Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

I sincerely apologize for the lack of a new posting last week. Sometimes even I need to remind myself that I am human.

And.

The cartoon for this week really says it all.

Keep IT Simple Stupid.

In the past, I have seen the “KISS” stuff look like: “Keep it simple stupid” or “Keep it super simple” or many other variations.

Note the capitalization of “IT”?

That’s where you and I come in a lot of the times.

So.

Really.

Keep IT Simple Stupid.

I am not calling you stupid. If anything, this is a great reminder for “me” to not get stupid.

A few weeks ago I was with a client (actually doing the work thing, which I doooo actually “do”!) and they have been spending a lot of time planning for their agile rollout.

What is a lot of time?

This will vary.

Let’s just say it looked very much like a waterfall process — nothing near agile.

And I had to tell them this.

Will “they” listen?

Who knows.

But.

It was a great reminder to me that taking months and months planning for an agile rollout of more than ten teams at one time is not a good idea for people starting agile stuff.

What is my recommendation?

Get ready for “Captain Obvious.”

Start with one project.

Today.

Now.

And stop the planning game.

Really.

Get good at what you do.

And the only way to do this is to get started.

One project at a time.

Don’t worry about the enterprise rollout today when you have not started even one project.

Scary thought?

Yes.

Reality?

It does work.

Worry about the “enterprise” stuff later.

Start producing working software.

Today.

Think about it and challenge the way you currently do things today.

Results will vary, but all will surprise you.

Gotta run… Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

So.

A few weeks ago had someone in a class explain this. He was trained as an Antropologist — not a software developer.

Interesting dude. Really.

Let’s say your current organizational system is like a river flowing down stream.

How rough varies.

Introduce change.

Any change.

Just one.

Scrum for example (funny how that gets worked into this conversation, eh?).

Pretend that change is a boat (or canoe, as drawn!).

Insert a Chicken and Pig for some humor (smile).

Following along with me?

Now.

Paddle.

What happens when you stop paddling?

The river flushes you back down stream.

That’s the gist.

Easy brilliance.

Does this apply in your current situation?

If you are about to just embark on this journey, remember to always keep paddling!

Stop paddling and you have made a choice to give it up — and make room for something else to take its place.

Gotta run… Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

This is a hard story to tell.

You may want to grab some Kleenex.

OK.

It is not that bad.

But you may want to read this through a few times and pass it on to people in your organization.

There are some great lessons learned (for me anyway).

Names and places have been changed to protect the innocent.

But.

It is a story that must be told.

Since.

Well.

It involves me.

As the ScrumMaster.

And.

I wound up becoming a “Dead” ScrumMaster today.

How did that happen?

About three weeks ago I got called into meet with the CIO of a large private company somewhere on this planet (actually it was through someone who knew him and I and trusted us both).

The company is professing itself as “Doing Agile” and has a few small projects started up.

The CIO had a particular project in mind [for me] and we spent about a half an hour having a conversation about what he wanted me to do, and discussing some of the implications (including implosion of the project).

Basically at the end of the conversation my direction was set — in the next day and a half… figure out fast how to make the biggest impact.

Boy.

I guess I did. In retrospect.

You see, the project they were getting ready to kick off as “Agile” was still not an officially funded project.

Read that last sentence loud and clearly — they had no approved budget. This was all supposedly under the radar.

So, as with a lot of organizations, people spent months and many many many hours creating the “perfect” power point presentation for their senior leadership team to review. This was prior to me coming in.

It was not good enough yet, and the team had two weeks to clean up the presentation.

I boldly asked for a team that could produce some working software during those two weeks, while the parallel effort of the funding presentation went on.

We started gaining the needed resources (wow.. did I say resources [yes… PEOPLE and the other stuff to DO a project??!!) and ideas.

We were going to take their highest priority customer and run a [one] real transaction set through a real working architecture (not on power point).

It was approved by a VP on Friday afternoon, just before a holiday weekend. I went home excited.

I arrived back on Tuesday morning and the team starting getting wind of this, and we got together in the afternoon to talk about what would happen in the next 8 business days.

Lots of blank stares and smiles, but people started getting excited.

It was something the team could focus on.

Technical people working on technical stuff — not power point presentations.

We reviewed the basics of Scrum and that during the next two weeks we would get a course — by doing the work — on what it looks like to actually do it.

Once we delivered, we would have a Retrospective and see what we could improve once the project was funded and actually “officially” started.

We talked a little about User Stories — this is a Use Case shop — and we wound up writing very basic user stories that were tasked out. No owners, no estimates. This is “normal” [real world] from what I see on the first cut in situations [and timing] like this.

Should I have put a stop to the project (or un-project) then? I made a call not to do that.

We went home.

The next morning we had a temporary conference room and we had an effective stand-up meeting.

Kept it at 15 minutes.

People were off and doing real work.

It was cool to see. I stood back.

We had an impediment with getting some dev machines that was taken care of by the team and outside stakeholders in an incredibly quick manner. Kudos for getting that first impediment out of the way!

The parallel process of getting the project funded (via the power point presentation) was happening outside of the room.

We started talking about the “Cone of Uncertainty.”

I left town that evening and the team worked for two days focusing on the tasks and items on the wall.

All highly visible to the people walking into the room (or by it).

The team got moved around a bit each day, but we had our eye on one room for the “final week” of this part of the project (or is that pre-proect?).

Not all the team members were there all the time. Hmmm…

Stand-ups stayed focused and on track. No more three hour status meetings to schedule status meetings with the entire team.

People (including me) were calling in if they could not be physically located in the team room.

I arrived the next Monday morning to the new location for the team. It was “ours” for the week. The five business days remaining on this part of the project.

New building. But we could have all the players collocated in one room or on the phone. Things were humming along.

Impediments came up and were handled by the team. Awesome. We even got a temporary AC unit put in the room to cool us off — 12 people in a small room with lots of computers… you know how that can get.

The parallel process of getting the project funded was happening outside of the room. Still. Small concern, which, in retrospect, I should have dealt with better.

During the few days I was there that week, I did what I told the CIO and others I would be doing — a lot of observation on team interaction.

I did not want to jump in and be the answer man for coding [nor did I really feel like me getting into the code would help anyone — including the people that really needed to be in it (which was awesome to see how people recognized this and stood up and took ownership without being directed!)].

I did a little nudging along the way to fill out the task cards with owners and estimates (so we could start having what looked like a Burn Down to see what that represents); however, I mainly stayed out of the way and let the technical team dive in and watch them do what many thought to be impossible.

The goal now was to deliver working software, not a methodology (a tough balance in this situation).

Get to “Done.”

Before leaving, the Project Manager and I came up with a plan for the following week.

Assuming the project was funded, the Project Manager would start assembling the team and getting them lined up to start the “real work” the next week (people had to be lined up to work on this project).

I would not be on site this week, and meeting notices started coming into my inbox as expected and according to our plan.

Then, Thursday night I get a call telling me the client probably does not want me back. It came to fruition today.

Partly because I “sat in the corner” watching.

Partly because people heard me say things that did not tow the party line (and I did not do the Schwaber, “You Suck and that makes me Sad“).

Partly because I did not code.

Partly because I was not engaged with that team doing the request for outside funding.

I am sure there are a lot of reasons.

Go back and notice a key role missing. One that was unfortunately a key to this part of the success — or lack thereof — of this part of the project.

I did not do a good job of managing and communicating expectations with all of the stakeholders — known and unknown.

Funny thing happened though.

I hear the team delivered working software.

And.

I had a lot of great conversations with the people on the team and saw negative energy transform into a powerful focus of delivering working code in a very short period of time.

Is it perfect?

No.

Is it something they can show to outside stakeholders that has true business value for them today?

I think so.

So in part I have failed that team, and I am sorry. I am doing the failure bow now — hoping they understand.

And.

I have learned [again] that any ScrumMaster can be taken out and shot at any time.

Hopefully this is a lesson learned that does not happen to you.

It has happened to me before.

And.

Will again.

I do this at a lot of places around the world, and I know I cannot please everyone all the time.

Is it any wonder that most teams fail using Scrum?

Yet.

I try.

As do others.

Yet.

I will not blow smoke or be a “yes man” (or woman, as in the last panel of this cartoon).

And.

I am OK with that.

In some places people call this career suicide — so YOU be careful.

Read this lesson.

Read this real world situation.

And.

Talk about it with other another ScrumMaster or two or three in your organization.

Talk about it with your stakeholders.

Talk about it with your Scrum Team.

Talk about it with your Product Owner.

Talk.

Have the conversations.

BEFORE things implode on you.

Because remember.

A Dead ScrumMaster is a useless ScrumMaster.

I am going to go eat some humble pie and hope that someone learns something from this posting.

I apologize if it was a long one this week.

Lots for me to learn.

Still.

I may post more on this during the week.

And if you want to hire me (smile)….

Gotta run….Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

Some of you may be familiar with the term, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas….”

Well, tonight I am introducing a new guest writer to the blog, a guy I have worked with for almost the past three years on some major enterprise rollouts of Scrum and co-train with him on a pretty regular basis. His name is Mark Pushinsky and this “enlightenment” came to him a few years ago and we have been waiting on how to actually introduce this to the Scrum Community.

So… without further ado… here is his write-up on the topic (and thanks to Tony as usual for the cartoon!).

I may add something to it later this week (smile).

=================

I was on my way back from Vegas sitting on a plane, with a massive hangover…….and this thought occurred to me.

I know they say that, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” but this occurred to me on the plane ride home and I am pretty sure we cleared Nevada airspace before it did so I feel compelled to share it.

Do you know about the “Cone of Uncertainty”? It is a phenomena that people in software use to describe the fact that when you start a project you have no idea when you’ll finish.

The longer the project goes and the closer you get to finishing the better/more accurate your estimate. Basically you are pretty sure your going to finish it the day before its done.



We have been trying to make it go away in software for many years. Fancy new estimation techniques, months and months of analysis, and brute force have not materially changed the fact that software projects are unpredictable!

Period!

Managers having been trying for decades to make it disappear/pretend it doesn’t exist/figure out how to make it turn from a cone into a cylinder.

Yet time and time again the uncertainty in projects remains.

The epiphany that occurred to me is that Agile or Scrum flips it around. This means that if you ask me what I can deliver in the next 2-4 weeks I am pretty accurate, if you ask me what I am going to deliver 3 months from now I have some uncertainty, but I can give you a reasonable guess, and if you ask me what I can deliver 6 months from now I have no idea…….





When we teach Estimation and Planning in class, we make a point of saying that Agile does not make the “Cone” disappear.

Nothing will!

We use light weight, proven techniques to make our best guess at long term plans.

We don’t pretend to know the end…….in fact we are pretty sure it will change……and we commit to be back in 2-4 weeks to tell you how its changed.

Then we focus on short term commitments, doing the right things, executing well, and delivering real business value.

I have found that after a couple of iterations of working that way we get customers focused more on prioritization, the next release, and getting impediments removed.

They begin to worry less about when the whole thing will be done.

I think the best way to end a project is to stop working on it before all of “The Requirements” have been implemented.

The 80/20 rule, right?

=================

So there goes.

Mark is an awesome person, trainer, and mentor by the way…. While our opinions do not match 100% I love the opportunity to provide an outlet for different opinions and thoughts (even if we are competitors and collaborators in the marketplace).

Let me know if you are interested in contributing in the future!

Gotta run….Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Hi all.

Well, I finally had the idea to try and see if posting any information or videos on YouTube.com would help us spread the word more about Scrum.

So, tonight I had my almost-eight-year-old son (Dominic) and I record a very low-tech version of the cartoon using some audio files and the “original” Chicken an Pig cartoon. Right now, it is mainly a test.

My son and I are willing to post a version of the cartoons with commentary by myself and him on an ongoing basis.

Is this worth our time? My son loves doing this and I think this can add some very new perspectives on Scrum and all we do.

Thoughts?

I’d love to hear your feedback. Please spread the word.

Here is the link to the video:

- mike vizdos
www.michaelvizdos.com
www.implementingscrum.com

Hi all.

Well, I was able to tell you a little about my first two days of this week. If you have not seen it, go here.

Upon arriving into Richmond (my home base) at about midnight, i got the opportunity to make the final preparations for the Certified ScrumMaster Workshop I would be delivering on Wednesday and Thursday.

It would be yet another great class where the attendees walked out of there with a new respect (as did I) for what Scrum can and cannot do.

I have done this course around the world and have trained on my own, with one other person, and with two other people.

Wow.

What a change this makes to both the overall presentation and the outcome to the attendees.

Is this bad?

The easy answer to this is, “No.”

Can every Certified Scrum Trainer co-teach with other people?

Nope.

When it works though….

It is like magic.

I have been lucky enough to work with multiple trainers around the would (and most are not CST’s).

Lucky?

Am I nuts?

Think about it.

If some initial ground rules are set between the two or three people training the class — it can be extremely more powerful at the end of the two days for the attendees.

The first sentence of this is important.

And.

This last one with another Certified Scrum Practitioner (who is looking to become a Certified Scrum Trainer) worked out very well. It was, to be 100% transparent, a surprise to me.

While I was initially looking for the art of the possible, I also knew our styles of coaching in the past has been wildly (sometimes) divergent in techniques.

I made a bad assumption.

Wow.

Like a lot of things in real life that we all live in.

The course got great feedback (sorry about the air conditioning versus the constant heater war going on with the HVAC system… we finally (at the end of day 2) were shown how to useeeeeee the system). Sigh.

So now there are about 11 new Certified ScrumMasters running around Virginia in one place or another.

I’d say it was one of my best classes (workshops) to date.

Why?

Well… let me know why you think this is so….

Gotta run….Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

Hi.

Wow. I just did an informal count (and recount) of all the comic strips that have been posted on this site. This is comic strip #65 since we started with the initial comic series of the Chicken and Pig since September 11, 2006.

I was having a conversation with another “Scrum Person” last week over lunch and the topic of this site came up. He was surprised that this blog has been updated on such a consistent basis since we started the site. Turns out a lot of people in the industry thought this idea had no staying power. I met for dinner with an ex-CIO of a past client this evening (just got back and am writing this now!) who was surprised we only had 60-something cartoons up there… so…. information is taking off in all different directions about this site.

Back to my pundits…. [Still getting over the fact that I do have people out there that want me to fall flat on my face!]

“This is Scrum… how much can you really talk about this each week Mike?”

“Scrum is a simple framework. That’s it. Duh!”

And.

I agree.

It is.

A simple framework.

It is designed to be that way.

For a reason.

What makes this fun for me — and I hope for the people who read this on a regular basis — is the fact there is almost a never-ending product backlog of ideas for me to write about and Tony to illustrate new comic strips for us.

Huh?

Remember… Scrum deals with people. Not resources. People.

This is not a static topic that will go away. People will continually show me there is new material to write about in the context of Scrum.

And for that, I thank you sincerely.

In fact…. over the time we have been publishing this blog, it has grown in popularity (we consistently receive over a million hits per month) and some of the comic strips have been translated into over a dozen different languages.

What amazes me is that the comic strips (most of the times without the write-ups) are showing up in other Scrum Training presentations and being used selectively in team rooms and corporate presentations.

When I start seeing these posted in team rooms, seldom do people in the rooms realize I am the author of this site.

I ask, “Why do you post this (or these) comic strips?”

A consistent answer to me is, “They are great conversation starters with our outside stakeholders.”

“Oh, and they are funny and our team really relates to them.”

Wow.

Um.

When I started the vision for the site I originally thought I’d connect with an illustrator (it took me six months to find Tony) and start to see if we could push the envelope on some topics that a lot of people in the Scrum Community have been avoiding.

Or.

Should I say, “had” been avoiding.

Why do I say “had”?

I have seen that these comic strips and blog entries are now bringing out some very tough conversations about transparency or real-world issues between team members, product owners, ScrumMasters, and outside stakeholders.

Wow.

Bringing the fringe to the forefront.

In my case, one comic strip and/or blog entry at a time.

Do you see this happening in your team, organization, or enterprise today?

Has one — or more — of the comic strips help create some change that was really effective for your team?

What about thinking if one of the comic strips has been disruptive to your team?

I hope you do not agree with everything I write or Tony illustrates.

I do a lot of what I do to help people start thinking about the ordinary in an unordinary manner.

Is this happening for you?

If not… Why not?

Meanwhile, my plan is to keep cranking out new comic strips and blog entries no matter what my pundits are saying. I’ve never been one to follow the crowd. While it may not make me popular…. I stopped worrying about that sometime in high school and now think about how well I can sleep at night — and feel good about me. And not only about me (that sounds selfish in retrospective)…. but does this stuff add value to you (the person or group of people reading this blog and our comic strips)?

Is that a bad thing?

Gotta run….Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

Good day.

I am sorry I was unable to write about this topic further last evening. Life happens and I thank you for staying with us.

You know how some days you just know things will not come out sounding correct? Last night I had one of those feelings.

So. I stopped.

Until tonight.

Without further ado….

I am blogging about Social Networking Sites.

Now…. before you think you hear crickets singing in the trees from the dead silence you may think this topic deserves…. please hold on and let me explain. There is actually a reason for using Social Networking Sites when you are on Scrum Teams.

Can you think of some off the top of your head?

Seriously.

Think of the possibilities!

Got some? Write them down, as that list — I hope — will motivate you to sign-up or become more active in some of the sites I mention this evening.

Trust me. I know there are a ton of Social Networking sites out there (heck, I am working with a few clients who are developing their own portals for niche markets today!).

I’d like to talk about the main Social Networking sites I am using today, along with “why” I am using them, and for how long. Will it be an exhaustive list?

No.

Do they work for me?

Yes. In different ways.

And.

In an Agile fashion, if it is delivering the results you expect, maybe that is “good enough” for now.

Will these change in the future?

Of course.

So.

Here is a snapshot of a few “Social Networking Sites” I use today (along with my links to them) with the main reasons why I use them.

I use three main Social Networking Sites today.

They include the following:

1. Plaxo
2. LinkedIn
3. FaceBook
4. Twitter.

I use Plaxo to keep my address book on my computer and iPhone up-to-date.

Why is this important?

I see a lot of people move around quite a bit — both personally and from company-to-company. As people become members of Plaxo, it keeps me up-to-date. If I have a business relationship with a person who moves from Company A to Company B, at least I am aware of it. As people then move from Company B to Company X, I know about it and stay informed.

From a Business standpoint, I find this information valuable so I can keep in contact.

Or at least try.

Which brings me to the next one I use, LinkedIn. I have been a member of that service since the product was in Beta many years ago. My personal network has over 500 people (who I have worked with in the past!) and the way this works is to “link you” to other people’s connections — out to what they call “degrees.” From spending the time using this tool, I am approaching almost 4 MILLION other people I can actually contact through the connections my direct contacts with me have.

My link to this profile is just below on the button.

This has been a powerful tool for me at the business level both for introductions to others — and making connections for people that I know and trust. Also, this is a place where people can find out more about me at a professional level, and even feel free to leave (or read) comments from people I have worked with in the past. It is something that I also use when talking to new people I meet and may want to do business with.

At the personal level, I got pulled into 2008 with FaceBook. OK… so this is what I thought would be a totally “personal” kind of site. It turns out that a lot of my contacts from the two services listed above also use FaceBook… and I am learning more about them too.

My “profile information” can bee seen in the little signature thingee below.

Are there other Social Networking sites out there?

Yes.

Will I join them.

Maybe.

I do think as the “open standards” (where the different Social Networking Sites start “talking” to each other and “sharing” information) come about in this space, it will be a lot easier for people to become even more involved.

If they want.

I have personally not hopped on the Twitter bandwagon yet, since I really do not think people need to know everything I am doing every second of every day. Um. I don’t even want to remember that sometimes LOL.

OK. I am now on Twitter. Follow me! Man, how hip am I now!?!?!?

What does this all have to do with Scrum?

Remember.

Scrum deals with what?

People.

Not technology. There are plenty of other Agile Software Development techniques out there for that.

People.

People.

People.

Are you beginning to see how there may actually be a connection to these Social Networking sites and Scrum?

Do some thinking about it.

And get out there and do some personal and professional networking.

It is a small world.

Trust me. I travel it regularly (smile).

Gotta run….Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Interested in becoming a Certified Scrum Master?
Come to my next workshop!

Thanks for sticking with us last week. We lost a few subscribers but by the end of the week we saw a large net increase. So thank you for helping me get the word out on this site and blog.

I also got some great feedback and ideas for content in the future.

Keep it coming please.

This week we conclude the three part series on the process of hiring a new ScrumMaster.

Part one is here.
Part two is here.
Part three is below (smile).

Part one talked about what a typical HR department posts when frankly, they are clueless on what they really need. The point here is to remember to work with the people posting the positions to make it realistic to what your team is looking to hire.

Really.

Part two talked about the interviewing process. Wow. This can be complicated - for both the potential scrummaster and the team that person may be working with.

Make it fun if you can.

Notice in the comic strip this week that the chicken did not make the final call for selecting a ScrumMaster.

Who should?

The pigs (or the scrum team).

Really.

Why?

Remember this person who will be filling the role of a ScrumMaster for the team is going to be working with the team on a daily basis.

What does a certified ScrumMaster do?

It depends on the circumstance. As I was reminded in a comment from my last comic strip (see the comment at the bottom and feel free to add to it!).

Some teams may actually like and receive a ScrumMaster who professes Scrum as the Silver Bullet.

Personally… I have not seen this work effectively; however, remember that is what I have found working with the teams around the world.

Remember though… everyone is different and we need to remember situations and teams need different things depending on their — or your — needs.

The last part of this comic strip talks about the possible need for a ScrumMaster to have to sit through the class for training anyway (and no it is not just to learn the “Secret Handshake of a ScrumMaster” (sigh).

Or.

Whatever training the Organization requires.

Read that last sentence and remember it!

Sometimes it is like the Dilbert comic I think many people have seen (and sent me!) this week. More on that later I think (smile)… this posting is long enough for today!

So.

What are you going to do differently when hiring your next ScrumMaster?

Anything?

Gotta run….Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.

You can also enter The Forum to discuss this entry and other Scrum topics. Thank you!

Hi,

It sounds like people are getting some good value for their time (always a great thing!) while reading the ImplementingScrum Forum

I hope all is going well out there in your world today (or this evening, depending on where in the world you are!).

Today we continue examining some of the postings and related comments at www.implementingscrum.com and the Forum.

This entry is going to ask you to look at the topic, “Scrum vs. PMBoK“. Go ahead and take a look at it.

Thoughts?

You may also want to check out the following blog postings and comments related to this topic:

Wanted: Certified ScrumMaster.
Why are ManHole Covers Round?
More Fun Than Watching Paint Dry. Or Grass Grow.

Learn anything new or change your current perspective?

Please share it with us on the forum!

Thanks for continuing to read this — or welcome new people reading and subscribing to this forum!

- mike vizdos

Have a great day and thank you for your time.

- mike vizdos
www.implementingscrum.com
www.michaelvizdos.com

PS –> Want to join the Forum? Click here!