Nov 21, 2022Member-onlyServant Leadership — why it’s not just about leadersAnd what organisations can do to make it happen — Servant-leadership has a longer history than you might think. The philosophy was described by both Sun Tzu and Laotzi in China 2500 years ago. According to the Bible (Matthew 20:27), Jesus Christ advocated servant leadership too. The term “servant leadership” was coined by Robert Greenleaf in 1970, Greenleaf codified the…Agile6 min readAgile6 min read
Aug 15, 2022Member-onlyThere is no WBS in AgileBut there is something better — The Work Breakdown Structure is a project management tool used to define the scope of a project. The Project Management Institute says that “creation of a WBS to define the scope of the project will help ensure delivery of the project’s objectives and outcomes” Forbes provides some reasons why a…Agile4 min readAgile4 min read
Mar 11, 2022The top 3 points you should have paid attention to in the Spotify Engineering Culture videos that…5326Jason YipThere is a lot in here I agree with, but not everything.There is a lot in here I agree with, but not everything. In my experience, the problem with creating aligned autonomy, trust at scale and decoupling is that they all require a suitable structure (even if that isn't chapters and guilds). Yes, you need empowered product teams, but that IS structure. Trust-at-scale requires there to be a scale - an org structure within which practices can evolve effectively and within which product strategy creates alignment.1 min read1 min read
Dec 9, 2021Member-onlyHow we plan is as important as that we plan at all.Outcome-based vs solution-based planning — How do you go about planning? How, for example, do you plan a holiday? Do you decide on a destination, then figure out everything else when you get there? Or do you map out a rough list of places of interest, perhaps prioritise them and then tick them off during your stay? …Planning4 min readPlanning4 min read
Dec 6, 2021Member-onlyAgile coaching — why sometimes it’s best not to be the expertCan you let go of knowing? — Every week, a group of us — all agile coaches at the same organisation — get together for an hour-long ‘chapter’ meeting. We use the time in different ways. There’s a monthly book club session, where we talk about a book one of us has discovered. …Coaching4 min readCoaching4 min read
Nov 11, 2021Member-onlyThe essential element of Agile Retrospectives that no-one is talking aboutIt is everyone’s favourite agile event, isn’t it? Well, every agile coach’s favourite agile event, anyway. Just look at how many books and articles are dedicated to the topic of making your restrospective better. So why — at least in my experience — are they little better than they’ve ever…Meetings2 min readMeetings2 min read
Oct 15, 20215 ways to coach agile teams through changeIn today’s world the most common unit of creativity, innovation and development in organisations is the team. Individuals alone can do only what they know, but a team can achieve what everyone in the team knows collectively. Cross-functional teams are a part of our lexicon, we take them for granted…Orsc7 min readOrsc7 min read
Aug 10, 2021Can you lose weight just by walking?My evidence so far — My wife’s birthday is in May, and this year I had planned a series of events to celebrate a Big One. For one of these events, jeans were frowned upon, so I trawled through my cupboards looking for my smartest pair of chinos. …Walking4 min readWalking4 min read
Jun 21, 2021Why your Agile Coach shouldn’t tell you what to doAnd what he or she should do instead — As an agile coach, I come to work with you, probably because someone else has told me to. Some other part of your organisation has probably decided that I will “help you become (more) agile”. …Agile3 min readAgile3 min read
Jun 18, 2021No time for Retrospectives?Here’s what to do about it — Arguably the most important meeting for agile teams — or teams-of-teams — is the Retrospective. …Agile4 min readAgile4 min read
