Troubleshooting Agile

Create, nurture, and increase empathy with all your customers, even the ones you didn't know you had! Inspired by Gojko Adzic and his new book Lizard Optimisation, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss how you can do just that, on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Gojko’s book, Lizard Optimisation: https://www.amazon.com/Lizard-Optimization-Product-Engaging-Long-Tail/dp/0993088171 - Kahneman...

The products you have today could be 5x more profitable if you found out how customers really use them and tuned accordingly, says Gojko Adzic - and we’re inclined to agree! Find out how to do it on this episode ofTroubleshooting Agile your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey. Links: - Gojko’s book, Lizard Optimisation: https://www.amazon.com/Lizard-Optimization-Product-Engaging-Long-Tail/dp/0993088171 -...

Junior coders aren't going to be purged, but trained, just like we taught ditch-diggers to drive excavators. Find out why Squirrel thinks Steve Yegge is wrong, on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: Enterprise Technology Leadership Summit: https://itrevolution.com/product/enterprise-technology-leadership-summit-las-vegas-2024/ - Steve Yegge's talk at ETLS: article https://sourcegraph.com...

Being radically transparent by reporting progress daily has surprisingly positive effects. Learn how and why to do daily flashes in this episode of Troubleshooting Agile with your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey. Links: - PPP reporting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progress,_plans,_problems - Wienberg, Becoming a Technical Leader: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/714344.Becoming_a_Technical_Leader...

The most obnoxious person in your team may in fact be saving your bacon. Discover why and how to encourage "disagreeable givers" in this episode of Troubleshooting Agile with your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey. Links: - Givers and Takers from Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2013/04/in-the-company-of-givers-and-takers - Disagreeable Givers: https://www.inc.com/laura-montini/the-most-underval...

Talk louder, set limits on your generosity, and learn to disappoint people helpfully. On this episode, Squirrel and Jeffery offer advice inspired by Adam Grant on giving and taking in your organisation. Links: - Adam Grant on giving and taking: https://hbr.org/2013/04/in-the-company-of-givers-and-takers -------------------------------------------------- You'll find free videos and practice materia...

Boost team results by measuring carefully and using consistent methods to move toward your goal–with “the Coaching Kata”. In part three of this mini series, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss quality and delivery the Toyota Way. Links: - Toyota Kata: https://public.websites.umich.edu/~jmondisa/TK/Homepage.html - Gemba: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemba Other relevant episodes: - https://soundcloud.com...

Boost team results by measuring carefully and using consistent methods to move toward your goal–with “the Improvement Kata”. In part two of our Toyota Kata series, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss quality and delivery the Toyota Way. Links: - Toyota Kata: https://public.websites.umich.edu/~jmondisa/TK/Homepage.html - Gemba: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemba Other relevant episodes: https://soundclou...

Boost team results by measuring carefully and using consistent methods to move toward your goal–with “scientific thinking”. In part one of this mini series, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss quality and delivery the Toyota Way. Links: - Toyota Kata: https://public.websites.umich.edu/~jmondisa/TK/Homepage.html - Gemba: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemba Other relevant episodes: https://soundcloud.com/t...

Too ashamed of your outdated tech to ask for help with it or touch the ancient code? 70s heartthrob Barry Manilow has the cure for your "technical shame" - Squirrel and Jeffrey explain why on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Barry Manilow Effect paper: https://www.psychologyib.com/uploads/1/1/7/5/11758934/the_spotlight_effect_-_ib_psychology.pdf -------------------------------------...

Stop trying to control what your software does! Instead, invite surprising answers from users that lead to amazing product innovations. This episode of Troubleshooting Agile features a lesson from 18th-century Spain via Elan Ullendorf. Links: - 500 maps article by Elan Ullendorff: https://escapethealgorithm.substack.com/p/should-this-be-a-map-or-500-maps - Wardley Mapping: https://en.wikipedia.org...

Being puzzled is the first step to genuine questions and real learning. Join your hosts Squirrel and Jeffrey to discover why execs like you need more “aporia” to understand your teams and lead them effectively, on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Aporia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aporia - Derrida: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Derrida - Dave Snowden's talk: https://gist....

You’re allowed to do much more than you think, including working outside your team, disappointing others (helpfully), or learning things that aren’t on your business card. On this episode, we continue our theme of agency with inspiring ideas from a listener email. Links: - Things You're Allowed to Do: https://milan.cvitkovic.net/writing/things_youre_allowed_to_do/ - Stone Soup: https://agileconver...

Successful experiments with negative results are a vital part of learning to have agency. Discover how to fail for success on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile with our guest. Sammy Hath: Links: - https://hath.blog/posts/hire/ - https://hath.blog/posts/cultivating-destroying-agency/ - Failing for Success: https://failingforsuccess.substack.com - Taleb’s Antifragile book: https://en.wikipedia.o...

"Agency" "empowerment" "accountability" can be empty promises to your tech team, or real skills you can learn. In this episode, Squirrel and Jeffrey are joined by “competent minion” Sammy Hath to discuss how to solve difficult problems. Links: - https://hath.blog/posts/hire/ - https://hath.blog/posts/cultivating-destroying-agency/ - Message to Garcia episode: https://soundcloud.com/troubleshooting...

Fast feedback to executives on whether executing the HiPPO (Highest Paid Person's Opinion) actually made your software more profitable. Get answers on how and why "prediction markets" speed up learning, on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, with Douglas Squirrel and Jeffrey Fredrick. Links: - Manifest prediction markets conference: https://www.manifest.is/ - Previous episode on predictions and...

Frequent repetition and practice doesn't constitute micromanagement, if done well: it reinforces accountability and alignment. Tune in to this episode of Troubleshooting Agile to find out how and why you and your tech team need daily rehearsal and feedback, with your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey. Links: - Toyota Kata Practice Guide: https://theleanthinker.com/2017/12/21/mike-rother-the-toyota-kata-...

Getting users to love your product isn't enough. Somebody needs to give you rectangular pictures of kings and presidents in exchange for it. Join your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey for product pitfalls and how to avoid them, on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Squirrel's tweet: https://twitter.com/douglassquirrel/status/1791438669070426526 - Rectangular pictures of the king: https://w...

If you or your tech leaders are exhausted from tracking an overwhelming number of individual tickets, features, or products, you're gardening when you should be farming. On this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey give their insights on how to manage whole "flocks" of engineers and customers. Links: - Briefing and Back Briefing : https://soundcloud.com/troubleshootingagile/brief...

You've never been in a plane crash because accident investigations are blameless, but do you know how to run a blame-free postmortem? Timelines, timeboxes, and more ways to learn from disasters before they happen, when you join Squirrel and Jeffrey on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Airline Safety article - https://asteriskmag.com/issues/05/why-you-ve-never-been-in-a-plane-crash -...

When disaster looms and results are immediate, joint design really shines by driving informed, prompt, unpopular decisions. Learn how to keep your decision process when all about you are losing theirs, with your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey, Links: - Horowitz on wartime vs peacetime: https://a16z.com/peacetime-ceo-wartime-ceo/ - Squirrel decisiveness story: https://twitter.com/douglassquirrel/statu...

Is your timid tech team constantly seeking direction and second-guessing themselves? Improvement is possible - if you create frequent accountability. Discover how your team can get a "message to Garcia", by tuning in this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Patrick McKenzie tweet: https://twitter.com/patio11/status/1781424185094402558 - Sammy (Patrick's EA) on agency: https://hath.blog/post...

The Imperial Japanese Navy and Borland Software made the same strategic mistake: testing hypotheses but ignoring negative results. Join your hosts, Squirrel and Jeffrey to discover what they missed and how you can make falsification work for you on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Shattered Sword: http://www.shatteredswordbook.com/ - Borland: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borland -...

Do you have an "Eeyore" in your technology team, for whom it's all thorns and no roses? Can you help them to be more Tigger.. and would you even want to? Join Squirrel and Jeffrey as they discuss pessimism and burnout on this episode of Troubleshooting Agile. Links: - Eeyore & Tigger: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Winnie-the-Pooh_characters - Previous episode on burnout: https://agileconve...

Mistakes are only obvious looking backwards, looking forwards, they seem like good ideas. On this episode of Troubleshooting Agile, Squirrel and Jeffrey discuss why they encourage meaningful errors that lead to learning and how a negative result is a sign of a successful experiment. Links: - Retrospective Coherence: https://www.chriscorrigan.com/parkinglot/retrospective-coherence-and-the-road-not-...