Johanna Rothman

AUGUST 19, 2021

So when does it make sense to customize your agile approach to gain a strategic advantage? Example 1: Startup/Small Organization with Few Products. They offer their product in two versions: Pro and Lite. They can offer a subscription-based revenue model if they figure out how to release something useful almost every week.

Agile 105

Agile Tools Productivity Development 105

Johanna Rothman

APRIL 14, 2021

One of my clients wants to use shared services “teams” as they start their agile transformation. Their developers work on a product for months and years at a time. ” Shared service-thinking denies the reality of effective product development: A cross-functional team learns together as they develop the product. .”

Agile 119

Agile Efficiency Productivity Development 119

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 21, 2021

When I think about agile approaches to work, I think about how fast we can change and the cost of those changes. That's why an agile approach with deliverables every day or week doesn't fit with some kinds of projects, such as events. Here, I assume you want multiple releases for your product.

Productivity 130

Productivity Agile Guidelines Strategy 130

LSA Global

JANUARY 22, 2025

How to Optimize Team Potential: A 7-Step Guide for Managers High performing team managers optimize potential by unlocking their teams collective capability. In a working group, there is no collective work product beyond individual accomplishments. Because they can divide and conquer their tasks.

Management 68

Management How To Construction Training 68

Johanna Rothman

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

More of my clients say they want business agility. Yet, we don't share a common definition of business agility. Instead, let's consider how to see management's adaptable and resilient actions. Actions matter when it comes to business agility. Mindset is how we think about our work. That's a good thing.)

Agile 89

Agile Management How To System 89

Johanna Rothman

JUNE 7, 2022

What do teams need to know about the product now to focus their work? These problems might be about how to reduce risk, what the users need first, or an experiment the team needs to learn.). ” That's why many people like time-based roadmaps. I'm not a fan of time-based roadmaps, but here's how they work to focus the team.

Productivity 98

Productivity Agile How To Tools 98

Epicflow

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

By providing real-time insights and streamlining complex workflows, project portfolio management tools empower organizations to handle diverse initiatives with precision and agility. It prevents overloading or underutilizing team members, increasing productivity and employee satisfaction.

Tools 130

Tools Management Software Resources 130

Johanna Rothman

JULY 22, 2021

I don't know how to offer the level of predictability they want for large and unchanging work. Worse, many of these managers also want business agility. Business agility requires change. Product strategy, to define the value the products offer to the product's users/customers. Define Each Product Strategy.

Productivity 133

Productivity Strategy& Strategy Strategy 133

Johanna Rothman

JUNE 5, 2023

That's because each project offers different value over the product's lifetime. See Product Roles, Part 4: Product Orientation and the Role of Projects for images of why we want ever-increasing product value, but why we might space the projects out.) However, today, I realized there are also product risks.

Productivity 123

Productivity Agile Management Development 123

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 8, 2020

Back in Part 1 , I wrote about how stage-gate approaches were as agile as we could use at the time. We had one delivery, so our agility was about canceling the project if we couldn't finish it. I had to explain to my managers how the project would work. My managers were smart but didn't understand how to spiral time.

Agile 117

Agile Development Productivity Management 117

Johanna Rothman

FEBRUARY 25, 2021

The managers don't believe the teams need product owners, so the teams don't have POs. Those outcomes can help teams decide which agile approach(es) to start with and adapt. Let's start with who wants the teams to use an agile approach. Who Wants the Teams to Use an Agile Approach? They're having trouble with Scrum.

Agile 108

Agile Management Comparison Productivity 108

Johanna Rothman

DECEMBER 2, 2022

On the ANE panel last night, an agile coach asked, “What's my path forward as an agile coach? Focus on business results, not agility per se. People who facilitate larger efforts, such as product leaders, portfolio managers, and most middle managers, feel the pressure to “deliver” or “perform.”

Agile 110

Agile System Productivity Management 110

Harvard Business

MARCH 8, 2017

Then we feel more anxious,” says Susan David, a founder of the Institute of Coaching at McLean Hospital and author of Emotional Agility. On a team, these feelings, and the resulting hit to productivity, can be contagious. Sleep, exercise, and good nutrition are proven stress killers and productivity enhancers.

Productivity 134

Productivity How To Case Study Case Studies 134

Epicflow

JUNE 8, 2022

Agile has become the most popular methodology in recent years and has proven its efficiency for millions of companies already so nobody has any doubts about it today. Being agile means being flexible enough to adequately and timely react to any alterations of your project environment and any external changes that may happen at any time.

Agile 130

Agile Resources Management Methodologies 130

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 6, 2020

Are you trying to make an agile framework or approach work? Maybe you've received a mandate to “go agile.” Or, maybe you're trying to fit an agile framework into your current processes—and you've got a mess. I've seen plenty of problems when people try to adopt “agile” wholesale.

Agile 111

Agile Software Construction Analysis 111

Johanna Rothman

JULY 29, 2021

Several of my clients have internal struggles about how to internally see the future of the product. The teams want to use an agile approach so they can incorporate learning. The managers might even think this is roadmap reflects an agile approach. There's nothing about this roadmap that's agile. What can you do?

Agile 143

Agile Productivity Management Data 143

Johanna Rothman

AUGUST 12, 2019

I spoke at Agile 2019 last week. Here are my thoughts and where I think the “agile” industry is headed. Problems I See with “Agile” Here's a summary of problems I saw last week: Too many people think “agile” will solve all their problems. Do You Need an Agile Approach?

Agile 87

Agile Culture Conference Management 87

Johanna Rothman

NOVEMBER 27, 2023

I have a new book: Project Lifecycles: How to Reduce Risks, Release Successful Products, and Increase Agility. I wrote it because I'm concerned about what I see in too many supposedly agile teams: Crazy-long backlogs and roadmaps. See Manage Unplanned Feedback Loops to Reduce Risks and Create Successful Products.)

Agile 85

Agile Productivity How To Management 85

Harvard Business

JUNE 13, 2018

By Ayman Sayed, President and Chief Product Officer, CA Technologies. But, what about the application of AI and ML to agile development, testing and even portfolio management? We’re all striving to deliver better products faster to meet customer needs in the marketplace and stay ahead of the competition.

Agile 105

Agile Development Management Software 105

Epicflow

FEBRUARY 20, 2025

By providing real-time insights and streamlining complex workflows, project portfolio management tools empower organizations to handle diverse initiatives with precision and agility. It prevents overloading or underutilizing team members, increasing productivity and employee satisfaction.

Tools 130

Tools Management Software Resources 130

Johanna Rothman

JUNE 6, 2022

They want a single product roadmap to serve all these purposes: Focus the team's work for this specific product for the short term. Show customers where the company thinks the product is headed. The more specific overview of when salespeople might expect new features or new products.). What management thinks they want.

Productivity 115

Productivity Agile Data Travel 115

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 10, 2024

I see many teams and team members who say, “Agile stinks. ” When I ask people what's happening, they say: We're doing an agile death march because someone else already told us what we have to do and the date it's due. And don't get me started on how coaches tend to do life coaching instead of support for agility.)

Agile 88

Agile Culture Efficiency Management 88

Johanna Rothman

APRIL 1, 2024

(That link just goes to the first post) My most recent book: Project Lifecycles: How to Reduce Risks, Release Successful Products, and Increase Agility. In addition, here's the unedited transcript: Agile _ Adapt – Expert Talk – Johanna Rothman – April 2024 in docx format. I hope you enjoy this one.

Agile 89

Agile Video Interviews Productivity 89

Johanna Rothman

JANUARY 6, 2023

” These people claim there is no need for either role in an effective team, especially an agile team because the team can manage its own deliverables. While some agile teams can manage their own deliverables, that's not the only role for a project or program manager. Clarify the Product and Team Objectives. I'm not alone.

Management 109

Management Agile How To Productivity 109

Johanna Rothman

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

Strategy and Product Feedback Loops Many of my middle-management and senior leadership clients want certainty about future work. Does that sound like an agile team to you? However, managers don't create features as agile teams do. Agile teams don't assume they make a final product the first time out.

Agile 96

Agile Management Consulting Productivity 96

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 21, 2024

I started this series by discussing why managers didn't perceive the value of agile coaches and Scrum Masters in Part 1, resulting in layoffs.) Then, in Part 2 , I asked those unemployed agilists to review their functional skills, the skills people need to do a product development job well. Especially, Agile is Not a Silver Bullet.

Agile 96

Agile Management Metrics Culture 96

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 6, 2024

In Effective Agility Requires Cultural Changes: Part 1 , I said that real agile approaches require cultural change to focus on flow efficiency , where we watch the flow of the work , not the people doing tasks. Can you create an agile culture for your team even if you can't change how the organization works?

Agile 81

Agile Culture Efficiency Metrics 81

Johanna Rothman

DECEMBER 11, 2019

We had (and still have) too many products to keep the same teams on them for a long time. For programs, the team stayed together and moved to a different feature set/internal product until the program finished. We could move to a new product and/or a new team. My job was to smooth the way for people to deliver products.

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Agile Productivity Management Meeting 60

Johanna Rothman

JULY 23, 2020

You can do this even if each of you is an expert on various areas or different products when you use flow efficiency. Here's how Clare's team worked: Every person started their own story. See Who's Playing Agile Schedule Games? ). No More Agile Death Marches. Agile approaches are all about collaboration.

Agile 91

Agile System Productivity Efficiency 91

Johanna Rothman

APRIL 9, 2024

I was on the Agile Uprising podcast this past Sunday, discussing my most recent book. Some of what we discussed: That managers want agility but do not care about any agile methods or frameworks. While we might think “agile” is another project organization method—or lifecycle—it's not. See (and hear!):

Agile 74

Agile Culture Productivity Consulting 74

Johanna Rothman

APRIL 14, 2020

Let me address a little about business agility and innovation. Business agility allows us to create a culture where we plan to change. Too many people think business agility is about the ability to do more of the same, faster. ” Or mine, “Explore and support effective ways of managing product development.”

Agile 83

Agile Efficiency Culture Resources 83

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 29, 2022

See Create Your Successful Agile Project for more details.) Also, see the Pairing, Swarming, Mobbing post so you can see how people might work together, keeping the team's WIP low. My suggestion for team-based WIP is the floor of the number of people on the team/2. If your data is unreliable, fix that problem first.

Development 121

Development Productivity How To Efficiency 121

Johanna Rothman

MARCH 14, 2024

And even if you can find an agile coaching or Scrum Master job, the pay is so terrible, you don’t want to take it. That’s because these managers think agile coaching and Scrum Mastering is a staff job, not a line job. At what level do you understand the products you’ve worked on? Those are functional skills.

Agile 100

Agile How To Metrics Productivity 100

Clarity Consultants

JUNE 30, 2023

From figuring out how to cut costs and trying to stand out from your competitors, all while also trying to keep your staff paid and happy, there’s a lot to think about. This is because they are better equipped to handle tasks, solve problems, and deliver high-quality work–all of which impact organizational productivity.

Development 265

Development Training Training Agile 265

Johanna Rothman

JUNE 30, 2022

However, agile teams have one specific “tool” to create better predictability: right-sizing their stories. When I say that, teams roll their eyes at me—until they learn to make product minimums and split stories. But right-sizing works even better when we need to forecast product development.

How To 25

How To Agile Productivity Examples 25

Harvard Business

JULY 1, 2016

The corollary, of course, is “we don’t know how to do that.” That’s our product, and that’s our passion. It launched a product, gathered feedback, and kept iterating as it scaled and added users. Your data isn’t even in the picture. We are simply not interested in any of it.”

Productivity 132

Productivity Engineering Accenture Banking 132

Johanna Rothman

OCTOBER 15, 2021

When Mark Kilby and I wrote From Chaos to Successful Distributed Agile Teams , we differentiated between these types of teams: Collocated, as all the people are within 8-16 m of each other. In Developing Products in Half the Time , Smith and Reinertsen used the Allen Curve (in the above image) to decide whether a team was collocated or not.

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How To Agile Management Productivity 110