say things like: "A Scrum Master is the Project Leader of the team." (No s/he isn't.)
- ...coach Scrum Teams, who once upon a time decided they wouldn’t need a Scrum Master in their team. (Yes, they do.)
- ...help Product Owners to understand the difference between a requirement and a User Story.
- ...foster the understanding of the nature of complex problems and what these kind of problems mean to an organization.
And these are just a few specific examples of our work.
When my guest lecture came to an end that day, I couldn't agree with what the lecturer had told me. Looking around in the class, I didn't see bored, sleepy faces. I saw young people, curious and eager to learn.
It's upon all of us to welcome these folks in an engaging and encouraging work place.