Professional Sports and Agile: Shared Frameworks and Principles with Quincy Jordan and Pamela Dukes

Nov 24, 2023

Quincy Jordan, an Olympic Athlete, and Pamela Dukes, an Agilist, discuss the intersection of professional sports and Agile. They share lessons from their athletic careers, emphasizing consistency and team support. The Scrum framework mirrors the structure of college athletics. They also discuss the negative impact of relying on a single person and the importance of teamwork and collaboration. Finally, they explore the changing roles and evolution in the Agile industry.

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Introduction

00:00 • 2min

Principles and Disciplines in Track and Field and Agile

02:05 • 28min

The Negative Impact of 'Single Throat to Choke'

29:47 • 2min

Teamwork, Collaboration, and the Importance of Not Dropping the Baton

32:00 • 5min

Changing Roles and Evolving in the Agile Industry

37:03 • 3min

This week, Justin Thatil, your host, welcomes Quincy Jordan and Pamela Dukes, Olympic Athlete and Agilist, who engage in a thoughtful conversation regarding how these two areas of expertise intertwine and how the abilities applied to professional sports enhance her role as an Agilist.

In this episode, you will learn about Pamela’s journey as a professional athlete, the lessons learned, and the challenges that brought the knowledge that enriched her experience in the Agile arena.

Key Takeaways

Pamela shares her most significant lessons as an Olympian and Hall of Fame athlete:

“What got you here will keep you here.” You don’t need a Herculean effort to go on; you just have to stay consistent.
The Team has to support each other. If you are not competing, you are busy cheering for someone else.
Quincy, who also went through his athlete years, brings two of the most meaningful teachings he obtained from his coach:

All the way through (you don’t stop until you are done).
Run your race (stay away from comparisons).

The Scrum framework mirrors the structure of College Athletics.

The Head Coach was the Chief Product Officer, and his assistants were the product officers.
The Scrum Master was the Team captain.
The plans set for training could be weekly, monthly, or yearly, and once arranged, that was the guideline the athletes follow every day. Everyone knew the plan, but when circumstances changed, the plan was adjusted accordingly. These dynamics work similarly in Scrum; there are planned sprints and releases.
At the end of each week, they would do competition drills where performance was tested (which looks like a sprints review) followed by a talk, reflecting on what could be improved (a lot like retrospectives).

Get the lead, keep the lead.

It is easier to do well and keep doing well than getting into a technical or cultural debt and getting out of it.

Empower your Team:

The success criteria should be how well you teach others.
Practicing skill sharing is critically important.
Leaders should walk away from the dangerous “hero complex”; a true leader teaches others how to do what they do.
No one is particularly responsible; a Team succeeds and walks through challenges together.
Each Team member has to do their part for the entire Team to reach the goal.

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