Arguing Agile: Product Management, Business Leadership, & Org Design

Today, we're joined by Product Lead Tricia Barnes and our favorite Scrum Master Surprise Mystery Guest to talk about red flags to watch out for when interviewing for roles on agile teams. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:14 No Scrum Peers in the Interview 1:59 When Product "Runs Things" 3:19 First Scrum Master Hire 6:07 Being "Methodology Agnostic" 7:36 Putting the Interviewer to Work 1...

There's a line in the Agile Manifesto: "Customer collaboration over contract negotiation." This episode will help familiarize you with contracts because contracts are not just something that should be "done by somebody else." 0:00 Topic Intro 0:45 Master Service Agreements 3:13 Three Agreements Types 7:09 Time & Materials 8:58 Fixed Price Contracts & Agile 12:52 Bo...

On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel read through and discuss a recent article authored by a (clearly burnt-out) Product Manager. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:28 Reading the Post 3:38 Meaningless Work 8:42 Building the Wrong Thing (aka. Failure) 10:32 Building the Wrong Thing, Continued 13:33 Blame Game 17:28 Burn-out or Failure to Coach? 20:38 Culture Eats Stra...

You've been either hired or promoted as a new Product Manager or Owner. Congratulations! What should you do next? What might you expect? What can you do to ensure success? On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk about what it's like to be a new Product Owner or Product Manager. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:35 Why/What 3:59 Starting with Why 6:16 Star...

Let's talk about deadlines! Why do people say that agile doesn't do deadlines? Why do people commit to dates without engaging the team? Finally, what are better ways to handle deadlines? On this episode, join Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel as they talk through deadlines. 0:00 Intro 0:22 Why Deadlines 1:33 Agile Can't Do Deadlines 5:02 Committing wh...

Have you ever been asked to invite someone outside of the Scrum Team to one or more of the Scrum Team's Events? On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel go event by event to talk about when it is right to invite stakeholders to your Scrum Events, and when it is "not right!" 0:00 Topic Intro 0:20 Daily Scrum, by the Book 2:48 Daily Scrum, the...

How many times have you heard "agile doesn't work here?" On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk through the typical reasons (some legitimate, some excuses) for the statement "agile doesn't work here." 0:00 Topic Intro 0:53 Two Common Issues 5:11 Ego and/or Fear 6:51 Leading with Vision 11:07 Fear of Failure 14:31 Instit...

"What does a Scrum Master do all day?" If you are in an organization where you hear this question, you are aware that people are failing to realize that one third of the Scrum Master's responsibilities are about coaching the organization. On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk about how a Scrum Master spends their day coaching the org...

Outside of the daily scrum, what does a Scrum Master do all day? One third of the Scrum Guide's answer to this is "Serves the Product Owner," and that is what this entire episode is about! Join Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson with Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel to talk about how a Scrum Master spends their day serving the product...

Outside of the daily scrum, what does a Scrum Master do all day? If you've ever been asked this question - this is the podcast for you! On this episode, Scrum Master Ayo Eyo joins Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel to talk about how Scrum Masters spend their day while serving the team. Special shout out to Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson who ju...

Have you ever been in an organization where psychological safety was ridiculed or derided? On this episode, Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson joins Product Manager Brian Orlando to see if a case can be made against psychological safety. 0:00 Topic Intro 1:47 Unearned Autonomy 6:25 Empowered Teams, but Incentivizing Individuals 11:01 A Shield Against Accountability 14:33 Incentives...

Have you ever been handed a feature to build rather than a problem to solve? Have you ever built a feature touted as the next big thing only to find out that it was never used or needed? On this episode, Senior Scrum Master Ted Wells joins Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel as they talk about building the wrong thing. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:35 Product-Led and Sales-Led O...

In Product Management, does having a Technical Background help or not? On this episode, Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson joins Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel to explore how the background of a Product Manager (or Product Owner) may benefit or hinder. 0:00 Imposter Syndrome 0:35 Start with Why 4:30 Navigating Difficult Situations 8:27 Stormy'...

Is there a difference between a Product Owner and a Product Manager? And if the answer is yes (surprise, it is), what is the difference? On this episode, Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson joins Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel to explore the differences between Product Owners and Product Managers. 0:00 Topic Intro: PO vs PM 0:19 Mike Miller Definiti...

Beyond what is in the Scrum Guide, how do we work with the definition of done? On this episode, Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson joins Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel to explore the definition of done. 0:00 Topic Intro 1:28 Defining Definition of Done 5:14 Breaking DoD 8:44 Contributing and/or Ignoring 13:39 Adapting or Extending the DoD 18:41 Who...

Have you had a bad experience with a certification or certification class? On this episode, Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson discusses her bad experience with the CSPO certification. Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel ask questions and wonder what could be changed within the system to make sure these kinds of things don't happen. 0:00 Topic Intr...

Is Velocity a number that should go up and up, forever? What does it mean when Velocity goes down? On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk about the ups and downs (pun intended) of Velocity. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:43 Should Velocity Perpetually Rise? 3:03 Let's Argue About: Metrics 7:27 Sustainability and Circling the Drain Faster 12:32 Seeking Just...

On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk about Gantt charts. What is a Gantt chart, why do people do them, what purpose do they serve in agile software development, and why they're terrible and you should never do one. 0:00 Introductory Banter 1:00 Topic Intro 2:52 Deciding How We'll Argue 4:05 What is a Gantt Charts and it's History 10...

On this episode, Product Owner and Registered Nurse Stormy Dickson stops by to discuss her journey to Product. Additionally, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel muse on the different ways people find themselves in Product. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:38 Path to Product 3:27 Assumptions 9:04 First Job PM - Things to Watch 13:36 Trying to See the Other Side 18:38 Journey Startin...

On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk through working within the confines of limited or finite resources. 0:00 Topic Intro 0:22 The Problem 2:42 Team Member Sharing 8:11 Architects 13:12 UI/UX 18:22 Testers 25:50 Faux Fixes 33:19 Team Agility Radar 38:37 Centers of Excellence 41:19 Fixes: Understand Vision 47:49 Fixes: Contractors 51:15 Fixes: Dece...

On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel talk about the sticky topic of Agile Coaches and Scrum Masters gatekeeping agility and thereby lowering trust in agile software development theory and practices, all around. 0:00 Topic Intro 1:53 The Post, Part 1 3:46 Arguing the Post 8:37 Supporting Arguments 15:46 Mindset & Psychological Safety 20:57 The Artic...

On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel are joined their favorite Special Mystery Guest to talk about something that most people are bad at - dealing with conflict. 0:00 Topic Intro 1:00 Scaled Retro Example 6:37 One-on-Ones 8:56 Conflict Avoidance 12:42 Saying "No" 18:57 Learning on the Job 23:53 Problematic Coworkers 31:53 Scrum Master Asserti...

On this episode, Product Manager Brian Orlando pitches Enterprise Agile Coach Om Patel on the team optimization suggestions from the book, Team Topologies: Organizing Business and Technology Teams for Fast Flow (2019), by Matthew Skelton and Manuel Pais. Team Topologies Website 0:00 Topic Intro: Team Topologies 1:58 Stream-Aligned Teams 3:50 Why this Book? 7:25 Cognitive Load 12:46 4 Fundamental T...

When we think about unmitigated optimism and unwavering positivity, we think of none other than the unflappable - Joey deVilla! On this episode, we talk about how the great resignation has affected us and how a commitment to personal agility helps people and companies through tough times. 0:00 Intro 0:24 Topic Intro 0:59 Reasons for In-Person Gathering 4:19 Team Bonding, Positive Vibes 8:40 Work,...

Does a perfect Sprint Review agenda exist? On this episode, Brian Orlando and Om Patel ask this very question and try to figure it! Using some original content from one of our favorite Agile Coaches out there, Vibhor Chandel, we review and revise our way toward a Sprint Review agenda that we are excited to try with our teams, and that we hope you'll try with yours. Vibhor Chandel's Origi...