This book, written by Jeff Sutherland, one of the co-creators of Scrum, provides insights into the Scrum framework and its application in enhancing productivity. Sutherland draws from his diverse experiences as a fighter pilot, biometrics expert, and executive in technology companies to illustrate how Scrum can be used to achieve remarkable productivity gains. The book includes real-life examples, such as the FBI's use of Scrum to prevent another 9/11 and a friend using Scrum to organize a wedding, highlighting the versatility and effectiveness of the Scrum method.
Management 3.0, by Jurgen Appelo, is a comprehensive guide to agile management, focusing on the role of managers in fostering collaboration, self-organization, and continuous improvement within agile teams. The book emphasizes empowering team members, promoting a culture of learning and experimentation, and using data-driven approaches to enhance team performance. It provides practical tools and techniques for managers to adopt an agile mindset and effectively lead their teams in a dynamic environment. Management 3.0 challenges traditional management styles and promotes a more human-centric approach, emphasizing the importance of employee engagement and well-being. The book's practical advice and engaging style have made it a popular resource for agile practitioners and managers alike.
Chris Sims: Dual Focus, Balancing Agile Team Health with Value Delivery
Read the full Show Notes and search through the world's largest audio library on Agile and Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.
For Chris Sims, success as a Scrum Master centers on two critical outcomes: creating healthier, happier work environments and helping teams deliver more value. Chris emphasizes that Scrum is only valuable if it helps achieve these fundamental goals. He suggests using surveys to assess team health and happiness, tracking how often team members ask each other for help, and evaluating whether daily scrums focus on problem-solving rather than status reporting. Regarding value delivery, Chris cautions against measuring the wrong things (like velocity) which can drive counterproductive behaviors. Instead, he recommends tracking how frequently teams deliver to stakeholders, having meaningful discussions about business value, and ensuring stakeholder involvement in sprint reviews to better align with what truly matters to the organization.
In this segment, we refer to Chris Sims’ articles on Business Value Myths, and Measuring Value With Product Hypothesis.
Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: The Dixit Retrospective
Chris shares an innovative retrospective format based on the card game Dixit. In this approach, teams use the game's evocative picture cards to help describe their experiences during the sprint. The visual nature of these cards engages team members in a completely different way compared to traditional retrospectives, encouraging creative thinking and alternative perspectives. Chris notes that this format is particularly effective because it creates space for everyone to think before speaking, which helps balance participation between extroverts and more reflective team members. This retrospective technique can uncover insights that might not emerge in more conventional discussion formats.
Self-reflection Question: How might you better balance measuring team health with measuring value delivery in your definition of success?
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About Chris Sims Chris Sims is a scrum trainer, agile coach, and recovering C++ developer who helps organizations improve their productivity and happiness. Chris is the founder of Agile Learning Labs and the co-author of two best-selling scrum books: The Elements of Scrum and Scrum: a Breathtakingly Brief and Agile Introduction.
You can link with Chris Sims on LinkedIn, visit Chris Sims’ Agile Learning Labs website.
Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast: Agile storytelling from the trenches 
