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The Peril of Adhering to Legacy Systems, Processes, and Practices — Scrum Anti-Patterns Taxonomy (1)

by Stefan Wolpers | 2023-08-14 Agile and ScrumAgile Transition

TL; DR: Adherence to Legacy Systems, Processes, and Practices

Administrative overreach and micromanagement in Scrum mainly arise from clinging to legacy systems and traditional (management) practices, leading to rigidity and misapplication of Agile principles. The excessive control by stakeholders and the management level stifles creativity and adaptability, disrupting planning and hindering a Scrum team’s growth. Moreover, these categories from the Scrum anti-patterns taxonomy often emphasize an unbalanced focus on short-term gains, neglecting long-term strategy, value creation, and the essential alignment among all stakeholders to succeed in uncertainty.

Learn how these Scrum anti-patterns categories manifest themselves and how they affect value creation for customers and the long-term sustainability of the organization.

This is the first of three articles analyzing the 183 anti-patterns from the upcoming Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide book. The following article will address communication and collaboration issues at the team and organizational levels.

Adherence to Legacy Systems, Processes, and Practices — Scrum Anti-Patterns Taxonomy (1) — Age-of-Product.com

Food for Agile Thought #405: Dysfunction Mapping, Guide to Product Ideas, Resistance To Change, Acing Product Manager Interviews

by Stefan Wolpers | 2023-08-11 News

TL; DR: Dysfunction Mapping — Food for Agile Thought #405

Welcome to the 405th edition of the Food for Agile Thought newsletter, shared with 48,416 peers. This week, we delve into Maarten Dalmijn’s introduction of “Dysfunction Mapping” to address organizational complexities, explore the principles behind Jeff Bezos’ success as dissected by Jason Evanish, and learn about the emotional roots of resistance to change with insights from David Burkus. Additionally, Miss_HayaX reflects on the prevalent use of Scrum in technical projects and explores when teams might consider alternatives.

Then, we discover Peter Yang’s valuable insights on acing behavioral interviews for PM candidates, explore what Deb Liu learns from the 1960s Milgram experiment about requests, and dive into Lenny Rachitsky’s comprehensive playbook for kickstarting and scaling B2B businesses.

Finally, we explore Tim Metz’s advocacy for essential “team health checks,” delve into Christoph Roser’s insights into the “soft power” of the Toyota Production System, unravel Kim Scott’s reflections on the misconceptions surrounding Radical Candor, and find out about a precarious alternative approach to Product Backlog refinement.

Food for Agile Thought #405: Dysfunction Mapping, Guide to Product Ideas, Resistance To Change, Acing Product Manager Interviews — Age-of-Product.com

Minimum Viable Library (1) — Scrum Master Edition

by Stefan Wolpers | 2023-08-07 Agile and Scrum

TL; DR: The Minimum Viable Library for Scrum Masters

The Minimum Viable Library is available! Explore a series of carefully curated collections of essential books, newsletters, podcasts, and tools to elevate your agile expertise.

Read on and learn how the recommendations for Scrum Masters cover a wide range of topics, including Scrum, servant leadership, customer value creation, coaching teams, improving team dynamics through Retrospectives, and navigating agile enterprise transformations.

Minimum Viable Library — Scrum Master Edition — Age-of-Product.com

Food for Agile Thought #404: Social Status, In Defense of Strategy, Broken Ownership, Amazon’s Document Culture

by Stefan Wolpers | 2023-08-04 News

TL; DR: Social Status — Food for Agile Thought #404

Welcome to the 404th edition of the Food for Agile Thought newsletter, shared with 48,271 peers. This week, we explore intriguing perspectives on social dynamics: David Pinsof delves into the psychology of social status, while Alex Ewerlöf discusses ownership in project management. We also feature Daniele Altomare’s insights on ethics in Agile environments and John Cutler’s viewpoint on the influence of culture on organizational frameworks.

Then, Packy McCormick warns about the pitfalls of execution without a robust strategy, using Breather as a case study. Aatir Abdul Rauf identifies common blunders in product discovery that affect success. Also, Melissa Perri and Teresa Torres address complex issues in large companies, emphasizing skilled product management and standardized processes.

Finally, Justin Garrison examines Amazon’s unique document-centered meeting approach. Lenny Rachitsky and Dr. Nicole Forsgren unpack productivity in DevOps with the DORA and SPACE frameworks. Dave Hora advocates for strategic agility in software production, while Casey Rosengren explores non-coercive leadership strategies. Lastly, a McKinsey report delves into the growth and impact of generative AI tools in organizations.

Food for Agile Thought #404: Social Status, In Defense of Strategy, Broken Ownership, Amazon’s Document Culture — Age-of-Product.com

Scrum Anti-Patterns Taxonomy — The Big Picture of Why Scrum Fails?

by Stefan Wolpers | 2023-07-31 Agile and ScrumAgile Transition

TL; DR: Scrum Anti-Patterns Taxonomy

As the editing process of the Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide is nearing its end, it is time to take the next step. The brand new Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide offers 180-plus anti-patterns organized by roles, events, artifacts, and commitments. However, the Guide does not create a meta-level or abstract Scrum anti-patterns taxonomy. Consequently, the Guide does not provide an overall strategy to counter or evade Scrum anti-patterns at a personal, cultural, structural, or organizational level. The question is whether it is possible to create such a taxonomy.

Read on and learn more about the first steps of completing the big picture of Scrum anti-patterns.

Scrum Anti-Patterns Taxonomy — The Big Picture of Why Scrum Fails — Age-of-Product.com

Food for Agile Thought #403: Life Coaching In Agile? Full Stack Product Management, Agile Maturity Models, Optimal UVPs

by Stefan Wolpers | 2023-07-28 News

TL; DR: Life Coaching In Agile? — Food for Agile Thought #403

Welcome to the 403rd edition of the Food for Agile Thought newsletter, shared with 48,157 peers. This week, Ronald Purser critically examines the life coaching industry, often selling pseudo-solutions to profound issues. Is that trend spilling over to Agile? Also, Maarten Dalmijn questions the efficacy of Agile Maturity Models, while Julee Everett makes a strong case for full-time Scrum Masters based on financial benefits. Moreover, Vidas Vasiliauskas reflects on Teamhood’s evolution with Scrum, highlighting the significance of continuous improvement.

Then, Howie Mann proposes a novel way of handling product feature requests by focusing on recent problems, and Šejla Vatreš probes into the emerging trend of ‘full stack’ product managers and its potential implications. Additionally, John Utz examines the common disconnect between expected product features and valuable outcomes, especially in annual budgeting, and Ash Maurya underscores the importance of creating a unique value proposition (UVP) that captivates customer attention.

Finally, Nick Brown scrutinizes the metric of Flow Efficiency in Agile, using data from over 60 teams at ASOS to discuss its merits and pitfalls. Daniel Stillman presents a compelling 2018 study that illustrates how a “committed minority group” making up at least 25% can initiate cultural change within a community. Lastly, we suggest applying Hanlon’s Razor to improve relationships and enhance empathy, which can lead to less judgment, increased rationality, and personal happiness.