LeadingAgile SoundNotes: an Agile Podcast
 

LeadingAgile SoundNotes: an Agile Podcast

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LeadingAgile's resident Scrum trainer Dave Prior, hosts a weekly podcast that covers all sorts of topics about Agile, Scrum, Organizational Transformation and Leadership. No matter if you're new to Agile development or an Agile veteran, Dave and his guest are sure to make you think about Agile in a whole new way! Alexa knows us as Leading Agile Sound Notes.

Episodes

The Language of Loss and the Language of Gain w/ Mike Cottmeyer & Andrew Young

Thursday Feb 07, 2019

Thursday Feb 07, 2019

When we try to explain Agile, many of us begin by trying to describe some of the characteristics of how we approach work. We often talk about things like:
  • Limiting work in process
  • Delivering smaller increments of work
  • Reducing team size and empowering the teams to become cross-functional and self-organizing
These are all things that, from an Agile point of view, are good because they help us to focus on the most important things, optimize flow, localize decision making, and deliver the most important thing at a higher level of quality.
 
But, for those who are not familiar with our approach, what they may hear is
  • I can't have all the things I want
  • The things I do get will be smaller
  • I no longer have control of the people and how they work
A lot of this comes down to the words we use to convey the message.
 
This week's episode of SoundNotes is a discussion centered around the Language of Loss and the Language of Gain. During the podcast, you'll hear LeadingAgile Founder and CEO Mike Cottmeyer, Senior Consultant Andrew Young, and Dave Prior as they dig into the different levels of this topic. Together, the three of us will discuss how we can raise our awareness and shift the conversation to focus on what Agile gives, as opposed to what Agile takes.

Links

Contacting Mike Cottmeyer

If you’d like to contact Mike you can reach him at:

Contacting Andrew Young

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

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The Value of Improving Your Technical Practices w/ Rich Dammkoehler

Thursday Jan 31, 2019

Thursday Jan 31, 2019

This episode of SoundNotes features, LeadingAgile Technical Consultant, Rich Dammkoehler in a conversation about why it is so important to make sure your organization is focused on improving their technical practices.

If you're struggling with helping your organization understand why introducing technical practices like collective code ownership, refactoring, pair programming, and test-driven development is such a crucial part of attaining business Agility; this podcast will help you build the case. Rich is a deeply experienced developer who got his start doing development using Waterfall and then found his way to Agile. In the Agile Transformation work that Rich does now, he focuses on helping organizations understand why and how the techniques and tools that came from Extreme Programming make them more effective at solving business problems and bring greater business success to the organization.

Towards the end of the interview, Rich also explains what it is that keeps him excited about doing development work after all these years, what development-related topics he is currently following the closest, and why punk rock is better than stadium rock.

Links from the Podcast

Contacting Rich Dammkoehler

If you’d like to contact Rich you can reach him at:

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

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Measuring the Impact of Change in Agile Transformation w/ Jeff Howey

Thursday Jan 24, 2019

Thursday Jan 24, 2019

If your company is working on Agile Transformation, understanding how you can track the organization’s response to change and the impact it's having on business outcomes can be a bit daunting. It’s not so tough to track whether or not people have been trained and what practices they are using, but when it comes to understanding what people see, feel, believe, and desire, that can be harder to understand.

In this episode of SoundNotes, LeadingAgile Managing Consultant, Jeff Howey and Dave Prior talk through some of the things you need to consider when trying to understand how change is taking root, how it's impacting what people think, how they work, and what they see, feel, believe, and desire.

Contacting Jeff Howey

If you’d like to contact Jeff you can reach him at:

Email: Jeff.howey@leadingagile.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffhowey/

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

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Agile Estimation: A SoundNotes Tutorial

Thursday Jan 17, 2019

Thursday Jan 17, 2019

Estimating work in Agile is something many people struggle to understand. It's not that it's an especially complicated thing, but there is often confusion about things like why many people prefer to use story points instead of hours, why some people feel compelled to try and convert story points to hours (and why some of us find that so frightening), how t-shirt sizing works, and the eternal question of how do I get my teams to estimate accurately.

Hint:

They're called estimates, not exactimates for a reason.

There's even a whole camp dedicated to the idea of notestimating work. So, if this is something you're struggling with, you're not alone.

This episode of SoundNotes is a brief tutorial on Agile Estimation and some of the ways you and your team could estimate work. The podcast offers some tips in general about Agile estimation, things to watch out for, how to estimate work using Story Points and Poker Planning, how to estimate work using T-shirt sizing, and–once you break your Product Backlog Items down into discrete tasks—how to estimate the using Ideal Hours. There are volumes that can be said about how to estimate work and a lot of fun "debates" to be had along the way, but if you're struggling to understand it, if you need to get a sense of whether your current approach makes sense, or if you just want a refresher on how to go about it, this podcast should give you plenty to start working with.

For More on Agile Estimation

LeadingAgile's FieldNotes has a number of posts covering different aspects of how to estimate work in Agile. Two great posts to start with are:

To see in index of all our posts on estimation,click here.

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

 

 

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Kicking Off 2019 w/ Mike Cottmeyer

Thursday Jan 10, 2019

Thursday Jan 10, 2019

Iteration 2019 has begun and we’re starting off the year with an episode of SoundNotes where, LeadingAgile CEO and Founder, Mike Cottmeyer shares what's on his mind as we begin the new year.

During the interview Mike talks about some of the trends he’s been paying attention to in and around the Agile space, the changes he sees coming down the pike, and how that's influencing his focus and expectations for the next 12 months. Oh.. and… Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Links

Whitepaper - https://www.leadingagile.com/whitepaper/

WakeUp Warrior.com http://wakeupwarriormovie.com

Contacting Mike Cottmeyer

If you’d like to contact Mike you can reach him at:

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

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Designing a Feedback-Driven, Strategic Execution Model w/ Dennis Stevens

Thursday Dec 06, 2018

Thursday Dec 06, 2018

A few weeks ago, Dennis Stevens and I recorded a podcast called Building an Organizational System That Can Embrace Change. The podcast introduced three critical concepts which we are exploring at a deeper level in additional interviews.

In this episode of SoundNotes, Dennis Stevens, LeadingAgile’s co-founder and Chief Methodologist, and Dave Prior, dig into one of those key concepts:

How to design an execution model that can provide feedback which can then be incorporated back into the strategic planning.

If you're involved in making strategic decisions and planning at the program and portfolio level, there is a lot of valuable information here about how to reduce risk and create greater optionality for your organization.

Contacting Dennis Stevens

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

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Using Process Mapping to Understand How Agile Can Help w/ AJ Sanford and Andrew Fuqua

Thursday Nov 29, 2018

Thursday Nov 29, 2018

While many organizations would like to adopt an Agile approach, there are certain types that—due to the nature of their work and their relationship with the client—are not an easy fit with a process like Scrum. In this episode of SoundNotes, LeadingAgile Senior Consultants AJ Sanford and Andrew Fuqua explore how Process Maps and Value Stream Maps can help you gain greater clarity on where there are practices that need tuning and how Agile might be able to help. During the conversation, AJ, Andrew, and Dave also discuss the difference between Value Stream Maps and Process Maps and when one may be more helpful than another.

If you'd like check out this sample Process Map. 

Links Mentioned in the Podcast

Contacting AJ Sanford

Contacting Andrew Fuqua

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

 

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On-Boarding at LeadingAgile w/ Betsy Layman and Matt Smith

Thursday Nov 15, 2018

Thursday Nov 15, 2018

LeadingAgile has grown significantly over the past few years. Along the way, we’ve found that one of the most critical elements of growing successfully is how we introduce new folks to the company and how we approach helping organizations Transform.

In this episode of SoundNotes, Dave is joined by Betsy Layman and Matt Smith—two of the latest additions to the LeadingAgile family. Both Betsy and Matt started their on-boarding process a few weeks ago as Expedition Lead and Transformation Lead, respectively. Together, they discuss the difference between these roles, what it's like to go through LeadingAgile’s on-boarding process, and how it helps to position our new team members for success.

To learn more about joining LeadingAgile - Click Here

Contacting Betsy Layman

Contacting Matt Smith

Contacting Dave Prior

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

 

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Building an Organizational System That Can Embrace Change w/ Dennis Stevens

Thursday Nov 08, 2018

Thursday Nov 08, 2018

This episode of SoundNotes features LeadingAgile’s Chief Methodologist and Co-Founder, Dennis Stevens, and focuses on how to build an organization that can embrace change.  The interview provides an overview of some of the key capabilities an Agile organization needs to accelerate learning, increase optionality, and improve their decision making including:

  • How to incorporate market sensing capabilities into strategic planning
  • How to design an execution model that can provide feedback which can then be incorporated back into the strategic planning
  • How to prioritize the work being done to maximize return

The interview digs into some of the steps an organization will need to take to develop these abilities and the challenges that come along with it. We also explore the impact on organizations that can’t remove all their internal dependencies, prioritizing risk to support learning, and the need for an organizational information broker that can collect and interpret the information coming out of the teams, so that the right information can be delivered back to the strategic level.

This is a heavy topic, so we’re planning on recording a few additional podcasts that will dig deeper in each of these individual topics.

Contacting Dennis Stevens

Web: https://www.leadingagile.com/guides/dennis-stevens/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dennisstevens

Email: dennis@leadingagile.com

 

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

 

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Creating a Definition of Done: A SoundNotes Tutorial

Thursday Nov 01, 2018

Thursday Nov 01, 2018

One of the most important things you can do for your team is to make sure you have a clearly defined, and well-documented, Definition of Done.

If you’ve ever seen footage of the flight control center when NASA launches a rocket you’ve seen a great example of a Definition of Done. Imagine what it would be like if NASA didn’t have all those stations that had to report in with “Go for launch” or “No Go for launch”. Imagine how that would work if we assumed we all had the same understanding of what "Ready for Launch" actually meant?

In this episode of SoundNotes, Dave Prior is giving a tutorial on how to create a Definition of Done for your team. If you're following Scrum as it's defined, then “done” and potentially shippable are intended to be the same thing. Unfortunately, for many organizations, this isn't something that holds true. For example, your team may require additional integration testing that is done by a separate team and happens outside the Sprint. Yes, it’s dysfunctional from a Scrum perspective. Yes, you should try to fix it, but sometimes you’ve got what you’ve got and you're too fully consumed with other battles.

Over the course of the podcast, Dave talks about having clarity on three different levels of done. Here's what the three levels look like:

  1. Work that is “done” and can be presented to the Product Owner for Acceptance - this is an agreement between the PO and the Dev Team.

Example:

  • Code Complete
  • Test Cases are automated and executed
  • No defects
  • Acceptance Criteria Met
  • Pass Unit Testing
  • Pass Code Review
  • Documentation Complete as defined in Acceptance Criteria
  • Team knows how they will present feature during Sprint Review

 

2. Work that is “done” and can be presented to Stakeholders in the Sprint Review

Example:

  • Work has been presented to Product Owner
  • Product Owner Accepts as Potentially Shippable
  • Passes Previous Acceptance Tests
  • Demo Ready for Sprint Review
  • No Compile Warnings
  • Bugs Committed in Sprint Resolved
  • Deployment Docs Updated
  • Release Notes Updated

3. Work that is “done” and can be actually shipped to customers.

Example:

  • Published to Stage Server
  • Passes Deployment Testing
  • Deployment Docs Delivered
  • Release Notes Delivered
  • Infrastructure Change Notes Delivered
  • Passes Performance Testing
  • Passes Security Audio

If you don’t have a clearly defined, well-documented Definition of Done that you're updating every Sprint, you're putting your team and your organization in danger. If you don't already have a Definition of Done, you need one...and you need it now! In this episode of SoundNotes, Dave walks you through the creation of a Definition of Done.

Contacting Dave Prior

If you’d like to contact Dave you can reach him at:

If you have a question you’d like to submit for an upcoming podcast, please send them to dave.prior@leadingagile.com

And if you're interested in taking one of our upcoming Certified ScrumMaster or Certified Scrum Product Owner classes, you can find all the details at https://www.leadingagile.com/our-gear/training/

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