Troubleshooting Agile

We continue chatting with Ryan Singer, Head of Strategy at Basecamp and author of Shape Up. Ryan explains the "shaping" and "betting" processes in more detail, including who does the various roles and what is crucial to get right when you set up a design-and-build system like the one they advocate.

SHOW LINKS:

- Shape Up: https://basecamp.com/shapeup/?ref=df

- Daring Fireball intro to Shape Up: https://daringfireball.net/linked/2019/08/04/shape-up

- Extreme Programming Explained: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extreme-Programming-Explained-Embrace-Change/dp/0321278658

- Feature Factory: https://cutle.fish/blog/12-signs-youre-working-in-a-feature-factory

- Petition the King: https://ronjeffries.com/xprog/articles/petitiontheking/

- Art of Action: http://www.stephenbungay.com/Books.ink

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

We start our conversation with Ryan Singer, Head of Strategy at Basecamp, by asking him to help us understand how their Shape Up process works and how they developed it. He explains how the fear of not shipping drove their movement to frequent delivery of carefully designed (or "shaped") features, why their teams avoid single-page apps to ensure designers can make the maximum contribution, and why they have neither front-end devs nor back-end specialists.

SHOW LINKS:

- Shape Up: https://basecamp.com/shapeup/?ref=df

- Daring Fireball intro to Shape Up: https://daringfireball.net/linked/2019/08/04/shape-up

- Extreme Programming Explained: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extreme-Programming-Explained-Embrace-Change/dp/0321278658

- Feature Factory: https://cutle.fish/blog/12-signs-youre-working-in-a-feature-factory

- Petition the King: https://ronjeffries.com/xprog/articles/petitiontheking/

- Art of Action: http://www.stephenbungay.com/Books.ink

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Squirrel adds to last week's story, describing how being transparent and curious helped him uncover a conflict that helped lead to insight and better alternatives.

SHOW LINKS:

- The HiPPO effect: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2017/10/26/data-driven-decision-making-beware-of-the-hippo-effect/

- The Uncanny Valley of a Functional Organization: https://stratechery.com/2013/the-uncanny-valley-of-a-functional-organization/

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Squirrel tells a story in which digging for emotional signals helps a technical team find alternatives to an arbitrary-looking initiative. Jeffrey explains how nonviolent communication provides a framework for seeking emotional understanding first.

SHOW LINKS:

- Nonviolent communication: https://www.cnvc.org

- Feelings inventory: https://www.cnvc.org/training/resource/feelings-inventory

- Kano model: https://www.mindtheproduct.com/2013/07/using-the-kano-model-to-prioritize-product-development/

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

We saw last week how inflexible implementation killed checklists at hospitals - and the same disease affects agile development, we've found. Do you think there's a single "recipe" for agile, like our friends at Basecamp who claim they're not agile because they don't use post-its, backlogs, or standups? If so, we think you're missing some important opportunities for building internal commitment and improving your practise.

SHOW LINKS:

- Hospital checklists fail: https://www.nature.com/news/hospital-checklists-are-meant-to-save-lives-so-why-do-they-often-fail-1.18057

- Fix XP: http://www.extremeprogramming.org/rules/fixit.html

- Anand's comment on Agile as chocolate-chip cookie: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/activity:6432900799365419008/

- Basecamp ShapeUp: DaringFireball https://daringfireball.net/linked/2019/08/04/shape-up and announcement https://basecamp.com/shapeup

- Heart of Agile: https://heartofagile.com/

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Troubleshooting Checklists

Checklists are a great way to capture learning in any organisation, but sometimes they don't work - why not? A recent study of hospitals with varying levels of success in adopting checklists helps us reflect on similar adoption challenges for agile methods.

SHOW LINKS:

- Checklist article from Nature: https://www.nature.com/news/hospital-checklists-are-meant-to-save-lives-so-why-do-they-often-fail-1.18057

- Agile principle 12 on reflection and improvement: https://www.agilealliance.org/agile101/12-principles-behind-the-agile-manifesto/

- Atul Gawande's The Checklist Manifesto: http://atulgawande.com/book/the-checklist-manifesto/

- Ignaz Semmelweis, promoter of hand-washing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignaz_Semmelweis

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Our first interview ever! We welcome to the studio Chris Clearfield, co-author of Meltdown, a book all about system failure and the reasons for it. Chris explains ideas like tight coupling (not the OO kind!) and system complexity, and we explore how they apply to technical debt and bug prioritisation. We get to hear some of the best stories from the book as well, including the hedge fund that lost £500m in 45 minutes, and we learn about failcake and pre-mortem analysis.

GUEST LINKS:

- Chris's site: https://www.chrisclearfield.com

- Chris's twitter: https://twitter.com/ChrisClearfield

- Book site: http://meltdownbook.net

- Take the quiz: http://quiz.rethinkrisk.net/quiz/

- Book video preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wi8KA4I34s&feature=youtu.be

SHOW LINKS:

- Psychohistory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychohistory_(fictional)

- Normal Accidents: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_Accidents

- John Allspaw: https://www.kitchensoap.com/about-me/

- Just Culture book: https://sidneydekker.com/just-culture/

- Dunbar’s number: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunbar%27s_number

- Amy Edmondson, Teaming: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Teaming-Organizations-Innovate-Compete-Knowledge/dp/078797093X

- Jon Ronson So You've Been Publicly Shamed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/So_You%27ve_Been_Publicly_Shamed

- Gary Klein, Pre-Mortem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-mortem

Our first interview ever! We welcome to the studio Chris Clearfield, co-author of Meltdown, a book all about system failure and the reasons for it. Chris explains ideas like tight coupling (not the OO kind!) and system complexity, and we explore how they apply to technical debt and bug prioritisation. We get to hear some of the best stories from the book as well, including the hedge fund that lost £500m in 45 minutes, and we learn about failcake and pre-mortem analysis.

GUEST LINKS:

- Chris's site: https://www.chrisclearfield.com

- Chris's twitter: https://twitter.com/ChrisClearfield

- Book site: http://meltdownbook.net

- Take the quiz: http://quiz.rethinkrisk.net/quiz/

- Book video preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wi8KA4I34s&feature=youtu.be

SHOW LINKS:

- Psychohistory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychohistory_(fictional)

- Normal Accidents: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_Accidents

- John Allspaw: https://www.kitchensoap.com/about-me/

- Just Culture book: https://sidneydekker.com/just-culture/

- Dunbar’s number: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunbar%27s_number

- Amy Edmondson, Teaming: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Teaming-Organizations-Innovate-Compete-Knowledge/dp/078797093X

- Jon Ronson So You've Been Publicly Shamed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/So_You%27ve_Been_Publicly_Shamed

- Gary Klein, Pre-Mortem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-mortem

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Our first interview ever! We welcome to the studio Chris Clearfield, co-author of Meltdown, a book all about system failure and the reasons for it. Chris explains ideas like tight coupling (not the OO kind!) and system complexity, and we explore how they apply to technical debt and bug prioritisation. We get to hear some of the best stories from the book as well, including the hedge fund that lost £500m in 45 minutes, and we learn about failcake and pre-mortem analysis.

GUEST LINKS:

- Chris's site: https://www.chrisclearfield.com

- Chris's twitter: https://twitter.com/ChrisClearfield

- Book site: http://meltdownbook.net

- Take the quiz: http://quiz.rethinkrisk.net/quiz/

- Book video preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wi8KA4I34s&feature=youtu.be

SHOW LINKS:

- Psychohistory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychohistory_(fictional)

- Normal Accidents: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_Accidents

- John Allspaw: https://www.kitchensoap.com/about-me/

- Just Culture book: https://sidneydekker.com/just-culture/

- Dunbar’s number: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunbar%27s_number

- Amy Edmondson, Teaming: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Teaming-Organizations-Innovate-Compete-Knowledge/dp/078797093X

- Jon Ronson So You've Been Publicly Shamed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/So_You%27ve_Been_Publicly_Shamed

- Gary Klein, Pre-Mortem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-mortem

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2

Our first interview ever! We welcome to the studio Chris Clearfield, co-author of Meltdown, a book all about system failure and the reasons for it. Chris explains ideas like tight coupling (not the OO kind!) and system complexity, and we explore how they apply to technical debt and bug prioritisation. We get to hear some of the best stories from the book as well, including the hedge fund that lost £500m in 45 minutes, and we learn about failcake and pre-mortem analysis.

GUEST LINKS:

- Chris's site: https://www.chrisclearfield.com

- Chris's twitter: https://twitter.com/ChrisClearfield

- Book site: http://meltdownbook.net

- Take the quiz: http://quiz.rethinkrisk.net/quiz/

- Book video preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Wi8KA4I34s&feature=youtu.be

SHOW LINKS:

- Psychohistory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychohistory_(fictional)

- Normal Accidents: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_Accidents

- John Allspaw: https://www.kitchensoap.com/about-me/

- Just Culture book: https://sidneydekker.com/just-culture/

- Dunbar’s number: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunbar%27s_number

- Amy Edmondson, Teaming: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Teaming-Organizations-Innovate-Compete-Knowledge/dp/078797093X

- Jon Ronson So You've Been Publicly Shamed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/So_You%27ve_Been_Publicly_Shamed

- Gary Klein, Pre-Mortem: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-mortem

***

We'd love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or feedback you have about the show.

Email us: see link on troubleshootingagile.com

Tweet us: twitter.com/TShootingAgile

Also, if you'd like to leave us a review on iTunes (or just like and subscribe), you'll find us here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/troubleshooting-agile/id1327456890?mt=2