Categories
Scrum Master

The Anatomy of an Impediment

The impediment. As a Scrum Master, you know you are supposed to remove it but how do we even know your team has one? The standard practice is for the Scrum Master to spring into action after a team member has raised an impediment at a daily stand up. A list of impediments is usually […]

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Scrum Master

An Important But Uncooperative Team Member

The following question was posted to the Ask Anything page. Feel free to ask your own questions here or contribute your thoughts to this question in the comments section below. From: A New Scrum Master Location: England Subject: Important but uncooperative team member Hello. My company is new to scrum and agile, and I am […]

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Scrum Master

8 Rituals of Amazing Scrum Masters

Having worked with many Scrum Masters, I am beginning to recognize patterns and behaviors of some of the best. It appears to me that the Scrum Masters having the most impact with their teams and throughout the organization establish strong rituals for themselves. These rituals provide the momentum to overcome the challenges and busyness of […]

Categories
Transformational Leadership

Removing Big Impediments (Part 4 of the Agile Leadership Engagement Series)

Our first three posts in this series established the foundation for leadership engagement in an agile organization: senior leaders create the long-term vision, mid-level leaders build the implementation plan and establish agile teams, and the product owners and teams deliver the vision using an agile discovery and delivery techniques. As the product teams are building […]

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Incredible Teams Team Building

Conflicts and Collisions in an Agile Environment

Have you ever been on a team when everything was “perfect” and conflict was avoided? Decisions were delayed and unique perspectives rarely brought forth. Perhaps you have been on a team with the other extreme – constant debates and collisions between team members were the norm. Conflict or disagreement within a team is inevitable but […]

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Incredible Teams Most Shared Transformational Leadership

The Curse of Allocation

Have you ever been assigned to multiple projects or teams at the same time? If so, I’m sure you have experienced the “curse of allocation.” You know how it goes. You are assigned to be 25% on this project and 50% on another one. Let’s throw in 20% to support an existing product and another […]

Categories
Product Owner Scrum Master

Keeping Product Owners Happy (or a Little Happier)

Those who have never been a Product Owner may not understand just how challenging a position it really is. While I thought I understood this, for the past year I have worked closely with many Product Owners and I am beginning to sense all that is required and asked of them. It can be an […]

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Scrum Master

How to Serve an Agile Team (or Any Team)

If you are a Scrum Master on a team, my belief is you are called to serve your team. And by using the word serve, I mean you are doing things for the benefit of others. Not an easy calling but one that can bring transformational results to your team and organizational culture. Using the […]

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Scrum Master

Four MORE Questions Scrum Masters Should Be Asking

Last year, I posted the original four questions that every good Scrum Master should be asking. With a few more months under our belt and having the opportunity to observe 12 product teams with 7 Scrum Masters every day, I have been able to glean four more questions for Scrum Masters to be asking themselves. […]