You have a big project coming up that seems like it may take months or even years to complete. You know generally what you want, but you aren’t quite sure yet how to get there. The path seems long, complex, and things may change along the way as […]
I hated Agile once. Some days I still do. What do you call a project with two-week development increments and then a release of a potentially done product? If you said Agile (or Scrum), you are missing some of the most important parts of Agile. Where is the […]
While Scrum’s target is in product development, Scrum often gets used within project management. The goal of a project is to create a unique product, so Scrum shouldn’t have too many issues being modified for a project – although it may require some additional considerations. Before choosing to […]
There are a lot of differences between Kanban and Scrum. I would even argue that they aren’t truly comparable. I attempt here to explain simply what they are and why they don’t exactly have the same uses and capabilities. When I think of ultimate organizational agility, I imagine […]
The PAL I was an interesting test and moderately difficult. I was sometimes faced with questions that could easily be a couple of different correct answers. This was my second attempt at this test. My first attempt was shortly after the exam came out and I didn’t prepare or […]
The world is full of Agile certifications. Everyone has their list of favorites or ones they think are vastly superior to others. Here is my list. If you are like me and you hate the boot-camp style of education, it may provide some good options for you to […]
Scrum has been too often shoved into situations where it has no business being. I know Scrum proponents will often tell you Scrum is versatile and it can go anywhere – it can’t. There are jobs that are too big for Scrum. Scrum is a lightweight approach. It […]
What is Flaccid Scrum or Flaccid Agile? In the beginning, Scrum teams are moving along fast. They are doing most of what they say they will do in a Sprint and churning out code like a virtual code factory. As time goes on, they may start to get […]
Quite simply, Osmotic Communication is the accidental overhearing of background information that may later end up being important. The term was coined by Alistair Cockburn, one of the signers of the Agile Manifesto. “Osmotic communication means that information flows into the background hearing of members of the team, […]
The Scrum Master is one of three recognized roles in Scrum. They are the servant-leader for the Scrum team, which means they serve the team by working to provide what the team needs to complete their job. This could be working to make sure they have the right […]
The answer is yes you should hold a kick-off meeting. But why? The kick-off meeting gives everyone a chance to get together (team members, stakeholders, customers, etc.) and discuss the project. You can make sure everyone is informed of their expected role in the project It gives you […]
I had considered the Professional Scrum Master exam for a while before finally taking it. When I did finally decide to go for it, it was 3 days of studying and then a test. My job at the time opened up their own internal Scrum Master certification (for […]
That often depends on who you ask. Some will say it is the Scrum Master. Some will insist it is the Product Owner. Some people will insist there isn’t one – technically, by name only, there isn’t one. But I am here to tell you that A) There […]
There is a claim among people that Agile teams are leaderless. The claim can sound reasonable on the surface, with all the talk about self-organizing teams and a lack of defined roles… But it is wrong for several reasons: Self-organizing does not mean leaderless Agile is not a […]
I never really cared for certifications. You pay a bunch of money to take a test, and then you get a piece of paper or a PDF file. I already have pieces of paper, much more expensive pieces of paper. I came to a conclusion, though, that much […]
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