Software Process and Measurement Cast

The SPaMCAST 595 features our interview with Vladimir Khorikov. Vladimir and I geeked out on unit testing and his new book, Unit Testing Principles, Practices, and Patterns. Our conversations covered the gamut with a discussion of writing from first principles, understanding and tuning the signal-to-noise ratio in unit testing, and tests that are better at proving the negative than the positive. V...

The DevOps Online Summit 2020 is an online event for DevOps professionals. We will have interviews with DevOps leaders and Ask Me Anything sessions. So wherever you are in the world you can attend these online sessions. It will start Monday, April 20, 2020, and run through Friday, April 24, 2020. I am looking forward to getting my DevOps geek on and hope to virtually see you at xx to the Summit. C...

The SPaMCAST 594 features our interview with Dennis Lewis. Mr. Lewis, author of Behold the Cryptopreneurs, and I talked about how blockchain and cryptocurrencies are changing all types of software development. Dennis provides great advice for technologists and entrepreneurs that is immediately actionable (without violating social distancing). Dennis is a seasoned digital storyteller and ICO market...

The SPaMCAST 593 features my interview with Scott Crabtree. Happiness at work might sound squishy, but happiness has rigorous science behind it. Simply put, happiness yields better outcomes both in terms of value delivered and our own perception of our value. Scott Crabtree helps people apply science to thrive at work. After earning a degree in cognitive science from Vassar College, he went on to...

The SPaMCAST 592 features my interview with Shelisa Bainbridge. We talked about human-centered design and the impact of design on the development process. This approach is core to understanding what the customer wants in a way that influences every line of code. We also talked about how organizations adopt agile and women in agile. Shelisa is a Senior Business Coach with more than 20 years of expe...

The SPaMCAST 591 is a very special podcast. On the 18th of March, I convened a panel of luminaries to discuss how they were supporting and working with remote teams. I recorded both the audio and video, today I am releasing the audio version. The panel for this show was Jeff Dalton jeff@broadswordsolutions.com Amy McDonough Amy. McDonough@spr.com Sandeep Koorse Sandeep@koorse.com Christopher Hurne...

The SPaMCAST 590 features my interview with Nancy Kastl. Nancy and I discussed testing and the future of the testing profession. The future of testing is not cut and dry; in the short run more automation and in the long-term more codeless testing and AI might replace entry-level testers. An eye-opening interview! Nancy's Bio: Nancy Kastl is an accomplished professional with over thirty-five years...

The SPaMCAST 589 features our essay on using clean language to refine requirements. Clean Language's pedigree is from psychotherapy and has found a home in coaching. It is also a valuable tool for discovering information about work products. As product managers, product owners, and stakeholders interact with the world and then describe a set of wants and needs they use metaphors. Clean language he...

The SPaMCAST 588 features our interview with Susie Palmer-Trew and Peter Taylor. We discussed their new book Project Management: It's All Bollocks! It was great to meet Susie and renew our conversation with Peter. We talked about the assumptions that the profession of project management makes and why we should challenge those assumptions. The episode has the subtitle (you will discover it ½ way th...

For SPaMCAST 587 we are going to break cadence and feature another interview. Ryan Ripley, Todd Miller and I discussed their new book Fixing Your Scrum: Practical Solutions to Common Scrum Problems. We discussed how to define broken scrum processes. Ryan and Todd make the point that Scrum is so much more than a checklist of practices to follow, yet that's exactly how many organizations practice it...

The SPaMCAST 586 features our interview with Jeff Dalton. We talked about his book Great Big Agile and the Agile Performance Holarchy. One of the topics we explored in this podcast is the relationship between being a professional musician and a software developer. Jeff brings his wisdom and humor to the podcast again to help listeners learn from high-performance agile organizations! Note: At 23:50...

The SPaMCAST 585 features an intimate conversation between Jon M Quigley, Susan Parente, and myself. We discussed experimentation, learning, and a deep dive into whether agile transformations do enough to prepare technical teams to get the maximum value from agile. Contact Susan at parente.s3@gmail.com Contact Jon at Jon. Quigley@valuetransform.com Business Agility Conference is sponsoring SPaMCAS...

SPaMCAST 584, the first interview of our 14th year of the SPaMCAST, features our interview with Allan Kelly. We discussed his new book, The Art of Agile Product Ownership: A Guide for Product Managers, Business Analysts, and Entrepreneurs. The role of a product owner is hard and often misunderstood. Allan offers practical advice on sorting the role out. Allan's Bio Allan has pioneered techniques s...

Happy Birthday to the Software Process and Measurement Cast. SPaMCAST 583 marks the beginning of the Podcast's 14th year! The first podcast of year 14 features a three-way discussion between Susan Parente, Anthony Mersino, and myself. We discussed the pros and cons of hybridizing agile frameworks. Hybridizing agile approaches is a lightning rod concept in many circles. Susan, Anthony and I have di...

SPaMCAST 582 features our interview with Paul Gibbons. We discussed his new book IMPACT: 21st Century Change Management, Behavioral Science, Digital Transformation, and the Future of Work (Leading Change in the Digital Age). The interview started by exploring the high-level factors that influence change and then spun down into areas such as the future of work, biases, and de-biasing. This is the s...

SPaMCAST 581 features a discussion on whether most agile transformations have provided teams with the technical skills to be successful with agile. Kim Pries, the Software Sensei, Jeremy Berriault, QA Corner, and I had a wide-ranging discussion covering experimentation, learning and both personal and management responsibility. Business Agility Conference is sponsoring this Podcast! Dates: March 11...

SPaMCAST 580 features our interview with Bill Fox. Bill and I discussed his new book The Future of the Workplace - https://amzn.to/2Q8z9Df. Bill has compiled a huge amount of wisdom from his amazing interviews that translated into his new book. Bill and I spent time in this interview exploring the journey to the new book and Bill's philosophies. Our discussion highlights the benefits of a deep hum...

SPaMCAST 579 features our essay on fear-driven agile hybrids. Most hybridization issues stem from techniques that conflict with the framework and/or agile principles due to clashes with culture or lack of knowledge. Blindly making changes will never reflect what the environment's context demands. Expecting to get good results by randomly changing how you work won't be effective. We will also have...

SPaMCAST 578 features our interview with Evan Leybourn. Evan and I discussed HR Guilds and news from the Business Agility Institute. Evan last visited the podcast on SPaMCAST 478 as the Business Agility Institute was just being formed. Two years later it is going strong and helping change how business is done. Evan is the Founder and CEO of the Business Agility Institute; an international membersh...

SPaMCAST 577 features our essay on approaches to backlog prioritization. Today we will share some background and a simple approach because sometimes a straightforward approach will fit the bill! Also this week, Susan Parente joins the cast with an installment of her Not a Scrumdamentalist column. Susan discusses agile myths. Re-Read Saturday News In this week's installment of our re-read of Thinki...

SPaMCAST 576 features a discussion on learning and experimentation with Kim Pries. Kim has coded, tested, lead, and is an author. He has also delivered pointed advice as the Software Sensei. Today we discussed the relationship between learning and experimentation which is at the heart of growing as you practice software development. Re-Read Saturday News In this week's installment of our re-read o...

SPaMCAST 575 features our essay on the lightning-rod issue: hybridizing agile methods and techniques. We can all agree that fitting a model to an observed reality requires the flexibility to hybridize. Why do we it so wrong so often? We will also have a visit from Jon M Quigley and his Alpha and Omega of Product Development column. Jon and I talked about Deming and his impact on our lives and a bo...

SPaMCAST 574 features our interview with Ian Reynolds, chief Solutions Architect at Zibtek We answered the question, What is a solution architect? The discussion coved ideas across starts-ups, medium, and large-sized businesses. Ian paints the solutions architect as an action hero whose raison d'être is to deliver business value. Ian's Bio: Ian is a partner and chief Solutions Architect at Zibtek...

SPaMCAST 573 features our essay using a workflow to prioritize a backlog. Items on any backlog proliferate. Product backlogs used in agile and lean development approaches are no different. Many outsiders have the mistaken notion that once on the list that that is the end of the story -- let's dissuade them of this idea. Gene Hughson brings his Form Follows Function column to the podcast. Gene and...

SPaMCAST 572 features our interview with Michael Larsen. Mr. Larsen and I battled fires, Santa Ana winds, and power cuts to have a great conversation on testability. Anyone that has participated in delivering software EVER has wrestled with a discussion of whether a story or requirement can be proved. Michael brings fresh and actionable insights into how to assure testability. Michael's bio Michae...