Blog Post
Is the "Growth Mindset" an Agile Mindset?
July 2, 2015
In Jeff Haden's recent post entitled "The One Attitude Every Successful Person Has", I was struck at how aligned this attitude is with the Agile Mindset. What do you think?
Blog Post
Agile Leadership Lessons From My Dad
June 22, 2015
Father's Day offered an annual moment for me to reflect on the journey of a humble and influential man whose life was tragically cut short in 2002 - my Dad. Although it has been a number of years since his passing, he contin
Blog Post
Defensive programming or paranoiac programming?
June 10, 2015
Recently discussing design and programming with an external programmer, he explained me his approach of defensive programming.
But before going in detail of his explanations, Wikipedia help us to define the defensive programming:
Blog Post
Who is the Professional Scrum Master
June 10, 2015
The Scrum Master role can easily be misunderstood as it is harder to grasp by reading the theory; hence people often compare the Scrum Master role to Project Manager or Technical Leader. Scrum Master's primary job is to place himself in service consciously, with self-awareness, and for the benefit of his customers.
Blog Post
A Branched Version of Done
June 9, 2015
I was recently contacted by a senior executive of a mid-sized company that is evolving their product development to Scrum. He explained a situation he had been in and wanted my opinion.
Blog Post
What is Scaling Scrum?
June 3, 2015
Scaled Professional Scrum is based on unit of development called a Nexus. The Nexus consists of up to 10 Scrum teams, the number depending on how well the code and design are structured, the domains understood, and the people organized.
Blog Post
Done is at the heart of Scrum
June 2, 2015
Scrum brings agility to and creates Agile organizations through the implementation of empirical process control, the process of frequent inspection and adaptation.
Blog Post
Team Launch
May 28, 2015
I’ve been witness to the start of hundreds of teams and projects. There’s a point at which, during the launch of a new team even before the first Sprint, I can tell with fair certainty whether the team will be successful or not.
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Dont write Duncan on my cup; just call me Long Black
May 19, 2015
Making a purchase can feel great when you’ve developed a rapport with the salesperson.
Blog Post
Agile Clock
May 18, 2015
Do you want to pass a small test? It is very simple - please reproduce in the exact sequence literally four values of Agile Manifesto.
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Evidence-based Estimation
May 13, 2015
An analogy I can think of is... I want my dart to hit the dart board, and not necessarily the bull's eye.... as it calls for a lot of details which apparently is missing during estimation.
Blog Post
My personal "Stop doing" list
May 11, 2015
In his book Good to Great, author Jim Collins asks the reader:
Blog Post
Scaling Engagement Agility
April 16, 2015
“To win in the marketplace you must first win in the workplace.” - Doug Conant, CEO of Campbell’s Soup
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A scaled scrum tactic "Team of Teams"
April 15, 2015
A program team of over 40 people decided to move to Agile from their traditional development practices. The program was old and had been in existence for over 6 years.
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Are you a Scrum Master or a Project Manager?
April 13, 2015
Do you hold the job title of Scrum Master in your organization?
Blog Post
Culture Change An important ingredient for organizational Agility
April 9, 2015
To imbibe Agility in an organization which is a state of high responsiveness, speed, and adaptiveness organizations should promote a new organizational culture of openness, transparency, respect for people, constant learning, improving, and constant ad
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A Scrum Master toolbox (literally)
April 4, 2015
When reading the role of the Scrum Master in the Scrum guide, one of the core competencies is to facilitate meetings.
Blog Post
What is Scaled Scrum?
April 3, 2015
In this short video, I explain the challenges of scaling Scrum and how to create a Nexus™ to manage multiple Scrum teams to deliver an integrated increment every Sprint.
Blog Post
Empathy Driven Development: Rescuing Value From the Bermuda Triangle
March 30, 2015
EMBARRASSING DISCOVERY
Blog Post
True Certification - Earned or Purchased?
March 24, 2015
“Eventbrite Order Notification” – This is probably one of the best mails I receive as a ScrumTrainer It usually means I have another student with whom I can share my p
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Can rituals help agile teams bond?
March 20, 2015
Years ago I was complimented on “improving the group dynamic” by bringing in a cafetiere for the my agile team to use. We developed a bit of a ritual around this object. One person had made it clear that the kettle needed to be left to cool
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Agile and Scrum, entwined and related
March 16, 2015
"Agile" (the label) is all over the place. Who would have guessed in early 2001?
Blog Post
Are Your Leaders Promoting Courageous Communication?
March 2, 2015
Have you ever been in a meeting where you felt afraid to share a difficult and truthful statement? Was "the obvious" in the room the whole time, but no one would speak up and talk about it?
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Techniques for using the Definition of Done (DoD)
February 21, 2015
I always spend time during training classes thoroughly covering the concept of Definition of Done, sometimes abbreviated “DoD.” As a concept it’s fairly eas
Blog Post
Are You a Manager or an Enabler?
February 20, 2015
Are you a Manager that believes in the power of Scrum? There is a difference between thinking, believing and knowing. Don't miss out on a huge opportunity to become the next market leader in your space.
Blog Post
Sprint Review Technique: Videos
February 18, 2015
File this one under: “how do you do Sprint Reviews when you have lots of teams?” Indeed, the traditional presentation format gets long, boring, and ineffective when you have more than a handful of teams presenting at a Sprint Review.
Blog Post
Giving Feedback - A Worse Than Useless Idea
February 17, 2015
One of the favorite activities of HR departments seems to be herding people into teamwork trainings. In these trainings they will have endure learning about all sorts of ideas related to teamwork. Most of them with no scientific validity. Learning to give feedback to other team members has its sure place in sessions like these.
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The Scrum Practitioner Open assessment (update)
February 13, 2015
As people and organizations grow and mature their implementation of Scrum, they regularly check with us at Scrum.org about particular points of interest. Recently we have seen an increase in the need for help and inspiration in scaling Scrum and in ways to educate and assess Scrum practitioners.
Blog Post
The Trojan Retrospective - From Crickets To Conversations
February 9, 2015
This blog is part of my series on “Agile Trojan Horses – Covert Appetizers for Agile Discovery”.
Blog Post
7 simple ideas for improving your flip-charts
February 8, 2015
The ability to create high-quality and attractive flip charts is one of the basic skills of any facilitator.
Blog Post
Sprint Review Technique: The Science Fair
February 4, 2015
Young Jimmy is in 3rd grade. He's constructed an immaculate paper-mâché volcano. It took every spare minute of the last to weeks to make. His mom carefully loads it in the back of the minivan.
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Agile Coaching: I See Scared People
February 3, 2015
Starting a team new to agility on their first sprint is one of my favorite and most rewarding things to do.
Blog Post
The Agile Trojan Horse Covert Appetizers For Agile Discovery Part 1: Empiricism
February 3, 2015
If I had a penny for every minute I sat in a meeting where teams argued about what was and was not “Agile” I would be a gazillionaire by now. Sometimes, the most vocal and dominant voices are the least aware of the fundamentals of Agile.
Blog Post
Counter pessimism
January 31, 2015
A team that I work with decided one day to improve the general mood in the team. A member of the team (David) bought the Snakes & Ladders board game for the team.
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Two Ways to think about Scaling Scrum
January 29, 2015
In the book Scaling Up Excellence by Sutton & Rao, they discuss two different ways to think about scaling: the “catholic or budd
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4 Secrets to Great Agile Leadership
January 29, 2015
Are you considered a leader in your organization? Do you spend your day at the top of the tower or in the trenches?
Blog Post
Im an Apprentice Scrum Master! Now What?
January 28, 2015
[Author’s note: I will be a Scrum Day Dallas on 27 March 2015; a great opportuni
Blog Post
How The Road To Agile Coaching Made Me a Gambling Addict!
January 26, 2015
Watch a video version of this blog or scroll down to read a text version…
Blog Post
Simplicity
January 23, 2015
Setting up an enterprise-scale agile department with 200 developers working towards the same vision will ensure you are invited to speak at all of the most prestigious conferences, but is there a simpler solution?
Blog Post
What Does a Great Team Feel Like?
January 19, 2015
Are you part of a Team in the workplace? Odds are the answer is "yes". Do you observe other Teams in your organization doing inspiring work and wonder how they do it?
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The 1 Skill Every Agile Leader Must Learn
January 13, 2015
As a leader, your own behavior has a profound effect on the effectiveness of Scrum in the workplace. Want to embody great leadership to elevate your organization's performance?
Blog Post
Customer Value Is Not Enough
January 8, 2015
I was coaching a number of teams and their Sprint Reviews were boring status meetings and few stakeholders attended.
Blog Post
The Scrum.org Professional Series Updates 2015
January 8, 2015
In 2015, Scrum.org will refine the Professional Scrum Master (PSM) assessments, PSM I and PSM II, in line with following objectives: