Jeffrey Koors Archives - Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast

Jeffrey Koors: The full-stack Product Owner

The Product Owner role is not a simple one, so it is critical we help them understand the complete spectrum of topics the PO should be aware of. Even when the PO does not take care of all of those topics, they are critical in enabling the team by thinking about process, business and collaboration.

The Great Product Owner: The full-stack Product Owner

Product Owners that are able to manage their time to be present when the team needs them are sure to have a great contribution, but PO’s really excel when they are able to collaborate well with the team, and understand that reducing WIP, running-tested-software, and good communication with stakeholders are critical aspects of their role.

The Bad Product Owner: The PO that didn’t care about the details

When a Product Owner fails to discuss the details with the team, that leads to many possible misunderstandings and a deteriorating relationship between team and PO. In this segment, we talk about how to help PO’s go through the details enough so that the team feels confident they understand the story and are able to implement their vision.

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About Jeffrey Koors

Jeff started his studies and career as a fine artist and has gone on to use his creative thinking and vision to help many organizations find ways to design systems, solve problems and embrace Agile. Jeff is also the co-founder and host of Coaching Agile Journeys.

You can link with Jeffrey Koors on LinkedIn and connect with Jeffrey Koors on Twitter.

Jeffrey Koors: Defining actions from Agile Retrospectives with the sphere of influence

The question that Jeffrey asks when reflecting on this work is “how may I be able help others?” That question drives the reflection on how to achieve success as a Scrum Master as it helps Jeffrey focus on the specific needs and support each team member may need. Not all team members struggle with the same problems.

Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: The Sphere of Influence

Jeffrey likes to follow the 5 stage process that Diana Larsen and Esther Derby write about in the book Agile Retrospectives, however, he focuses on bringing in different exercises for each of the stages in the process.

In this segment, we also talk about how to find the issue to work on as a team and discuss how the concept of “sphere of influence” helps teams find the right topic to address.

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About Jeffrey Koors

You can link with Jeffrey Koors on LinkedIn and connect with Jeffrey Koors on Twitter.

Jeffrey Koors: Helping Scrum teams when the blockers are outside the team

Even when we try to help the teams we serve, we often encounter problems that the team itself can’t solve. When that happens, what’s a Scrum Master to do? In this episode, we explore what Scrum Masters can do when the issues plaguing the team extend beyond the team’s boundaries.

About Jeffrey Koors

You can link with Jeffrey Koors on LinkedIn and connect with Jeffrey Koors on Twitter.

Jeffrey Koors: Searching who to blame is what destroys many Scrum teams

In certain teams, there’s a need to find “the fall guy”, a person that takes the blame for the collective misses of the team. However, even when there is a fall guy, that search for someone to blame leads to many anti-patterns that destroy the team. In this episode, we talk about how we can help teams get out of this anti-pattern and be ready to take the steps necessary to succeed as a team

Featured Book of the Week: Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willing

In Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willing, Jeffrey found a great reminder that we must always be asking “how may I contribute to help this team/these teams?” This helped Jeffrey understand how to communicate this aspect to teams and stakeholders. It’s only what we think we own that we are ready to improve.

About Jeffrey Koors

You can link with Jeffrey Koors on LinkedIn and connect with Jeffrey Koors on Twitter.

Jeffrey Koors: Collaboration at scale, the challenge that scaled Agile poses

Agile at the team level is not easy, and it has serious challenges that need to be overcome for a team to reach their potential. However, agility in the large is even harder. We have to help teams collaborate across departments, functions, and sometimes even across different companies. In this episode, we dive into collaboration at scale, the challenge for Scrum Masters working with multiple teams in a scaled agile context.

About Jeffrey Koors

You can link with Jeffrey Koors on LinkedIn and connect with Jeffrey Koors on Twitter.