Software Process and Measurement Cast

SPaMCAST 706 features a conversation with Tom Henricksen. Tom makes a strong case that ignoring soft skills will limit your ability to deliver real value. Tom says, "Humans Are Hard, Code Is Easy." Tom’s Bio: Tom Henricksen is a problem-solving technology professional. He has worked in various roles in technology for over twenty years. Tom has learned how to solve challenging issues in technology and lead technical teams. He can help you develop those skills too! URL: LinkedIn:   Twitter: @tomhenricksen Re-read Saturday  News The bottom line to Chapter 10 of is simple (assuming you have been re-reading along): too much WIP interferes with learning. Without the time or inclination to experiment, the best scenario is learning by accident.  In Chapter 10, the author discusses how knowledge workers learn.   Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Week 6: -    Week 7: s -   Week 8: -   Week 9: -   Week 10: -   Week 11: -   Next SPaMCAST  In SPaMCAST 707 it is back to flow basics with a discussion of the attributes of flow. Scott Ambler described two attributes of flow as smoothness and scent. We will discuss.  We will also have a visit from Susan Parente who will bring her Not A Scrumdamentalist column to the podcast.

In the SPaMCAST 705 we stay with the basics and define the term flow. I recently listened to a conversation where the term flow was used 30ish times in 30 minutes. Each use of the term meant something different. Today we draw a line in the sand to improve communication.  We also have a visit from Jeremy Berriault from the QA Corner.  Jeremy and I discussed the mistaken belief that Scrum Master and Coach can be translated to administrative assistant.  Re-read Saturday  News In Chapter 9 of   , the author extols the virtues of transparency. The Kanban board provides a platform for everyone (I am not being hyperbolic) to understand how much work is in process. Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Week 6: -    Week 7: s -   Week 8: -   Week 9: -   Week 10: -   Next SPaMCAST  In SPaMCAST 706 we have a visit from Tom Henricksen. We walked about programmers and soft skills… like communication. As Tom says, "Humans Are Hard, Code Is Easy."

In the Software Process and Measurement Cast 704, we talk leadership with Stuart Leo Founder & CEO of Waymaker.io. One of the reasons I enjoy interviews is that I often stumble across great stories.  Stuart’s entrepreneurial origin story includes golf balls, icy Tasmanian lakes, and scuba divers -- I will remember this story until I die.  Stuart is a global thinker in strategy, systems, and leadership development. As the founder of Waymaker.io he has led the creation of Waymaker’s Leadership Curve - a revolutionary way of building clarity, alignment, and remarkable results for any organization. LinkedIn Company Website Blog Twitter @stuartleo  Re-read Saturday  News This week’s chapter of opens with a quote from The Dalai Lama linking effective self-discipline with awareness of consequences. The chapter, titled Awareness, speaks to me of redemption. Awareness is a precursor to shedding helplessness and ignites the desire to act. I have spent a large part of my career participating, influencing, and/or leading change. Struggle is a common thread in nearly all of these efforts when entrenched leaders push back against ideas that bubble up from teams or other levels of the organization. Whether from fear or myriad other reasons, there are consequences for everyone involved. Learned helplessness, as noted in Chapter 7, or a dawning awareness that there are other possibilities creates an impetus for change. Whether change creates better processes, products, relationships, or changes in the workforce (that means people leaving) boils down to agency. Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Week 6: -    Week 7: s -   Week 8: -   Next SPaMCAST  In the SPaMCAST 705 we define the term flow. I listened to a conversation last week. The term flow was used 30ish times in 30 minutes. Each use of the term meant something different. Let's draw a line in the sand to improve communication.  We will also have a visit from Susan Parente who brings another fabulous installment of Not A Scrumdamentalist to the podcast.

In the Software Process and Measurement Cast 703, we wrestle with one of the basics of agile.  What is the power of making a commitment? Making and keeping commitments are core components of professional behavior. It is a promise to perform. Whether Agile or Waterfall, commitments are used to manage software projects. They are used to drive the behavior of teams. We also have a visit from Jon M Quigley who brings his Alpha and Omega of Product Development column to the podcast.  Re-read Saturday  News Chapter 7 is one of my favorites in  . One of the chronic problems I help teams deal with is the perceived need to start everything that comes to them, generating huge amounts of WIP. Many of the items sit in an on-hold status until something else happens. The iron-willed self-discipline of starting is great at creating on-hold items and crap at getting work done. There is a gap in understanding the impact of the consequences.  Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Week 6: -    Week 7: s -   Week 8: -   Next SPaMCAST  In the SPaMCAST 704, we talk leadership with Stuart Leo Founder & CEO at Waymaker.io. Leadership is incredibly important and requires constant attention.

In SPaMCAST 702, Matthew Stibbe and I talk about the impact of leadership when building a technology-driven business. Mathew shared stories about learning to type, how he has reinvented himself numerous times, and why he blogs at .  Note: I have not edited out the parts of the interview just before I welcome Matthew to the podcast.  Mr. Stibbe told a couple of very endearing stories that help set the tone for the entire interview. He agreed to allow me to share them.   MATTHEW STIBBE is a serial entrepreneur, marketing maven, writer, pilot, and wine enthusiast. But not necessarily in that order.  He created marketing strategies, content, and campaigns for clients including Microsoft, Google, LinkedIn, and HP and contributed to Wired, Forbes, and Popular Science.  Currently, he is CEO at Articulate Marketing, a UK marketing agency specializing in the technology sector. Also, his geek credentials are strong. Previously, he was founder and CEO at Intelligent Games, a 70-person computer games company where he designed games for LEGO and produced two games based on Dune.  Matthew also has his commercial pilots license and an advanced wine diploma. (Have you seen the film Somm? Like that!) At some point in the previous millennium, he studied history at Oxford University. These days, he blogs about modern management at www.geekboss. com, about marketing at www. articulatemarketing.com and wine at www.vincarta.com Re-read Saturday  News This week, we talk about Healthy Constraints in . Many years (think decades) ago a friend of mine, Danny Bailus, had a cool mini-bike. He rode it around our neighborhood in Howland, Ohio all summer. It was the third coolest (text me the first two) thing that held my attention that summer. That was until Danny decided that it did not go fast enough and removed the governor from the small engine. He removed the constraint from the system and the engine burned out. His father was not very happy, Danny was not very happy, and I was very happy I was not riding it when it happened.  In this chapter, Mr. Benson discusses the difference between healthy and unhealthy constraints. Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Week 6: -    Week 7: s -   Next SPaMCAST  We continue on the basics with an essay on Teams and team design.  We will also have a visit from Jon M Quigley who will regale us with tales of the Alpha and Omega of Product Development.

With SPaMCAST 701 we go back to basics. Whether you call that quick meeting to coordinate the day the Daily Scrum, Stand-up, or a huddle is not material. Daily coordination is phenomenally powerful and useful unless it isn’t.  Just making teams meet without benefit is a really bad idea.  What else can be done?   We also have a visit from Tony Timbol with another installment from his Tell A Story Column. In this installment, Tony discusses agile requirements. Getting work done in agile is not just user stories and a cloud of dust.    Re-read Saturday  News The chapter of this week is titled, Creating An Economy. In the past decade, certain words have become toxic. Words like process, waterfall, and output have become taboo in certain corners of software-related industries. Add the word productivity to the mix and many people would grab torches and pitchforks. The vilification of these words (or any words – it is sort of like burning books in my mind) makes it difficult to talk about systemic improvement. As a Kanban practitioner, I focus on flow. But not just flow, I advise my clients that they should keep their eye on continuously improving the flow. Continuous improvement yields better outcomes. Organizations, teams, and individuals that overextend and exceed their WIP limit are not improving their delivery of outcomes but rather in Jim Benson’s words “disrespecting your ability to create amazing things.” More bluntly they are neither effective nor efficient.    Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:      Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Week 6: -      Next SPaMCAST  Next week, Matthew Stibbe and I talk about the impact of leadership when building a  technology-driven business.

SPaMCAST 700 features our interview with Slater Victoroff. Slater suggests that what we think of as AI today will be overtaken by human-machine partnerships. He uses the metaphor of a bionic arm. AI is the future and that future is not very far away. Slater Victoroff is the Founder and CTO of indico data solutions, an Enterprise AI solution for unstructured content with an emphasis on text and NLP. He has been building machine learning solutions for startups, governments, and Fortune 100 companies for the past 5 years and is a frequent speaker at AI conferences. Twitter: Website:     Re-read Saturday  News The chapters of this week and last are interrelated.  Last week we focused on multitasking. For those with a short memory, human multitasking is in the same category as unicorns and shiny vampires: a fun concept but dangerous to believe in. This week we deal with context switching. Because humans don’t have multiple cores and processors instead of multitasking we bounce between things. Each bounce requires shifting context – this takes time and effort. Remember that the author established earlier that things that are not done are sitting in the back of your mind sucking up capacity and an occasional conscious thought (another contest switch). Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -   Week 5: -   Next SPaMCAST  Back to basics, whether you call that quick meeting to coordinate the day the Daily Scrum, Stand-up or a huddle is not material. Daily coordination is phenomenally powerful and useful unless it isn’t.  Just making teams meet without benefit is a really bad idea.  What else can be done? We will also have a visit from Tony Timbol with another installment from his Tell A Story Column.

This week we feature our interview with Eric Daimler, PhD. Eric and I discussed how AI can unlock the potential of humanity.   Dr. Eric Daimler is an authority in Artificial Intelligence with over 20 years of experience in the field as an entrepreneur, executive, investor, technologist, and policy advisor. Daimler has co-founded six technology companies that have done pioneering work in fields ranging from software systems to statistical arbitrage. Daimler is the author of the forthcoming book "The Coming Composability: The roadmap for using technology to solve society’s biggest problems." A frequent speaker, lecturer, and commentator, he works to empower communities and citizens to leverage AI for a more sustainable, secure, and prosperous future. As a Presidential Innovation Fellow during the Obama Administration, Daimler helped drive the agenda for U.S. leadership in research, commercialization, and public adoption of AI. He has also served as Assistant Dean and Assistant Professor of Software Engineering in Carnegie Mellon’s School of Computer Science. His academic research focuses on the intersection of Machine Learning, Computational Linguistics, and Network Science (Graph Theory). He has a specialization in public policy and economics, helped launch Carnegie Mellon’s Silicon Valley Campus, and founded its Entrepreneurial Management program. A frequent keynote speaker, he has presented at venues including the engineering schools of MIT, Stanford, and Harvard. Daimler studied at Stanford University, the University of Washington-Seattle, and Carnegie Mellon University, where he earned his PhD in its School of Computer Science. Contact Information Twitter: @ead LinkedIn: Website:   Re-read Saturday  News Multitasking is the first or second greatest LIE in the modern business world. The best description of multitasking would include thrash, waste, and hubris. The problem is that EVERYONE thinks they are special and can multitask their way to the effective delivery of value. Chapter 3 of blasts away at multitasking (another take on the topic from 2015: Multitasking Yourself Away From Efficiency | Software Process and Measurement ). Multitasking is bad, don’t do it.   Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - Week 4: -     Upcoming Events: Final Call!  Free Webinar When Prioritization Goes Bad   April 19, 2022 11 AM EDT to 1230 EDT   Next SPaMCAST  Next week for SPaMCAST 700 we will feature our interview with Slater Victoroff. Slater presents an alternate definition for AI.  Compare and contrast to Dr. Daimler’s definition?

This week Susan Parente and I had an extraordinary conversation about team leads in agile and leadership. In some cases, the role of a team leader is treated as if it were superfluous to requirements in other cases it is a tool to delegate work to people in an effort to subvert self-organization and when organizations get it right the role is a vehicle to unlocking the capabilities of teams. Contact Susan at or on LinkedIn at Re-read Saturday  News Week 3 of our re-read of by Jim Benson talks about the thrill of getting things done. People with a lot of WIP look for more work, things they can grab and complete to feel good about themselves. I am as guilty as anyone else. Sometimes when items on my shortlist get stuck instead of breaking the items down into smaller chunks to progress the work I will grab a less valuable task and just do it so I can check something off.  Susan Parente, who you just heard from in one of her great “Not A Scrumdamentalist” podcast columns described the same scenario.  Remember to buy a copy and read along.  Amazon Affiliate LInk:    Previous Entries Week 1: – Week 2: –   Week 3: - https://bit.ly/3usMiLm Upcoming Events: Free Webinar When Prioritization Goes Bad   April 19, 2022 11 AM EDT to 1230 EDT   Special Call to Action If you are a team lead I need your help! I believe the TL role is the least understood and least talked about in agile. It is time to change that. I am working on testing a model of TL behaviors in agile. I need examples of REAL TL job descriptions to map into the model. The glittering generalities that you find on the web don’t match what really happens in the real world. I do not need anything sensitive like salary or product details. I will happily share the first cut of the model with anyone that helps and sponsor a virtual meeting to discuss the model with all participants.   If you have a TL job description you can share please email me at      Next SPaMCAST  Next week we will feature our interview with Matthew Stibbe.  Matt and I discussed how leadership (or the lack thereof) contributes to projects in wide a range of environments (software and marketing).

This week we talked with Jardena London. We discussed her book . Being soulful sounds fluffy, but isn’t.  It is critical for delivering lasting change.  Jardena is a Business Transformation Consultant, Author, Keynote Speaker, and a Certified Facilitator of Dare to Lead; Brene Brown’s groundbreaking training program for organizations based on creating courageous workplaces. Jardena is also the Founder of Souls@Work.org which is focusing on leading a movement to create workplaces that nourish our souls and exude positive energy.  Her recent book, “l” has been described as “the book you buy and carry around with you everywhere.” Her most recent successes have been transforming a large legacy organization into a modern workplace with breakout results. She also speaks at corporate events and on stages worldwide on the positive effects of organizational transformation. Jardena has also served as co-founder and CEO of Rosetta Technology Group since 1997.  Websites and Contact Information LinkedIn:    Upcoming Events: Free Webinar When Prioritization Goes Bad   April 19, 2022 11 AM EDT to 1230 EDT   Special Call to Action If you are a team lead I need your help! I believe the TL role is the least understood and least talked about in agile. It is time to change that. I am working on testing a model of TL behaviors in agile. I need examples of REAL TL job descriptions to map into the model. The glittering generalities that you find on the web don’t match what really happens in the real world. I do not need anything sensitive like salary or product details. I will happily share the first cut of the model with anyone that helps and sponsor a virtual meeting to discuss the model with all participants.   If you have  TL job description you can share please email me at      Next SPaMCAST  We are finally going to tackle the difference between prioritization and sequencing. Sequencing is the forgotten cousin of prioritization, HOWEVER, just because you know the priority isn’t enough because if you don't get the order right value will be lost.  We will also have a visit from Susan “Not A Scrumdamentalist” Parente.