Anna Mbengam: When Roles Blur In Agile Teams, the Product Owner and Manager Anti-Pattern

Read the full Show Notes and search through the world’s largest audio library on Scrum directly on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast website: http://bit.ly/SMTP_ShowNotes.

The Great Product Owner: Personal Connection and Growth, The Power of Supportive Product Ownership

Anna shares her experience with an exceptional Product Owner who stood out for his genuine care and personal investment in team members. Beyond professional expertise, he took the time to understand Anna and offered invaluable support in communication and interactions within the organization. This Product Owner's willingness to seek and provide feedback, both positive and constructive, played a crucial role in Anna's growth and development. This episode sheds light on the qualities that make a Product Owner truly great, emphasizing the importance of empathy, mentorship, and effective communication.

The Bad Product Owner: When Roles Blur, The PO Who Was Also A Manager

In this episode, Anna shares the story of a PO that was too involved with the team, bordering on micromanagement. On top of that, this PO had the dual role of PO and manager, leading to confusion for the team. In the planning meetings, the PO interfered with the sizing of tasks. Anna offers valuable tips such as asking questions to highlight the impact of such behavior and providing education with respect. Addressing these patterns involves open communication with the PO, seeking their perspective, and ongoing coaching to support their evolution in the role. 

 

[IMAGE HERE] Are you having trouble helping the team work well with their Product Owner? We’ve put together a course to help you work on the collaboration team-product owner. You can find it at bit.ly/coachyourpo. 18 modules, 8+ hours of modules with tools and techniques that you can use to help teams and PO’s collaborate.

 

About Anna Mbengam

Anna, an accomplished Scrum Master and SAFe Coach since 2018, thrives in diverse industries like Personal Investments, Healthcare, Food & beverage, and Banking. She's authored 5 self-published guides aiding aspiring Scrum Masters, and her mentoring has transformed 200+ professionals into highly effective individuals for any organization.

You can link with Anna Mbengam on LinkedIn and read Anna’s books.