Gene Agile/Scrum coaches should not position themselves in ways that will give them an authoritative/commanding role within an organization, where they coach. If this happens, organizations/people that are being coached will not gain long-lasting learning. The result of such engagement, will be have a ‘quick fix’ at most, but it will not be sustainable. Coaches will … Read more
Author: Gene Gendel This paper, originally written in February 2013, brings to light some of the least-discussed topics and consequences of “broadband agilization” that currently take place in the industry. The materials of this paper are subdivided into two general sections: The first section describes certain impacts that Agile has on individuals and their personal … Read more
A few days ago, I went to the happy hour of a local staffing firm that specializes in placing Agile technical and leading resources. They had moved into their new office and were treating. (I’ve known these guys for many years and was not looking for a job.) As I was walking around the office, … Read more
Author: Gene Gendel You just bought a house and decided to renovate. You brought in a contractor to estimate the work that you want done. What is your biggest fear? Here are a few possibilities: The work will not be done. The work will not be done on time (winter is coming and you need … Read more
In his book Drive, Daniel Pink says that when it comes to motivation, there’s a gap between what science knows and what business does. Our current business operating system is built around external, carrot-and-stick motivators — which don’t work and often do more harm than good. We need a system upgrade. And the science shows … Read more
Scrum, as the most structured of all Agile frameworks, is a great way to ensure predictable, strategically planned, incremental product delivery. Scrum ensures good responsiveness to frequently changing market demands. Although nonprescriptive, Scrum clearly defines certain roles, responsibilities, and ceremonies. Kanban, for the most part, is silent about certain aspects that Scrum suggests explicitly (e.g., … Read more
Author: Gene Gendel There are four commonly known ways that teams use to handle production support, or other “interrupt” items. Frequently, these items are classified by “levels” of priority/criticality, with L1 being the lowest and L3 being the highest priority. As we continue from Part 1 of this two-part article, we look at the remaining … Read more
Author: Gene Gendel In an ideal world, a cross-functional Scrum team must be fully focused on Scrum. The team is also expected to hear a voice of one customer only: the product owner. But what happens when reality intervenes and you get pulled in other directions? In this two-part article I will: Highlight common interrupt … Read more
Author: Gene Gendel Imagine: You are about to form a new feature team that is composed of bright, cross-functional experts, self-motivated and self-managed. They all worked in Scrum settings before and are fully supportive of Agile principles. The organization they work for is properly structured and it nicely supports the adoption of Agile/Kaizen culture. Imagine … Read more
Author: Gene Gendel I wanted to start this discussion with Wikipedia definition of Performance Appraisal: “A performance appraisal (PA), also referred to as a performance review, performance evaluation,[1] (career) development discussion,[2] or employee appraisal[3] is a method by which the job performance of an employee is documented and evaluated. Performance appraisals are a part of … Read more
