software development Archives - Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast

Johannes Lindman: Introducing Mob Programming, and how to overcome resistance to new ways of working in Agile teams

In this episode, Johannes talks about how he introduced mob programming to his teams as a new way of working and sharing competencies. One of the teams team tried it for a few minutes and gave up. Surprisingly, another team started at 9am and continued throughout the day, and eventually noted it was too draining. Johannes suggests limiting the time for mob programming and being adaptable in trying different tools. He also warns against falling in love with one tool and introduces the concepts of Shu-Ha-Ri and NoEstimates. Johannes emphasizes the importance of measuring progress and visualizing metrics to ensure that teams are driving towards their goals. Ultimately, Johannes achieved his goals with this new way of working, even with some resistant individuals who initially said “no” to the idea.

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About Johannes Lindman

Despite many years of experience Johannes still learns new things every day in order to stay relevant. This aligns with his curiosity on life and people.

You can link with Johannes Lindman on LinkedIn.

BONUS: Helping Scrum Masters build empathy towards Agile Team Members with J.B. Rainsberger

JB Rainsberger is a software development consultant who has a unique perspective on Agile software development, team motivation, team leadership, and team management for Scrum Masters. In his early career, JB worked as a software developer and had a keen interest in the personal aspects of software development. Over time, he began to focus more on interpersonal aspects, such as communication and empathy, as many of his assignments required him to develop those skills.

These days, JB works with individuals and organizations to help them improve their software development processes, with a particular focus on the human aspect of development. He has spoken at events, and written on this topic on his blog blog.JBrains.ca. One key inspiration for JB was the book “The Secrets of Consulting” by Gerald (aka Jerry) Weinberg.

Continue reading BONUS: Helping Scrum Masters build empathy towards Agile Team Members with J.B. Rainsberger

Daniel Westermayr: Connecting data with emotions, the key to triggering change

In this episode, Daniel emphasizes the importance of understanding the success of a system and how it is constrained by the way it has been set up. He explains that the ultimate goal of Scrum is the success of the product or organization, and that the key to successful Scrum is to look at the success of the system. We also discuss how the process and system of software development, broadly, has not yet been fully understood by the very software industry and community.

Featured Retrospective Format for the Week: Connecting data with emotions, the key to triggering change

In this segment, Daniel focuses on the importance of connecting data with emotions in retrospectives. Daniel shares his preference for retrospectives that collect data with the emotions of people. He emphasizes that not everyone sees the same thing in the same data or events and that different perspectives can help understand positive things. Emotions are a driving force for change among the people we work with, and understanding them can help drive change management efforts. Daniel mentions the Timeline retrospective and the importance of using emotional intelligence to improve teamwork and product development.

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About Daniel Westermayr

Daniel is a Kanban Trainer with a knack for all things Lean and Theory of Constraints. He wants to help teams achieve and measure their continuous improvements.

You can link with Daniel Westermayr on LinkedIn.

Caterina Palmiotto: Lessons from an Agile Transformation in a Manufacturing Company

In this episode, Caterina discusses a large-scale Agile transformation she was involved in at a manufacturing company. The transformation was initiated after a successful pilot with a few software development teams. The company adopted a top-down approach, hiring many Agile coaches and implementing a model that combined the Spotify Model and a big-bang change. Despite its success, the transformation was risky due to its size, and Caterina suggests starting the Agile adoption with a single Value Stream and measuring the impact on the business. In this case, the company’s culture was also key in integrating the many different backgrounds and expectations from the different regional offices.

The success factors Caterina identified were: team coaching, focus on effective communication, and constant respect for each other.

About Caterina Palmiotto

Caterina started as a software developer but soon realized that she was passionate about team dynamics and communication, and embraced agility from the moment she saw it.

Caterina believes a team can be more than the sum of its parts and that growing the right culture is essential. When people are surrounded by good examples they will be motivated to do their best. So the first step is doing your best to be a good example of the culture you want to nurture.

You can link with Caterina Palmiotto on LinkedIn.

BONUS: Allan Kelly and Vasco Duarte on #NoProjects and #NoEstimates the latest trends in the Agile community

This is an episode about #NoProjects, #NoEstimates and introduces a unique, and 1-time-only workshop by Allan and Vasco that will take place in London in February 2019. Check out this page about the #NoProjects and #NoEstimates Workshop to know more.

In the past few years a few new trends have emerged in the Agile community that have challenged some of the basic assumptions of how software should be delivered. The first one, #NoProjects is challenging the idea that software work is best managed as a project. As Allan puts it in this episode: “Successful software does not end. It continues. And projects are for temporary endeavours, that have a known start and fixed end. That’s now how software is developed today.”

With that start to the episode you can expect that many unconventional (and inconvenient?) ideas will be shared in this podcast focused on the latest trends in how to manage software development.