I’ve previously had a poke at the Scrum Product Owner role when I called it Scrum’s Uber-Pig. Now I have to admit that, although I always work with a “Product Owner”, I never work with a “Scrum Product Owner”. In fact, given my own responsibilities, I can never work with a Scrum Product Owner.
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Tag Archives: focus
ERIC Grid – Blue Ocean Strategy for Departmental Transformation
It is always interesting to see how other people approach a task that in other circumstances I would be doing. So I was quite interested to see the ERIC Grid used to shape a transformation initiative.
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3 Million Pound Budget Cut! Don’t Panic and Go Look for Help
When dealing with major crisis, like the 3 million pound budget cut I faced once, the first you have you have to remember is: Don’t panic, you are not alone.
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I always work with a Technical Lead. Always
They might be called an Architect or a Tech Lead or just “Bob” but I always work closely with a senior technical person.
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Got a WBS for your Agile project? Sure, of course!
What do I do when somebody asks for a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) on an Agile project? Should I run for the hills or should I explain that a WBS is built in?
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The Conductor of an Orchestra Doesn’t Make a Sound
Benjamin Zander observed that “the conductor of an orchestra doesn’t make a sound”. This has implications for all leaders, including those in software development.
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Scrum Product Owner: Scrum’s Uber-Pig
I couldn’t help it, I had to draw a parallel between Scrum and Animal Farm. The Final Commandment given by the pigs in the Animal Farm is “All animals are equal, but some animals [the pigs] are more equal than others“. And in Scrum the Uber-Pig is the Product Owner.
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Example of Day to Day Governance on an Agile Programme
You’d think I couldn’t win. Senior corporate managers are nervous that I am doing unconventional agile stuff, without those reassuring Gantt charts or status reports and hardly any formal minutes. Agilists are horrified that I advocate Agile Governance.
This conflict isn’t impossible it is just one of many places where I can demonstrate that Agile practices aid traditional processes/goals. In this case programme/project governance. I start from the position that governance is not contrary to Agile, it is built in. Rather than less governance my Agile programme actually has more governance than is the norm and is is safer as a consequence. Given this position is fairly controversial I thought I’d explain how I go about governance at the moment. I’ll give you a clue – there is a lot of talking.
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Does a Scrum Team need a Project Manager?
I’ve said not to bother project managing a team of one. But what about a bigger team? What about a Scrum team?
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None the wiser after the stand up? Wrong stand up or chance to learn
Kim Daubney asked “What to do when stand ups leave you none the wiser”? What you do really depends on why you are “none the wiser”. Do you have a knowledge gap or is the wrong information being shared?
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