An Agile Team "Reset"
By its very nature, Scrum is a constant journey of inspection and adaptation. But there comes a time when it's a good idea for an Agile team (mature or not) to take a step back to review and relearn the foundation principles and practices of Scrum...
Can Support and Maintenance Become Agile?
Agile methodology has gone from being a manifesto to an industry standard. Most of the product majors are adopting it, which promises to resolve multiple grievances that Waterfall is supposed to have created. The short, time-bound sprints with pre...
A Journey: From Project Manager to ScrumMaster
In the beginning I was a coder. Then, suddenly one day, I found myself a Project Manager. Our PM had left unexpectedly and the call went out for a temporary replacement. I was the last one to bolt for the door, and so there I was: temporary Projec...
Agile Requirements Definition and Management
One of the myths of Agile software development is that documentation is not required or useful. It is true that one of the core values within the Agile Manifesto is "Working Software over Comprehensive Documentation." However, note the word "over"...
How to Be an Effective ScrumMaster
Several weeks ago, I joined an online discussion about the key skills of an effective ScrumMaster. Everybody actively shared their experiences and thoughts. But I strongly felt that we were talking about the definition of a good ScrumMaster, not an effective one, which was the original topic.
This made me recall an experience I had last year. I'd joined a new project that was outsourced, and...
Failure IS an Option
This is an article asking you to fail. More precisely: Fail now for greater success later.
One of the five Scrum values is courage. Courage to point out problems, ask for help, receive help, and — most important — take risks even thou...
Coaching Agile Teams
Two words, Agile and coaching, seem to be the most-used buzzwords (after brain and neuro) of the last five years or so. The way things are progressing, I see them staying at the top of the list for decades.