Agile and Project Management - DrunkenPM Radio

“Agile is not something you become, Agile is something you become more of.” For organizations that are engaged in Agile Transformation, it is often very challenging to get a sense of where you are with respect to successfully adopting a new way of working. Comparative Agility is a tool that has been designed to help Agile coaches and organizations get a deeper understanding of their progress towards Agile transformation. In this interview, Jorgen Hesselberg, co-founder of Comparative Agility, and I discuss how the tool has evolved since it was created in 2008 and how it is now being used by coaches and organizations to not only understand how their transformation is going, but how they are doing compared to others within their vertical, as well. We also talk about the work that Comparative Agility has been doing with the Scrum Alliance and how the tool has been extended to include things like Security and DevOps, in addition to discussing Jorgen’s book “Unlocking Agility.” If you’d like to check out Comparative Agility, you can find it here: https://www.comparativeagility.com If you’d like to read “Unlocking Agility”, you can find it here: https://amzn.to/2setHly Contacting Jorgen Email: jorgen@comparativeagility.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/jhesselberg

Earlier this fall at the 2018 Large Scale Scrum Conference in NYC, Ellen Gottesdiener and Andy Repton led a session called “What is Our Product” (https://less.works/sessions/2018-less-conference-new-york-what-is-our-product-88). During the course of their presentation they showcased many of the tools they use with clients to determine what the product they are building actually is. In this interview Ellen and Andy explain why this question is not as easy to understand as it seems and why it is so critical to product success. During the course of our conversation they walk through some of the tools they use to help clients deepen their understanding of the product, how to make sure it is strategically aligned, and how this can even be done with massive organizations that are developing infrastructure products. Andy and Ellen’s “What is Our Product” session from the LeSS Conference The session description is here: https://less.works/sessions/2018-less-conference-new-york-what-is-our-product-88 As soon as the recording of the session is available, the link will be posted here. In the meantime, you can find their slides here: https://www.slideshare.net/ellengott/what-is-our-product Contacting Andy LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyrepton/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/reptonandy Contacting Ellen Web: https://www.ebgconsulting.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ellengott Email: ellen@ebgconsulting.com Ellen’s Books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Ellen-Gottesdiener/e/B001KD7PRW Ellen is working on a post on the Product Canvas and I will update the link when it is available, in the meantime, you might want to check out “Am I a Product Manager or a Product Owner” Part 1 https://www.ebgconsulting.com/blog/product-manager-product-owner/ Part 2 https://www.ebgconsulting.com/blog/product-manager-product-owner-part-2/ Discover to Deliver As soon as the downloadable PDF is available, the link will be posted here. In the meantime, for ore on Discover to Deliver, check out: https://www.ebgconsulting.com/blog/right-things-not-everything-product-management-ownership/

The Scrum Alliance and Forbes Insights recently released a report called the “The Elusive Agile Enterprise” (https://www.scrumalliance.org/forbes/). The report presents the findings of a survey that involved over 1,000 C-level executives across the globe in a range of industries. In this interview, Scrum Alliance Vice President of Global Marketing and Communications, Renata Lerch (https://www.scrumalliance.org/community/profile/rlerch) and I talk through the results of this survey and what they mean for organizations adopting Agile. We also explore some of the more valuable insights that came out of the report including the 3 elements determined to be critical to a successful adoption of Agile and how the findings have helped the Scrum Alliance make a decision to target Human Resources as an area of growth in the future. Download the Report You can download a copy of the report at https://www.scrumalliance.org/forbes/ Contact Renata Lerch: Scrum Alliance site: https://www.scrumalliance.org/community/profile/rlerch Twitter: https://twitter.com/limalerch?lang=en Email: rlerch@scrumalliance.org

The Scrum Alliance recently made a very significant change in how the organization is run. After years of running with a traditional leadership model, the Scrum Alliance, whose mission is “Change the World of Work” has decided to shift to a model with a Chief Product Owner and a Chief Scrum Master. As you’ll hear in this podcast, it is a model that is already inspiring leaders from other organizations to make a similar change. This podcast features an interview with the new Scrum Alliance Chief Product Owner Howard Sublett. Howard is a dynamic an inspiring servant leader who was involved with the Scrum Alliance early on before moving into Agile consulting. He joined the Scrum Alliance Board of Directors several months ago and will now be helping to shape and define the role of Chief Product Owner. During the conversation Howard and I talk about the significance of the role, what it involves, how it has inspired others, what the Scrum Alliance is looking for in a Chief Scrum Master and some of the recent changes to the SA Board of Directors that came about as a result of him taking on his new gig. Contacting Howard Email: hsublett@scrumalliance.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/howardsublett

Last Spring, Martin Fowler gave a talk at Agile Australia called "The State of Agile Software in 2018." (A transcript of Fowler’s talk can be found using the link provided below.) During the talk, he mentions “post-agile.” It is a phrase I had previously heard mention of here and there by folks who tend to be pretty deep with agile and who are frustrated for one reason or another by how it is being (mis)used by others. I spent time time researching what “post-agile” actually means. What I found was a wide range of explanations, but no clear, definitive answer. The more I dug into it, the more I found myself gravitating towards my own inner explanation. Since I didn’t really want to end up mansplaining the term to myself, I thought it might be a good idea to seek some professional help. In this podcast you’ll hear a conversation between Dhaval Panchal, Michael Tardiff, and myself where we explore the topic of “post-agile”—what it actually means and whether or not it is something you need to worry about. Dhaval and Michael are deeply seasoned agile coaches who are also really fun to interview. Talking with them always provides me with a new perspective and deeper clarity on things. That was definitely the case with this discussion. Hopefully it will be valuable to you as well. This podcast is our conversation exploring the topic of what “post-agile” actually means and whether or not you need to worry about it. Here are some of the links referred to in the podcast: Martin Fowler’s transcript of the State of Agile Software in 2018 https://bit.ly/2NDfHLk My interview with Mike Cottmeyer on Fowler’s talk https://bit.ly/2Rpqx8Y Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber https://amzn.to/1ttQuId Bullshit Jobs: A Theory https://amzn.to/2RthMLk If you’d like to contact Dhaval: Web: https://evolveagility.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/evolveagility Email: dhaval.panchal@evolveagility.com If you’d like to contact Michael: Web: https://feelingagile.wordpress.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/mjt Email: michael@taoproductions.com

You go to conferences… and there are moments when you pick stuff up that can help you do your job. But, once and awhile, there are those special moments when people share things in sessions that permanently change how you look at the work you do. It’s rare… but it’s awesome.  That happened for me this September in Memphis at the 2018 Digital PM Summit. I attended a session led by Abby Fretz called "Sustaining the Project Honeymoon Phase: How to Build Effective Client Education.” In the session, Abby drew a connection between the relationship we have with our clients and the relationships students have with teachers. She reminded everyone that all of our clients are not just emotional humans, but they are also family members, friends, and experts, and that we need to care for them as a teacher would care for a student. Moreover, she reminded everyone that as much as we are the teachers of our clients, they are our teachers as well. I wish someone had said this to me 20 years ago. In this podcast, Abby and I discuss her session from the 2018 Digital PM Summit, what led her to her metaphor, and how it has impacted her work. There is some powerful stuff in this interview and I hope it will be as valuable for you as it was for me. I am very indebted to Abby for teaching me something that seems like such common sense— I’m a little ashamed I had not though of clients this way before. Here are some of the links mentioned in the podcast: Digital Pm Summit: https://bureauofdigital.com/abby-fretz-1/ DPM Philly Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/DPM-Philly/ Louder Than 10: https://louderthanten.com Eastern Standard: https://www.easternstandard.com If you'd like to get in touch with Abby you can reach her at: Web:http://abbyfretz.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/abbyfretz LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abbyfretz/

Suzanna Haworth gave a talk at the 2018 Digital PM Summit called "Adapting Agile: How to Make a Blended Agile Approach Work For You". Agile and Digital can be an odd fit. In her talk Suze focused on how digital agencies can begin introducing agile practices into their workflow in order to realize some of the benefits that agility can provide. The talk was very popular. So popular in fact, that I wasn't able to get in. Fortunately Suze was kind enough to let me interview her about her session once she got back home to London. In this interview she shares some of the key points from her session and explains her take on hybrid approaches to bringing agile and a traditional (waterfall) approach together. If you work at a digital agency and you're trying to figure out how to make agile fit, there are some great tips in here for you. (Also, apologies for some of the background noise - they were doing construction in the apartment above mine and it could not be helped.) If you'd like to get in touch with Suze to ask her some follow up questions, here is her contact info: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzanna-haworth-55073616/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/suzehaworth Web: https://suzannahaworth.com

Patrice Embry gave a lightning talk called “Finessing a Retrospective to Get Results” at the 2018 Digital PM Summit. After her talk Patrice and I had a chance to sit down and talk through some of the ideas she shared that you can use to hep you get more value out of the moments where you and your team stop to inspect and adapt how things are working on your project. The tips Patrice shares in the interview (and in her talk) will work for you whether you are holding a more traditional review (like a Post-Mortem or a Project Review), or if you are working with Agile and holding a Retrospective Meeting. (Including how to hold these meetings if you are working remotely.) If you’d like to get in touch with Patrice with follow up questions, here is how you can reach her via her website: http://www.patrice-embry.com.

A few weeks ago the 2018 Digital PM Summit was held in Memphis. This is the 6th year the conference has been held and the Bureau of Digital (https://bureauofdigital.com) put together another incredibly inspiring conference. The event focuses on helping PMs in who work in the Digital space amp up their ability to practice their craft. During the conference, Aaron Irizarry gave a presentation called “Laying the Groundwork: Building Foundations for High-Performing Teams”. (https://bureauofdigital.com/aaron-irizarry) Aaron is currently working as a Design Director at Capital One. After Aaron’s session we had the chance to sit down and record a podcast on how to create Personas. During the interview we talk about why personas are so important how to go about creating archetypes, personas, how to conduct proxy interviews, and how much detail you should include when you are putting them together. Aaron is also the co-author of Discussing Design: Improving Communication and Collaboration through Critique. (https://www.amazon.com/dp/149190240X/ref=cm_sw_su_dp) If you’d like to get in touch with Aaron with additional questions or to hear more about his session at the Summit, you can reach him via Twitter at https://twitter.com/aaroni

Karim Harbott led a session at the 2018 Large Scale Scrum (LeSS) Conference on Agility and Company Culture. In this episode, Karim shares some highlights from his session and then Dhaval Panchal, Richard Cheng and I talk through some of the challenges with trying to transform different aspects of company culture and the company value system in order to foster an environment that can support business agility. Contacting Karim https://www.agilecentre.com/ https://twitter.com/KarimHarbott Contacting Dhaval https://evolveagility.com/https://evolveagility.com/ https://twitter.com/dhavalpanchal Contacting Richard https://www.excella.com/ https://twitter.com/RichardKCheng