Obeyas and Agile in Film Making with Dan Eberle

Dan Eberle is back! This time in the podcast Dan is here to talk about his work as a filmmaker. The interview focuses on the Obeya he and his team use during production and how his work as an agile coach influences his work making films. 

If the term "Obeya" seems unfamiliar...

"Conceptually akin to traditional “war rooms,” an Obeya will contain visually engaging charts and graphs depicting such information as program timing, milestones and progress-to-date and countermeasures to existing technical or scheduling issues."
(Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obeya)

The podcast was recorded in video because Dan shows examples of his work. You can find the podcast here: https://bit.ly/3SeTmEY

If you'd prefer an audio-only version, that lives here: https://bit.ly/3dGoZIJ

And if you'd like to check out a slide show with pictures of his Obeya and some of the other ways he and his crew visualize their work, you can find that here: https://bit.ly/InsurgentObeya

An Abundance of Opportunity with Chris Li

A student wrote in asking about how to deal with: 

• PO can’t or won’t prioritize the backlog

• Team members are always taking on special side projects in the company

• The team is 35 people spread across several time zones - both on and off-shore

• Everyone is working on new products and also supporting up to 30 applications

• Everyone is expected to be at 100% utilization at all times.

• The Sprints are 4-5 weeks long (the size varies depending on the work to be done)

• One hour is allocated for Sprint Planning

This is a lot to address here so I asked my good friend (and fellow CST) Chris Li to join me to talk through these challenges.

 The video version of the interview can be found here: https://bit.ly/3SgK2jL

An audio version of the podcast can be found here: https://bit.ly/3xwfWkg

Using Agile to Develop Hardware with Michael Grill

This interview with Michael Grill is all about how to use agile to develop hardware. Michael is the Product Owner for the Agile Practice at Knorr-Bremse and he is also the Product Owner for the Development of brake magnets. During our conversation he shares what led his team to want to try agile, some of the experiences they have had, and things they learned in adopting agile practices for their work developing brake magnets. 

If you are trying to find your way with implementing Scrum on a team that focuses on hardware, this is an episode you’ll definitely want to check out

You can find the interview here.

Remote Pairing On The Path To Certified Scrum Trainer

Malene Jacobsen and Mario Melo both became Certified Scrum Trainers during the 2022 Scrum Gathering in Denver this past spring. The story of how they became Certified Scrum Trainers is the focus of our conversation. During the interview, you’ll hear how they worked together and supported one another while preparing for their in-person TAC panels. They were also part of a larger team of people who committed to work together until each of them had become a Certified Scrum Trainer. Their teamwork demonstrates how being separated by multiple time zones does not have to be a hindrance. 

The original video version is here: https://bit.ly/3p8YDB8

An audio-only version is here: https://bit.ly/3BQtZnH

PODCAST TEAM UP! A Couple of Coaches and DrunkenPM on Metrics

Christine Converse and Ross Beurmann, the hosts of the podcast A Couple of Coaches and I teamed up for some interviews.

I interviewed them on Agile Metrics. During the podcast, we discuss what metrics help create clarity for the team on how well they are performing and what metrics help highlight areas that could be improved. We weigh the pros and cons of standard Scrum metrics, Kanban metrics, and share the ones we each find most valuable.  

It was a great conversation and if you are looking for a deeper understanding of what metrics to focus on, there is a lot of good stuff in the podcast.

You can find that interview here.

And they interviewed me for their A Couple of Coaches podcast on what it is like to be part of the Scrum Alliance TAC and what it takes to become a Certified Scrum Trainer. You can find that interview here. I rarely get a chance to be the interviewee and it was a lot of fun. I highly recommend their podcast. They offer some great insights and listening to them banter back and forth is a lot of fun.

Managing Multiple Projects with Elizabeth Harrin

In Elizabeth Harrin’s latest book Managing Multiple Projects: How project managers can balance priorities, manage expectations and increase productivity, she draws on her 20+ years providing training, education, and mentoring in the project management field to take on a problem all of us face. When you have too many projects on your plate, and all of them are high priority, how do you find you get the most important work done without losing yourself in the process? While the book is project management-centric, the tools and skills Harrin offers are applicable not just for career project managers, but anyone who finds themself juggling more projects (work or otherwise) than the hours in the day will accommodate.

You can find the interview here.

Creating Outcome Focused User Stories with Scott Sehlhorst

Scott Sehlhorst joins me for this interview that builds on his recent blog post “How to Make Your Product Special” (https://bit.ly/3AciBBK). We dig into product positioning, why understanding the desired outcome the product is supposed to provide is often the thing fail to understand, and how to start creating User Stories that are focused on those outcomes instead of the output-driven stories most people write.

You can find the interview here: https://bit.ly/3ODw3D1

Kanban Metrics with Troy Lightfoot

Troy Lightfoot joins me to discuss basic differences between Scrum and Kanban, Kanban Metrics and his upcoming classes. The metrics we cover are: WIP, Throughput, Work Item Age, and Cycle Time. We also talk about his upcoming Professional Kanban 1 Certification and Applying Metrics for Predictability classes. 

You can find the interview here:  https://bit.ly/3Qjlczo

Troy’s Upcoming Classes

• Professional Kanban 1 (PK1) Certification June 23-24, 2022 https://bit.ly/3HmV1Ug
• Applying Metrics for Predictability (AMP) Certification July 21-22, 2022 https://bit.ly/3zxZOk2

Distributed Teams and the Five Lenses with Mark Kilby

Distributed Teams are always tough - even for seasoned pros. In this episode of the podcast, Mark Kilby joins me to utilize the Five Lenses of Humane Management to explore some of the wins and challenges from working on a distributed team we are both a part of. 

You can find the podcast here: https://bit.ly/3x7xvY8

The Five Lenses of Humane Management with Jim Benson

Jim Benson is back to explain The Five Lenses of Humane Management and how to use them to understand and design cultures and systems that support human collaboration.

I asked Jim to join me for this podcast because I’ve been studying the lenses and incorporating them into my work for about a year now. They have had a deep impact on me, the way I engage with teams, and the way I show up to collaborate with others. If you are interested in understanding how and why the groups you are working with are high-performing (or perhaps the opposite), you will find valuable insights in this interview.

You can find the interview here.