After breaking the record of story points ever delivered, the Scrum Team was on fire. But the excitement didn’t last long; it went down during the Sprint Planning as the Product Owner asked, “How many story points can we deliver for this Sprint? We have to beat our previous one?” Developers felt locked in a trap. No matter how much they delivered, it would never be enough.

In my opinion, Scrum exists for one single reason, to help teams deliver more value for the end-user and business. Still, it’s shocking how people evaluate value differently. For many stakeholders, maximizing features…

A critical issue disturbs me. Most companies believe to be agile, and they use frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, and LeSS. However, every quarter the management board decides what will be part of the next roadmap. Such roadmaps mainly define solutions to implement instead of goals to pursue.

All teams are surprised once they become familiar with the roadmap. Sadly, the management board rarely collaborates with the teams to craft the roadmap. Yet, they insist on getting a commitment from the team.

Without a feeling of ownership, commitment is unreachable.

Let me share with you why traditional roadmaps don’t work and…

In a Scrum Team, the Product Owner has many responsibilities. It’s overwhelming for a single person to match all expectations. Companies may have a slightly different perception of what a Product Owners is, but the general responsibilities are:

• Craft a compelling Product Vision.
• Maximize the value of the product.
• Apply focus by deciding what to do as well as what not to.
• Ensure alignment with stakeholders.
• Manage the Product Backlog.

Given such a heavy set of responsibilities, what does it take to succeed as a Product Owner? During my journey, I’ve worked with many Product Owners in different scenarios. …

In 2010, the first Scrum Guide was released. After that, the world would never be the same. What was supposed to be a lightweight framework became the world’s standard process of working for most digital companies. The market welcomed Scrum with open arms by creating thousands of Scrum Masters and Product Owners positions. What Scrum calls roles became careers for many people — including myself.

Many companies worldwide treated Scrum as a silver bullet; they believed Scrum would ensure success. Yet, only a few companies could reach the promised land of fruitful value. …

The biggest flaw of most Product Owners is the misunderstanding of value. A faulty perception of value will lead Scrum Teams in the wrong direction, which results in pointless solutions.

Have you ever been in a situation that no matter how hard you work, it’s never enough to match the expectations? Such a situation is a sign that you are working on the wrong thing.

Unfortunately, many people underestimate the complexity of being a Product Owner. What I am about to say may not please everyone, but getting a PSPO or a CSPO certificate doesn’t mean you are ready to…

Recently, I got a similar question from many people, “How can I find a proper place to work as a Product Owner?” Although the market is hot, misconceptions about this role are common. That’s why people searching for a job should be careful where to go. Otherwise, they will end up in a trap, like I did a few times.

During the last ten years, I’ve been a Product Owner at seven different companies. Every place had different expectations of what I should do. The main differences were:

• Decisions: the autonomy level to decide the future of the product varied…

Many organizations claim to be agile; they believe they do Scrum. Yet, they make endless mistakes with the refinement sessions. A widespread misconception is to force the team to estimate pre-defined solutions. After each session, the team’s mood is low. They feel locked in a vicious circle because the mission is missing. Still, executives insist they are an agile company.

Does this scenario ring a bell for you? I’ve been in similar situations many times. The only certainty is frustration. Until collaboration is the focus, the Scrum Team has no chance of becoming a high-performing team. It’s time to change…

One of the most challenging responsibilities of Product Owners is making decisions. We face constant paradigms with decisions. Some examples are:

• It’s impossible to please every stakeholder. Yet, we need to keep a sustainable relationship with them.
• Not all customers’ problems generate business value. Still, unsatisfied customers will eventually go for the competitors.
• Product Owners may not have all the knowledge to make the best decision possible. Yet, we are accountable for maximizing the value of the product.

How can Product Owners maximize the odds of succeeding by making consistent decisions? …