Shows
Agile Coaches' CornerAI: A New Thinking Partner in Agile Teams with Dan NeumannThis week, your host, Dan Neumann, discusses his perspective on the influence of Artificial Intelligence on Agile Teams. AI has created excitement and great expectations, undoubtedly changing how we perceive work and raising some concerns. In this episode, Dan dives deep into how Generative AI can impact Agile Teams’ work, describing AI’s use in this field and using valuable examples to describe several manners to incorporate AI to ease the work at different stages of an Agile process. Key Takeaways Generative AI, a new thinking partner to Agile Teams: There are s...2024-09-2716 minAgile Coaches' CornerMaximizing Team Autonomy while Maintaining Accountability in Agile Frameworks with Dan NeumannThis week, your host, Dan Neumann, is discussing how to maximize Team autonomy while maintaining accountability within Agile Frameworks. In this episode, Dan defines the importance of autonomy and accountability in Agile. He explains the challenge faced when too much autonomy leads to a lack of accountability while, on the contrary, too much control inhibits innovation and why leaders should prioritize this delicate balance. Key Takeaways What is Autonomy in Agile? Autonomy is the ability to self-manage, make decisions, and drive solutions. Give Teams the environment and support they n...2024-09-1318 minAgile Coaches' CornerTips for Managers to Help Agile Teams with Dan NeumannThis week, Dan Neumann, your host, dives deep into how Managers can support and help their Agile Teams. We often fall into common misconceptions, such as believing that self-managing Teams do not need Functional Managers or finding that the Manager’s role is not well defined, making it difficult to identify how he can assist an Agile Team. In this episode, Dan shares many valuable tips for Managers trying to find the best ways to help an Agile Team. Key Takeaways Tip No.1: Encourage Team Involvement. Involve the team in the sol...2024-09-0615 minAgile Coaches' CornerExcellence Exhaustion: What Is It and How to Prevent It, with Nina Sossamon-PogheThis week, Dan Neumann welcomes Nina Sossamon-Poghe to today’s conversation. Nina has an interesting background as a U.S. gymnast, a News Anchor, and a Corporate Leader with a unique perspective on resilience, mental health, and well-being. In this episode, Dan and Nina discuss an innovative concept, Excellence Exhaustion, while they define and analyze its significance. Nina also shares the “Resilience Route Navigator,” a framework designed to help high achievers combat Excellence Exhaustion. Key Takeaways What is Excellence Exhaustion? Excellent Exhaustion is different from burnout. Nina likes to...2024-08-0940 minAgile Coaches' CornerKanban Essentials: How and When to Start with Mike GuilerThis week, your host, Dan Neumann, welcomes Mike Guiler to discuss a recent course on Kanban Essentials they experienced together. By the end of the classes, they encountered a common feeling in some participants: fear of failing. Often, acquiring new knowledge, embarking on a new journey, or using a new tool can trigger insecurities: What could happen if it is not right? Where do I begin? In this episode, they encourage Agilists to face this first stage of hesitation, analyze the limitations, and consider the best scenarios for using a new tool or enforcing an i...2024-08-0223 minAgile Coaches' CornerSeven Tips for Agile Facilitation with Dan Neumann and Justin ThatilThis week, your hosts, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil, share seven tips for Agile Facilitation. Collaboration is necessary when solving a problem, and Agile Coaches and Masters work to enable a Team to cooperate. Every event is unique, which is why Facilitation could be considered a form of art. Key Takeaways Contextual Awareness: Teams and events are filled with unique variables that the facilitator cannot always anticipate; as a result, reading the overall atmosphere of a room and the individuals’ body language is a fundamental skill for Facilitators. Every Fac...2024-07-1237 minAgile Coaches' CornerProject Retrospectives: Book Exploration (Part 3) with Dan Neumann, Justin Thatil, and Mike GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Mike Guiler to continue the discussion on Norman Kerth’s book Project Retrospectives. In this episode, they explore the last three chapters, which are filled with exercises to apply at Retrospectives, specifically when sensitive topics are to be addressed. Key Takeaways Some Retrospective activities are designed to address emotionally charged topics. Failure must be accepted and embraced in postmortem retrospectives; otherwise, no one would be open to discussing it. As a facilitator, try to find the highest leader available in...2024-05-3132 minAgile Coaches' CornerProject Retrospectives: Book Exploration (Part 2) with Dan Neumann, Justin Thatil, and Mike GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Mike Guiler to continue their discussion of Norman Kerth’s book Project Retrospectives. In this episode, they dive deep into chapters 6, 7, and 8, analyzing some of the exercises and techniques described in the book and the immense value of learning to plan retrospectives for them to be fruitful. They close this conversation by addressing “postmortem” retrospectives and the importance of unpacking a failed project. Key Takeaways Chapter 6: Exercises and Techniques: There are many ways to facilitate retrospectives and this chapter describes several intenti...2024-05-2426 minAgile Coaches' CornerProject Retrospectives: Book Exploration with Dan Neumann, Justin Thatil, and Mike GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Mike Guiler to share their continuous learning journey. They have been exploring the book Project Retrospectives written by Norman Kerth, and today, you will listen to them discussing chapters 3 to 5, where they dive deep into the role of Retrospective facilitators. They compare Norm’s guidance against their own experience and reflect how practices presented are still be relevant today as retrospectives are more widely practiced in the industry. Key Takeaways Retrospectives: Internal or external facilitators? You can be present without necessarily havi...2024-05-1721 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow Managers Support Teams Shifting to Agile with Mike GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Mike Guiler to continue the conversation that started in the last episode, where it was discussed how organizations can support their Managers. This time, they explore how Managers can help their Teams to shift to a more Agile approach. In today’s episode, Mike, Justin, and Dan dive deep into the reasons managers must be prepared to accompany their people in changing to Agile, sharing information, and asking the right questions to ensure the Team’s involvement. Key Takeaways When a...2024-04-1930 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow Agile Organizations Support Their Managers with Mike GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Mike Guiler to explore how organizations can better support their managers. In this episode, they discuss two adoption patterns, the grassroots and the top-down approach, and the distinction between being a Manager and a Leader. Key Takeaways The grassroots adoption pattern and the top-down approach in an Agile Organization: Grassroots starts at a Team level. The top-down approach begins with the boss. If an Agile Team is self-managing: What does a Manager do? A Manager m...2024-04-1233 minAgile Coaches' CornerDeveloping a Successful Mindset with Seth MaustThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by an external guest: Seth Maust, President and Founder of Five Star Life, an organization that aims to change perceptions of education, sports, and culture. Seth began 20 years ago researching why so many children were dropping out of school because they did not value education and ultimately did not value themselves. Five Star Life focuses on dismantling this root issue by ingraining a different curriculum they created that guides students in developing successful mindsets. Key Takeaways Five Star Life focuses on attacking the root cause of student d...2024-04-0530 minAgile Coaches' CornerDevOps: Creating Safety and Value with Mariano Oliveti and Erica MenendezThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Mariano Oliveti and Erica Menendez to discuss DevOps, mainly how it contributes to creating safety and providing feedback during an Agile product journey. In this episode, they share their knowledge about how DevOps eases the work and ensures value delivery. Listen to this conversation among Agilists for actionable suggestions and amazing real-life examples of Agile Teams benefiting from DevOps. Key Takeaways The problems DevOps can help to solve: DevOps can help solve inefficiencies such as the ones re...2024-03-2231 minAgile Coaches' CornerBeing Human-Centric in Software Development with Anitra PavkaThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Anitra Pavka, an Agile Coach with vast experience in product ownership and management. In this episode, Anitra discusses the value of prioritizing people in the software development journey and shares ways and strategies to communicate more efficiently among the Team and with users. She also outlines different approaches to engaging better with users to minimize risks and maximize time use. Key Takeaways Anitra emphasizes the importance of being human-centric in software development. Always approach people with empathy and compassion. T...2024-03-1534 minAgile Coaches' CornerGrowing as a Coach: An Agile Journey with Mariano OlivetiThis week, Mariano Oliveti joined Dan Neumann to discuss the importance of continuous learning and growth as an Agile Coach In this episode, Mariano shares his experience growing as a Coach. Listen to this conversation where Mariano and Dan dive deep into the steps of this incremental journey, which begins with awareness, followed by proficiency, to achieve mastery later. Key Takeaways The first step is identifying how you would like to grow as a coach At the beginning of your learning process, ask yourself: How do you intake and pro...2024-03-0829 minAgile Coaches' CornerDelivering High-quality Agile Projects with Erica Menendez and Mariano OlivetiThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil, your hosts, are joined by Erica Menendez and Mariano Oliveti to discuss what it takes to deliver high-quality Agile Projects. In this episode, they dive deep into what a successful Agile project looks like and describe the necessary steps to be taken in order to reach it. Key Takeaways Clarify the purpose The company should have a purpose The culture you create should be in support of the purpose The products should align with that purpose...2024-02-1627 minAgile Coaches' CornerMVPs and MMPs: Solving Problems the Most Effective Way with Erik LindgrenThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Erik Lindgren to discuss the concepts of MVP (Minimum Viable Product) and MMP (Minimum Marketable Product) and the differences between them. In this episode, they explore an example of a successful brand that started the simplest way possible and became a multimillion-dollar success a decade later! Key Takeaways Erik shares the story of Honest Tea, which grew into a multimillion-dollar company. They started with the MVP (making tea at Eric’s home to sell later), and ten years later, Coca...2024-02-0930 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow can I scale Scrum? The Nexus Framework (Part 1) with Rich HundhausenThis week, your hosts, Dan Neumann, and Justin Thatil, welcome an external guest, Rich Hundhausen, software developer, Professional Scrum Trainer, and co-creator of the Nexus Framewokr for scaling Scrum. This episode is the first of two parts, in which they discuss the features of Nexus and when and how to implement it. Listen to this episode for a description of Nexus, how it started, and why it was developed. Rich, Dan, and Justin also dive deep into the definition of scaling, what is considered done, and the Nexus goal. Stay tuned for part two! 2024-01-2625 minAgile Coaches' CornerScope Creep: The Art of Prioritizing with Erik LindgrenThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Erik Lindgren to discuss scope creep, a term that everyone working in software development knows well. The expression refers to adding further features or functions of a new product, requirements, or work that is not authorized. In this episode, they dive deep into the challenge of managing timelines and budgets and how frequently a Team can find itself off-track, which is undoubtedly an uncomfortable position. Erik, Dan, and Justin discuss the importance of prioritizing properly, including possible improvements and requirements. Scope creep can be a l...2024-01-1932 minAgile Coaches' CornerIs this Agile? with Dan Neumann and Justin ThatilThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil discuss Agility: How do you know if you truly are in an Agile environment? In this episode, they explore the meaning of Agile and the different features that make this framework unique, including Creativity, Teamwork, Mindset, Continuous Learning, and Psychological Safety. Key Takeaways Does Scrum allow creativity? The Scrum framework was designed for complex situations where creativity is necessary since there is no “one right way” to solve a problem. What does it really mean to be Agile? Agile: Able to mo...2023-12-2234 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile Hybrid Working with Dan NeumannThis week, your host, Dan Neumann, is talking about a prominent topic: are the times of remote working about to end? Today, he is solo hosting this episode to assist you in navigating this new trend and successfully surviving these changes. In this episode, Dan discusses hybrid work and the trend of returning to in-person work. He shares some strategies to help Teams thrive in this new work scenario. Things are changing rapidly in this evolving landscape, and several companies require their staff to return to the office; listen to this episode and get some v...2023-12-0125 minAgile Coaches' CornerThe Future of Agile with Misi EyetsemitanThis week, Dan Neumann and Justin Thatil are joined by Misi Eyetsemitan. In this episode, they discuss the future of Agile, the advantages and challenges they see, and how far the Agile Methodology has come in the last two decades since its origins when it was created to achieve better and more efficient software development. Listen to this episode and learn more about where Agile is going. Key Takeaways The Agile Manifesto was not created rigidly but was open for future updates. Agile evolves powered by the pr...2023-11-1730 minAgile Coaches' CornerFrom Agile Coach to Manager with Hal HogueThis week, Dan Neumann and his co-host Justin Thatil are joined by Hal Hogue, who has transitioned from an Agile Coach position to a Managing role and today shares the features of such a shift. In this episode, Hal discusses his journey from working with managing engineers to becoming one of them. He mentions the particularities of both of these roles, the overlaps between them, and how these positions can work together to advocate for Agility and fast flow. Key Takeaways What are Agile Coaches? The Agile Co...2023-11-1038 minAgile Coaches' CornerSeamless Value Flow with Lizmeth Rodriguez and Justin ThatilThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by two AgileThought colleagues, Justin Thatil, the show's cohost, and Lizmeth Rodriguez. They discuss the topic of how to achieve a seamless Value Flow, one of the SAFe principles, and the general importance of flow in a system. These three expert Agilists also assess the differences between Kanban and SAFe, especially regarding their approach to scaling. Key Takeaways Principles of SAFe: Make value flow without interruptions. Value has to move efficiently from start to finish. What are the differences between Kanban a...2023-11-0336 minAgile Coaches' CornerMastering Agile: Balancing Dreams, Budgets, and DisciplineDive into six rules for managing your product backlog with AgileThought’s Dan Neumann, Justin Thatil, and Mike Cooper. In the episode, Mike Cooper emphasizes the importance of managing expectations in Agile projects. The trio explores the principles of Agile scope management, the value of transparent communication, and the critical role of discipline in Agile success. 1. Analogy for Setting Expectations: - Mike Cooper emphasizes the importance of setting real expectations at the beginning of a project. - He uses an analogy of buying a dream house but having budget con...2023-10-2732 minAgile Coaches' CornerBalancing Technical Prowess with Product Ownership with Erica Menendez and Phillip LisenbaThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Erica Menendez and Phillip Lisenba to explore the Product Owner’s accountabilities, especially when they are filled by a highly technical professional, and how this can impact the Team’s work in positive and negative ways. They share their own Agile experiences dealing with mature Product Owners and what the Agile and the Scrum framework proposes for these cases. Key Takeaways Challenges and opportunities of dealing with a highly technical Product Owner: The Product Owner’s relationship with the Team will determine the extent of the...2023-10-1329 minAgile Coaches' CornerCoaching vs. Mastering the Details with Mariano Oliveti and Erica MenendezThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Phillip Lisenba, Justin Thatil, and Erica Menendez to discuss the particularities of the Business Analyst role in a Scrum Team. In this episode, they explore the valuable role of a Business Analyst and the crucial role of effective communication among Team members to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of a Scrum Team. Key Takeaways The Three Scrum Accountabilities: The first accountability of the Agile Team is the Scrum Master, whose responsibility is to help the Team form Scrum at the max...2023-09-2930 minAgile Coaches' CornerCoaching vs. Mastering the Details with Mariano Oliveti and Erica MenendezThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his colleague and host of today’s conversation, Justin Thatil; Justin welcomes Mariano Oliveti and Erica Menendez to discuss a recurrent topic: Coaching versus Mastering the Details. This episode addresses the complexities of coaching, especially considering the different maturity levels and even diverse areas of expertise within a Team. They also dive deep into the matter of a Scrum Master’s expertise, debating whether or not it is a requirement to perform the role better. Key Takeaways To coach anybody doesn’t necessar...2023-09-2231 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile Executive Coaching with Quincy Jordan and Phillip LisenbaThis week, Dan Neumann welcomes his colleague, Justin Thatil, who hosts today’s episode. Justin is joined by Quincy Jordan and Phillip Lisenba to discuss Executive Coaching. In this episode, they address Executive coaching, its differences and similarities with regular coaching, how it is done, and how it can be encouraged. Listen to this episode, which contains actionable tips for your Agile practice! Key Takeaways Is Executive Coaching the same as regular coaching? Both encourage, believe, and help Teams become even greater than they are. An Executive Coach must hav...2023-09-1539 minAgile Coaches' CornerIs the Scrum Master the Secret to Scrum Success? with Phillip LisenbaThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his colleague, Phillip Lisenba. In this episode, they explore the value that a Scrum Master can provide. Often, organizations reach a moment in their transformation when they question whether or not a Scrum Master is needed and how significant their role is. Listen to Dan and Phillip diving deep into the heart of the role of a Scrum Master and how it is essential for an organization’s success. Key Takeaways The Scrum Master Role: The primary purpose of a Scrum Master is not adm...2023-08-0431 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat is Rolling Wave Planning? with Eric LandesThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Eric Landes to explore the ways in that Rolling Wave Planning can help organizations in their Agile journey. In this episode, Dan and Eric explore the meaning of rolling wave planning and how it can help you respond to changes when delivering projects with high amounts of uncertainty. Key Takeaways What is Rolling Wave Planning? It consists in planning a piece that is known and understood at the present moment and rolling the other parts into the future. Not planning at all i...2023-06-3029 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile Immersion Programs with Eric LandesThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by one of the Principal Consultants at Agile Thought: Eric Landes. Training often appears as spending hours sitting behind a computer screen or in a classroom, absorbing information. However, Immersive Programs present a radically different approach. In this episode, Dan and Eric delve into the key characteristics of an Immersion Program. They draw a comparison with a more conventional method, listing the advantages of this innovative and engaging approach that becomes a great means to maintaining alive a continuous learning process. Key Takeaways Ho...2023-06-0920 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat's new in SAFe 6.0? with Ola TundeThis week, Ola Tunde joins Dan Neumann to explore the innovations on SAFe, which just launched the 6.0 version. In this episode, they talk about the new features of SAFe 6.0, including new strategic themes. Dan and Ola Tunde dive deep into the benefits and advancements this latest version of SAFe offers Teams and Organizations. Key Takeaways Strategic Themes that SAFe presents: Strengthening the Foundation for Business Agility Empowering the Agile Team even in their responsibilities, giving decision-making authority to the Teams. Accelerating value flow: How does a Team iden...2023-04-2826 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat Does a Scrum Master Really Do? with Buyi KalalaThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Buyi Kalala to talk about the Scrum Master role and the misconceptions associated with it. In this episode, Dan and Buyi address the personality types that seem more effective/successful in the Scrum Master role. Key Takeaways What do Scrum Masters really do? There are a lot of misconceptions regarding the roles of a Scrum Master. A Scrum Master guides Team members to find a more effective way to deliver work, improving what they do and ensuring they follow A...2023-04-0729 minAgile Coaches' CornerAn Agile Product Backlog Is NOT a List of Requirements with Adam UleryThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his colleague and friend, Adam Ulery, to talk about product backlogs. In this episode, Dan and Adam explore the recent patterns showing interesting ways of using Agile terms, as it is an example nowadays that people call product backlogs the source of requirements for the Team, they discuss today the challenges that may arise as a result of this misinterpretation. Key Takeaways What are product backlogs? And why they are not just the source of requirements. A product backlog is a...2023-03-2433 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat should a Scrum Master do when starting at a new company? with Mike GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his colleague Mike Guiler In this episode, they answer a listener's question about how they might approach joining a new company. Times of change are exciting and create new possibilities. The next question is: "how might I approach it?" Mentioned in this Episode: Team Topologies: Organizing Business and Technology Teams for Fast Flow Want to Learn More or Get in Touch? Visit the website and catch up with all the episodes on AgileThought.com! Email your thoughts or suggestions to Po...2023-03-1030 minAgile Coaches' CornerLiving Agile: Be Curious, Learn, Pivot, and Change with Andrea FloydThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his colleague Andrea Floyd, who is about to start her retirement journey and today is sharing her excitement about this new stage in her life. In this episode, Andrea talks about the many ways in which her life was improved by Agile principles and the framework it provides to face different life scenarios and overcome obstacles. Key Takeaways Different phases of life involve different goals. We wait for different stages in life with different plans. We collect different tools that we expect w...2023-03-0330 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhy does ChatGPT say we still need human Agile Coaches?This week, Dan Neumann is joined by ChatGPT, a large language model developed by open AI. An AI language model, I'm designed to understand natural language and generate human-like responses to questions and prompts, trained on a vast amount of text data, and have knowledge of a wide range of topics including software development project management and Agile methodology. ChatGPT shares his expertise and insights with Agile Coaches’ Corner listeners in this episode. Key Takeaways ● ChatGPT shares what is most valuable for an Agile practitioner. ○ The most valuable...2023-02-2417 minAgile Coaches' CornerFrom Kanban to Scrum with Eric Landes and Brian WawokThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by an internal colleague, Eric Landes, Professional Scrum Trainer and DevOps Coach at Agile Thought, and Brian Wawok, CEO and Co-founder at Listing Mirror, a multichannel e-commerce management platform. In this episode, they get together to address a question posted by Brian. Brian has been working with Kanban with his team, they are looking to embrace the Scrum framework and are wondering how this transition would impact the CD. Key Takeaways Brian explains what Listing Mirror is and who its customers are. He shares th...2023-02-0333 minAgile Coaches' CornerA Time to Be Thankful with Adam Ulery, Eric Landes, Andrea Floyd, Erica Menendez, and Kris ChaviousThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Adam Ulery, Eric Landes, Andrea Floyd, Erica Menendez, and Kris Chavious. In this episode, they are celebrating Thanksgiving by sharing what they are thankful for from an Agile Perspective. Key Takeaways Adam is thankful for the great people he met in the Agile Community and for Dan for making this podcast! Andrea is reflecting on the previous year and shows her appreciation for those who show up with curiosity. Eric is thankful for being able to coach with two special colleagues. Kris stops to appreciate his Agile c...2022-11-1821 minAgile Coaches' CornerFourth Anniversary with Sam FalcoThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Sam Falco to celebrate four years of podcasts. In this episode, Sam, who was a co-founder of the Agile Coach’s Corner Podcast, is talking about some of his experiences throughout his professional journey; he dives deep into various lessons learned and the challenges overcame. Key Takeaways Sam shares the ups and downs in his professional journey: Sam learned not to interfere, but instead to listen and observe. Keeping a curious perspective is always positive. Learn how Teams operate; please avoid jumping in and telling them what “needs...2022-11-0432 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile vs. Waterfall with Dan NeumanThis week, Dan Neumann is talking about the frequent topic that when addressing Agile and Waterfall sometimes seems that it is used as a weapon to keep people away, and to advocate for the usage of one way (Agile or Waterfall) against the other. In this episode, Dan will explore how to begin a constructive conversation regarding moving forward using Agile or Waterfall when facing a challenge that needs to be overcome. Key Takeaways Agile vs Waterfall When deciding which approach to use, think about what the goals are, and th...2022-10-1422 minAgile Coaches' CornerContinuous Learning: Professional Scrum Facilitation Skills Training with Patricia KongThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Patricia Kong in today’s episode. Patricia is the Product Owner, Enterprise Agility, and Learning Enablement for Scrum.Org. In this episode, Dan and Patricia are exploring a new training class Scrum is offering called Professional Scrum Facilitation Skills Training which is directed not just to Scrum Masters but for all levels including all leaders and Team members too. Key Takeaways What is Learning Enablement? It is the place to improve your profile and skills by learning from the experiences of the individuals who...2022-09-2332 minAgile Coaches' CornerHelping an Organization Meet Its Needs with Dan NeumannThis week, Dan Neumann welcomes you to celebrate episode number 200! The Agile Coaches’ Corner Podcast began back in 2018 and the journey continues! During these years there were many guests, an increasing amount of listeners, and numerous Agile topics were explored. Thank you for being part of these first 200 shows! In this episode, Dan is exploring a typical situation: Trying to explain the benefits of the Agile ways to someone who is not immersed in the Agile field. Referring to the Agile principles, values, or even the Agile Manifesto won’t help stakeholders. Listen to this episo...2022-09-0918 minAgile Coaches' CornerAssorted Agile Questions with Michael GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann welcomes his colleague Michael Guiler to today’s episode. In this episode, they will be answering questions regarding several Agile topics, such as leadership, effective communication, Team readiness, best practices, motivation, and transparency, among others. Join this fun and insightful conversation with Dan and Mike! Key Takeaways What is a good-to-go technique to help leadership transition from being tactical to being more servant leaders? Enable people who are closer to the work to make decisions in their field. Ask questions instead of giving directions. Rewire the comm...2022-09-0221 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile Transformation with Christine BushThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Christine Bush, a brand new Agile thinker. In this episode, Dan and Christine are discussing Agile Transformations. As Lyssa Adkins describes, an Agile Coach is someone who has seen lots of different success and failure patterns over time. Change is never easy, and that is the reason why Dan And Christine are diving deep into the necessary features of a well-conducted Agile transformation. Key Takeaways What is important when an organization is looking for an Agile Transformation? Transformations have to come from the to...2022-07-2930 minAgile Coaches' CornerKanban or Scrum? with Dan NeumannThis week, Dan Neumann, your host, is answering a very common question: Why would an organization use Kanban or Scrum?
In this episode, he explains the benefits of both approaches, describing each of them and identifying which of them is more suitable for an organization. Key Takeaways ● The kind of work an organization is doing will define the methodologies or approaches to take. ○ Scrum is an excellent framework for organizations that are doing complex work, as it is creating software. ○ If you are in conditions of uncertainty, you want...2022-06-0316 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat Does a Scrum Master Actually Do All Day? with Hal Hogue and Michael GuilerThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by two of his Agile Thought colleagues, Hal Hogue and Mike Guiler to discuss a very particular question: What does a Scrum Master actually do all day? In this episode, Dan, Hal, and Mike start by exploring what a Scrum Master does not do, then they discuss the many hats a Scrum Master wears, and how these several duties impact a Team’s performance. A Scrum Master provides tools and autonomy and makes sure that each Team member knows their accountabilities and the reasons behind the work they do....2022-04-2234 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow do I Scale Agile without using SAFe? with Adam UleryThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Adam Ulery to explore the topic of scaled approaches independent of embracing an industry framework. In this episode, Dan and Adam are discussing scaling without adopting an Agile framework like SAFe. They share the reasons organizations use industry frameworks to scale, dive deep into the characteristics of SAFe and other frameworks, and describe the principles that need to be prioritized while scaling, such as Clarity of Vision, Goal Alignment, Frequent Delivery of Value, Planning and Coordination, and Transparency. Key Takeaways SAFe is the most popular Agile framework f...2022-04-0137 minAgile Coaches' CornerPsychological Safety: The Key to Successful Teams with Dan NeumannThis week, Dan Neumann is diving deep into the topic of psychological safety, inspired by a couple of articles that got his special attention (references below). Dan is sharing in today’s episode the definition of psychological safety, its link to diversity in Teams and innovation, as well as some specific ways to foster psychological safety as the number one prerequisite for a successful Team. Key Takeaways What is psychological safety? Psychological safety is a shared belief that the members of a team won’t be rejected or embarrassed for speaking up with their ideas...2022-03-2520 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat Agile Lessons can you learn from the Theater? with Dan NeumannThis week, Dan Neumann, your host, is sharing what he has learned from his continuous learning journey that brought him to acting classes several months ago and that now involves him getting a part as an actor in a play. Dan learned from his acting classes a lot of wisdom that can also be applied to Agility and in the delivery of value to the organization and he is sharing it in today’s episode. Key Takeaways ● Role clarity is crucial. ○ Expectations are related to the role you are playing. ○ Not...2022-03-1827 minAgile Coaches' CornerPracticing Empathy in Fast-Paced Settings with Kris Chavious and Quincy JordanThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Kristan Chavious and Quincy Jordan, two returning guests and colleagues. In this episode, they are discussing the very special topic of empathy and how it can be a challenge to practice it in fast-paced settings; it can be tough to reconcile empathy with moving fast but there is a significant value in it. Key Takeaways Different ways to bring empathy into an Agile Team: Empathy is known as the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. Empathy is also being ab...2022-03-1142 minAgile Coaches' Corner2022: Getting Agile Teams Off To a Good Start with Quincy JordanThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by a repeated guest, Quincy Jordan. Today they are talking about the vital importance of getting Agile Teams and initiatives off to a good start. In this episode, they discuss the things that need to happen outside the Teams and that also need to involve them, what elements are required to support the Team and what to expect from them. Listen to this episode to learn more about how to support a Scrum Team to have the best start possible. Key Takeaways Management should su...2022-01-0727 minAgile Coaches' CornerChristmas Eve: A Time for Awareness and Desire Leading to Agile Change with Adam UleryThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Adam Ulery to accompany you on Christmas Eve in an Agile way. This time of the year is for reflection, to be grateful about the blessing of the year as well as a time to think about what wants to be changed and improved. This episode is the first of two where Adam and Dan talk about organizational change management and present the steps involved in the ADKAR Method: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement as they dive deep into the first two steps: Awareness and Desire. 2021-12-2433 minAgile Coaches' CornerThe Book Club: Work on Your Continuous Learning Journey with Andrea Floyd and Hal HogueThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by two AgileThought colleagues, Andrea Floyd and Hal Hogue. In this episode, Dan, Andrea, and Hal are talking about the books that have been influential to them and what they learned from them. Continuous learning is a crucial piece of the work at AgileThought, and this is why today, you are invited to this special space called The Book Club. Key Takeaways Books that bring new ideas to the practice: A fairly common book that you should not take for granted: Turn the Ship Ar...2021-10-2234 minAgile Coaches' CornerDiversity in Teams with Andrea Floyd and Buyi KalalaThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by two AgileThought colleagues, Andrea Floyd and Buyi Kalala, to explore the topic of diversity in teams. In this episode, Dan, Andrea, and Buyi talk about some of the challenges they have encountered in regards to diversity, sharing their observations, and experiences in regards to how diversity can enhance the work of a team but also highlighting the real challenges that come with it. Key Takeaways Diversity: benefits, challenges, and how to promote it. People often make assumptions about looks, accents, and other traits, th...2021-10-0134 minAgile Coaches' CornerTeam Building: Have Fun at Work with Mike DionneThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by a guest from outside of the Agile Coaches’ Corner, Mike Dionne, who is a Scrum Master and Coach, to explore some of the valuable work he has done with teams from a coaching standpoint. In this episode, Mike shares how to make work fun and attractive so people would hate Fridays and love Mondays. Mike dives deep into the crucial importance of participation, collaboration, creating a safe environment that fosters vulnerability, and how to promote self-propelling and self-organizing teams. Key Takeaways How does Mike...2021-09-1030 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow Culture Impacts Agility with Carlos Romero, Justin Thatil, and Mariano OlivetiThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by three of his AgileThought colleagues, Carlos Romero, Justin Thatil, and Mariano Oliveti to talk about different cultures and how they impact agility. In today’s episode, you will hear about the concept of power distance and how it differs in different cultures with real examples of how organizations work in several countries around the globe. These three experts also share their knowledge regarding the diverse levels of uncertainty avoidance in different cultures and how it impacts agility. Key Takeaways Different Cultures and their tend...2021-08-2036 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow Long Should A Sprint Be with Dan Neumann and Sam FalcoThis week, Dan Neumann and Sam Falco are together to talk about sprint duration. A common question is “How long should my sprint be?” followed by the classic consultant answer… “It depends.” Today, Dan and Sam are sharing the definition of sprint and how you can decide the right length of a sprint for your team. They explore different sprint durations, from less than a week up to a month, and how to pick the one that benefits everyone on the team. Key Takeaways What is Sprint in Scrum? Sprints are the hear...2021-08-0639 minAgile Coaches' CornerDiversity in the Tech World with Nicole SchefflerThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Nicole Scheffler who is an Engineering Leader from VMware. Nicole has some passion projects around the Tech Diva Success collection, including podcasts, books, and courses, all with diversity as their main component. Tech is a field that is not particularly diverse and that is the reason why in today’s episode, Nicole is sharing the meaning of diversity, inclusion, and equity and what that might look like in the workplace from an organization to an individual level. Key Takeaways What do diversity, inclusion, and...2021-07-2339 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow to Increase Employee Engagement with Michael GuilerIn this episode, Dan Neumann is joined by a return guest and AgileThought colleague, Michael Guiler. Mike has been an agile coach for over 15 years and has experience helping geographically dispersed organizations (in both the business and technology fields) to transform and better achieve their goals. For the last year and a half, Mike has been with AgileThought as an Agile Consultant. Together, Dan and Mike are discussing employee engagement and what organizations and leadership can do to improve it. Mike shares 2020 employee engagement statistics, what creates engagement, the differences between managers and leaders (and w...2021-06-2534 minAgile Coaches' CornerSpotify, Schmotify: Do Your Own Agile ThinkingThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his co-host, Sam Falco, principal trainer and professional scrum trainer at AgileThought. Together, they’re exploring a question that was sent in by a listener. They asked Dan and Sam to share their take on “the Spotify Model.” The popularized model was first introduced in 2012 by the whitepaper, “Scaling Agile @ Spotify” and described a “people-driven, autonomous approach for scaling agile that emphasizes the importance of culture and network.” Often, organizations will look at a successful company and say, “How can we emulate what they do?” rather than...2021-03-2626 minAgile Coaches' CornerEntering a New Organization as a Scrum Master with Sam Falco & MC MooreThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by two fellow AgileThought colleagues — Sam Falco, a Principal Trainer, and M.C. Moore, a Team Agile Coach. Together, they explore the topic of Scrum mastery — specifically, being a Scrum Master new into an organization. There’s a lot of excitement — but also many potential pitfalls — that come with entering a new group as a Scrum Master. And as someone who joined AgileThought just six months ago, M.C. Moore, in particular, has a lot of experience in this area! He shares his top tips on what to do as you enter a ne...2021-02-1934 minAgile Coaches' CornerBig Room Planning 101 with Andrea FloydToday Dan Neumann is joined by fellow AgileThought colleague and return guest, Andrea Floyd! Andrea is an enterprise agile transformation consultant at AgileThought with over 25 years of experience in software development and management. She is an innovator who has led multiple organization-wide scaled agile implementations, and she has also architected innovative solution strategies and roadmaps across many frameworks (including Scrum, Kanban, and the Scaled Agile Framework). In this conversation, Dan and Andrea explore the topic of “Big Room Planning” — what it is, when you would use it, and how to do it. Andrea also shares the ben...2021-02-1232 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhen Things Are Going So Well That You Just Don’t NoticeIn this episode, Dan Neumann is joined by a frequent guest of his and AgileThought colleague, Quincy Jordan! Quincy is a Principal Transformation Consultant and has been with AgileThought for almost three years. Together, they will be exploring when things are going so well that you just don’t notice that there are problems bubbling beneath the surface. They address what kind of problems show up when teams become complacent due to things going so well, how to spot these problems (and address them) before they start, and how to differentiate between when things are goi...2020-10-3027 minAgile Coaches' CornerCloud Adoption and Migration with Daniel NoveloIn today’s episode, Dan Neumann is joined by AgileThought’s Managing Director of the Run Practice, Daniel Novelo! In his role, Daniel is in charge of defining the vision and strategic direction of the Cloud & Managed Services Portfolio at AgileThought, by understanding the market trends, designing the Digital Products & Services that our customers require, and by delivering the revenue and profit that AgileThought budgets. He also designs, coordinates, and executes business plans with AgileThought’s Partners, Sales, and Delivery Teams to achieve its yearly objectives. In their conversation today, Daniel speaks about his role as Mana...2020-09-1129 minAgile Coaches' CornerExploring Causality and AI-Driven Digital Transformation with Dr. Jerry SmithJoining Dan Neumann once again is Dr. Jerry Smith who you may remember from a bonus episode of the Agile Coaches’ Corner a few weeks back! Dr. Jerry Smith is AgileThought’s Managing Director of Analytics and Data Science. As a practicing AI & Data Scientist, thought leader, innovator, speaker, author, and philanthropist, Dr.Jerry Smith is dedicated to advancing and transforming businesses through evolutionary computing, enterprise AI and data sciences, machine learning, and causality. In this episode, Dan and Dr. Jerry Smith explore the topic of digital transformations. Jerry takes listeners throug...2020-09-0424 minAgile Coaches' CornerThe Power of Words with Dan NeumannOn this week’s ‘solocast’ of the Agile Coaches’ Corner, Dan Neumann wants to talk a little bit about words and phrases! If you had a magic wand and could change any word or phrase in relation to Scrum and agility, what would it be? In this episode, Dan shares the four words and phrases that he would change for all Scrum teams — and, if it were possible, why he would like to see them go away, altogether! Key Takeaways Resources vs. People Don’t confuse the people on your...2020-08-2811 minAgile Coaches' CornerFactoring Culture into Your Agile Transformation with Quincy JordanIn this episode, Dan Neumann is joined by AgileThought colleague and frequent guest of the show, Quincy Jordan. Quincy has been with AgileThought for just over two years as a principal transformation consultant and agile competency lead. Prior to AgileThought, Quincy was the transformation lead for Pivotal’s Atlanta office, where he consulted with clients to help them reach enterprise scale. He has also served as a principal consultant and agile coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. In their discussion today, Dan and Quincy explore the topic of culture as related to agile tra...2020-08-2127 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow to Effectively Use Agility Metaphors with Dan NeumannIn today’s ‘solocast’ of the Agile Coaches’ Corner, Dan Neumann is exploring the art of metaphors. Metaphors can be a powerful tool to illustrate important ideas and concepts of agility — if used well. Dan shares the pros and cons of using metaphors in an agile setting, how to use them effectively whatever your role may be, and how metaphors can be a really powerful tool to add to your arsenal, regardless of what level you’re at in the organization and who you’re trying to communicate with. Key Takeaways What is a...2020-08-1419 minAgile Coaches' CornerWhat Makes a Great Scrum Master? with Quincy Jordan and Christy ErbeckIn this episode, Dan Neumann is joined by not one — but two! — AgileThought Colleagues; Quincy Jordan and Christy Erbeck! In their conversation today, Dan, Quincy, and Christy discuss the key qualities to look for when bringing a new Scrum Master into your organization. They discuss the important characteristics you should be on the lookout for, the key skillsets, important soft skills, and some of the qualifiers (and disqualifiers!). They also share what to pay attention to when hiring, red flags to watch out for, and insightful questions you can ask during the interview process to make...2020-08-0722 minAgile Coaches' CornerFortnite is teaching your Kids AgilityThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his AgileThought Colleague, Quincy Jordan! In their conversation today, Dan and Quincy are diving into the world of online videogames — specifically Fortnite; the popular battle royale, sandbox game — and drawing comparisons between it and agility. Having watched his son play Fortnite over the summer, Quincy saw how he remotely communicated with his friends online to come together as a team, seek out an objective, collaborate, and go after that goal. In this episode, Quincy not only highlights many of the similarities between online gaming and ha...2020-07-2427 minAgile Coaches' CornerAndrea Floyd on How to Start Finishing with ScrumIn this week’s episode, Dan Neumann is joined by special guest and AgileThought colleague, Andrea Floyd! Andrea is an enterprise agile transformation consultant at AgileThought. Andrea has 25 years of experience in software development and management. She is an innovator who has led multiple organization-wide scaled agile implementations, and she has also architected innovative solution strategies and roadmaps across many frameworks (including Scrum, Kanban, and the Scaled Agile Framework). Last week on the podcast, Dan and Quincy Jordan were exploring the topic of getting to ‘start’ as a Scrum team and overcoming the inertia of being s...2020-06-1931 minAgile Coaches' CornerGetting to ‘Start’ as a Scrum Team with Quincy JordanJoining Dan Neumann this week is frequent guest, Quincy Jordan! Quincy has been with AgileThought for just over two years as a principal transformation consultant and agile competency lead. Prior to AgileThought, Quincy was the transformation lead for Pivotal’s Atlanta office, where he consulted with clients to help them reach enterprise scale. He has also served as a principal consultant and agile coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. In this episode, Dan and Quincy are talking about what it takes to get from zero to ‘start’ as a Scrum team. They speak about t...2020-06-1232 minAgile Coaches' CornerQuincy Jordan on Transformations Amid DisruptionsThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by repeat guest and AgileThought colleague, Quincy Jordan! Quincy is a Principal Transformation Consultant and Agile Competency Lead who has been with AgileThought for just over two years. Prior to AgileThought, Quincy was the transformation lead for Pivotal’s Atlanta office, where he consulted with clients to help them reach enterprise scale. Quincy also served as a principal consultant and agile coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. In their discussion today, Dan and Quincy are talking all about disruptions in these unprecedented times. Right now, disruptions, especially in...2020-05-2926 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile Psychology and Rise of the Agile Jedi with Quincy JordanIn today’s episode, Dan Neumann is once again joined by his colleague, Quincy Jordan! Quincy is a Principal Transformation Consultant and Agile Competency Lead who has been with AgileThought for just over two years. Prior to AgileThought, Quincy was the transformation lead for Pivotal’s Atlanta office, where he consulted with clients to help them reach enterprise scale. Quincy also served as a principal consultant and agile coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. Today, they’re talking agile psychology and the rise of the agile Jedi. They go beyond the general skills and pra...2020-05-2233 minAgile Coaches' CornerLean and Agile Portfolio Management with Quincy JordanThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by his colleague and return guest, Quincy Jordan! Quincy is a Principal Transformation Consultant and Agile Competency Lead who has been with AgileThought for just over two years. Prior to AgileThought, Quincy was the Transformation Lead for Pivotal’s Atlanta Office, where he consulted with clients to help them reach enterprise scale. Quincy also served as a Principal Consultant and Agile Coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. In this episode, they’re going to be discussing portfolio management. A lot of times, Agility is thought of as team...2020-04-1732 minAgile Coaches' CornerDiscussing COVID19 Coping Strategies with Christy Erbeck In this bonus episode Christy Erbeck and Dan Neumann discuss some of the work impact from COVID19 and share some of their coping mechanisms. Want to Learn More or Get in Touch? If we can help coach you or your organization, contact us at podcast@agilethought.com and we'll connect you to the right folks at AgileThought. Visit the website and catch up with all the episodes at AgileThought.com! Email your thoughts or suggestions to Podcast@AgileThought.com or Tweet @AgileThought using #AgileThoughtPodcast!2020-03-1928 minAgile Coaches' CornerUnderstanding the Scrum@Scale Framework with Michael McGreevyThis week on the podcast, Dan Neumann is joined by his collaborator Sam Falco and special guest, Michael McGreevy! Michael is an Enterprise Agile Coach at Grow Financial and is a Certified Scrum Professional, Agile Leader, and Scrum@Scale Practitioner. A couple of episodes back, Christy Erbeck shared some of her beliefs and understanding around the scaled Agile framework, SAFe. That fascinating conversation led hosts Dan and Sam along a journey to discovering other scaling frameworks. So, in today’s episode, they’re continuing their conversation around scaling and taking a look at Scrum@Scale! Micha...2020-02-1445 minAgile Coaches' CornerLeading an Organization Transformation: A Practices-based Approach vs. A Culture-Based Approach, with Eric LandesThis week on the podcast, Dan Neumann is joined by AgileThought colleague and return guest, Eric Landes! Eric Landes comes from a DevOps background and originally started as a developer. Currently, he serves as a Senior DevOps Consultant, ALM Director, and Solutions Architect at AgileThought. In today’s episode, Dan and Eric are discussing organization transformation. If you haven’t already heard Agile Coaches’ Corner ep. 59, “The Four C’s of Organizational Culture,” you should tune into that first, as this episode makes reference to it. Today’s episode, however, is asking the question of whether an orga...2020-01-2424 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow to Get Past the Two-Week Shelf Life of Your New Year’s ResolutionWith just days before the new year, your host, Dan Neumann, figured it’d be the perfect time to discuss New Year’s resolutions! Many people set New Year’s resolutions, but the problem is: they don’t keep them. Some research even says that only 8% of people actually achieve the goal they’ve set out for. Many of these goals don’t even reach a two-week shelf life before many people give up. But why is this? In today’s podcast, Dan Neumann sets out to find the answer! He takes a look at what’s inherent...2019-12-2713 minAgile Coaches' CornerScrum Master Q & A with Sam FalcoThis week on the podcast, Dan Neumann is joined by his collaborator, Sam Falco! Together they’re going to be tackling three Scrum-related questions that they dug up on Quora. Sam finds himself running into these particular questions fairly frequently. In fact, every new client seems to have a set of similar questions! So if you’ve ever pondered, “What is better: one-week or two-week sprints,” “What is the scrum master’s role,” “What are the tasks that a scrum master has to perform,” or “What are the first things a scrum master should do when starting at a ne...2019-10-1833 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile & Scrum Question and AnswerFor this week’s episode, your host Dan Neumann is shaking things up! He’ll be answering some of the frequently asked questions that often come up in his work as well as some miscellaneous questions on Quora on the themes of Agile and Scrum. In his coaching, Dan often finds that there are a lot of misconceptions, questions, or themes that continuously come up. Throughout this podcast, he’s hoping that the selected questions today will add some value to your own practice! Some of the questions include: “What resources would be good reading for an Ag...2019-10-0421 minAgile Coaches' CornerHow Testing is Done on Agile Projects with John GravitteToday, your host Dan Neumann is joined by AgileThought colleague, John Gravitte, the Director of Quality! John has been in the quality field for about 26 years. He started out doing the testing himself but became a QA Manager in ’99 and began to manage teams, which is when he realized he really had a knack for process improvement, streamlining standards, and efficiency. When he arrived at AgileThought, he was introduced to Agile and it was a perfect fit for his quality-oriented mindset! In this episode, they will be exploring how testing is done on Agile projects; tak...2019-08-3027 minAgile Coaches' CornerChristy Erbeck on the Principles of Radical Candor Joining your host, Dan Neumann, today is his AgileThought colleague, Christy Erbeck. Christy is a Principal Transformation Consultant at AgileThought, with over 25 years of experience in domestic and international consulting, training, and coaching, working in both software development and non-product-focused environments, including manufacturing (discrete and process), distribution, and sales and marketing. On top of all that, Christy is also a Certified Dare to Lead™ Facilitator. Today, Dan and Christy will be discussing Radical Candor based on the fantastic book by Kim Scott of the same name. In her book, Kim courageously shares some of the missteps she has...2019-08-2334 minAgile Coaches' CornerReal vs. Fake Teams with Eric LandesThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by AgileThought colleague, Eric Landes, to discuss real vs. fake teams! Landes, who comes from a DevOps background, originally started out as a developer. Currently, he serves as a Senior DevOps Consultant, ALM Director, and Solutions Architect. In his roles, he helps clients deliver value to customers in their software delivery pipeline, and has extensive experience in leading organizations in adopting agile and lean frameworks, like Scrum and Kanban. In today’s discussion about real vs. fake teams, Dan and Eric talk about what distinguishes between the two, the ben...2019-08-1627 minAgile Coaches' CornerThe Challenges of Bringing Agile into a Non-Agile Environment with Scott RileyToday’s guest is Scott Riley, a colleague of Dan Neumann’s and a Delivery Leader at AgileThought. As a Delivery Lead, Scott wears multiple hats and is responsible for the successful delivery or implementation of projects. If anything goes wrong during a project, it is Scott’s job to be able to identify what that issue is and remedy it. In this episode, Dan and Scott are discussing the challenges of bringing agile into a non-agile environment. They talk about the challenges they generally see in work environments transitioned to agile, misconceptions they often hear ar...2019-08-0930 minAgile Coaches' CornerTalking Feedback with Christy ErbeckIn this episode, your host, Dan Neumann, is joined by a colleague at AgileThought, Christy Erbeck! Christy is a Principal Transformation Consultant at AgileThought with over 25 years of experience in domestic and international consulting, training, and coaching, working in both software development and non-product-focused environments, including manufacturing (discrete and process), distribution, and sales and marketing. Today, they’re going to be talking about the topic of feedback. They discuss the importance of giving and receiving feedback, feedback fallacies, how to practice giving better feedback, how people respond to both poorly-constructed and well-constructed feedback, and how to...2019-05-1031 minAgile Coaches' CornerAgile Assessments: A Helpful Remedy or Harmful Toxin?This week, your host, Dan Neumann, is going solo! He’s going to be talking about Agile assessments, and — using medical terminology — discuss whether it’s a helpful remedy or harmful toxin. If someone is receiving the right medication for the right ailment, it can be absolutely lifesaving. But if you take that same medication and apply it to the wrong circumstance, it can be incredibly detrimental — such as a toxin, poisoning your system. Dan views Agile assessments in a similar way. They can be super helpful tools for organizations that are trying to understand their curre...2019-05-0318 minAgile Coaches' CornerScrum and Empirical Process Control with Sam FalcoIn today’s episode, Dan Neumann is joined by Sam Falco once again! Sam is Dan’s colleague at AgileThought and is an Agile Coach and Certified Scrum Professional with an extensive background leading Agile development teams. In a previous episode, Sam and Dan discussed games and why Scrum works for people from a gaming-standpoint and helps drive engagement. In this episode, they’re discussing empirical process control and how it makes Scrum work from a getting-things-done standpoint! Sam shares some of the lessons he has learned as a Scrum master (both ear...2019-04-2636 minAgile Coaches' CornerDr. Jeff Thompson on Values-Based LeadershipThis week, Dan Neumann is joined by Dr. Jeff Thompson. Jeff is the Executive Advisor and Chief Executive Officer Emeritus at Gundersen Health System as well as a pediatrician, author, and speaker on values-based leadership. His experience in leadership is extensive — with his role as CEO at Gundersen Health System for 14 years being especially remarkable. During his tenure at Gundersen Health System, they had been recognized across the country for their high-quality patient care. In his book, Lead True: Live Your Values, Build Your People, Inspire Your Community, Jeff illustrates how a true leader puts the...2019-04-0532 minAgile Coaches' CornerEmbedding DevOps in Large Organizations, with Barry MatheneyRepeat guest Barry Matheney joins Dan Neumann for this week’s episode of the Agile Coaches’ Corner podcast! Barry is an agile thinker, an expert in the DevOps space, and a colleague of Dan’s at AgileThought — serving as a Senior DevOps Consultant. Prior to his role at AgileThought, he was the Director of Enterprise Applications at Kforce Inc. Last time Barry was on the podcast, they discussed embedding DevOps into Scrum teams with Eric Landes. This week, they’re taking it up a notch and discussing even bigger projects: They talk about w...2019-03-1530 minAgile Coaches' CornerChallenges with Large-Scale Software Delivery, with AgileThought ColleaguesIn this week’s episode of Agile Coaches’ Corner, Dan Neumann is joined by two of his colleagues at AgileThought — the Vice President of Build Practice, Taylor Howard; and the Vice President of Transform Practice, Steven Granese. Taylor’s work with Build Practice involves supporting the absolute best practitioners in the business — including Data Scientists, Architects, Delivery Leaders, Engineers, and Analysts with multiple technical competencies and domain experience. Taylor and his team translate business strategy into a technical roadmap, delivering cloud-first and hybrid solutions at a global scale. Steven’s work with Transform Practice is focused on or...2019-03-0832 minAgile Coaches' CornerQuincy Jordan on Cultural DebtIn this week’s episode of Agile Coaches’ Corner, Dan Neumann welcomes back a return guest — Quincy Jordan! Quincy is a Principal Transformation Consultant and has been with AgileThought for about one year now. Previous to that, he has served as a Principal Consultant and Agile Coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. Quincy’s mission is to help companies and people who are ineffective in their own mission by assisting them in transforming from what they are to what they desire to be. Today, they’re going to be exploring the topic of cultural de...2019-03-0136 minAgile Coaches' CornerChris Spagnuolo on Design ThinkingIn this week’s episode of Agile Coaches’ Corner, Dan Neumann brings on a colleague of his at AgileThought to explore the topic of design thinking — Chris Spagnuolo. Chris is one of the Product Specialists at AgileThought, serving as Principal Consultant of Product Management and Innovation. He has a deep background in a lot of things from a products standpoint and is incredibly passionate about all things related to design thinking, Lean Startup, and Agile. Dan and Chris give their insight on what design thinking is, where it came from, its core elements, and how to inco...2019-02-2234 minAgile Coaches' CornerFoundational Elements of Ethical Negotiating with Mike CooperDan Neumann is excited to bring you another fantastic colleague of his on today’s show — Mike Cooper! Mike has an extensive background in negotiation and experience with restructuring bank deals, brokerages, negotiating property sales, and managing a bunch of sales folks. After a long and successful career leading software organizations, Mike now focuses entirely on technology consulting and is a Senior Cloud Technical Architect at AgileThought. In this episode, Mike takes Dan through the foundational elements to ethical negotiating and gives his tips and techniques on how to generate positive, win/win outcomes. He expla...2019-02-1532 minAgile Coaches' CornerThe Importance of Embedding a DevOps Skillset into Your Team, with Eric Landes and Barry MatheneyYour host, Dan Neumann, is excited to bring you two guests for this week’s episode — repeat guest, Eric Landes, and Barry Matheney. Eric and Barry are both Agile thinkers, experts in the DevOps space, and colleagues of Dan at AgileThought. Eric Landes is a Scrum.org certified professional Scrum trainer and currently serves as a Senior DevOps Consultant, ALM Director, and Solutions Architect. Barry also is a Senior DevOps Consultant. Previously to his role at AgileThought, he served as Director Enterprise Applications at Kforce Inc. Today, they’re talking about DevOps a...2019-02-0831 minAgile Coaches' CornerExploring the DevOps Movement with Sean DavisToday on the Agile Coaches’ Corner, your host, Dan Neumann invites on Sean Davis to explore the DevOps movement. Sean is one of Dan’s colleagues at AgileThought and is a DevOps expert and frequent conference speaker. He has been a Business Transformation Consultant at AgileThought for nearly two years now and previously was a Technical Advisor at InterContinental Hotel Groups. In this episode, Dan and Sean explore the background and history behind DevOps, where they believe it is headed in the future, the enablers that help teams be most effective with DevOps, important mindsets to br...2019-01-2533 minAgile Coaches' CornerCommunities of Practice with Quincy JordanJoining Dan Neumann today is one of his AgileThought colleagues, Quincy Jordan. Quincy is a Principal Transformation Consultant and has been with AgileThought for about one year now. Previous to that, he has served as a Principal Consultant and Agile Coach at SCRUMstudy.com for over six years. Quincy’s mission is to help companies and people who are ineffective in their own mission by assisting them in transforming from what they are to what they desire to be. In today’s episode, Quincy explains what exactly a community or practice is, wh...2018-12-0730 minAgile Coaches' CornerDo Scrum Well Before Scaling!Welcome to the first episode of Agile Coaches’ Corner, by AgileThought — the podcast for practitioners and leaders seeking advice to refine the way they work and pave the path to better outcomes. Your host is Dan Neumann, agile coach and expert. This episode, Dan is joined by his fellow coach and colleague, Sam Falco, to explore the importance of doing Scrum well before scaling. They answer key questions in regards to scaling Scrum, address dysfunctions in Scrum that can derail a scaling effort (and how to avoid them), the importance of integrating engineering practices and techn...2018-11-2325 min