Our guest, Troy Magennis, has been described as a national resource in the Agile community. He’s a published author and frequent speaker on forecasting and modeling Agile projects. Today, Troy joins us to discuss how many of the metrics the Agile industry uses actually prevent companies from achieving the change they so desperately desire. Together, we’ll explore some ways the industry gets metrics and forecasting right and where it tends to go wrong. And Troy offers a ton of insight on how you can begin thinking about the work differently to release more value more rapidly more often. Liste ..read more

When organizations set out to adopt Agile, they always have a business reason. It’s never just because they really love Scrum, or SAFe, or LeSS. But when the teams start doing all the Agile things, and they’re met with resistance from the organization around them, it’s hard to point to success because not much changed. So, we start defining success as “do the roles and ceremonies exist and are we following all the Agile dogma.” That’s a poor definition of success, and we have to get better at changing the organization around the teams. But that’s a different problem altogether. To do that, w ..read more

Today, the market for Transformation is a transition period. We see some companies looking for the next big thing, and others going back to what they know. Is this a sign that Agile is waning? Is it evolving? Or is Agile so deeply engrained in the way business gets done, people have just started calling it something else to deny the fact they just aren’t very good at it? Mike Cottmeyer and Dave Prior sit down to discuss this interesting moment in time for our industry and more in this episode of SoundNotes. Want to Listen Instead? LeadingAgile · The Future of Agile Transformation and Change ..read more

Agile practices don’t automatically lead to Business Agility. In the presence of dependencies and organizational impediments that the teams have no ability to change, going through the motions of Scrum or SAFe isn’t going to lead to greater Business Agility either. So, you can train the teams all you want, but if it doesn’t lead to greater Agility, who cares? Listen as Mike Cottmeyer and Dave Prior discuss some common misconceptions about Agile Transformation, how training often leaves businesses wanting more, and some things to consider if you’re thinking about starting an Agile Journey of ..read more

People have debated whether or not SAFe is Agile for as long as it’s been around. LeadingAgile CEO, Mike Cottmeyer, joins Dave on this episode of SoundNotes to explore the roots of small team Agile and to discuss how SAFe stacks up against the ideals of the Agile Manifesto. Want to Listen Instead? LeadingAgile · Unpacking The SAFe Debate. Is It Agile Or Something Else? Contacting Mike Cottmeyer If you’d like to contact Mike, you can reach him at: LeadingAgile: https://www.leadingagile.com/guides/mike-cottmeyer LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cottmeyer/ Twitter: https ..read more

There’s a layer to communication that is most important for understanding: intention. It’s the most often overlooked aspect because it’s hard to decipher if people are saying what they mean or if you actually understand what they’re saying. By hunting for a shared understanding of intention, you can more deeply understand what people are saying and why. If you aren’t aligning on intent, you could be missing the mark, which can be detrimental, especially in a business environment. In this episode of SoundNotes, Dave and Mike explore how improving communication can translate into an Agile work ..read more

During Transformation, we need a way to measure its performance and improvements to the organization so that leaders continue to support the initiative. Metrics need to be used to help teams get better over time and drive the right kinds of outcomes that leadership is looking for. In this episode, Mike Cottmeyer shares his insights into different Agile metrics and what are the right ones that give leaders what they need to make the necessary changes to the system and improve overall performance. Want to listen only? Here’s the audio: Contacting Mike Cottmeyer If you’d like to contact Mike y ..read more

In this episode of SoundNotes, Len Greski joins Dave to discuss leadership and emotional systems. Len is a Principal Consultant at LeadingAgile and he has a background in sociology. As Len explains, “The most difficult challenge in delivering great products is getting people to work together.” During the interview, we explore emotional systems theory and how that can be applied within our organizations and teams to create sustainable change and deliver great products. The Bowen Family Systems Theory was developed by Dr. Murray Bowen. It is rooted in taking a systems view in studying families ..read more

Agile Transformation is more than just installing Agile processes or Agile principles. It’s more than simply training your team on Agile methodology. But if that’s the case, then what is the actual path to becoming an Agile organization?  You must create the conditions where Agile processes can be deployed and exploited for better outcomes than you had before—so you can get more value, better ROI, more predictability, and more. But to create this foundation, you need a way to move the organization incrementally and iteratively through Transformation that operates with certain characteri ..read more

This week on SoundNotes our Founder and CEO, Mike Cottmeyer, joins Dave to discuss why simply showing up and having the answer for the customer is not enough. During this conversation, Mike explains the process he follows when engaging with clients to ensure he is truly hearing them and understanding the way they see the problem, and how that begins a series of steps that enables him to work with the client to find the best solution for them. If you are involved with introducing change in an organization, especially from a consulting standpoint, this interview is a must. Contacting Mike Cot ..read more