Phillip Starke
Why agile coaches should strive to be product coaches
Many believe that agile coaches can't be product coaches. I disagree. A good agile coach and product coach want the same: great products.
Category Methods
How to convince a skeptical team to give Scrum (or other methods) a chance
It can be difficult to get buy-in from the team members for a new approach like Scrum. The most effective way to create an open mind is showing what is in it for them. Making the daily work of the team easier and building a relationship on eye level are the key. These eight best practices are aimed at doing exactly that.
Enhancing product clarity: the why, how, and what of User Story Mapping
A user story map visually depicts the entire backlog along the user journey while simultaneously showing the priority of user stories associated with each step. User story mapping is an excellent communication aid getting everyone on the same page and it allows for easy definition of releases. It is where you can clearly see the steps from MVP to fully fledged solution.
Six best practices for maximizing the value of the Opportunity Solution Tree (OST)
The opportunity solution tree is an extremely useful method. Having already covered the why, how and what of the opportunity solution tree, I will focus on the best practices that I have found to be crucial in maximizing the potential of the OST.
Opportunity Solution Tree – a simple visual for organizing opportunities
The opportunity solution tree (OST) was invented by Teresa Torres as a means to collect and visualize the opportunity space. It is a model or mental representation that clearly links product goals to user needs and to the options for solving those needs. In product discovery, it is a powerful tool for creating a clear structure of what the team wants to achieve.
Leading indicators – easy to understand but hard to master in practice
The core of agile development - it should be at the heart of all product development efforts for that matter - is iteratively moving forward. We need to understand the impact of what we are doing without waiting for too long. For this reason, Product teams need to use leading indicators so that they can immediately measure the effectiveness of their product development.
OKRs – a fancy name for leading by objectives or is there more?
Although the big hype around Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) from a few years ago seems to have receded a bit, many companies still deploy OKRs to manage their organization. Many seem to consider this the “agile” way to set…
Why typical product roadmaps fail – how to overcome their flaws
Roadmaps are ubiquitous. Everybody working in product development has encountered one. If you are a project manager, product owner, or product management professional you probably maintain one that you are using regularly to communicate timelines, priorities, and strategy. Also, you are likely unable to predict the future.
Sprinting to success with Scrum: how to make sure it is done effectively
In its essence, agile product development is a mindset for dealing with an uncertain environment. The best way to do that is to find the path forward one step at a time. This means delivering frequently, observing how users react and interact with the product, and adjusting the approach for the next iteration according to the feedback and observations. Scrum is the manifestation of exactly this approach within a project management method.
The daily stand-up: 15 minutes that surprisingly have huge impact
The daily stand-up, daily scrum or simply the daily is the shortest of the Scrum ceremonies. If done right, the daily scrum is a very effective ceremony for removing issues, sharing information, team-building, and improving communication.