Food for Agile Thought’s issue #217—shared with 24,172 peers—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.
Food for Agile Thought’s issue #216—shared with 24,073 peers—delves into the product-market fit concept with statistics, frameworks, and models; we discover the essential elements of high performing teams, and we kiss fixed-everything contracts good-bye.
We also learn from Spotify how to speed up user research by not focusing on running more user interviews, and we look behind the scenes of WeChat and its — by Western standards — unconventional approach to innovation.
Lastly, we enjoy the unpacking of “iteration” and question the language of our community.
Food for Agile Thought’s issue #215—shared with 23,979 peers—delves into the requirements for the business agility flywheel to work; we reason about transformation failures, and we understand that Liberating Structures allow us to avoid groupthink when working on strategy.
We also learn what failure made LEGO getting serious about agility; we follow an interview on the importance of collaboration in product teams to escape the feature factory, and we get a better understanding of what customer-centricity means for product managers.
Lastly, we enjoy a new infographic comprised of tips & tricks for agile teams.
Food for Agile Thought’s issue #214—shared with 23,916 peers—delves into Scrum agility; we follow a notion for time-based estimates, and we learn more about similarities and differences between Cynefin and the Stacey matrix.
We also consider the suggestion to skip standups as those are supposedly the worst breed of time-wasting status update meetings; we appreciate an infographic on output, outcome, and impact, and follow AirBnB to Cuba.
Lastly, we applaud an engineer for sharing his take on the role of the Product Owner.
Food for Agile Thought’s issue #213—shared with 23,845 peers—delves into how Liberating Structures rescue Scrum; we borrow Swedish ideas on agile leadership beyond the so-called ‘Spotify model,’ and we learn to create an environment that is attractive to introverts.
We also consider pair coaching; we learn how to include stakeholders in product decisions while managing their expectations, and we dare to look at some math, namely Cost of Delay.
Lastly, we shed light on Mr. Amazon’s grand plan for the universe.
Food for Agile Thought’s issue #212—shared with 23,794 peers—delves into coach assessment options; we learn how to help teams out of being stuck in discussions, and we gain more insight into the challenges of moving from directive to supportive leadership.
We also embrace the qualities that impact mapping brings to product discovery; we appreciate a new approach to making product decisions, and we will stop ignoring our competition.
Lastly, we are grateful that someone asked the obvious question: Is ‘Agile’ keeping us too focused on ‘building stuff?’
