Software Process and Measurement Cast

SPaMCAST 497 features our essay on micromanagement. Micromanagement is a bane to employees that fall under a micromanager's control. If you ask any manager if they think micromanagement is useful they will tell you no. The problem is that many managers still do it and then rationalize the behavior. We also welcome back Susan Parente, with her "Not a Scrumdamentalist" column. In this installment, S...

SPaMCAST 496 features our interview with Sam Laing. Sam and I talked about coaching agile teams. The goal of coaching is to help people unleash their inner power. We also touch on the difference between coaching and mentoring. They are different and require different approaches but both are useful! Sam's Bio - Sam writes: Samantha Laing (@samlaing) My personal motto is 'be brave', and I embody thi...

SPaMCAST 495 features our essay titled, The Definition of Done: Simplicity and Complexity Revisited. The Definition of Done is an important agile technique to help teams plan and execute work. The simplest definition of the Definition of Done is the criteria that a work product must meet to be considered to be complete. While the concept is simple, the implementation of the technique in the real w...

SPaMCAST 494 features our interview with Alan Mallory. We discussed his book The Family That Conquered Everest (https://amzn.to/2Iiz3Tc). The book provides strong lessons on leadership and teamwork in an environment where failure can lead to death or worse! Danger, mountaineering, and leadership in a single interview; a first for the Software Process and Measurement Cast. Alan's Bio Alan Mallory i...

SPaMCAST 493 features our essay titled Thoughts on Kaizen. The punchline is that the goal of continuous improvement is to help teams to eliminate waste (Muda, Muri, Mura), while improving an organization's capability to deliver value. Our second column features Jeremy Berriault. In this installment of the QA Corner (https://qacorner.blog/). Jeremy and I talked about his upcoming appearance at QAI...

Software Process and Measurement Cast 492 features our recent interview with Murali Chemuturi. Murali and I discussed his new book tilted Software Design: A Comprehensive Guide to Software Development Projects (Link https://amzn.to/2qMAgKW). Murali makes a strong case that design can't be purely emergent. Design impacts usability, security, and data architecture to name just a few areas. Practical...

Software Process and Measurement Cast 491 features our essay titled, Can "Done" Be Allowed To Break Production? The most succinct answer to the question is always no, the story is not done. The reason is that the story is not implementable, and unless the goal of the story is to blow up production and anger customers it can't be considered to be done. Susan Parente brings her Not a Scrumdamentalis...

Software Process and Measurement Cast 490 features a return visit from Michael West. Michael West is the author of Return On Process (ROP): Getting Real Performance Results from Process Improvement and Real Process Improvement Using the CMMI! [LINKS] Michael and I talked about process improvement and how process improvement translates to the bottom line. Mr. West originally appeared on the SPaMCAS...

SPaMCAST 489 features our essay titled, Lean: The Science and Art of a Gemba Walk Deciding on the purpose and scope of a Gemba walk is part science and part art. The part that is science is driven by measurement and observation of the organization's value stream(s). The art is applied to decide where to look, to begin with, and in the empathy, you apply during the walk! Our second column features...

SPaMCAST 488 features our interview with Prem Ranganath. Prem and I discussed why organizations need to focus on innovation and excellence. The topic might sound trite; however, making innovation and excellence happen is hard. Prem provides examples and advice from the real world. Prem is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive quality strategy for product engineering covering...

SPaMCAST opens with our essay, Don't Shortcut Shu Ha Ri. Recently I have been thinking about just how rigorously practitioners need to follow the processes, methods, and frameworks, and when it makes sense to tweak processes to fit the culture. Learn and practice first, then decide how to tweak agile, Scrum or any framework to your culture. The results will be better. Our second column will introd...

SPaMCAST 486 features our interview with Daniel S. Vacanti. Mr. Vacanti is the author of Actionable Agile Metrics for Predictability: An Introduction. We discussed the concepts in the book, answered a question from Steven Adams, and talked about his new book. It was great to talk about a book with the author after the re-read. Daniel Vacanti's Bio: Daniel Vacanti is a 20-plus year software industr...

SPaMCAST 485 features essay titled "A Simple Checklist for Choosing a Mentor." Everyone needs a mentor, but they are hard to find, and even when you find someone willing they might not be the right person! Enter: a checklist! Blog entries (in case you would rather read the entries) in our recent coaching/mentor theme include: A Mentor or Coach: Which Do You Need? A Checklist A Simple Checklist for...

SPaMCAST 484 features our interview with Andriy Bas of UPTech. Andriy and his partner have created a firm that has truly embraced the ideas of agile, Teal and holacracy to create a highly productive, collaborative and safe workspace. We discussed the impact of the environment on satisfaction, quality, and productivity. We also discussed whether or not this type of approach works for all people. An...

SPaMCAST 483 will feature our essay on measuring the value delivered by agile. The essay begins: "Organizations and teams come to agile—for that matter, any concept, framework or technique—for a wide variety of reasons. Even if we are just the keeping up with the neighbors, we need feedback to know if we have met our goal. We need feedback because—to quote Paul Gibbons, author of The Science of Su...

Software Process and Measurement Cast 482 features our interview with Natalie Warnert. We talked about the diversity of voice, thoughts and ideas and Women in Agile. Developing ideas and solving problems is the reason for software development, project management, process improvement, business systems analysis -- just about everything in life is about solving problems. Diversity helps us to generat...

SPaMCAST 481 will feature our essay on the Life Cycle of A User Story. A user story - a brief, simple requirement statement from the user's perspective - tends to follow a loose life cycle. That life often begins even before the word 'user story' gets mentioned and typically by people that don't understand (or care to understand) the concept of a user story. We zoom in from 40,000 ft down to user...

SPaMCAST 480 features our interview with Paul Gibbons. Paul and I had a wide-ranging discussion that began with his wonderful book The Science of Successful Organization Change (Buy a copy now and then enjoy the re-read we held on the Software Process and Measurement Cast blog), and led us to the broader conversation: that change is hard but it is even harder if we fall prey to magical thinking. P...

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 479 has three columns. The first column features a recent essay on the difference between a coach and a mentor in the form of a simple checklist. Which do you need? Check out the other three entries in this theme on the Software Process and Measurement Cast blog. Our second column features Steve Tendon who brings his Tame The Flow: Hyper-Productive Knowled...

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 478 features our interview with Evan Leybourn. Evan is back to discuss his new venture, The Business Agility Institute. Agile is not just for software anymore! Bio Evan is the Founder and CEO of the Business Agility Institute; an international membership body to both champions and supports the next generation of organizations. Companies that are agile, inn...

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 477 features our essay on silence. Silence is a powerful tool to guide conversations and mine information from the stream of consciousness that flows around us. If silence was just a tool to improve our connections with people and to improve listening, it would be worth practicing. But, silence is also a tool to peer deeper into our minds. Silence improves...

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 476 features our interview with Kyle Siemens. Kyle is CEO at Brightest. We discussed the case for certifications. The whole concept of certifications is a lightning rod for the excesses of agile and the Agile (big A) industry. Mr. Siemens makes a strong argument for certification when done properly. Kyle's Bio Kyle Siemens is an energetic, loyal and hard-w...

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 475 features the majority of the SPaMCAST Crew in a round-robin discussion. The recording session covered three topics; however, today we tackle the first topic: Whether agile can be used in other parts of the business. We will return to the next two topics in February! Six people with strong opinions. It is a pretty amazing discussion. Voices you often he...

The Software Process and Measurement Cast 474 features our interview with Tom Henricksen. Tom recently organized and executed the Agile Online Summit that I participated in. We get behind the scene story about how the Summit came together and how it enhanced the Agile community! Tom's Bio Tom Henricksen is a speaker and career coach who leads others to turn their dreams into plans. Throughout Tom'...

SPaMCAST 473 features our essay on 6 Important Flow Metrics! Getting the most value out of a process is important to any leader. Balancing getting the most value with getting value sooner complicates the discussion. In some cases, getting some value sooner is worth more than the same value delivered later. Guiding the delivery of value is more complicated than a rank ordering a list of user storie...