Troubleshooting Agile

By A weekly problem-solving session for all things agileBusiness

Troubleshooting Agile episodes

January 20, 2021 Johanna Rothman on Modern Management: Part II
The fabulous Johanna Rothman, author of 18 books on tech and management, joins us for part II to describe what modern management is and how empathy, safety, and purpose can motivate and inspire your agile team.
SHOW LINKS:
- Johanna: jrothman.com , createadaptablelife.com
- Behind Closed Doors: https://www.jrothman.com/books/behind-closed-doors-secrets-of-great-management/
- Modern Management Made Easy: https://leanpub.com/b/modernmanagementmadeeasy
- Bob Sutton on friction: https://www.bobsutton.net/friction-project/
- Lindsay Holmwood on management as a career change: https://fractio.nl/2014/09/19/not-a-promotion-a-career-change/
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Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
26 min
January 13, 2021 Johanna Rothman on Modern Management - Part I
The fabulous Johanna Rothman, author of 18 books on tech and management, joins us to describe what modern management is and how empathy, safety, and purpose can motivate and inspire your agile team.
SHOW LINKS:
- Johanna: jrothman.com , createadaptablelife.com
- Behind Closed Doors: https://www.jrothman.com/books/behind-closed-doors-secrets-of-great-management/
- Modern Management Made Easy: https://leanpub.com/b/modernmanagementmadeeasy
- Bob Sutton on friction: https://www.bobsutton.net/friction-project/
- Lindsay Holmwood on management as a career change: https://fractio.nl/2014/09/19/not-a-promotion-a-career-change/
---
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
22 min
January 06, 2021 Our Intentions for 2021
After last week's episode on ahas in 2020, we describe what we're planning to do to help people do the work, move faster, and be productive.
SHOW LINKS
- 2020 Ahas episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/our-biggest-a-has-of-2020
- London Organisational Learning Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/London-Action-Science-Meetup/
- Episode on Conversational Dojos: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/conversational-dojos
- Round Tuit: https://www.quantumenterprises.co.uk/roundtuit/traditional_round_tuits.htm
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
16 min
December 31, 2020 Our Biggest A-ha's of 2020
We describe our big ahas of a weird and somehow still educational year, including insights on productivity, deliberate practise, and speed of change.
SHOW LINKS
- Software Factory to Feature Factory episode: https://www.conversationaltransformation.com/blog/software-factory-to-feature-factory/
- London Organisational Learning Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/London-Action-Science-Meetup/
- Blog post on Conversational Dojos: https://www.conversationaltransformation.com/blog/conversational-dojos/
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
19 min
December 23, 2020 Giving 110% — of course!
Squirrel and Jeffrey deconstruct the defensive reasoning behind planning 110% of velocity in each sprint. Hidden conversations and assumptions abound, including the perception that this is normal, that the team will do more as a result, and that we know what 110% is in the first place.
SHOW LINKS:
- Slack book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/123715.Slack
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
18 min
December 16, 2020 The Impossible Question
Squirrel tells the story of a client who was asked an impossible question about agile team productivity, and we explore why such impossible questions are actually valuable and worth investigating with curiosity.
SHOW LINKS:
- Kobayashi Maru: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobayashi_Maru
- Mu: http://www.jargon.net/jargonfile/m/mu.html https://wiki.c2.com/?MuAnswer
---
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
15 min
December 09, 2020 Fear and Normalization of Deviance
A listener asks us to explain the link between "normalisation of deviance" and fear. Using examples like an agile team dropping its retrospectives, or NASA launching the Space Shuttle in too-cold conditions, we illustrate how being afraid can drive a group away from its espoused norms and toward dangerous alternatives, and conversely how you can use examples of "normalised deviance" to find and mitigate hidden fears.
SHOW LINKS:
- Idealcast with Gene Kim: https://itrevolution.com/the-idealcast-episode-14/
- Mitigating fears through expressing emotion on an oil rig: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/06/17/482203447/invisibilia-how-learning-to-be-vulnerable-can-make-life-safer
- The Fear Conversation chapter discussion: https://www.conversationaltransformation.com/blog/fear-the-original-sin-of-unproductive-conversations/
- Previous episode on normalisation of deviance: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/overcoming-normalisation-of-deviance
---
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
17 min
December 02, 2020 "Yes, And..."
Squirrel tells the story of an agile team faced with seemingly irresistible demands, and describes how switching to the "Yes, And" stance (originating from improvisational theatre) helped them find a solution that worked for everyone.
SHOW LINKS:
- "Yes, And" in improv and brainstorming: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yes,_and…
- CTO Craft: How to Talk with Your CEO and Other Mysteries: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zwg-x5X3450
- Dr. Burns's Disarming Technique: https://feelinggood.com/tag/disarming-technique/
- Our MIT Sloan Management Review article on the Walled Garden: https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/solving-the-problem-of-siloed-it-in-organizations/
- Nonviolent communication: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonviolent_Communication
- Six thinking hats: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Thinking_Hats
---
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
17 min
November 25, 2020 Alistair Cockburn: Motherhood, Apple Pie, and Collaboration Cards
We look at two elements - Collaboration and Reflection - of the Heart of Agile approach developed by our friend Alistair Cockburn, and illustrate how conscious and attentive listening and reflection on emotions make a big difference for agile teams.
SHOW LINKS:
- Motherhood and Apple Pie: https://hotidioms.com/2012/02/21/motherhood-and-apple-pie/
- Collaboration Cards: https://www.collaborationcards.com , https://web.archive.org/web/20170621140230/http://alistair.cockburn.us/Collaboration+Cards
- Collaboration Cards article: http://static1.1.sqspcdn.com/static/f/702523/26767147/1451886700677/201601-Cockburn.pdf?token=oTGZ9syVsnh4d%2BtW8ggVolCglEM%3D
- Collaboration Cards course: https://www.heartofagile.academy/courses/using-collaboration-cards
- Shu Ha Ri: https://martinfowler.com/bliki/ShuHaRi.html
- Thanks for the Feedback: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18114120-thanks-for-the-feedback
- Previous episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/alistair-cockburn-heart-of-the-heart-of-agile
---
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
21 min
November 18, 2020 Alistair Cockburn: Heart of the Heart of Agile?
We look at two elements - Collaboration and Reflection - of the Heart of Agile approach developed by our friend Alistair Cockburn, and illustrate how conscious and attentive listening and reflection on emotions make a big difference for agile teams.
SHOW LINKS:
- Heart of Agile tweet: https://twitter.com/TotherAlistair/status/1312407646364991489
- Alistair Cockburn: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alistair_Cockburn
- Conversational Dojo kit: https://itrevolution.com/build-agile-conversations-with-conversational-dojo-webinar/
- Active Listening: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Active_listening
- London NVC Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/Nonviolent-Communication-NVC-London/
- London Organisational Learning Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/London-Action-Science-Meetup/
- Ladder of Inference: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/a-sense-of-security-gained-lost
- Above the Line: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/walking-the-line-emotional-unawareness
---
Our new book, Agile Conversations, is out now! See https://conversationaltransformation.com where you can order your copy and get a free video when you join our mailing list!
We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.
Email us at [email protected]
23 min

About Troubleshooting Agile

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Troubleshooting Agile is a problem-solving session for agile teams. Jeffrey Fredrick and Douglas Squirrel look at common problems agile teams face and provide practical, immediately useful advice for…