Software Process and Measurement Cast

SPaMCAST 453 features our interview with James Shore.  We began with a discussion of the Agile Fluency Model, including the concepts and ideas that led to the model and then got into topics such as whether Agile can ever be method agnostic. James’s bio: James Shore teaches, writes, and consults on Agile development processes. He is a recipient of the Agile Alliance's Gordon Pask Award for Contributions to Agile Practice, co-creator of the Agile Fluency™ Model, co-author of /The Art of Agile Development/, and host of “Let's Code: Test-Driven JavaScript.” InfoQ has named him one of the “most influential people in Agile.” You can find his screencasts at , essays at , and more about the Agile Fluency Project at . Re-Read Saturday News Today we continue re-reading T led by Steven Adams.  This week Steven addresses the introduction to Part 1 and Chapter 2. In the introduction to Part 1 Gibbon’s tells us that we live in a world of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA)  and in Chapter 2 that we have to transition from change fragility to change-agility. Remember to buy .    Previous installments:    A Call To Action We are often asked how listeners can help the Software Process and Measurement Cast.  The simplest and effective way you can help is to give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review, please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 454  will feature our essay and checklists for iteration planning. Starting well and ending well are highly related!  We will also have columns from Gene Hughson (Form Follows Function)  and Jeremy Berriault (QA Corner). Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 452 features our essay on personal process improvement.  We are responsible for our own path in life. Stepping back and reviewing where we are today and where we want to be tomorrow is a form of a retrospective.  Just like any other retrospective, the goal is to change the trajectory of the path you are on.    Kim Pries, the Software Sensei, discusses ethics in software. Ethics guide (or they don’t) practitioners of all types.  Many certification organizations include ethics statements but rarely have the teeth to enforce those ethics.  Kim asks whether this approach makes sense. Anchoring the cast is Jon M Quigley with his Alpha and Omega of Product Development column.  Jon is beginning a three column theme on the impact of people and learning on product development. One of the places you can find Jon is at . Re-Read Saturday News Today we continue re-reading T led by Steven Adams.  THis week we dive into Chapter One titled Failed Change:  The Greatest Preventable Cost to Business?  The frightening part of this chapter is how intimately it resonates based on personal observation. Remember to buy .    Previous installments:    A Call To Action You can help share the Software Process and Measurement Cast!  If you even got a single new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review somewhere, please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 453  will feature our interview with James Shore.  We began with a discussion of the Agile Fluency Model, the concepts, and ideas that led to the model and then got into topics such as whether Agile can ever be method agnostic.   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 451 features our interview with Askhat Urazbaev.  Askhat brings a very pragmatic view of Agile in all of its many forms to the Software Process and Measurement Cast.  This interview covers a lot of ground, ranging from defining Agile to the impact of corporate and national cultures on what works and what doesn’t work.  We dove directly into the interview with very little preamble!  Askhat’s bio: Askhat Urazbaev made a typical career moving from junior developer to project manager in different software companies. Later on, in Luxoft, Askhat as a process architect was he was engaged in adopting "heavyweight" methodologies in different departments of the company. Happily, thanks to one of the customers, Askhatwas exposed to some knowledge of Agile. The new way of development looked very effective. Askhat has participated in several Agile projects in different roles. In 2006 Askhat started to help teams and departments to adopt Agile methodologies in Luxoft. In March, he has started Russian Agile Community (AgileRussia.ru). In 2008 Askhat founded company ScrumTrek which consults, trains and helps companies in their transition to Agile. Among the customers of ScrumTrek such companies as Skype, Yandex, Rambler, Alfa-Bank, Sberbank and many others. LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/urazbaev Twitter: Web: https://scrumtrek.ru/ Re-Read Saturday News Today we continue re-reading T. Steven Adams (, and nearly every entry in the Re-read Saturday series) is doing a great job leading this re-read.   Remember to use the link to buy a copy to support the podcast and blog. This week, Steven discusses the introduction to “The Science of Successful Organizational Change” ().  Gibbons dives directly into the meat of the book in the introduction.  If you typically jump over the introduction to get to chapter one I would urge you to change your pattern at least for this book!   Previous installments:      A Call To Action You can help share the Software Process and Measurement Cast!  If you even got a single new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review somewhere, please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST THe Software Process and Measurement Cast 452 will feature our essay on personal process improvement along with columns from Jon M Quigley (The Alpha and Omega of Product Development) and Kim Pries (The Software Sensei).

SPaMCAST 450 features our essay on Product Roadmaps.  Roadmaps link an organization’s strategy to action. Product roadmaps are directional and answer the question of where we are going and why. As with any powerful tool, roadmaps giveth when used wisely and taketh away when used less wisely. We also visit with Gene Hughson.  Gene brings his great Form Follows Function blog to the podcast.  We discussed the entry .  After you listen to our conversation remember that roadmaps are a way to avoid your products not to resemble a bunch of spare parts flying in close formation. Re-Read Saturday News Today we will begin the next book in the Re-read Saturday Series, T. Steven Adams (, and nearly every entry in the Re-read Saturday series) will lead this re-read.   Remember to use the link to buy a copy to support the podcast and blog. Steven begins the re-read by describing how he found the Paul Gibbon’s book “The Science of Successful Organizational Change” () searching “Agile Change Management” on Amazon.   A Call To Action You can help the podcast. If you even got a single new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review somewhere, please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 451  will feature our interview with James Shore.  We began with a discussion of the Agile Fluency Model, the concepts, and ideas that led to the model and then got into topics such as whether Agile can ever be method agnostic.   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 449 features our interview with Jasveer Singh.  We discussed his new book,  Jasveer proposes a new sizing methodology for estimation and other measurement processes. Jasveer Singh holds a Master of Technology degree in Computer Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and has studied Executive Master in Management at École de Commerce Solvay, Brussels, Belgium. He has about 30 years of valuable senior-level international experience in the ICT area and has worked in the top IT/Telecom equipment manufacturer, operator, consultancy, and service companies in different countries (Bharat Electronics Limited, Alcatel, Siemens Business Services, WorldCom, Logica, and Sigos in India, France, Australia, Belgium, and Germany). A significant part of this experience has been in the management of software development (analysis, design, coding, testing), system design, quality assurance/control, and project management while working with different programming languages, object-oriented technology, database management systems, etc. His in-depth experience in these software domains led him to realize the improvements needed in the currently available methodologies for software size measurement and to develop the Functional Software Size Measurement Methodology with Effort Estimation and Performance Indication (FSSM) which is a thorough methodology and great help for software projects. Currently, he is based in Belgium and is the director of EUSFP. E-mail: js@fssm.software LinkedIn: FSSM book: FSSM online book: FSSM website: Re-Read Saturday News This week we wrap up our re-read of  : The New Management System for a Rapidly Changing World by which was published by Henry Holt and Company in 2015. The concepts in Holacracy are an important addition to the discussion of management, governance, and leadership in the 21st Century.  Read or re-read this week's installment for more thoughts and comments!      Catch up on the all of the Holacracy entries: Week 12: The Wrap Up   Next, we will begin the next book in our Re-read series,  T. (I ordered my copy have you?). Remember to use the link to buy a copy in order to support the podcast and blog. The reread will be led by Steven Adams.   I am looking forward to sitting on the other side of the table during the next re-read! Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads.   Reviews and A Call To Action A recent review on ITunes from Yetanotherjr was titled, Always something to learn. Yetanotherjr wrote, “What I love about this podcast is that I learn something from every guest. I might not agree with everything that a guest says, but I learned something. A terrific source of thinking and learning.“   Thank you!  I am humbled and look forward to bringing new ideas and voices to the software community for a long time to come!   You can help the podcast. If you even got a single new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast!   Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 450 will feature an essay on Product Roadmaps.  Roadmaps link an organization’s strategy to action. Product roadmaps are directional, answer the question of where we are going and why. As with any powerful tool, roadmaps giveth when used wisely and taketh away when used less wisely. We will also have columns from Gene Hughson and Jon M Quigley!     Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 448 features our essay on uncertainty. Al Pittampalli said, “uncertainty and complexity produce anxiety we wish to escape.” Dealing with uncertainty is part of nearly everything we do our goal should be to address uncertainty head on. The second column features Steve Tendon talking about Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban published J Ross (). We tackle Chapter 18.   Our third column is the return of Jeremy Berriault and his QA Corner. Jeremy discusses leading in  QA.  Jeremy  blogs at Re-Read Saturday News Chapter 10 concludes our re-read of : The New Management System for a Rapidly Changing World by which was published by Henry Holt and Company in 2015.  This week's chapter is titled, The Experience of Holacracy. In this chapter, Robertson wraps up most of the loose ends. Next week we will conclude this re-read with some final comments and thoughts.   Catch up on the all of the Holacracy entries: In two weeks we will begin the next book in our Re-read series,  T. (I ordered my copy have you?). Remember to use the link to buy a copy in order to support the podcast and blog. The reread will be led by Steven Adams.   I am looking forward to sitting on the other side of the table during the next re-read! Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads.   A Call To Action If you even got a single new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 449  will feature our interview with Jasveer Singh.  We discussed his new book, Functional Software Size Measurement Methodology with Effort Estimation and Performance Indication.  Jasveer, proposes a new sizing methodology for estimation and other measurement processes. Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 447 features our interview with Angela Wick on the role of the Product Owner and Business Analyst in Agile efforts. These two roles are critically important for delivering value in an Agile environment. Angela provides a fresh take on the Product Owner role and the Product Owner's relationship to other roles Agile teams. Angela is the founder of BA-Squared, LLC, a training and consulting practice.  She is passionate about modernizing requirements practices and helping organizations collaborate on a Product Vision aligned to strategy and guiding them to a meaningful backlog and iterations that keep the customer and organizational value top of mind. She trains, coaches and teaches organizations on Product Ownership and Agile BA! Email: Angela@BA-Squared.Com Web: LinkedIn: Twitter: This is not the first time the SPaMCAST has featured essays and conversations on the role of product owners ( for example and ).   Re-Read Saturday News Chapter 9 continues the third section of Holacracy, Evolution Installed: Living Holacracy.  : The New Management System for a Rapidly Changing World by was published by Henry Holt and Company in 2015.  This week's chapter is titled If You're Not Ready To Adopt: Moving Toward Holacracy.  In this chapter Robertson softens his if-you-can't-do-it-all-don't-do-anything approach.   This chapter begins with a story of Robertson being asked how they can move forward in a limited manner.  The person had just intently listened to a talk on Holacracy. The person explained that they could see the value, but did not have to power to change the organization or even their department.  Robertson’s knee jerk response was that you could not use parts; however, the response felt wrong.  So he reached out the larger community of practitioners to gather their field observations for how they handled scenarios in which everything could not be implemented.  Whether the story is apocryphal or not matters less than that this chapter softens the all-or-nothing stance stated earlier in the book.     Catch up on the all of the Holacracy entries:   In approximately three weeks we will begin the next book in our Re-read series,  T. Remember to use the link to buy a copy in order to support the podcast and blog. The reread will be led by Steven Adams.   I am looking forward to sitting on the other side of the table during the next re-read! Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads.   A Call To Action If you got a new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast!   Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 448 will feature our essay on uncertainty. Al Pittampalli said, “uncertainty and complexity produce anxiety we wish to escape”. Dealing with uncertainty is part of nearly everything we do.   The second column will feature Steve Tendon talking about Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban published J Ross (). We tackle Chapter 18.   Our third column will be from Jeremy Berriaul.t. Jeremy discusses leading in  QA.  Jeremy  blogs at   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 446 will feature our essay on questions.  Questions are a coach and facilitator’s secret power! But, with great power comes great responsibility.   Our second column is from Gene Hughson.  Gene and I discussed his essay originally published on his blog Form Follows Function ().  The concept may sound counterintuitive, but it is not. The third column is from Kim Pries, the Software Sensei.  In this installment, Kim dives into the topic of servant leadership. Re-Read Saturday News This week we tackle Chapter 8 of : The New Management System for a Rapidly Changing World by published by Henry Holt and Company in 2015.  Chapter 8 is a bit of a bits and bobs chapter but begins to draw in a lot of loose threads.   This week we also announce the next book in the re-read series.  The envelope please. . . . The next book is T. Remember to use the link to buy a copy in order to support the podcast and blog. The reread will be led by Steven Adams.  Steve has been an active participant in many of our previous re-reads and has appeared twice on the Software Process and Measurement Cast to discuss earlier re-reads.  I will provide supplemental comments and highlights.  I am looking forward to sitting on the other side of the table during the next re-read! Catch up on the all of the Holacracy entries: Week 9 Adopting Holacracy Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. A Call To Action If you got a new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 447 will feature our interview with Angela Wick on the role of the product owner and business analyst in Agile efforts.The two roles are important and interrelated. This is not first-time the SPaMCAST has featured essays and conversations on the role of product owners ( for example and ).  Angela provides a fresh take on the role! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

SPaMCAST 445 features the return of a favorite, Capers Jones.  It is always fun to talk with someone with their own page in Wikepedia.  Capers and I talked about his new book, . Capers is passionate about software quality and measurement. Capers said, “High-quality software is not expensive. High-quality software is faster and cheaper to build and maintain than low-quality software, from initial development all the way through total cost of ownership.”  Jones, Caper, Bonsignour, Olivier, and Jitendra Subramanyam, Jitendra, The Economics of Software Quality.  As usual, Capers was engaging, educational and controversial.  Spending time with Capers is always a learning experience! Capers biography is long and storied.  Let it be said that Capers is a serial author, public speaker, pundit, guru and deep thinker.  Check out his or . Capers can be contacted at capers.jones3@gmail.com. Capers first appeared on and  last appeared on Re-Read Saturday News This week we tackle Chapter 7 of : The New Management System for a Rapidly Changing World by published by Henry Holt and Company in 2015.  Chapter 7 shows how to generate alignment between roles, circles, and the overall organization.  Lots of inspect and adapt talk this week. Catch up on the first four entries in the re-read Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads.   A Call To Action If you got a new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you are listening.  If you leave a review please send a copy to .  Reviews help guide people to the cast!   Next SPaMCAST  SPaMCAST 446 will feature our essay on questions.  Questions are a coach and facilitator’s secret power!   Do you have a favorite go to question you like to ask?  Care to share? We will also have columns from Gene Hughson and Jon M Quigley (and maybe more)!   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

This week’s Software Process and Measurement Cast features our essay revisiting the product owner role. The product owner role is hard, often messed up and a great opportunity for improvement. The second column features the return of Steve Tendon talking about Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban published J Ross (). We tackle Chapter 17 which is titled Challenges of Work-State Work in Process Limits. WIP limits have their plusses and minuses when discussing hyper-productivity.   Our third column this week is from Jeremy Berriault. Jeremy discusses how to show the value of QA and why knowing and showing value is important!   Jeremy  blogs at     Re-Read Saturday News This week we tackle Chapter 6 of : The New Management System for a Rapidly Changing World by published by Henry Holt and Company in 2015.   , puts the ideas and processes defined in to work. Catch up on the first four entries in the re-read Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads.   A Call To Action If you got a new idea this week while listening to the podcast, please give the SPaMCAST a short, honest review in iTunes.  Reviews help guide people to the cast! Next SPaMCAST SPaMCAST 445 features the return of a favorite, Capers Jones.  Capers and I talked about his new book, A Guide to Selecting Software Measures and Metrics. As usual, Capers was engaging, educational and controversial.  Spending time with Capers is always worthwhile! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.