Agile Kuizu – Beta
By Jeena / Filed under Agile, Scrum / May 6th, 2013
Agile enthusiasts!
Think you know all there is to know about Agile?
Take this small quiz – and see if you are right!
We have compiled a small quiz for you – we call it Agile Kuizu Beta.
What’s Kuizu? Click here and you’ll know.
Follow this blog and be notified whenever we post informational articles / quiz / etc. for you.
Have something interesting to share with us? Go on, we’re listening! agile@conscires.com
What, then, is Agile?
By Jeena / Filed under Agile, Scrum / July 15th, 2012
Agile is not a development process.
Agile is not programming.
Agile is not a hard-and-fast Rule.
Agile does not tell you what to do.
Agile is not an Answer or a Solution.
So what, then, is Agile?
Agile is an approach to work – any kind of work.
Agile is an attitude.
Agile is a feeling.
Agile is a method to work together in a team:
- A way to keep everyone in sync.
- A way to bring out issues into the open, whenever they happen.
- A way to acknowledge when things aren’t going your way.
- A way to correct your direction when you stray – and a way to know when you stray.
- A way to redefine Collaboration.
Agile encourages you to explore and find your solutions – as a team.
Agile recommends transparency at all times, thus creating a bond between the team and the customer.
Agile makes you feel that everyone involved are in it together – for results that bring satisfaction to all.
Unless you experience it, you will not know it.
Interview with Alan Cyment
By Jeena / Filed under Agile, Interview, Scrum, WORK is GOOD / July 5th, 2012
In this week’s interview, we introduce you to Alan Cyment, Certified Scrum Trainer.
Alan, the first native Spanish-speaking CST, loves seeing software development from a human perspective. He strives for honest, passion-driven, great-but-not-perfect emergent design. For software for humans, rather than machines; looking people in the eyes, rather than reading e-mail.
Let’s hear what Alan has to share with us:
What does ‘being Agile’ mean to you?
To me being agile means agreeing that, if this series of statements resonate with you, that means next Monday will be even happier than the previous one:
- Empiricism, not Intellectual Omnipotence
- The Middle Way, not the Extremes
- Unstable equilibrium between Chaos and Limits, Short-term and Long-term thinking, Pragmatism and Idealism
- Low-cost Error is an asset, not a liability
- Complexity when developing products and process can be mastered by Organic Growth
- Trust is the cornerstone of constructive group-work
- Technical Excellence and Minimalism lead to Malleable Products
- Focus allows combining Effort and Relaxation
- Constant Kaizen plus eventual Kaikaku can build an almighty Useful Utopia
- Perfect is the enemy of the Good
- The answer to How is Yes
When and how were you first introduced to Agile and Scrum? What caught your attention?
I first learned about Agile around 2005 when I was working as a RUP (Rational Unified Process) process engineer. There was no connection between the methodology we had designed and what teams actually did in order to succeed. I was initially attracted by its minimalism and the empirical approach to developing both the product and the process.
How do you contribute to spreading awareness about Agile and Scrum?
I fully agree with Bachan Anand: the best way to spread Agile and Scrum is by living and doing them in your daily work, and in life in general.
What are the expectations, in general, of the people who attend your classes? What kind of feedback do you get from them?
Many of the people who attend my classes expect to experience an immersion in the paradigm proposed by Scrum. The promise is to delve into the whys of Scrum. I find that even those who start the class asking for tools and practices leave the room surprised by the powerful effect theatre-based games can have on the way we see our work. Perhaps the most shocking, yet enriching feedback I often get is from people who joyfully decide to quit their jobs after attending the training. After all career-Kaikaku is what I strive for.
Do you see much interest for certified trainings? If yes, why do you think people are looking for certification?
I usually deliver “certified trainings,” which is way different from “certified students.” Many companies and people come looking for the latter, but the Scrum Alliance certifications focus on the former. A CSM course has a certified quality: it’s the trainer who has been certified, not the student’s understanding. Certified quality means “a respectable institution says this course rocks.” As in every ecosystem, when there is an abundance of offers, some people look for some kind of organizational backup.
After becoming a CSM or CSPO, what do you see as the next step for an individual?
I think it depends a lot on the person, so I will tell you what I did: I left the CSM ecstatic, so I decided to do whatever it took to start using Scrum. I quit my job, asked trainers if I can work as their assistant, and looked for a workplace where I would have the necessary freedom to experiment with the framework’s practices and values.
I wish the Scrum Alliance would offer a wide array of training options according to the career path the individual chooses. Maybe the CSD certification is a step in that direction, but I would like it if there was a parallel ScrumMaster and Product Owner learning track, with focus on facilitation and product development respectively.
What, in your opinion, are the best things about Agile?
The exquisite blend of freedom, discipline, playfulness, excellence and common sense you see in a great implementation.
Are there any drawbacks to Agile, in your perception?
I would talk more about weaknesses than drawbacks. To me the biggest risk when doing Agile is focusing too much on the short-term. Extremes, as in life, are dangerous: agility seems like a counter reaction to the drastic emphasis that waterfall puts on long-term.
Do you think it is a good idea to implement Agile and Scrum in non-IT teams?
Of course, as long as the work entails developing a complex product that can be malleable enough for iterations to be low-cost.
How long have you been working with Conscires, and how do you find the experience?
From the moment I met Bachan I knew that that rapport meant I would feel at home working with this company. After more than a year I can say my hunch was right.
Any other interesting thoughts/ideas that you wish to share with us…?
Yes, I think Shu-Ha-Ri should be considered harmful, but let’s postpone that discussion. 
Thanks, Alan!
Know more about Alan Cyment
Follow Alan on Twitter
Read all the interviews with Agile trainers, coaches and experts.
Interview with Carlton Nettleton
By Jeena / Filed under Agile, Interview, Scrum, WORK is GOOD / June 25th, 2012
This week in our series of interviews, let’s meet Carlton Nettleton, a Scrum and Agile software development expert based in San Diego.
As President of Look Forward Consulting, Carlton shares his ten years of practical Agile experience consulting and mentoring teams on how to increase quality, build high- performing teams and improve performance using Scrum. Carlton is a Certified Scrum Trainer® and has been practicing Scrum since 2005. He has coached teams in organizations from small start-ups to FDA regulated companies.
Click here to read all the interviews with Agile trainers and experts.
Carlton speaks to us about his experiences with Agile and Scrum, his views on certified trainings, and much more.
About ‘being Agile’ …
To me, Agile is a state-of-mind and way of thinking. My background prior to software was in science, so I find the Agile idea of devising a hypothesis for change, creating an experiment to prove (or disprove) your hypothesis and checking the results very appealing.
About being introduced to Agile and Scrum…
I was first introduced to the world of Agile by a colleague who lent me Kent Beck’s book, Extreme Programming Explained – 1st Edition (aka the “white” book). I was very new to software development and Kent’s ideas of having automated tests that you could run whenever you wanted appealed to the scientist in me. I first learned about Scrum via the Internet and attended a Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) course taught by Ken Schwaber in 2005. I was hooked on Scrum ever since.
Spreading awareness about Agile and Scrum…
I formed Agile San Diego ten years ago to promote the ideas of Agile and Scrum in San Diego County. I have been speaking regularly at conferences and usergroups for nearly eight years on the topic of Agile and Scrum. I have written a short book on Scrum, Fourteen Observations of Good Scrum Practice, that you can buy on amazon.com or download from my website. The book has been translated into Spanish.
About feedback from attendees of your class…
Most people are expecting a really dull class where I talk at them for two days. In the first moments of the class, I turn their perceptions around by engaging them in an interactive learning experience that uses Scrum to teach Scrum. My main goal in any course is to engage every learner, turn them into active participants and leverage their personal and professional experience to amplify their understanding of the material I am sharing with them. Often I hear from many learners that my course was the best learning experience in their career. That is cool.
About certified trainings…
Many people attending certified classes are looking for a certification to advance their careers and/or improve their worth in the job market. Other people are using the certified classes to ensure a certain level of quality with a course. I would say about 50% of the people come to certified classes just for the certification, but they leave with a new perspective on Scrum.
What next, after becoming a CSM or CSPO?
Get some experience! As I explain to all the participants in my courses, the best way to learn about these ideas is to put them to work. The more opportunities you have to try out ideas and see the results, the more powerful your understanding of Scrum will become. The next thing I suggest to the learners is to do some reading. There is so much we cannot cover in a two-day course that it is the responsibility of each learner to continue their education through self-study.
The best thing about Agile is…
That you do not have to know everything up-front and be omniscient! Agile allows you to iterate on a solution and learn as you go. I also believe the Agile movement has allowed us to humanize the workplace, to talk about our passions, what types of things we motivate us and ultimately make the workplace more meaningful for the people who do the work.
About drawbacks to Agile…
I consider this a strength, not a drawback, that Agile relies on the people to succeed. Without motivated and inspired people, Agile will not succeed. However, you can’t succeed with any process, framework or methodology without talented and motivated people.
About implementing Agile and Scrum in non-IT teams…
I believe it is possible to apply the values and principles of Scrum outside of the software world since they are what define Scrum. In my opinion, the challenges lie when applying the practices of Scrum outside of software development. In some domains, the practices of Scrum may not make much sense. One needs to be very thoughtful when using these practices outside the domain where they were created. We need to consider what are the essential values and principles the practice was trying to support and perhaps create new practices more appropriate for the domain.
About working with Conscires…
I have been partnering with Conscires since the end of 2010. I have really enjoyed working with the Conscires team. The quality of the people who work at Conscires is very high and I have had some very intellectually stimulating conversations with all the trainers and consultants at Conscires.
Thanks, Carlton!
Contact Carlton:
Email: carlton@lookforwardconsulting.com
Twitter: @carlton858
Web: www.lookforwardconsulting.com
LinkedIn: Carlton Nettleton
Click here for Carlton’s trainings with Conscires.
Click here to read all the interviews.
Interview with Lisa Montaño
By Jeena / Filed under Agile, Interview, Scrum, WORK is GOOD / June 15th, 2012
In the latest of our ongoing series of interviews with Agile experts and trainers, we meet Lisa Montaño, MBA, CSM, CSPO.
Lisa Montaño is based in Southern California and has over 15 years experience in start-up and entrepreneurial companies working as a business analyst and functional lead. Beginning as a Product Owner in 2008, Lisa has continued her Scrum practice as a Scrum Coach and Trainer for Conscires.
Lisa’s passion for Scrum lies in the focus on inspiring teams to deliver exceptional business value and to delight customers through collaboration, trust, and commitment across teams and organizations.
Lisa’s focus and goal at Conscires is to strengthen and enable Scrum teams through coaching and consulting, and to develop and support the South Orange County Scrum community with Pay It Forward forums on Scrum basics, ongoing topical series, and open space events.
Let’s hear what Lisa has to say:
What does ‘being Agile’ mean to you?
In a broad sense, being Agile means constantly learning from your experiences and others, collaborating, and evolving your team, processes, and your products based on your learning. Being Agile means focusing on delivering quality and value to your customer by building strong, self-organizing teams that participate in creating a shared vision of what they will be creating; stakeholders that commit to being engaged in the process; and an organization that prioritizes business needs and supports the teams with appropriate resources, people, and communications.
When and how were you first introduced to Agile and Scrum? What caught your attention?
I was first introduced to Agile and Scrum in 2008 by a consultant who was implementing an electronic invoicing solution for the company I was with at the time. The first phase of the project was small and there weren’t many people involved, so the Scrum processes we used were informal, but at that time we established the groundwork for future projects by using a backlog, prioritizing, and having reviews every week. As the projects became more complex and more people were involved, we had more discrete Sprints, Reviews, Sprint planning, and Retrospectives.
The most compelling aspect of Scrum was the constant collaboration between the team and business throughout the iterations. I had been involved in many projects where a detailed project plan was created up front, but so many things would change over the course of the project, and maintaining the document for changes became a job of its own. Also, I felt that the collaboration between the team and Product Owner (my role at the time) was so much more likely to deliver the value the customer needs, as well as establishing a mutual respect between the team and the business, rather than treating the team like a factory operation, where they have no opportunity to ask questions or be creative.
How do you contribute to spreading awareness about Agile and Scrum?
I give 1-Day ‘Introduction to Scrum’ trainings 2 or 3 times a month in the Western US, as well as a Product Visioning evening workshop once a month at the Conscires, Irvine office. I also partner with Conscires to offer private training and coaching to clients looking to launch Scrum in their organization, or who are looking for support in an ongoing Agile practice.
What are the expectations, in general, of the people who attend your classes? What kind of feedback do you get from them?
As far as Scrum knowledge and experience, there are no requirements of advance preparation—anyone can attend. I teach my classes using an interactive framework that requires participants to interact with others, collaborate, have courage, respect the ideas and contributions of others, and trust that they’ll be given the same. So I expect everyone to come with an open mind and a willingness to learn so that they can have a full experience of Scrum that they can start using immediately.
One of the best parts of introducing people to Scrum using the training methodology we practice is that it involves learning on many dynamic levels including visual, audio, physical, and emotional. There are many people who attend trainings because they have been told to attend by their manager, and their verbal and non-verbal communication demonstrate their resistance to participate actively.
The very best feeling is at the end of the training, when some of these folks have completely changed in their demeanor and attitude toward Scrum, if not only to be open to how they might apply the concepts and principles to their organization, but to the possibility that Scrum is a way to achieve their personal and team potential—that is one of the best feelings I have experienced as a trainer.
Do you see much interest for certified trainings? If yes, why do you think people look for certification?
Yes, I see interest in certified trainings. I believe employers are interested in certification because they would like to have resident experts and leaders in their organizations to help deliver a successful Scrum implementation and practice, and more importantly, capable people on their teams that will ensure they deliver the highest business value to their customers, as well as build self-organizing, inspired teams that are empowered and capable of creating quality, innovative products that will be successful in the marketplace.
Individuals are looking for a certification that will equip them to be the leaders employers are seeking, and that will prepare them to meet the challenges of participating in and carrying out the principles and practices of Scrum, and getting the results the organization and team hopes to achieve through their Scrum practice.
After becoming a CSM or CSPO, what do you see as the next step (in terms of growth) for an individual?
Focus on practicing the learning from the certification classes in their workplace and lives, and get involved in the Scrum community to keep current on Agile and Scrum topics so that your team and organization have the benefit of the knowledge and experience of the Scrum/Agile community at large.
What, in your opinion, are the best things about Agile?
Agile practiced well has the potential to bring out the best in organizations and teams through focusing the business on what is the most important need, and sharing in that vision with teams. By having a shared vision, teams are inspired create innovative, lasting products that have the power to disrupt markets and change the landscape not only of their industry and discipline, but of the world of work.
Are there any drawbacks to Agile, in your perception?
At this phase of Agile adoption across organizations, the main drawback is not so much of Agile itself, but the perception that “Agile” is a silver bullet that can produce results under any circumstances, without doing the hard work of aligning your organization, providing a clear vision, and encouraging collaboration. Agile is not easy to implement, and it is not about placing a band-aid on deep organizational impediments. To me, Agile is about empowering people to do their best work, to fulfill their potential.
Agile is not one-size-fits-all. Organizations need to understand the principles and tools that Agile has to offer, evaluate how best to apply these principles and tools to their situations, and to be honest, persistent, and committed to making real changes in their organizations in order to truly reap the benefits that Agile has to offer.
Do you think it is a good idea to implement Scrum in non-IT teams?
Absolutely! The principles and concepts of Scrum are not dictated for a certain organizational profile. Agile and Scrum are about empowering and developing organizations, and building great products. The teams have the knowledge and wisdom about how to implement the principles for their organizations.
How do you find the experience of working with Conscires, and doing the Pay-it-forward training programs?
Offering something of value, in a way that is accessible to anyone who is interested, regardless of their ability to pay, is a gift to me to participate in, and a pleasure. The gift to me comes in the form of relationships and learning from the participants and their experiences. I have been able to collaborate with a few people who have been in my classes on training and developing ideas for trainings. I have also been invited to do private trainings for some participants in the public classes. These are gifts to me.
Participants offer their experience and knowledge to make the classes an exceptional learning experience for everyone. The workplace is changing so much these days, and people are compelled to keep up with new ways of working and delivering value; all this is required in such difficult (if slowly improving) economic times. I believe that the principles of Scrum and Agile will contribute to a more balanced, value-driven, and quality work environment and marketplace. The idea that we can provide a value to individuals who will be able to add Scrum to their toolbox in their current or future job, as well as build a foundation for higher quality for “work” in general, is very rewarding.
Do tell us what inspires you…
I am very excited about the intersection between business and technology. No longer is technology an inaccessible area separate from other aspects of business, or our personal lives, for that matter. Technology has become integral to so many aspects of business – it has become the enabler of business – and every business these days is a technology business. The reality of technology in our daily lives is driving the integration of technology and business, which is causing a paradigm shift in organizations to depend more on more on collaboration across organizations and teams, self-organization, and strong visions that inspire teams, create meaning for individuals, and result in lasting changes and quality products that delight customers.
I have been inspired by some wonderful authors and thinkers including Max DePree, who wrote “Leadership is an Art”, Jim and Michele McCarthy, who wrote “Software for Your Head” about Visioning, and “Switch” by Chip and Dan Heath, about change.
Thank you, Lisa!
Contact Lisa Montaño or connect with her on Linkedin.
Check out Lisa’s trainings.
Click here to read all the interviews.
