Food Agile for Thought #157: Agile 2018, Mediocrity, Peter Principle, Business vs. Technical Debt

Food for Agile Thought’s issue #157—shared with 18,862 peers—applauds Martin Fowler for his Agile Australia keynote on Agile 2018, we learn about the road to mediocrity, and we ask: Is the Peter Principle not a satire but reality?

We also address the issue of hidden (technical) costs of being ‘agile,’ as well the how to solve the conflict between prioritizing business needs as well as maintaining the health of the code base.

Lastly, we deal with the challenges of planning poker in a short and entertaining video.

Have a great week!

Food Agile for Thought #157: Agile 2018, Mediocrity, Peter Principle, Business vs. Technical Debt

🏆 The Essential Read

Martin Fowler (via InfoQ): Agile in 2018

Martin Fowler addresses three problem areas of Agile 2018: the agile industrial complex, the lack of recognition of the importance of technical excellence, and the necessity to organize around products.

Agile 2018 & Scrum

John Cutler (via Hackernoon): That’ll Never Work Here: Heretics, Head Noddies, and the Drift Into Mediocrity

John Cutler observes companies adopting generic practices without customizing them only to complain later that these practices won’t work for them.

Tim Harford: The Peter Principle is a joke taken seriously. Is it true?

Tim Harford consider the Peter Principle to be a satire and wonders if it might be true what we can do about it?

(via Hackernoon): You’re Not Paying the True Cost of Software Development, and It’s Killing Your Business

Eric Weiss points at the hidden costs of ’moving fast’ and cutting corners to exploit market opportunities.

Product & Lean

Gojko Adzic: Sprints, marathons and root canals

Gojko Adzic shares his approach to solving an old conflict: How to prioritize technical debt against business features?

Seb Rose (via Agile Alliance): How long is a piece of string?

Seb Rose points at the challenges of planning poker in a short and entertaining video.

(via This Is Product Management): What’s the Difference Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research?

This Is Product Management provides a compact introduction to user research.

📺 Join 675-plus Agile Peers on Youtube

Now available on the Age-of-Product Youtube channel:

✋ Do Not Miss Out: Join the 3,825-plus Strong ‘Hands-on Agile’ Slack Community

I invite you to join the “Hands-on Agile” Slack Community and enjoy the benefits of a fast-growing, vibrant community of agile practitioners from around the world.

Large scale agile: Join the Hands-on Agile Slack Group

If you like to join now all you have to do now is provide your credentials via this Google form, and I will sign you up. By the way, it’s free.

Scrum Master Interview Question: free download of the most popular ebook on Scrum Master job interviews — by Age-of-Product

🗞️ Last Week’s Food for Agile Thought Edition

Read more: Food for Agile Thought #156: Servant Leadership, Pace of Change, Mental Models for PMs..

Find this content useful? Share it with your friends!