The Liberators (Barry Overeem and Christiaan Verwijs) joined Ryan Ripley and Todd Miller for an episode of Craft Brewed Agile on YouTube. We discussed building a consulting business, focusing on the things that bring you joy, and how authenticity can make all the difference in your agile pursuits.


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Special Guests: Barry Overeem and Christiaan Verwijs.
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112: Craft Brewed Agile with The Liberators

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Management

Todd Miller, Will Seele, and Ryan Ripley discuss Agile's internal (organizational) focus and the gap left by not addressing the Value component of Product Management and delivery.

In this Episode:

Internal Focus of Agile: The discussion, led by Todd Miller and Ryan Ripley, challenges the common perception of Agile as customer-centric and value-oriented, proposing instead that Agile is predominantly focused on internal processes and organizational matters rather than directly benefiting customers.

Agile Manifesto Analysis: The Agile Manifesto and its principles, when examined, emphasize team interactions, working software, and adapting to change but lack explicit directives that prioritize customer value or tangible benefits for the customer.

Evolution and Additions to Agile: Over time, various frameworks like Scrum, XP, Kanban, and others have evolved under the umbrella of Agile, incorporating aspects like customer centricity and iterative development. However, these are seen as additions to the core Agile philosophy, which remains internally focused.

Evidence-Based Management Connection: The conversation transitions to evidence-based management and its potential integration with Agile. This approach aims to complement Agile by introducing a more outward, value-driven focus, assessing Agile’s impact on customers and market performance.

Insufficiency of Agile Alone: The presenters conclude that while Agile methodologies are crucial, they are insufficient to ensure organizational success. They stress the need to balance Agile's internal process focus and external value delivery, advocating for a continuous evaluation of Agile's effectiveness and alignment with strategic goals.

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Agile is Mostly Internally Focused

Andrii Glushchenko shares his unconventional journey into Scrum mastery. Glushchenko became a Scrum Master at 20 while working in an outsourcing company during the 2014-2015 Ukraine war. Initially a recruiter, his interest in Scrum was piqued by parallels he drew between the Scrum Master role and his basketball point guard experience.

Challenges of Starting Without Knowledge: Glushchenko candidly admits that starting as a Scrum Master without proper knowledge was not ideal, as it led to wasting company resources while he learned on the job. He emphasizes that this approach is not recommended and underscores the importance of having a technical background and understanding of Scrum principles.

Evolution of Understanding and Practice: Over time, Glushchenko's perception and execution of the Scrum Master role evolved significantly. He initially thought the role was limited to ensuring Scrum works at the team level. Still, he later realized it encompasses helping the entire company achieve its goals through Scrum implementation, involving change and operational management.

Continuous Learning and Impact-Driven Approach: He highlights the necessity of constant learning, celebrating small victories, and being impact-driven. Glushchenko shares how he approaches problems by assessing the cost of fixing them against the potential gain, focusing on impactful changes.

Advice for Aspiring Scrum Masters and Further Insights: Glushchenko advises aspiring Scrum Masters to understand the accountability and dedication required for the role. He recommends being diligent and constantly improving oneself. He also stresses the importance of supporting Ukraine in its current crisis, linking his personal background to broader global issues.


Andrii Glushchenko's Journey to Scrum Mastery | Expert Insights & Tips

Becky Savill's Journey to Scrum Mastery | Expert Insights & Tips

Ryan and Todd look back at a 2006 post by Ken Schwaber, which covers 15 ways Scrum is both hard and disruptive.

The twelfth statement from Ken:

"Managing a release or project to deliver only the highest value functionality and not deliver the rest optimizes value [and] is the job of product management and customers."

The 12th episode of "Scrum is Hard and Disruptive" discusses the importance of delivering only high-value functionality in project management, emphasizing the role of product management and customer input.

The hosts, Todd and Ryan, stress the need for product owners to say "no" to unnecessary features, highlighting the importance of avoiding waste and focusing on what's truly needed.

They discuss using Evidence-Based Management (EBM) to validate the usefulness of features in production and advocate for objective decision-making in product development.

The episode touches on the customer's responsibility in the development process, encouraging their involvement and accountability in deciding the essential features.

The conversation also covers the importance of being ruthless in backlog management, akin to Steve Jobs with the iPhone, and the value of saying "not yet" to lower-priority items to maximize return on investment.



Scrum is Hard and  Disruptive 12 - Maximize Value

Jenny Tarwater's Journey to Scrum Mastery | Expert Insights & Tips

Agile for Humans with Ryan Ripley and Todd Miller

112: Craft Brewed Agile with The Liberators

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