SPaMCAST 426 marks a milestone!  SPaMCAST 426 is the end of Year 10.  The Cast features our second annual roundtable.  Almost all of the SPaMCAST contributors gathered virtually to discuss a number of topics, including: Is software quality really one of the most important focuses in IT in 2017? Even though people are adopting agile, is agile a principle-driven movement over? In 2017 will security trump quality and productivity? The multiway discussion was exciting and informative! This was a great way to finish year 10 and get the motor primed for year 11! Re-Read Saturday News This week we begin the re-read of Carol Dweck’s : The New Psychology of Success. We will start slowly as I read ahead and give you time to find or buy a copy of the book.   I am reading the 2008 Ballantine Books Trade paperback edition version of the book (I had to re-buy the book as my first copy seems to have a new home).   I was excited that the Software Process and Measurement Blog readers selected Mindset for Re-read Saturday.  I am looking forward to refreshing my understanding of the powerful ideas Dweck identifies as growth and fixed mindsets.  Mindsets are very useful for understanding why some people grow and others don’t and why some teams excel and other less so. Also, is easily the single most quoted book  I have seen in presentations at conferences for the past few years. Next week we start in on Chapter One of the re-read of Carol Dweck’s , buy a copy this week. Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 427 begins Year 11 with an essay on the Post-Agile Age.  It is coming and it is a bed that human nature and commercial pressures has created. (Not sure what I mean?  Tune in, stream or download )  We will also have columns from Jon M Quigley, Jeremy Berriault, and Kim Pries.  SPaMCAST 427 will celebrate the new SPaMCAST year in style! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book herenglish and Chinese.

Happy New Year!   SPaMCAST 425 features our annual tune-up ideas. We need to strive to be more effective and efficient every day or the world will pass us by!  These are suggestions that have worked for me and might be useful for you. We will also have columns from Steve Tendon with another chapter in his Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban, published by J Ross ().  Steve and I talked about Chapter 14 which covers kanban, flow, and throughput.   Anchoring the cast is Gene Hughson’s with an entry in his theme of leadership patterns and anti-patterns.  This week we talk about . Remember that Penny Pullan in SPaMCAST 424 offered listeners a great offer!  Penny provided a coupon for her new book   for 20% off.  Use the code  VLF20 at , which includes post and packing in the UK and the USA. Re-Read Saturday News In this week’s re-read of  by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, Copyright 2002, 33rd printing), we deliver final thoughts with three final takeaways.   Next week we begin the re-read of Carol Dweck’s , buy a copy this week. Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 426 features our second annual roundtable.  Almost all of the SPaMCAST contributors discussed a number of topics, including: Is software quality really one of the most important focuses in IT in 2017? Even though people are adopting agile, is agile as principle-driven movement over? In 2017, will security trump quality and productivity? The multiway discussion was exciting and informative! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

Happy New Year!   SPaMCAST 424 features our interview with Penny Pullin.  Penny returns to the SPaMCAST to discuss her new book Virtual Leadership: Practical Strategies for Getting the Best Out of Virtual Work and Virtual Teams.  Virtual teams and therefore the need for virtual leadership is a critical success factor for delivering value in the 21st Century. Penny’s Bio: Dr. Penny Pullan's latest book is Virtual Leadership: Practical strategies for getting the most out of virtual teams and virtual work. Writing it involved immersing herself in the virtual world and listening to countless stories of success and, all too often, disaster! Penny works with people in multinational organizations who are grappling with tricky projects: uncertain, with ambiguous requirements, stakeholders who need to be engaged and teams dispersed around the world. When they work with Penny, clients notice that communication, collaboration, and confidence grow and projects don’t seem quite as tricky as before! Penny is a Director of . in the UK and tweets at @pennypullan. Penny has offered SPaMCAST listeners a great offer!     coupon for 20% off VLF20 at which includes post and packing in the UK and the USA.   Re-Read Saturday News In this week’s re-read of  by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, Copyright 2002, 33rd printing), we review the chapter titled Understanding and Overcoming The Five Dysfunctions. This chapter is the most hands-on portion of the book, and I suggest spending time with the wide range of ideas Lencioni peppers throughout this section. Next week we will conclude this Re-Read with final thoughts. If you are new to the re-read series buy and go back to week one and read along! I am running a poll to decide between Carol Dweck’s , (Daniel Kahneman) and (Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi).  I have also had suggestions (in the other category) for (Adam Grant) and Man by Takehiko Harada.  I would like your opinion! (last day 1/1/2017) [polldaddy poll=9605629] Takeaways from this week include:   Exercises are a great way to teach theory, but practical application makes it stick.   Build trust or nothing else will work for long.   Experiment with ideas to overcome dysfunctions and measure their impact on RESULTS. Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 425 will feature the ideas from our annual tune-up blog entries. We need to strive to be more effective and efficient every day or the world will pass us by!  Next week I have some suggestions that have worked for me.  We will also have columns from Gene Hughson with more on leadership.  Gene’s ideas dovetail nicely with the concepts Penny talked about this week.  We will also talk with Steve Tendon about Chapter 14 from his book Hyper-Productive Knowledge Work Performance.  Chapter 14 is all about Kanban, flow, and throughput.   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 423 builds  on our interview from last week with Philip Lew.  This week we lead with a discussion of measuring quality.  Quality is related to risk, productivity and customer satisfaction.   Next Jeremy Berriault brings his QA Corner to the Cast to discuss the impact of certifications in software testing.  Want a bit of foreshadowing?  The answer is not cut and dry. Visit Jermey’s new blog at The Software Sensei, Kim Pries , answers a question he was recently asked by one his students, “why do we have so many computer languages?” This a question I have often asked, usually when I have to learn the basics of a new language. Reach out to Kim on . Jon M Quigley, brings his column, the Alpha and Omega of Product Development to the cast.  In this installment, the 2nd in a 3 part series on configuration management, Jon continues the cycle of configuration management which begins with requirements and travels across the whole lifecycle. One of the places you can find Jon is at . Re-Read Saturday News In this week’s re-read of  by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, Copyright 2002, 33rd printing), we talk about two sections, An Overview of the Model and Team Assessment. There are two more weeks left before moving to the next book. If you are new to the re-read series buy and  go back to week one and read along! I am running a poll to decide between Carol Dweck’s , (Daniel Kahneman) and (Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi).  I have also had suggestions (in the other category) for (Adam Grant) and Man by Takehiko Harada.  I would like your opinion!  [polldaddy poll=9605629] Takeaways from this week include: Real teamwork is rare. The five dysfunctions are inter-related. Assessment are as useful as those taking them want them to be! Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 424 will post on New Year’s Day.  SPaMCAST 424 will feature our interview with Penny Pullan.  Penny returns to the SPaMCAST to discuss her new book Virtual Leadership: Practical Strategies for Getting the Best Out of Virtual Work and Virtual Teams.  Virtual teams are the norm in today’s business environment. We need to learn the best ways to maximize the value from distributed teams.  Penny sets a really high bar to begin the year! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 422 features our interview with Phil Lew.  Phil and I talked about the topic of Agile risk management.  We explored how risk can be managed in Agile projects and the barriers to effective risk management.  As important as the mechanics of Agile risk management are, Philip and I also explored the relationship between quality and risk, which may be more important in the long run. Phil’s Bio Philip Lew is the CEO at XBOSoft. XBOSoft’s software QA and software testing services help their clients deliver products to market faster and with higher quality; an ever increasing challenge as software becomes more complex and platforms increase. As a Corporate Executive, Development Manager, Product Manager and Software Engineer, Philip has managed teams to tackle broken processes, develop solutions to difficult problems, and coached others be leaders, managers, and experts. He leverages his academic background in operations research, industrial engineering, and computer science combined with hands-on work experience with programming, predictive modeling and algorithm development to work with clients and colleagues around the world. For kicks, he rides a bicycle and travels the world to quench his thirst for exploration and learning. Contact Data LinkedIn: Email: [email protected]: @philiplew Re-Read Saturday News In this week’s re-read of  by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, Copyright 2002, 33rd printing), we conclude Part Four with the sections titled Harvest, Gut Check, and March. I suspect we have 2 or 3 weeks left before moving to the next book, BUT we still have a number of ideas to extract from this book. If you are new to the re-read series buy and bo back to week one and read along! I am running a poll to decide between Carol Dweck’s , (Daniel Kahneman) and (Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi).  I have also had suggestions (in the other category) for (Adam Grant) and Man by Takehiko Harada.  I would like your opinion! (see the poll below) [polldaddy poll=9605629] Takeaways from this week include:  Progress is rarely linear (think two steps forward and one step back).  Good teams can debate and then be friends.  The good of the organization is important (Spock got it right). Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 423 will post on Christmas Day.  SPaMCAST 423 will build on our interview from this week with Mr. Lew and discuss measuring quality.  Quality is related to risk, productivity, and customer satisfaction.  We will also have columns from Kim Pries, Jon M Quigley, and Jeremy Berriault. A big show to end the year! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 421 features our essay on vanity metrics.  Vanity metrics make people feel good, but are less useful for making decisions about the business.  The essay discusses how to recognize vanity metrics and the risks of falling prey to their allure. We will also have columns form Steve Tendon with another chapter in his Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban, published by J Ross (). Steve and I talked about Chapter 13.  Finally, Gene Hughson will anchor the cast with an entry from his .  Gene and I started talking about leadership patterns and antipatterns. Re-Read Saturday News In this week’s re-read of  by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, Copyright 2002, 33rd printing), we conclude Part Three with the sections titled the Last Stand, Flack, Heavy Lifting, and Rally. I suspect we have 3 or 4 weeks left before moving to the next book, BUT we still have a number of ideas to extract from this book. If you are new to the re-read series buy and  go back to week one and read along! I have not heard any nay sayers on the idea of re-reading Carol Dweck’s Mindset next; however, just be to fair I am going to include a poll at the end to decide between Mindset, Thinking Fast and Slow (Daniel Kahneman) and Flow (Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi).  I would like your opinion! Takeaways from this week include: You are responsible for the atmosphere that you create. Leaders and teams bear the consequence of not dealing with bad attitudes. When someone leaves a team everyone will mourn to some extent. Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 422 will feature our interview with Phil Lew.  Phil and I talked about the topic of Agile risk management.  We explored how risk can be managed in Agile projects and the barriers to effective risk management. Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 420 features our interview with John Hunter.  John is a SPaMCAST alumni; John first appeared on to talk about why management matters.  In this podcast John returns to discuss building capability in the organization and  understanding the impact of  variation.  We also talked Deming and why people tack the word improvement on almost anything!    John’s Bio John Hunter has served as an information technology program manager for the Office of Secretary of Defense Quality Management Office, the White House Military Office and the American Society for Engineering Education. In 2013, he published his first book - . John created and operates one of the first, and still one of the most popular, on the internet.  He continues to aid managers in their efforts to improve their organizations with an emphasis on software development and leveraging the internet.  His is as a valuable resource for leaders and managers with a focus on improving the practice of management in organizations. Re-Read Saturday News In this week’s re-read of  by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, Copyright 2002, 33rd printing), we tackle the sections titled Accountability, Individual Contributor, and The Talk.  We are getting close to the end of the novel portion of the book but over the next few weeks, we have a number of ideas to extract from the book before we review the model. (Remember to buy and read along.)  We are well over halfway through this book and I am considering re-reading Carol Dweck’s Mindset next.  What are your thoughts? Takeaways from this week include: Team members hold other team members accountable.         Be aware of how you affect the people around you or suffer the consequences! Try to step back and reduce the stress when confronted by tough negotiations. Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 421 will feature our essay on vanity metrics.  Vanity metrics make people feel good, but are less useful for making decisions about the business.  The essay discusses how to recognize vanity metrics and the risks of falling prey to their allure. We will also have columns form Steve Tendon with another chapter in his Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban, published by J Ross ().   Finally, Gene Hughson will anchor the cast with an entry from his .   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 419 features our essay on eight quick hints on dealing with stand-up meetings on distributed teams. Distributed Agile teams require a different level of care and feeding than a co-located team in order to ensure that they are as effective as possible. Remember an update on the old adage: distributed teams, you can’t live with them and you can’t live without them.   We also have a column from the Software Sensei, Kim Pries.  In this installment, Kim talks about the  Fullan Change Model. In the Fullan Change Model, all change stems from a moral purpose.  Reach out to Kim on . Jon M Quigley brings the next installment of his Alpha and Omega of Product Development to the podcast.  In this installment, Jon begins a 3 part series on configuration management.  Configuration management might not be glamorous but it is hugely important to getting work done with quality.  One of the places you can find Jon is at . Anchoring the cast this week is Jeremy Berriault and his QA Corner.  Jeremy explored exploratory testing in this installment of the QA Corner.  Also, Jeremy has a new blog!  Check out the ! Re-Read Saturday News The read/re-read of by Patrick Lencioni (published by Jossey-Bass) continues on the .  Lencioni’s model of team dysfunctions is illustrated through a set of  crises used to illustrate the common problems that make teams into dysfunctional collections of individuals. The current entry features the sections titled Leaks through Plowing On.   Takeaways from this week include: Partial information leads to misinterpretations.         Executives need to be ultimately loyal to the executive team rather than their siloed organizations. Productive conflict requires facilitation to learn. Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 420 will feature our interview with John Hunter.  John returns to the podcast to discuss building capability in the organization and  understanding the impact of  variation.  We also talked Demining and why people tack the word improvement on almost anything! Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 418 features our interview with Larry Cooper.  Larry and I talked about his project, The Agility Series.  The series is providing the community an understanding of how Agile is applied and how practitioners are interpreting practices and principles. Reminder: Schedule Change for Vacation, Travel and Holiday Last week I was in Sweden for the with a day of sightseeing thrown in. New listeners joining from the conference: WELCOME. The trip was great, and the conference was awesome and mind-expanding.  I will publish a review soon.  Brazil and “” is next followed immediately by the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States.  This is the long way of saying that I will be publishing on an every other week basis through November 27th.  We will be back to weekly posting in December.   Larry Cooper’s BioLarry Cooper is a Project Executive in the public and private sectors in Canada and the USA and holds over 20 industry certifications in Agile, Project Management, and ITIL. His books include “Agile Value Delivery: Beyond the Numbers” (which was endorsed by a co-author of the Agile Manifesto) as well as the “The Agility Series” to be published over the next year or two. He was also the Mentor for “PRINCE2 Agile” published by AXELOS. Larry has  been an invited speaker at numerous conferences and symposia for the PMI, BAWorld, and the itSMF. He has presented global webinars with BrightTalk and ProjectManagement.com and authored more than  30 courses including an Agile-oriented curriculum that is sold directly to training companies in Canada and the USA. The first two book in the Agility Series on  Organizational Agility and Leadership Agility are  available for free download at as is The Adaptive Strategy Framework Guide. You can join the adventure with the rest of the Wisdom Council for the Agility through their LinkedIn group Re-Read Saturday News The read/re-read of by Patrick Lencioni (published by Jossey-Bass) continues on the .  Lencioni’s model of team dysfunctions (we get through most of it this week) is illustrated through a set of crises used to illustrate the common problems that make teams into dysfunctional collections of individuals. The current entry features the sections titled Film Noir and Application.   Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 419 will feature four essays.  Essays from Kim Pries, Jon M Quigley, Gene Hughson and one from The SPaMCAST will be featured. Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book herenglish and Chinese.

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 417 discusses the six elements of business stories.  These six elements are required for effective business stories.  We also tackle whether each of those elements are equally important in telling the different types of stories spun in a business environment. Steve Tendon joins the SPaMCAST this week to discuss Chapter 12 in Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowledge-Work Performance, The TameFlow Approach and Its Application to Scrum and Kanban, published by J Ross ().   We discussed the Herbie and Kanban. The story of Herbie provides a great metaphor for the flow of work through an organization and how it can be improved. Visit Steve at . We cap this edition of the Software Process and Measurement Cast with a visit to the QA Corner with Jeremy Berriault. Jeremy and I discussed the Samsung Note 7 and testing. While we may not have to test lithium-ion batteries professionally, we can extract lessons from this scenario on risk and testing! Connect with Jeremy on . Re-Read Saturday News We continue the read/re-read of by Patrick Lencioni (published by Jossey-Bass).   As we move through the first part of the book we are being exposed to Lencioni’s model of team dysfunctions (we get through most of it this week) and a set of crises to illustrate the common problems that make teams into dysfunctional collections of individuals. Today we re-read the three sections titled Deep Tissue, Attack and Exhibition.   Visit the to participate in this and previous re-reads. Next SPaMCAST The Software Process and Measurement Cast 418 will feature our interview with Larry Cooper.  Larry and I talked about his project The Agility Series.  The series is providing the community an understanding of how Agile is applied and how practitioners are interpreting practices and principles.   Shameless Ad for my book! co-authored by Murali Chematuri and myself and published by J. Ross Publishing. We have received unsolicited reviews like the following: “This book will prove that software projects should not be a tedious process, for you or your team.” Support SPaMCAST by buying the book nglish and Chinese.