The Practical Agile Blog

Don’t Confuse the Target With the Goal
Don’t Confuse the Target With the Goal

Don't confuse the thing you're measuring or doing with the thing you're actually trying to accomplish. This is an recap of my non-AI Video #3 A few years ago, I was talking with a husband and wife who were visiting Hawaiʻi. At the time, I was doing a lot of executive...

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The Agile Team That Was Free Until Executive Control Took Over
The Agile Team That Was Free Until Executive Control Took Over

I’ve carried this story in my head for years, sharing bits and pieces during trainings, almost like a form of group therapy. But now, I’m putting it all down — in full detail — in the hope that telling it will finally help exorcise this demon once and for all.

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Imposter Syndrome: A 40-Year Journey
Imposter Syndrome: A 40-Year Journey

Looking at my career from the outside, it might seem like I’ve always had everything figured out. I’ve built a successful business, consulted for Fortune 50 companies, and led major initiatives across industries. But here’s the truth: for most of my career, I...

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How Agile are you? Agile Maturity Assessment
How Agile are you? Agile Maturity Assessment

Agile Assessment Access & Pricing For many years, I have offered this Agile assessment for free. Thousands of people have used it, and I’m glad it has been helpful. However, I am no longer able to provide it at no cost, so I’ve introduced a small fee to keep it...

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The Overlooked Agile Topic: Psychological Safety
The Overlooked Agile Topic: Psychological Safety

Psychological safety is an essential aspect of Agile teams that is often overlooked, despite its significant impact on team performance and collaboration. This concept involves creating an environment where team members feel comfortable sharing their ideas, asking...

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The Challenges of Implementing Agile in Business Environments
The Challenges of Implementing Agile in Business Environments

It is worth pondering the reasons behind the failure of some organizations in adopting agile methodologies successfully. Consider the following observations. Organizational Commitment to Cultural Change Primarily, the lack of unequivocal support from management for...

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Waterfall is not always bad
Waterfall is not always bad

#agilecoachingtip Waterfall is not always bad! Some projects are inherently phased-based. One recent example was a vendor selection project that I was asked to assess. It was being mismanaged using Scrum. I could list a hundred different examples like that. Can...

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2020 Scrum Guide Changes and Observations
2020 Scrum Guide Changes and Observations

  The following video addresses my interpretation of the 2020 Scrum Guide changes and their impact both to those currently studying for the PSM I or PSPO I exams and for those who want to understand what these changes mean to their current implementation of...

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Agile Consulting Manifesto
Agile Consulting Manifesto

My Agile Consulting Manifesto. While delivering successful software development projects for over 20 years and seeing the profession that I am so passionate about become damaged by misinformation, framework saturation and a complete loss of credibility, I have come to...

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Who Owns Quality in Agile?
Who Owns Quality in Agile?

In Scrum, the expectation is that the entire Scrum Team owns quality, but what does that really mean? Isn’t the Product Owner only worried about value? Doesn’t the team own all the testing? Don’t they really own quality? Like many other concepts in Agile the answer to...

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What’s next on your Agile journey?
What’s next on your Agile journey?

Hello Agile Adventurer: My son Zach and I hiking in Maine. As an avid hiker, I tend to focus on the journey not so much the destination. The same is true with Agile. All of you are in a different place on your Agile journey. Some of you are well into your Agile...

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How Agile Are You? Free self-assessment.
How Agile Are You? Free self-assessment.

Take our Agile self-assessment by clicking on the button below: When you receive the results of your self-assessment, you can identify our level of Agility on the above Agile maturity matrix.What is an Agile Maturity Model? A model that is...

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Who Owns Quality in Agile?
Who Owns Quality in Agile?

In Scrum, the expectation is that the entire Scrum Team owns quality, but what does that really mean? Isn’t the Product Owner only worried about value? Doesn’t the team own all the testing? Don’t they really own quality? Like many other concepts in Agile the answer to...

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Certifications, Integrity, Values: Where do you stand?
Certifications, Integrity, Values: Where do you stand?

As an Agile Coach and Trainer, I try to stay current with certifications. I don’t believe that these certifications necessarily make someone more effective, but for me, they are a structured way of staying current with industry best practices.

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Do you know where you are going with your Agile implementation?
Do you know where you are going with your Agile implementation?

What every executive needs to know! Over the past decade, I've been involved in more than 20 Agile projects. Whether as a team member, Product Owner, Scrum Master, or Coach, I've had the opportunity to play a role in many successful projects. These days, however, I’m...

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Does your organization need an Agile Coach?
Does your organization need an Agile Coach?

As we love to say when answering many questions pertaining to Agile, “It depends.” Not the answer you want to hear, but let me elaborate. Extreme Programming (XP) introduced the term coach into the Agile community. The role was intended to both be a mentor on XP...

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The Agile Success Algorithm
The Agile Success Algorithm

al·go·rithm algəˌriT͟Həm/ noun 1. a process or set of rules to be followed in calculations or other problem-solving operations Those of you reading this are more than familiar that Agile is all the rage. Executives like to say that their organization is going "Agile"....

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Running an Effective Sprint Planning Meeting
Running an Effective Sprint Planning Meeting

To start with, for a Sprint Planning meeting to be truly Scrum, it adheres to the following guidelines outlined in the Scrum Guide. In summary, for a one month Sprint it has a time-box of 8 hours. It is typically performed on the first day of the Sprint and is...

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Can You be Agile in Your Acquisitions?
Can You be Agile in Your Acquisitions?

Originally Posted Management Concept's Blog: http://blogs.managementconcepts.com/can-you-be-agile-in-your-acquisitions/ This is one of the most common issues facing organization choosing to switch to Agile. Can you acquire goods and services in an Agile fashion? Can...

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