As a Product Owner, I start each day by asking myself, "How can I best serve the team today?" The PO and Scrum Master's roles as servant leaders is not news. The challenge for the PO is translating this mindset into actions. It is all about mastering the cadence of product ownership. Assuming that a … Continue reading Product Ownership – How Can I Best Serve the Team Today?
Author: Alec Hardy
Backlog Grooming: Scrum’s Red Headed Stepchild
Backlog grooming differentiates good scrum teams from ones that are just scraping by. Viewed by some people as optional, there is often a temptation to skip it in favor of remaining focused on the current sprint. Experienced teams understand that backlog grooming can have an impact not just on the next sprint planning meeting but … Continue reading Backlog Grooming: Scrum’s Red Headed Stepchild
User Stories – What’s in a Name?
The team was eager to launch into their first release planning exercise. Wisely, the Scrum Master and Product Owner (PO) did not hand the team a list of already-written user stories. They knew that while it would take the team a little more time to identify and write the basics of each story, it would … Continue reading User Stories – What’s in a Name?
The Heartbeat of an Agile Team
What is the one focal point that catches every team member’s attention at the same time every day? Of course it is their Scrum board. Some teams go through the motions and use their Scrum board because they are told to; for effective teams the board is a way to collaborate, manage work in process, … Continue reading The Heartbeat of an Agile Team
Does Agile Make Business Analysts Obsolete?
One of the most challenging aspects of adopting agile is requirements gathering and definition. The challenge is not because agile has complex methods for describing requirements, rather quite the opposite. Agile methods such as writing a user story on an index card and then relying on conversations between developers, product owners, and users to carry … Continue reading Does Agile Make Business Analysts Obsolete?
Bring the Work to the Teams
As new high-priority features surface on a large program it can be tempting to give in to demands from stakeholders to assemble a team of the best people from the existing Scrum teams to build those features. Typically someone will suggest plucking the best people from the various Scrum teams and forming a task force. If … Continue reading Bring the Work to the Teams
Evolving Team Structures Through the Product Development Lifecycle
One of the most fascinating management challenges is determining the best structure for Scrum teams based on the stage of the project. This does not mean the major waterfall phases like Analysis, Design, Construction, etc. When developing software for use by customers (especially niche SAAS products) and there is some level of customization or specific … Continue reading Evolving Team Structures Through the Product Development Lifecycle
