Statement: Dev Manager “We have a lot of work for this Sprint, so we are going with a 4-week Sprint instead of a 2-week Sprint.” Anti-pattern: The Variable Sprint Duration. Problem: Variable Sprint durations disrupt the rhythm of the team. Recommendation: Determine the amount of work to take on based on the Sprint duration instead of…
On September 30, Fadi Stephan attended AgileDC in Washington DC and presented Building High Performing Teams. Below are some of the resources mentioned in the talk: Building High-Performing Team Slides High Performing Teams Canvas To learn more about how to build high-performing teams, check out the Building High Performing Teams Workshop.
Abstract: Most organizations and teams use Scrum to build better products. They understand the benefits that Scrum provides from a product development perspective in terms of faster time to market, reduced risk, increased visibility, improved adaptability, and increased customer satisfaction. Few, however, understand or know how to use Scrum to build better teams. Come to this…
On June 6-7, Fadi Stephan attended the Regional Scrum Gathering in Ghent and presented 6 Tips for Effective Product Backlog Refinement. Below are some of the resources mentioned in the talk: 6 Tips For Effective Product Backlog Refinement Slides 6 Tips For Effective Product Backlog Refinement Blog 13 Patterns For Splitting User Stories The Product Backlog…
At the 2024 Global Scrum Gathering in New Orleans, Fadi Stephan presented on integrating UX work on Scrum teams. Below is the abstract of the talk, along with the presentation slides. Abstract: Many UX designers struggle to work within a Scrum environment and see Scrum as a framework mainly for programmers. Working in time-boxed Sprints and…
Use the High Performing Team Canvas as a template to help you take your teams to higher performance levels. Goals: Establish long term goals and short term goals to ensure teams have a shared sense of purpose and are aligned towards a common objective. A high performing team works collaboratively together towards a common goal or…
Over the past 100 years, management trends have evolved as building products and managing people became more and more complex. Below is a brief history of major trends that shaped todays organizations. Scientific Management – Taylorism & Fordism – 1910s Most of today’s management practices have their roots in the early 1900s with the principles of…
Depending on the situation and the context, a Scrum Master might switch stances between teaching, mentoring, coaching, and facilitation. These are some of the stances a Scrum Master might take and below is a brief description of the difference between them: Teaching Teaching is about knowledge sharing. A Scrum Master has some knowledge to share with…
Leaders today are dealing with a VUCA world where the business climate is constantly and rapidly changing. A climate where the barrier of entry has been diminished due to advances in tech, automation, and artificial intelligence. An environment where customers find it increasingly easy to adopt new tech and new products. All this while facing increased…
A Sprint Goal should be outcome-oriented, collaborative, and singular. The whole Scrum team should create the Sprint Goal during Sprint Planning and the goal should be debatable and open to discussion until the team finalizes it by the end of Sprint Planning. Initial Sprint Goal discussions are held in the Sprint Review with the stakeholders based…
At the 2023 Global Scrum Gathering in Amsterdam, Fadi Stephan presented on the Self-Organizing Team Canvas. Below is the abstract of the talk, along with the presentation slides and a blog post related to the presentation. Abstract: One of the 12 principles of the Agile Manifesto states that “The best architecture, requirements, and designs emerge from…
On October 10-12, 2023, Fadi Stephan presented at the Global Scrum Gathering in Amsterdam on The Self Organizing Team Canvas. Below are some of the resources mentioned in the talk: The Self Organizing Team Canvas Presentation Slides How to use the Self Organizing Team Canvas Download The Self Organizing Team Canvas Additional Templates and The Scrum…
Every Sprint in Scrum should have a Sprint Goal that results in a Product Increment that is a stepping stone towards accomplishing a longer-term Product Goal and vision. A team should not be working on random things in a Sprint, but rather on a cohesive set of items that deliver value to the customer. What is…
Scrum is a Nutshell is an introduction to Scrum fundamentals covering Scrum theory, accountabilities, events, and artifacts. The series meets the Scrum Alliance® Scrum Foundations learning objectives below: Scrum Theory 1.1. describe how Scrum is aligned with the values and principles of the Manifesto for Agile SoftwareDevelopment.1.2. define Scrum and describe its purpose.1.3. list the five…
Waterfall development is a popular phased approach to product development and typically involves 5 stages of requirements gathering, design, development or coding, testing, and delivery or deployment. 5 Stages of Waterfall Development Let's use an example of building house: Requirements is when you sit with the architect and tell the architect what kind of house you…