In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast, Enterprise Agility Coach Om Patel and Product Manager Brian Orlando are joined by Alex Polyakov, CEO of Project Simple (https://projectsimple.ai) for an immersive discussion of the complex topic of technical debt. 

They discuss what technical debt really means, when it can be beneficial vs harmful, and strategies for prioritizing and paying down tech debt while still delivering value to users. Learn how to have productive conversations about technical debt with your development teams and stakeholders.

technical debt, agile development, product management, refactoring, software architecture, prioritization, user needs, agile transformation, arguing agile podcast

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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
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CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast, Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel and Product Manager Brian Orlando dive into the often misunderstood concept of platform teams. They discuss:

- The definition and purpose of a platform team
- How platform teams differ from stream-aligned feature teams
- Key behaviors of effective platform teams
- Common anti-patterns and mistakes made with platform teams
- How platform teams enable greater business agility when implemented well

Whether you're a product manager, agile coach, or tech leader, understanding platform teams is critical for building high-performing organizations. Tune in to learn the do's and don'ts of platform teams.

0:00 Podcast Intro
0:11 Topic Intro: What is a Platform Team?
0:58 What is a Platform?
2:26 Stream-Aligned or Durable Teams
3:22 What the Platform Team Does
6:06 Good Behaviors: Collaboration
8:04 Good Behaviors: Fast Feedback Loops
9:57 Good Behaviors: Focus on Usability & Reliability
12:25 Bottcher's Points: the Source Article
16:36 Platform Confusion
19:15 Platform Team Product Management
21:17 Transferring or Sabotaging Cognitive Load
23:49 No Dedicated Platform Team
26:18 Customer Focus vs Platform Work
30:23 Normal (Platform) Business
32:13 Wrap-Up

platform team, platform as a product, stream-aligned teams, team topologies, cognitive load, business agility, product management, devops, enterprise agile

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CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast, Enterprise Business Agility Coach Om Patel and Product Manager Brian Orlando debate the pros and cons of using shared services teams versus fully dedicated, cross-functional teams (otherwise known in Marty Cagan circles as "durable teams").

They explore common arguments made for shared services models, such as resource utilization, cost efficiency, and standardization. Om and Brian then counter these points, discussing the negative impacts on team cohesion, context switching, and ability to deliver customer value quickly.

Understand the organizational and cultural forces that lead to shared services, and arm yourself to advocate for stable, durable agile teams.

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By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel and Product Manager Brian Orlando dive into the concept of cognitive load and how it impacts agile software development teams. 

Drawing from the 1988 paper "Cognitive Load During Problem Solving" by John Sweller, they discuss:

• What is cognitive load and how does it manifest on teams?
• Why the mental effort required for day-to-day problem solving doesn't necessarily lead to learning new skills 
• The importance of making space for developers to acquire new "schemas" or patterns through activities like communities of practice and pair programming
• How an overemphasis on utilization and treating problem solving as the primary means of learning can hamper a team's ability to grow their expertise
• Ideas for measuring and managing cognitive load on agile teams

If you're a product manager, agile leader or coach looking to enable your teams to continuously learn and improve, this is the episode for you!

0:00 Podcast Intro
0:11 Topic Intro: Cognitive Load
1:16 What is Cognitive Load
2:36 Claim #1: Problem Solving is Heavy Stuff
6:08 A Software Development Example, #1
8:11 Claim #2 Distinctly Different Learning Mechanisms
10:48 We're Too Busy to Improve
12:27 Being More Effective
14:35 Time to Innovate
15:55 Claim #3 - Normal Work Doesn't Lend to Learning
18:32 Sprint Goals
19:45 Claim #4 - Expertise Development
22:27 Making Space for Learning
24:06 Surprise: Taylorism
25:31 Utilization & Overhead
27:24 Claim #5 - Modification is Required
28:54 Pair Programming
30:33 Measuring Cognitive Load
34:20 Wrap-Up

cognitive load agile development, agile team learning, problem solving vs skill acquisition, managing cognitive load software teams, developer utilization agile, pair programming, communities of practice agile

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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast we welcome Lenar Mukhamadiev!

Lenar shares his fascinating career path from starting as a QA intern at age 20 to founding his own software development company, iDelsoft: https://idelsoft.com

Lenar discusses the challenges of being an entrepreneur, the importance of embracing failure as learning opportunities, his thoughts on the future of QA, and advice he would give his younger self.

Tune in for insights on leadership, accountability, hiring, and more!

0:00 Podcast Intro
0:12 Guest Intro: Lenar Mukhamadiev
0:56 Lenar's Background
2:14 Life at Idelsoft
4:16 QA Progression
5:39 Moving to Software Engineering
7:15 Brian's QA Journey
10:01 Challenges
12:31 Where to Play...
13:38 Success & Value
15:58 Testing Skill
17:25 Owned Outcomes
19:24 Accountability
23:06 Communication
25:11 Failure & Iterating
27:29 Interviewing
29:40 Work Experience
33:56 Future of QA
37:51 Advice for Your Younger Self
38:49 Wrap-Up

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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast, Enterprise Business Agility Coach Om Patel and Product Manager Brian Orlando explore the trend of product management specializations.

We discuss the various types of specializations emerging, the factors driving this trend, and the pros and cons for both product managers and organizations.

We also share practical advice on how to navigate your product management career path amidst the pressure to specialize.

Whether you're a product manager feeling overburdened or an organization considering specialized PM roles, tune in for insights to help you make informed decisions.

0:00 Podcast Intro
0:11 Topic Intro: PM Specializations
1:53 Types of Specialization
4:14 More Examples
5:51 How Did We Get Here?
9:11 Scope Creep + Lack of Support
11:04 Agile Contributions, or Not
12:10 Future Podcast: Adding People and Teams
12:54 Technology Specialization
14:33 Changing Tech Stacks/Skills
16:30 Unburdening Yourself, Preview Edition
17:59 Pros & Cons
20:28 Pros of Not Specializing
23:04 Corporate is Weird
23:49 Context Switching
25:52 Autonomy of Leadership
26:52 Choosing to Specialize
30:04 Build Support Structures
31:40 Justifying Promotions
33:37 Final Reactions
35:07 Wrap-Up


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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast, Software Development Expert Ed Martin joins Enterprise Business Agility Coach Om Patel and Product Manager Brian Orlando as they review Marty Cagan's latest book "Transformed." 

Listen as we discuss takeaways, critique, and commentary, including:

• The evolving roles of product leaders and agile coaches 
• Product discovery and the tech lead's accountability
• Common objections faced during agile transformations
• How Marty Cagan's ideas apply to real-world product development

#ProductLeadership #AgileCoaching #MartyCagan #Transformed #BusinessAgility

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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

In this episode of Arguing Agile, Brian and Om dive into the seedy reality of the "shadow backlog."

Defined as all the hidden work and side projects that don't make it into the "official" backlog, shadow backlog items end up consuming significant time and effort from development teams.

From personal passion projects to break fixes to exploratory work, we discuss the many forms the shadow backlog can take and how it impacts planning, productivity and team focus. Listen to  learn how to spot the signs of a growing shadow backlog in your own teams!

agile, scrum, product management, backlog, sprint planning, technical debt, exploratory testing, side projects, passion projects, scope creep, team productivity

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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)
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AA171 - The Shadow Backlog: How Invisible Work Derails Your Teams

The first value expressed in the Manifesto for Agile Software Development is "Individuals and interactions over processes and tools."

In this episode of Arguing Agile we are joined by Yadi Caro, host of the Hardcore Soft Skills Podcast for an exploration of practical and actionable ways to put people over processes and tools. 

Listen as we discuss how to build empathy, facilitate effective meetings, foster team collaboration, and customize processes to fit your unique teams. Discover actionable tips from experienced practitioners to help your team thrive, including:

• How to invest in building relationships and empathy across the organization
• How to better facilitate meetings, with clear goals and equal voices
• Why you should reward team success, not just individual performance
• Why allowing teams to customize processes is important

agile, scrum, people over process, empathy, facilitation, collaboration, team wellbeing, psychological safety, agile coaching, product management, leadership
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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)
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AA170 - How to Prioritize Individuals & Interactions (Over Processes & Tools)

...and other tips to Avoid Embarrassment & Improve Your Presentation Skills

In this episode of the Arguing Agile podcast, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Business Agility Coach Om Patel share hilarious product demo disaster stories and provide actionable tips to help you avoid embarrassing mishaps during your next demo.

Listen to this podcast if you'd like to learn how to better prepare, engage your audience, manage your time, and handle unexpected issues with grace.

Whether you're demoing to customers, executives or your own team, these strategies will level up your presentation game!

Keywords:
Product demos,Presentation skills,Demo disasters,Engaging audience,handling demo issues,Knowing your audience,Demo preparation tips,Improving demos,Sprint review demos,Demoing new features

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AA169 - Product Demos Gone Wild