Food for Agile Thought #338: The Taste of Salt & Agile Coaching, Visual Planning w/ Jeff & Gojko, Dunbar’s Number, Escaping the Planning Illusion

TL; DR: The Taste of Salt & Agile Coaching, Visual Planning w/ Jeff & Gojko — Food for Agile Thought #338

Welcome to the 338th edition of the Food for Agile Thought newsletter, shared with 35,072 peers. This week, we listen to Jeff Patton, Gojko Adzic, and James Shore delving into the benefits of visual planning. We also reflect on an often referred-to but rarely understood critical concept required to solve complex adaptive problems. Speaking of teamwork, we dive into the importance of group sizes in creating social cohesion and collaboration, referring to the ‘Dunbar number’—often used, simplified, and rarely understood as a concept. Moreover, Shai Yallin describes a process often causing technical debt and how to create systems to prevent this from happening.

We then analyze three significant problems with long-term planning, from premature decision making to the inevitable time consumption to promoting rigidity. Also, we criticize distinguishing between problem-solving and problem definition; this is probably less helpful than you think. Moreover, we suggest a simple approach to getting started with a critical element of product analytics and product-led growth to prevent you from slipping into feature factory mode.

Lastly, we follow Yves Hanoulle and Jason Yip using a compelling metaphor to explore the idea of ‘agile coaching.’ Then, borrowing from the human-centered systems thinking school, Deirdre Cerminaro suggests a visualization technique to help you ‘spot opportunities for growth and change.’ And we ask: How does Le Corbusier’s ‘Cité Frugès de Pessac’ masterpiece relate to going back to the office? Or shall we rather say: being forced back into the office?

Food for Agile Thought #338: The Taste of Salt & Agile Coaching, Visual Planning w/ Jeff & Gojko, Dunbar’s Number, Escaping the Planning Illusion — Age-of-Product.com

Did you miss the previous Food for Agile Thought’s issue #337?

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Hands-on Agile #42 on May 30, 2022: The Skinny on Lean Roadmapping and OKRs with Janna Bastow — Age-of-Product.com

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🏆 The Tip of the Week

Yves Hanoulle and Jason Yip: 📺 It’s Hard to Explain how Salt Tastes: ‘Who Is Agile’ 012 with Jason Yip

In this talk, Yves Hanoulle and Jason Yip use a compelling metaphor to explore the idea of ‘agile coaching.’

➿ Agile & Scrum

Ben Linders (via InfoQ): How Psychological Safety at Work Creates Effective Software Tech Teams that Learn and Grow

Ben Linders reflects on an often referred-to but rarely understood critical concept required to solve complex adaptive problems.

Matt Webb: Dunbar’s number and how speaking is 2.8x better than picking fleas

Matt Webb dives into the importance of group sizes in creating social cohesion and collaboration, referring to the ‘Dunbar number’—often used, simplified, and rarely understood as a concept.

Shai Yallin: The Anatomy Of A Rotten Codebase

In this article, Shai Yallin describes a process often causing technical debt and how to create systems to prevent this from happening.

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Discover Scrum’s four success principles in this official Scrum.org Professional Scrum Product Owner training class, leading to and including the industry-recognized PSPO I certification. The training is designed as a live virtual class and will be offered in English.

Enjoy the benefits of an compact class of two sessions with like-minded agile peers from 09:00 – 17:30 o’clock CEST.

Professional Scrum Product Owner Training w/ PSPO Certificate — Online: May 9-10, 2022 — Berlin Product People GmbH

Learn more: 🖥 🇬🇧 Professional Scrum Product Owner Training w/ PSPO Certificate — Online: May 9-10, 2022.

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🎯 Product

James Shore, Jeff Patton and Gojko Adzic: 📺 Agile Book Club: Visual Planning

In this session of the Agile Book Club, Jeff Patton, Gojko Adzic, and James Shore delve into the benefits of visual planning.

Andrew Quan (via Medium): Finding Your Way out of the Planning Illusion

Andrew Quan delves into three major problems with long-term planning, from premature decision making to the inevitable time consumption to promoting rigidity.

John Cutler: The Problem With Problems

John Cutler criticizes distinguishing between problem-solving and problem definition; this is probably less helpful than you think.

📯 27 Product Backlog and Refinement Anti-Patterns

Scrum is a tactical framework to build products, provided you identify what is worth making in advance. But even after a successful product discovery phase, you may struggle to create the right thing in the right way if your Product Backlog is not up to the job—garbage in, garbage out. The following article points to 27 common Product Backlog anti-patterns – including the Product Backlog refinement process – limiting your Scrum team’s success.

Scrum Product Backlog Anti-Patterns from the Scrum Anti-Patterns-Guide — Age-of-Product.com

👉 Learn more: 27 Product Backlog and Refinement Anti-Patterns.

🛠 Tools & Measuring

Deirdre Cerminaro (via IDEO U): What is a Systems Map?

Borrowed from the human-centered systems thinking school, Deirdre Cerminaro suggests a visualization technique to help you ‘spot opportunities for growth and change.’

(via mixpanel): How to develop and measure feature adoption

Mark Simborg suggests a simple approach to getting started with this critical element of product analytics and product-led growth to prevent you from slipping into feature factory mode.

✂️ Cutting Room Floor

Tim Harford: What Le Corbusier got right about office space

And now for something completely different: How does Le Corbusier’s ‘Cité Frugès de Pessac’ masterpiece relate to going back to the office? Or shall we rather say: being forced back into the office? What about the empowerment and autonomy we enjoyed when working from home?


📅 Scrum Training Classes, Workshops, and Events

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🖥 💯 🇬🇧 May 9-10, 2022 Professional Scrum Product Owner Training (PSPO I; English; Live Virtual Class) Live Virtual Class €1.189 incl. 19% VAT
🖥 💯 🇩🇪 May 17-20, 2022 Advanced Professional Scrum Product Owner Training (PSPO-A; German; Live Virtual Class) Live Virtual Class €1.399 incl. 19% VAT
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🖥 🇬🇧 May 31-June 1, 2022 Advanced Professional Scrum Master Online Training (PSM II; English; Live Virtual Class) Live Virtual Class €1.189 incl. 19% VAT
🖥 🇩🇪 June 7-10, 2022 Professional Scrum Master Training (PSM I; German; Live Virtual Class) Live Virtual Class €1.189 incl. 19% VAT
🖥 🇬🇧 June 20-23, 2022 Professional Scrum Master Training (PSM I; English; Live Virtual Class) Live Virtual Class €1.189 incl. 19% VAT
🖥 🇩🇪 June 28-July 1, 2022 Professional Scrum Product Owner Training (PSPO I; German; Live Virtual Class) Live Virtual Class €1.189 incl. 19% VAT

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Professional Scrum Trainer Stefan Wolpers

You can book your seat for the training directly by following the corresponding links to the ticket shop. If the procurement process of your organization requires a different purchasing process, please contact Berlin Product People GmbH directly.

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🗞️ Last Week’s Food for Agile Thought Edition

Read more: Food for Agile Thought #337: Story Points Made Simple, The Art Part of Product Management, Agility Patterns, Useful Team Metrics.

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