Food for Agile Thought #217

Stefan Wolpers
Nov 8 · 5 min read

Food for Agile Thought’s issue #217 delves into agile playbooks and the optimal Sprint length; we learn how to convince the finance folks to embrace ‘agile,’ and we figure out how team contracts and alignment maps support to create psychological safety.

We also appreciate the visualization of the path from waterfall to a product team that deserves the name; we get more clarity on product reviews when using dual-track agile, and we are surprised by the range of MVP costs.

Lastly, we enjoy a 5-minute video clip, reminding us of all the madness in our industry.

Did you miss last week’s Food for Agile Thought’s issue #216?


🏆 The Essential Post: Agile Playbooks


Jonathan Smart (via #DOES19 Las Vegas): Playbook for Your [DevOps | Agile | Digital | Cloud] Transformation. (Including a certificate.)

Jonathan Smart manages to stuff practically all ‘agile’ buzzwords possible into a 5-minute video. Bonus: a certificate.

Source: #DOES19 Las Vegas: Playbook for Your [DevOps | Agile | Digital | Cloud] Transformation. (Including a certificate.)

Author: Jonathan Smart


Agile & Scrum


Mark Levison: Choosing a Scrum Sprint Length — Shorter Beats Longer

Mark Levison analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of different Sprint lengths.

Source: Choosing a Scrum Sprint Length — Shorter Beats Longer

Author: Mark Levison


Patrick Tickle (via SD Times): Agile costing and capitalization — How to work with finance to scale Agile

Patrick Tickle points at agile development’s uncertain accounting impacts and unfamiliar capitalization rules and what it takes to convince the finance people to give ‘Agile’ a try.

Source: SD Times: Agile costing and capitalization — How to work with finance to scale Agile

Author: Patrick Tickle


Stefano Mastrogiacomo (via Strategyzer): Psychological Safety: A Prerequisite For High Performing Teams

Stefano Mastrogiacomo suggests a way to facilitate the creation of trust among team members supported by team contracts and a team alignment map.

Source: Strategyzer: Psychological Safety: A Prerequisite For High Performing Teams

Author: Stefano Mastrogiacomo


📯 Agile Movers & Shakers (1): Viktor Cessan

Welcome to the Agile Movers & Shakers interview series. Today’s guest is Viktor Cessan. Viktor has dedicated his career to helping companies consciously design organizations that keep motivation, engagement, and performance levels high. In the 14 years since he started working with Agile methodologies, he has helped companies such as Spotify, H&M, King, Avanza Bank, Telenor, and Sony Ericsson work more effectively.

Read more: Agile Movers & Shakers (1): Viktor Cessan.


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Product & Lean


John Cutler (via Amplitude Analytics): Journey to Product Teams (Infographic)

John Cutler shares an infographic detailing the path from a team working in the waterfall model to a product team.

Source: Amplitude: Journey to Product Teams (Infographic)

Author: John Cutler


Jeff Patton: Dual-track Stakeholder Review

Jeff Patton shares his approach to the product review within dual-track Scrum or XP by separating the stakeholders from the team.

Source: Dual-track Stakeholder Review

Author: Jeff Patton


Kimberlee Meier (via CXL): How Much Do SaaS Companies Spend on Their MVPs?

Kimberlee Meier provides data on the costs of 14 different minimum viable products of SaaS companies — be surprised by the range.

Source: CXL: How Much Do SaaS Companies Spend on Their MVPs?

Author: Kimberlee Meier



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Food for Agile Thought #217: Agile Playbooks, Sprint Length, Working w/ Finance, Journey to Product Teams was first published on Age-of-Product.com.

Food for Agile Thought

Best posts from last week on agile and lean methodologies, Scrum and product management. Manually curated, no robots involved.

Stefan Wolpers

Written by

I have worked for 13-plus years as an agile coach, Scrum Master, and Product Owner. Professional Scrum Trainer (PST) with Scrum.org.

Food for Agile Thought

Best posts from last week on agile and lean methodologies, Scrum and product management. Manually curated, no robots involved.

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