Troubleshooting Agile

By A weekly problem-solving session for all things agileBusiness

Troubleshooting Agile episodes

May 01, 2019 Mutual Learning Model: Transparency and Curiosity
Agile teams do better, we find, when they are transparent ("here's what I did last sprint") and curious ("what business problem are you trying to solve?"). Most people we meet claim they are both transparent and curious in their conversations and processes - but usually their actual behaviour when there's something at stake is very different. We introduce a 2x2 matrix that can help you measure whether you are managing to be transparent and curious, and help you improve if you're not.
SHOW LINKS:
- Eight Behaviours for Smarter Teams: https://www.csu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/917018/Eight-Behaviors-for-Smarter-Teams-2.pdf
- Dr. David Burns and the relationship journal: https://feelinggood.com/tag/relationship-journal/
- Previous episode on learning with the "four Rs": https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/learning-through-case-studies-the-4-rs
- CITCON conference: https://citconf.com/ghent2019/
***
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
19 min
April 24, 2019 Mutual Learning Model: Informed Choice
First of a series on using the Mutual Learning Model to get better results in your agile team. Today, why informed choice can help us avoid mistakes as minor as missing a requirement or as major as launching a rocket with a fatal flaw.
SHOW LINKS:
- The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Five_Dysfunctions_of_a_Team
- 8 Behaviours for Smarter Teams: https://www.csu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/917018/Eight-Behaviors-for-Smarter-Teams-2.pdf
- Feynman on Challenger disaster: https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/51-l/docs/rogers-commission/Appendix-F.txt
- Actions Science blog posts: https://blog.jeffreyfredrick.com/tag/action-science/
- Previous episodes on How to Fail by Acting Unilaterally and the 4 Rs:
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/how-to-fail-by-acting-unilaterally-part-i
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/how-to-fail-by-acting-unilaterally-part-ii
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/how-to-fail-by-acting-unilaterally-part-iii
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/how-to-fail-by-acting-unilaterally-part-iv
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/how-to-fail-by-acting-unilaterally-part-v
https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/learning-through-case-studies-the-4-rs
- CITCON conference: https://citconf.com/ghent2019/
***
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
18 min
April 17, 2019 Meeting "The Business"
When your team talks about "what the business wants", do they know who they mean? Do they have evidence for the wishes of this amorphous group? It's impossible to negotiate with an undefined entity, but we offer some not-too-surprising ideas for making progress and discovering the real needs of "the business".
SHOW LINKS:
- XP Explained: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extreme-Programming-Explained-Embrace-Change/dp/0321278658
- CITCON conference: https://citconf.com/ghent2019/
***
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
14 min
April 09, 2019 Triggers and Tells
Triggers and Tells
We explain how to use observations of your own and others' behaviour to understand how to improve your conversations and get better agile results!
SHOW LINKS:
- Previous episode on learning from observations: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/learning-through-case-studies-the-4-rs
- Previous episode on "why" as a trigger: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/why-is-a-trigger-not-a-question
- CITCON conference: https://citconf.com/ghent2019/
***
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
15 min
April 03, 2019 "Why" Is a Trigger, Not a Question
In response to Michael Bolton's comment on last week's episode, we discuss genuine questions, reminding yourself to be curious, and converting your internal "why" to a more constructive question.
SHOW LINKS:
- Tweets from Michael Bolton and Brian Deyo: https://twitter.com/michaelbolton/status/1111083757971345413 and https://twitter.com/briandeyo/status/1111252749658869760
- Chris Voss, Never Split the Difference: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended/dp/0062407805/
- CITCON conference: https://citconf.com/ghent2019/
***
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
13 min
March 27, 2019 What comes after why?
What Happens After Why
Last week we explained how asking the simple question “why?” can help you make big improvements in your agile team - and this week we prove it, with two examples from Jeffrey. In one case his company landed a big client, and in the other an angry person actually listened to him! Hear more in this week’s episode!
SHOW LINKS:
- David Burns, the disarming technique: https://daviddburnsmd.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/the-five-secrets-v-1.pdf
- Chris Voss: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guZa7mQV1l0 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llctqNJr2IU
- Previous podcasts on coherent stories: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/why-you-shouldnt-listen-to-your-brain and on the 4 Rs of learning: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/learning-through-case-studies-the-4-rs
- 7 habits of highly effective people: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_7_Habits_of_Highly_Effective_People
- Squirrel and Jeffrey talk on leadership techniques: https://skillsmatter.com/meetups/11800-leadership-matters
***
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
21 min
March 20, 2019 Becoming Mr. Why
In which we meet Squirrel's client Mr. Why, who wants to know the reasoning behind requests he gets but never actually asks, and we describe how this pattern holds back agile teams and how to break out of it. Surprisingly, lawyers feature prominently in this episode, as both positive and negative examples of effective "why" communication!
SHOW LINKS:
- Lawyers don't ask "why?": https://aqrlaw.ca/blog/five-questions-you-should-never-ask-on-cross-examination
***
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
14 min
March 12, 2019 Learning through Case Studies: The 4 Rs
Last week we emphasised the importance of practise to help you have better agile conversations and negotiations, and this week we describe two ways to practise - Argyris's two-column case studies and Dr. Burns's relationship journal - and a framework to use with both: record, reflect, revise, and roleplay.
Join us in London on 19 March for our talk on "Sprinting In Place: The Cost of Missing Leadership Conversations"!
SHOW LINKS:
- Argyris's two column case study: https://blog.benjaminm.net/2011/02/16/argyriscasestudylearningmodelii/ https://hbr.org/1986/09/skilled-incompetence
- Dr. David Burns's Interpersonal model & relationship journal
https://feelinggood.com/2017/10/16/057-interpersonal-model-and-its-all-your-fault-part-4/
https://feelinggood.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/rj-revised-v-1c-dvl-v-1.pdf
- Our SkillsMatter talk on 19 March: https://skillsmatter.com/meetups/11800-leadership-matters
***
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
25 min
March 06, 2019 The Value of Learning to Talk
Today, we explain that when you learn a new skill - whether it's playing the piano, kitesurfing across a lake, or negotiating with others inside and outside your agile team - it's vital to practise to develop your abilities. Don't jump onto the double black diamond run the first time you hit the slopes; instead, find a coach and watch her carefully as she goes down the mountain first. You'll learn to act in unintuitive ways and discover new possibilities you wouldn't have thought of. The same is true of learning to have the difficult conversations you need to improve your agile team - you can listen to us all you want, but you'll need to try (and fail!) to really master the methods. We get started on some methods for effective practise, including the use of a feeling chart, with more to follow in the next episode.
Join us in London on 19 March for our talk on "Sprinting In Place: The Cost of Missing Leadership Conversations"!
SHOW LINKS:
- Jeffrey's blog post on the piano analogy: https://blog.jeffreyfredrick.com/2015/06/07/the-piano-analogy-some-practice-required/
- London Organisational Learning meetup: https://www.meetup.com/London-Action-Science-Meetup/
- NVC 4-part process: https://www.nonviolentcommunication.com/aboutnvc/4partprocess.htm
- NVC feelings inventory: https://www.cnvc.org/training/resource/feelings-inventory
- Our SkillsMatter talk on 19 March: https://skillsmatter.com/meetups/11800-leadership-matters
***
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
20 min
February 27, 2019 Why You Shouldn't Listen to Your Brain
Your brain has two halves - not called left and right, but System 1 and System 2. Today we explain how these two halves of your own brain wind up fooling you and your team into believing things like "New York decided to do this", "customers don't want that feature", and "the business won't let us write tests" - and what you can do to keep your brain from tricking you into believing suspiciously coherent stories.
Join us in London on 19 March for our talk on "Sprinting In Place: The Cost of Missing Leadership Conversations"!
SHOW LINKS:
- Thinking, Fast and Slow by Kahneman: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-Kahneman/dp/0141033576
- Our SkillsMatter talk on 19 March: https://skillsmatter.com/meetups/11800-leadership-matters
***
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
19 min

About Troubleshooting Agile

From the publisher's feed

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…