This episode of the Reluctant Agilist features an interview with Melissa Watts. Melissa works for Major League Baseball as a Technical Project Manager and acts in the capacity of ScrumMaster for a Scrum Team. During the interview, Melissa shares some of the experiences she has had working as a ScrumMaster over the last two years.

In this conversation, we explore things like how hard it can be to move from being a member of the Dev Team to being a ScrumMaster in addition to how to run experiments and find different ways to get the members of your Scrum Team to gel and reach that high-performing state we are all aiming towards.

Melissa and her team work in a very complex environment on a product that has to perform on a wide range of platforms and is not allowed to have any downtime. They are also faced with the added challenge of dealing with legacy systems and a significant amount of technical debt.

If you are working as a ScrumMaster or curious about what the job is like, this podcast offers real-life stories and examples of the day-to-day challenges of the job, how to work through them, and how to pick yourself up and put yourself back together at the end of one of the bad days.

If you'd like to contact Melissa with follow up questions:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/melissa-w-a9a9518

"The state of our attention determines the state of our life"

~ Chris Bailey

This summer at Agile 2019, author Chris Bailey kicked off the conference with his keynote session “How to Manage Your Attention In a World of Distraction.” Chris has invested years of his life exploring productivity, distraction, and how to find the best possible use of the one thing no one has enough of—time. Chris shares his experiments and their results on his website http://ALifeOfProductivity.com and in his first book The Productivity Project, which recounts his first year of testing productivity hacks. His new book Hyperfocus explores understanding and managing our attentional space so we can be truly present and engaged (or hyperfocused) in work, as well as how “scatter focus” can enable us to be more creative and connect different ideas.

In this interview, Chris and I talk about his productivity experiments, what worked and what didn’t, and the critical role meditation plays in becoming more focused and engaged in the most important work.

Links:

Agile 2019 Keynote https://www.agilealliance.org/resources/videos/how-to-manage-your-attention-in-a-world-of-distraction/

Chris’s website: https://alifeofproductivity.com/

Chris’s Books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Chris-Bailey/e/B015WTNT3S?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1571710982&sr=8-1

Chris on Twitter: https://twitter.com/chris_bailey

In August of 2019, The Project Management Institute announced that it had acquired Disciplined Agile. According to Mark Lines, who together with Scott Ambler created Disciplined Agile, " The Disciplined Agile approach recognizes that every organization is different, and within each organization, there are different ways of working. The Disciplined Agile approach meets you where you are and allows you to tailor solutions for the way that you and your organization need to work.”

The acquisition of DA is part of the PMI's continued effort to bring valuable tools and methods to the hands of people whose work involves management, enablement, support and delivery of projects and products. 

In this episode of the podcast, Scott Ambler who co-created Disciplined Agile together with Mark Lines, shares his thoughts on what this change means for those who practice a Disciplined Agile approach, those who follow a more traditional approach and why the PMI and DA have so much to offer each other. 

2019 PMI Global Congress

Mark Lines will be presenting at PMI Global Congress on Sunday, October 6 at 10:05 AM. For more info: https://sched.co/VH9T

Contacting Scott

Blog: https://www.projectmanagement.com/blogs/578692/Disciplined-Agile

Disciplined Agile site: http://disciplinedagiledelivery.com

ProjectManagement.com: https://www.projectmanagement.com/profile/ScottAmbler/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/scottwambler

For a long time now I have held strongly to the opinion that there is no such thing as an Agile Project Manager. There are Project Managers and there are ScrumMasters but the value systems they serve are different and at odds. I am comfortable playing either role, but I cannot do them both at once. (That is based on personal experience as well as observation.)

When I saw that the PMI NY Chapter was going to have someone give a talk on Agile Project Management, I was skeptical, but I thought it would be worth checking out. Unfortunately, the event was sold out before I could get a ticket. Obviously this is an important topic to the community.

Fortunately for me, Mike Anderson was willing to have a conversation with me about his presentation. That conversation had a huge impact on me and completely changed the way I felt about the topic of Agile Project Manager. Thanks to Mike, that opinion I mentioned above … not held so strongly anymore.

In this interview, Mike Anderson makes a logical, thoughtful case for what an Agile Project Manager is, why we need this role on our teams, and what stage of Agile Transformation you need to reach before you give this role a try. And this is not just theory—Mike is heading up the Agile Transformation effort at a company where they have successfully made the switch from Scrum Master to Agile Project Manager.

During the podcast Mike and I refer to the slide deck from his presentation at PMI NYC. You can find it here: https://www.slideshare.net/secret/JN1P00L1i9iwfE

This could be the next step in the evolution of Project Management.

Contacting Mike Anderson

If you'd like to reach out to Mike with follow up questions, you can reach him via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-anderson-03b62210/

Scrum Inc, CEO, JJ Sutherland’s new book The Scrum Fieldbook: A Master Class on Accelerating Performance, Getting Results and Defining the Future offers a compelling collection of stories breaking down what makes Scrum (and other forms of Agile) succeed or struggle in organizations. Drawing on his personal experience, as well as that of his colleagues at Scrum Inc., JJ offers a wide range of case studies on how individuals and organizations have been able to leverage agile practices to solve business problems and deliver value for their customers. In this interview JJ shares a few of those stories, makes the case for The Renaissance Enterprise, and explains why organizational refactoring is such a crucial part of Agile Transformation.

One thing students request in every single class I teach is “More Real World Examples”. JJ”s new book offers exactly that. If you are familiar with Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time, you’ll have an idea of what makes this book stand out. JJ is not only the son of Jeff Sutherland, co-creator of Scrum, but he also worked as an award-winning news correspondent and producer at NPR before becoming a Certified Scrum Trainer. With a background that is deep in storytelling JJ has put together a collection of tales from the field that draw you in with the narrative while delivering tips you need to know on what it takes to make Scrum (and Agile) succeed (or fail) in your organization.

The Scrum Fieldbook

Amazon - https://amzn.to/2lILCRE

Google http://bit.ly/2nfHcST

Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/2msNuyn

Apple Books https://apple.co/2ngyXpw

Contacting JJ

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jj-sutherland-b1486b6/

Twitter https://twitter.com/jjsutherland

Scrum Inc. https://www.scruminc.com

Esther Derby has been helping individuals, teams, and organizations understand how to introduce and embrace change since she got her start as a software developer four decades ago. While she is possibly best known for the book “Agile Retrospectives,” which she co-authored with Diana Larsen, her list of accomplishments extends well beyond that. In her words, she draws on “four decades of experience leading, observing, and living organizational change.” She is wise and inspiring AND she has a brand new book: 7 Rules for Positive, Productive Change: Micro Shifts, Macro Results (https://amzn.to/2kiUEUR). In this episode of the podcast we discuss what led her to write her first new book in 13 years, some of the key ideas it introduces, tips to support positive change, and her podcasts, workshops and online courses.

FOR MORE ON ESTHER DERBY

• Esther's Books on Amazon http://bit.ly/estherderby

• Esther Website http://www.estherderby.com

• Esther Podcast: https://thelawofjam.podbean.com

• Esther Workshops: https://www.estherderby.com/workshops/

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/estherderby

LINKS FROM THE PODCAST

• Slow Ideas - the Atul Gawande article Esther mentioned in the interview http://bit.ly/2knLaru

• The Software Project Manager's Bridge to Agility by Michele Sliger and Stacia Broderick https://amzn.to/2mbKJAT

Zach Stone is an agile coach with a background that includes organizational change management, conflict transformation, and behavioral science. He leverages these experiences in his work helping organizations, teams, and individuals adopt an agile approach to work. One of the primary techniques in Zach’s toolbox is Motivational Interviewing. In this episode of the podcast, Zach explains what motivational interviewing is, how it works, and why it is such a powerful approach to helping individuals move towards choices that can better help them achieve the outcomes they are looking for.

If you are looking for better ways to help your teams and organizations make more mindful and intentional choices, the information Zach shares in this interview will offer you a new skillset to begin developing so that you can better serve those around you.

While you are listening to this podcast, pay close attention to Zach’s voice. As you’ll hear towards the end of the interview, his measured use of language, speech patterns, and the way he engages is not only intentional, but it is a skill he spent a lot of time developing. I was keenly aware of it throughout the conversation and it made doing the interview an absolute blast.

Contacting Zach

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stonezach/

Web: thatscrum.life 

Email: [email protected]

Urs Reupke is a Certified Scrum Trainer and Agile Coach who works for the Hamburg-based Agile Consultancy It-Agile. A lot of Urs’s time and attention is focused on the work he does coaching management and providing leadership consulting as they move towards adopting a more Agile approach to work.

One specific area Urs is passionate about is the Core Cycle of Agile Product Development. In this interview, Urs and I talk about what the Core Cycle of Agile Product Development is, why it is so critical to the success of your product, and why his desire to help others produce better products is what motivated him to move out of his development role and into a role where he could achieve that goal.

Here are links to some of the things we discussed during the podcast:

- Urs’s presentation Tear Down This Wall, which focuses on the Core Cycle of Agile Product Development and can be downloaded here: http://bit.ly/2SnUckJ

- Steve Jobs' attention to yellow: https://www.geek.com/apple/steve-jobs-as-ceo-he-cared-about-a-shade-of-yellow-on-a-sunday-1415795/

- Roman's axis of product ownership: https://www.romanpichler.com/blog/be-a-balanced-product-leader-not-a-feature-broker-or-product-dictator/

- Godwin's law: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law

- Urs’ Tai Chi Page: http://centre-qigong-hamburg.de/

If you’d like to contact Urs, here is how you can reach him

- Web: www.it-agile.de

- Email: [email protected]

Many teams practicing Scrum adopt a mid-Sprint Review as a practice to help them ensure they are on track to deliver on their forecast by the end of the Sprint. For some teams, this involves holding an informal demo halfway through the Sprint to get feedback on the work they are doing. For other teams, the mid-Sprint review works differently and is used to provide transparency around a different set of issues.

This episode of The Reluctant Agilist was recorded at the 2019 North American Global Scrum Gathering in Austin, TX. In the interview, EvolveAgility Founder Dhaval Panchal and I talk through how he began using a mid-Sprint review to help the teams he is working with gain awareness of their level of confidence that they will meet their commitment for the Sprint. During the conversation you’ll hear Dhaval and I discuss how it works and why.

Here is a link to the Team Confidence Chart referenced during the podcast:

http://bit.ly/2JL9tbl

If you’d like to reach out to Dhaval directly, here is how you can reach him:

Web: https://evolveagility.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/evolveagility/

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/evolveagility

One of the things a Project Manager and a ScrumMaster have in common is that at times, they are both called upon to act as a coach and act as a mentor. For anyone in a leadership role, creating clarity around the difference between the two can be challenging. And even for seasoned pros, knowing when to act as a mentor and when to act as a coach is not always easy.

This podcast is about on mentoring and features Brandon Brown. Brandon has built a career that is deeply rooted in providing mentorship and serving others. His work focuses on creating, ensuring and sustaining safe places for young people to flourish so that they can, as he says, replace him.

During the interview we dig into mentoring: what it is, how it is different from coaching, what it requires, and what the mentor and the mentee should expect from the relationship.

We also spend time during the beginning of the podcast discussing some of the work Brandon is currently doing around trauma for Temple University's Lewis Katz School of Medicine. This is a subject we will be revisiting at a deeper level on an upcoming podcast.

If you'd like to reach out to Brandon with follow up questions, here is how you can reach him:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brbphilly/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/b_pbs

AboutMe: https://about.me/brandonrbrown