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Blog Post

It's Still About the Team

January 23, 2024
When using Scrum for a single team, it's important to prioritize Agile principles, business outcomes and team success. The same is true when scaling to include multiple teams. Learn more in this week's podcast!
Blog Post

How to Explain Definition of Done

January 18, 2024
Definition of Done is one of the most misunderstood concepts for people attending our Scrum training classes. It’s probably also understood by people in your organization. In this episode, we share how two Scrum trainers explain it in their classes.
Blog Post

Stakeholder Management for Product Owners

January 16, 2024
Not all stakeholders are the same. To be a great Product Owner, you must understand their needs and segment them accordingly. Tune in to this episode as Jeff and Mike share strategies in ways Product Owners can manage and build relationships with their stakeholders, delivering more value with less friction.
Blog Post

Essential Skills for Product Owners

January 11, 2024
It’s more than just ordering the work for a team. A great Product Owner must have hard skills to make them more effective at working with stakeholders and managing a Product Backlog.
Blog Post

Breaking Down Work

December 12, 2023
Create focus for your team and get more done by breaking down work. In this episode, Jeff and Mike explore the transformative impact of aligning teams to a Product Vision and creating incremental goals that bring your product toward that vision.
Blog Post

Should Scrum Masters Be Technical?

December 7, 2023
Scrum Masters need to have technical skills, but they aren't the same skills that the Developers on their Scrum Teams need. Discover the benefits of a Scrum Master's technical toolkit.
Blog Post

MVP - What it is Supposed to Mean

November 9, 2023
The term Minimum Viable Product means different things to different people.  Is your company using it to define the first of a series of fixed scope, fixed date projects?  If so, you're probably not using it right.
Blog Post

The Spike Dilemma

November 7, 2023
Join Jeff and Mike as they unravel the complexities of spikes, transitioning from uncertainty to wisdom in Agile, and the essential mindset shift needed for teams to “get things done”.
Blog Post

Increase Your Product Backlog's Transparency

September 28, 2023
Product Owners are accountable to provide stakeholders have a clear understanding of the product's direction. In this new episode of the take5IRL podcast, Jeff and Mike explore methods for enhancing transparency. Discover how providing transparency to the Product Backlog can foster a shared vision and facilitate meaningful collaboration with stakeholders.
Blog Post

Will Kanban fix my Scrum?

September 11, 2023
We have seen many Scrum teams attempt to resolve challenges by giving up and moving to Kanban. However, the decision to switch from Scrum to Kanban typically arises not from Scrum shortcomings, but rather from challenges in its implementation. In this episode, Jeff and Mike explore misguided reasons to move away from Scrum and things to consider before making that move.
Blog Post

Stop Starting, Start Finishing!

July 27, 2023
Does your Scrum Team often find itself with carryover work from the previous Sprint? Does that make your team an unproductive one? Whose fault is it? In this episode, Jeff and Mike share how to limit sprint-to-sprint carryover.  Listen and share with your team so things get DONE.
Blog Post

Don't Sleep on Culture

July 17, 2023
Agile cannot be implemented effectively if the culture of the organization doesn’t evolve with the process. In this episode we invite a special guest, Jim Ruprecht (an agilityIRL founder), to share why and how organizational culture is so important.
Blog Post

Why Agile Transformations Fail.

July 10, 2023
Despite the headline, Agile transformations and evolutions can also succeed! Key ingredients include getting the right level of leadership involvement and an organizational commitment to learning.
Blog Post

Establishing Psychological Safety

July 6, 2023
In our latest episode, I refer to a former client who did an amazing job at making production outage retrospectives a safe space to learn. Hopefully sharing your story helps others to do the same.
Blog Post

Can Remote Scrum Teams Work?

June 6, 2023
Yes! Scrum Teams can be effective when working remotely. However, it takes intentionally effort and discipline to break down the barriers that are inherent in remote work.
Blog Post

Wayne the Scrum Master?

June 22, 2022
Would Wayne be a good Scrum Master? If you're familiar with the Hulu show "Letterkenny", then you most likely already have an opinion. You be the judge on if Wayne's catchphrases set him up for success in his interview for a Scrum Master role.