Anton Zotin Archives - Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast

Anton Zotin on the way to introduce new methods to teams

We can sometimes overwhelm the teams we work with by introducing too many methods. Anton explains how he likes to introduce methods to the team, by running experiments with the team to see if the method fits the team, and solves the problem they want to tackle. He also gives a critical advice on one of the most common anti-patterns for Scrum Masters: wanting to help too much.

About Anton Zotin

Anton is an Agile guy born in cold Siberia but with hot and passionate heart. He has worked in all sorts of companies and environments, and has been an agile fan since 2004. Nowadays works and lives in Berlin. And he deeply believes in people.
You can connect with Anton Zotin on LinkedIn, or find Anton Zotin on twitter. You can also ask him questions over email.

Anton Zotin on why retrospectives are your tool for success as a Scrum Master

Retrospectives are the tool for Scrum Masters to achieve success in their role. In this Episode we discuss many different types of retrospectives and Anton introduces the “themed” retrospectives as well as some tools on how to facilitate those. You can also read about one example of a themed retrospectives that Anton wrote especially for this episode. The Human Aspect Retrospective by Anton Zotin.

About Anton Zotin

Anton Zotin on how firing someone later can destroy a team

Recruiting is a critical process for any organization, not the least of which because hiring and wrong person and firing them later can destroy the team. Anton tells the story of a “perfect” hire that turned out to be very destructive for the team. He also asks us to involve the whole team in the process by asking the whole team to interview the person, and if possible, invite the candidate to work one day with the team.

About Anton Zotin

Anton Zotin on why teams need conflicts to evolve

Conflicts are part of the journey of any team. In this episode Anton explains the case of a team where conflicts were not addressed, and they became a source of problems for the team.
We discuss in this episode several Retrospective exercises that can help you address the conflicts by creating a more empathic atmosphere: the Journey Lines Exercise and The Constellation Exercise.
The Nonviolent Communication book by Rosenberg is also mentioned in this podcast.

About Anton Zotin

Anton Zotin on why it is critical to understand everyone has their own journey to Agile

As Scrum Masters we are often very passionate about what is the “right way”, we see a lot of problems immediately, and we know how to fix them. Anton shares the story of such a moment in his career and how he started to accept that “everyone has their own journey”. His recipe is:

Gradually lead the time in the right direction. Don’t try to change everything at the same time.
Whatever you think is going wrong, reflect that back to the team and help them find their own solution. Be an Agile Mirror!

In this Episode we mention 2 important books:
The Human Side of the Enterprise by McGregor, the classic that introduced the Theory X and Theory Y model, which we discuss in this episode.
Turn the Ship Around by Marquee, a book on leadership that presents a model that is very useful for Scrum Masters.