Food for Agile Thought #170

Stefan Wolpers
Food for Agile Thought
5 min readNov 30, 2018

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Food for Agile Thought’s issue #170 focuses on agile transformation lessons. We learn that becoming ‘agile’ is one but not the only answer, that agile teams are no causation for business agility, and that the 10,000-hour rule applies to agile practitioners, too.

We also remind ourselves that user research is always a team sport, that NPS detractors are not necessarily bad-mouthing your product, and why there is a difference between cooperation and collaboration.

Lastly, we go back to Scrum basics and revisit the idea of delivering a ‘done’ product increment every single Sprint — without making excuses.

Have a great week!

PS: Did you miss last week’s Food for Agile Thought’s issue #169?

Food for Agile Thought #170: Agile Transformation Lessons, Agile’s 10,000-Hour Rule, UX Is a Team Sport

🏆 The Essential Read

🎙 Dom Price and Shane Hastie (via InfoQ): Why Agile is Not Always the Answer

In this short podcast, Dom Price claims that ‘agile’ is an answer to teams working together effectively, but it is not the only answer. Foremost, leaders need to be the custodians of their people.

Source: InfoQ: 🎙 Why Agile is Not Always the Answer

Authors: Dom Price and Shane Hastie

Agile Transformation Lessons & Scrum

Christiaan Verwijs (via Scrum.org): Why Scrum requires completely “Done” software every Sprint

Why Scrum requires completely “Done” software every Sprint
Image from medium.com

Christiaan Verwijs reflects on Scrum’s essential rule: create “Done” software every Sprint.

Source: Scrum.org: Why Scrum requires completely “Done” software every Sprint

Author: Christiaan Verwijs

Lyssa Adkins (via InfoQ): Great Scrum Masters Are Grown, Not Born

Lyssa Adkins points at a simple truth: great Scrum Masters are grown, not born. Even people who have a “native wiring” for that job require skills development.

Source: InfoQ: Great Scrum Masters Are Grown, Not Born

Author: Lyssa Adkins

Harold Jarche: curiosity, creativity, complexity, & chaos

Harold Jarche reflects in this article on the subtle differences between cooperation and collaboration.

Source: curiosity, creativity, complexity, & chaos

Author: Harold Jarche

📯 Speaking Truth to Power — When the System Strikes Back

Do you need an emergency fund as a change agent — whether you are acting as Scrum Master, Product Owner or agile coach — because conflict is inevitable, but change is not?

In my experience, speaking truth to power, pointing at the emperor’s new clothes and the reality in the trenches, is necessary a trait for every change agent — including Scrum Masters and agile coaches — in organizations that lack strong leadership.

Learn more, how this form of professional honesty can backfire when the incumbents, privileged by the existing system, strike back: Speaking Truth to Power.

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Product & Lean

📺 Klaus Leopold (via ACE! Conference): Why Agile Teams Have Nothing to Do With Business Agility

Klaus Leopold discusses an agile transformation where approximately 600 people were involved.

Source: ACE! Conference: 📺 Why Agile Teams Have Nothing to Do With Business Agility

Author: Klaus Leopold

Will Myddelton: User research is a team sport

Will Myddelton points at a no-brainer that nevertheless is regularly ignored by many product development teams.

Source: User research is a team sport

Author: Will Myddelton

Jeff Sauro (via Measuring U): Do Detractors Really Say Bad Things about a Company?

Jeff Sauro asks whether the NPS scoring — given its popularity as a success metric — is divorced from reality?

Source: Measuring Usability: Do Detractors Really Say Bad Things about a Company?

Author: Jeff Sauro

🗞️ Last Week’s Food for Agile Thought Edition

Read more: Food for Agile Thought #169: Agile Trust, Alignment, Disagree and Commit, Customer Development.

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Food for Agile Thought #170: Agile Transformation Lessons, Agile’s 10,000-Hour Rule, UX Is a Team Sport was first published on Age-of-Product.com.

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Stefan Wolpers
Food for Agile Thought

I have worked for 18-plus years as a Scrum Master, Product Owner, and agile coach. Professional Scrum Trainer (PST) with Scrum.org.