Arguing Agile: Product Management, Business Leadership, & Org Design

Brian Orlando sits down with Alfonso Guerra to discuss the similarities between software development and animation. While in-flight, we also discuss an array of developer-centric topics such as bad metrics, good and bad dev leads, making time to be creative, and how developers learn.

0:00 Alfonso's Introduction/Background
0:49 Brian's Background
2:36 Measuring Development
5:50 Programming Languages
7:00 College & Programming
8:33 Developers and Bias
11:04 Example of a Bad Metric
14:48 The Programming Dark Ages
18:54 Mantras to Write On Walls
21:14 The Illusion of Life (Animation)
24:23 Similarities with Animation
29:19 Everything Old is New Again
33:06 Tying Stories together through Books
36:54 Permission to Fail
41:18 Peer Programming
45:55 Good Dev Leads
48:35 Segue on Automation Best Practices
52:31 Basic (Deming) Quality & the Lean Startup
58:21 Efficiency Thinking Doesn't Win Academy Awards
1:01:27 Product Viability of Disneyland
1:05:46 Example of a Systemic View
1:07:00 Customer Experience vs Developer Experience
1:08:51 Learning from Experiences/Mistakes of Others
1:13:19 Pomodoro
1:15:10 Getting Out of Efficiency Conversations
1:16:46 Differing Corporate Values vs. Behaviors
1:21:00 Quality and Development Standards
1:24:23 Certifications, Money, and asking Why
1:28:25 User Behavior
1:29:44 Component vs. Feature Teams
1:33:20 A Perspective on BAs
1:37:28 Doing Work "No User Asked For"
1:41:53 Cost Cutting until Indentured Servitude
1:46:04 Function Points and Metrics
1:49:11 Stakeholder Interruption Cost
1:52:16 Being Scared of Code Reviews
1:56:13 Fixed vs Growth Mindset Example
1:58:01 Leadership Ability & Training
2:02:33 Shared Experiences, Shared Themes
2:07:13 Wrap-Up
2:07:44 Secrets of Podcast Editing

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AP43 - Similarities between Software Development and Animation with Alfonso Guerra

On this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel discuss the product that is the Agile Podcast! We discuss what we've learned this year, what future ideas do we have up our sleeves for shows and guests, and what changes to the product are we thinking about...

0:00 Topic Intro
0:35 Clip-show VS Podcasting
3:30 Product Discussion: 5-Minute Monologue
5:15 Clips from the Agile Podcast
6:42 Takeaway - Splitting Channels
9:43 Clips and Production "Tricks"
13:06 Product Goal of the Podcast
15:26 Future Guest, Curtis Round 2
17:33 Future Guests, by Role
22:33 Future Topic: Non-Agile Companies
24:11 Future Topic: Spotify Model
29:49 Future Topic: Trainers without Experience
31:47 Future Topic: Spotify, Again
36:54 Other Future Topics
39:20 Tangent on Asking for a Pay Raise
40:27 Process of Doing the Podcast
43:04 Remote Guests
44:08 Future Topic: Product Blind-spots
45:33 Wrap-Up

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AP42 - Agile Podcast Year-End Retrospective

On this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel talk about the discipline of testing in agile software development.

0:00 Topic Intro
1:08 Scrum Only Has Developers, Right?
2:56 Developers and Testers, Working Together
4:50 How the Best Teams Work
7:48 When to do Estimation?
10:00 Cross-Functional Transition
14:11 Componentized Feature Teams - a New Nightmare
19:23 Business Alignment of Testers
22:33 The Evil Agile Podcast
23:46 Difference Between Testers and Software Engineers
26:29 Teams, Training, and Testers
29:11 Hearing that Point Again
31:12 Tester Career Evolution
35:08 Brainstorming on Moving Testers under Product
37:50 Difference in Product vs Development
40:21 No ROI in Training Our People
44:10 Equality in Metrics
48:06 Automation in Testing
50:10 Failing at Automation
53:21 Automation: Lead by Example
55:42 Minimum Expectation of Quality
58:15 80/20 Rule and Quality
1:00:58 Podcasting - An Automation Example
1:02:30 Once You Automate... (BDD)
1:04:19 Skill-set of a Business Analyst
1:07:28 Building a Career on the Quality Mindset
1:12:13 Wrap-Up
1:12:40 Random SQL Story

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AP42 - Testing in Agile Software Development

On this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel sit down with our favorite Agile Coach - Caurie Waddell. We talk through topics such as having a rockstar vs. collaborator team member, dealing with management, Scrum Masters having (or not having) technical skills, as well as negative and positive experiences in Product.

0:00 Intro
0:32 We Only Hire Rockstars
3:25 Example of a Dysfunctional Rockstar
7:19 Management Interference (and what it looks like)
11:11 Choose Your Agility Battles
16:50 Team on an Island
19:45 How NOT to "Go Agile"
22:20 SM without Technical Experience
26:00 Technical Skill to Avoid Blockers
29:37 POs without Domain Knowledge
32:21 Dividing the PO and PM Roles
36:46 Problem with Discovery
42:53 B2B vs. B2C, a Usabity Story
48:29 Not Realizing You Are a Change-Agent
51:47 Negative Experiences
57:04 Wrap-Up

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AP40 - Interview with Agile Coach: Caurie Waddell

On this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel sit down with our favorite Surprise Mystery Guest! Today, we are talking about Sprint Reviews in addition to a dizzying array of other topics including the victim mentality, biases, more effective push-back, a different take on diversity, and muse on why management is so often under-skilled.

0:00 Product Gets What Product Wants
2:31 Effect of Org Placement on Effectiveness
4:40 Pushing Back on Taking More Work
7:22 Setting Expectations (i.e. Saying No When You're New)
8:58 Being a Victim & Reclaiming Agency
12:02 Pushing Back
14:00 The Problem with Corporate Podcasting
14:47 Not Passing Along Your Pain & Defects
15:51 What is Coaching "Up"
17:45 Tips for the One-on-One
20:25 It's Not Stalking (But It Kinda Is)
21:59 Dirty BA Tricks (To Get People's Time)
24:23 The Power of Positive Intent
25:46 A (Totally Not Creepy) Story About Grabbing People's Time
27:10 Most Effective Language for the Culture
28:33 Consulting and Burnout
30:58 More on Positive Intent and Self-Reflection
32:51 Mentor/Mentee Relationships
36:20 Soft Skills are Hard. Hard Skills are Easy.
38:12 Masculine and Feminine Energy
40:08 Musings on Diversity
42:02 Incompetence at the Top
44:31 Thoughts on Management Training
46:24 Musings on Introversion vs. Extroversion
46:57 Sprint Review - No Business Stakeholders
48:55 Sprint Review - Customer Collaboration
50:31 Sprint Review - What to Actually Show
51:52 Sprint Review - Breaking Up the Review
54:03 Sprint Review - Product Owner Running the Demos
56:16 Sprint Review - Developer Attendance
58:53 Sprint Review - Are We Delivering the Right Product?
1:00:22 Wrap
1:00:45 Post-Wrap ASMR Gag-Reel

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AP39 - Being More Effective with Surprise Mystery Guesturprise Guest!

In this Episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel talk about why Brian is done with being a Scrum Master. We discuss the skills Scrum Masters need to gain and grow to be effective and how teams can use Scrum Masters effectively to help them succeed.

0:00 Done Being a Scrum Master
3:09 Middle Managers in Sprint Reviews
4:13 Get Ready to Deal with This...
8:42 Things Scrum Masters Do
10:31 Assumed Coaching Expertise
12:16 Coaches & Technical Skills
16:00 Let's Try It...
20:20 Continued, Scrum Master Activities
22:15 What Product is Desperate for Help With
27:33 What Protecting the Team Looks Like
29:17 Oh Yeah, and Scaling...
30:47 What's Going on Here?
32:18 Music Analogies
34:58 Scrum Masters to Transfer Skills
41:21 Replicate Success
43:26 Wrap-Up

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AP38 - Why I'm Done Being a Scrum Master

On this episode, Brian Orlando sits down with Scrum Master Jamie Leatherman to talk about what we've learned from some of the more negative experiences in our careers so that you can hopefully avoid them and maybe even learn from our mistakes!

0:00 Intro
0:30 Victimhood, Authority, & the Scrum Master
3:06 Project Management in Disguise as other Roles
4:25 Story of Undermining Product Managers
5:59 A SAFe Implementation Love Story
9:28 Scaling Broken Promises
10:27 Histrionic (Brian Can't Pronounce It)
12:34 Busy Work
14:48 Women Who Aren't Taken Seriously
16:00 Just One of the Boyz...
17:58 Pseudo-Scrum / Pseudo-SAFe
21:18 What "Terrible" Looks Like
24:15 Driving Fear Out
25:48 The Hero Developer (or Lead)
28:56 More Examples of the Hero Developer (or Lead)
30:01 If You Could Change Something...
35:33 Doing Things Differently
37:26 Dealing with Pushy Stakeholders
38:43 Replacing Authenticity with Shapeshifters
42:00 wE'Re LiKe A fAmIlY...
44:09 Vetting Out Egomaniacs
46:19 Interview Red Flags
48:09 Disarming Ego
51:53 Wrap-Up

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AP37 - Agile Horror Stories with Scrum Master Jamie Leatherman

What can agile software development teams learn from Air Disasters? On this special "what can we learn" episode, Brian Orlando looks at the history of the research done to increase the safety of modern commercial aviation through training air crews to better work together.

0:00 Intro
0:19 Poor Decisions
1:02 Effectiveness vs. Efficiency
1:49 Some Background
2:22 Concepts
3:13 Theories of Practice & of Situation
5:13 Role Restrictions & Over-Differentiation
6:42 Advocacy & Inquiry
7:53 Questions to Ask When Things Go Wrong
8:48 Learning New Theories
10:11 Working with Overly Restrictive Roles
11:10 Advocacy & Inquiry Exercise 1
13:06 Advocacy & Inquiry Example 2
13:59 Advocacy & Inquiry Example 3
15:01 Summary & A Caution Word
16:24 Wrap

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AP36 - What can Software Development Teams learn from Air Disasters?

On this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel discuss splitting teams in Agile Software Development. When should you split, how to split the team, when you may not want to split and times when you may want to un-split. Un-split isn't even a real word...

0:00 Intro
0:24 Should we Split?
2:54 Length of the Team Stand-Up
6:25 Ideal Team Sizing
9:01 Real Story of a Team Split
11:12 Team Split - the Undesirable Norm
13:14 Calling any Maintenance Developers!
13:42 Going Back to Forming
15:56 Balance of Changing Team Members
17:59 Realities of Productivity and Extra Team Members
19:25 Pragmatic Team Sizing and Splitting
24:25 Leadership and Vision
27:07 Team Split - How Do We Do It?
31:35 Brian's Clarifying Segue
33:00 More on How to Split
35:33 Consulting/Shared Team Members
37:24 How NOT to Split
38:56 Management-Directed Team Splits
41:51 A Radical Approach
45:03 Consolidating Two Teams into One
47:26 Tracking Unimportant Things
50:03 Looking Out for Only Yourself
52:17 More on Team Consolidation
55:10 Avoiding Consolidation for the Wrong Reasons
57:46 Daily Scrum and the Scrum Guide
59:15 Meeting Tool Wish-List
1:01:07 Wrap-Up
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Agile Podcast E35 - Splitting Teams

In this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel review and react to the GOTO 2015 talk by Dave Thomas: Agile is Dead.

Agile is Dead - Pragmatic Dave Thomas - GOTO 2015
https://youtu.be/a-BOSpxYJ9M

0:00 Intro
0:36 Agile Is Dead - Opening
0:58 Agile is Dead - Rational Unified Process & History
2:54 Agile is Dead - Point 1: Agile is an Adjective
4:33 Discussing Point 1
5:17 Agile is Dead - Point 2: Nouns Sell
6:23 Discussing Point 2
7:51 Agile is Dead - Point 3: Fear Sells
8:31 Discussing Point 3
9:26 Driving Fear Out of the Organization
15:24 Agile is Dead - Point 4: Cool Sells
16:17 Discussing Point 4
18:56 Fear and Doubt
21:21 Agile is Dead - The Main Point
21:45 Discussing the Main Point
24:58 Side-Discussions on Consultancies
27:02 Agile is Dead - Selling Scaling
27:19 Discussing the Selling of Scaling
27:42 Agile is Dead - Agility: What and How
28:11 Discussing Agility: What and How
29:46 Applying Inspect and Adapt - How Children Learn
31:12 Agile is Dead - No Rules are Universal
31:45 Side-track Discussion on Good vs Bad Slideshows
32:22 Agile is Dead - All Rules are Contextual
32:56 Discussing Context and Uniqueness
34:14 Agile is Dead - Wrap
34:31 Discussing the Wrap-Up
36:05 Wrap-Up

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Agile Podcast E34 - Reaction to "Agile is Dead" by Dave Thomas